So Friday was the 4th day of the 40th Six Days Races in Rotterdam. It is always a treat to see all the action first-hand, attend with colleagues, and run into so many friends and former customers. It really felt like a family reunion!
We ran into Bas from Magistrale Coffee (a loyal reader of the newsletter. Thank you, Bas!), as well as Otto & Terry of 2Moso (a former long-time Twotone client) and friends of Twotone Laurens ten Dam, Michelle de Graaf, Bruno Bobbink & Stephan de Goede. (If you need a badass sports photographer for a campaign or event, give Stephan a shout!)
Before moving to Amsterdam, I admired Six Days racing from afar for many years and first attended one at my local velodrome, Sloten, back in 2013. I think back then, I might have imagined actually racing in one but don't have delusions like that anymore. Ha!
"The first six-day event was an individual time trial at the Agricultural Hall in Islington, London, in 1878, when a professional called David Stanton sought a bet that he could ride 1,000 miles in six successive days, riding 18 hours a day. A Mr Davis put up £100 and the stake was held by the Sporting Life newspaper. Stanton started at 6am on 25 February and won the bet in 73 hours, riding on a high-wheeled machine at an average speed of 13.5 mph." – Wikipedia
1891 was the first Six Days of New York was held in Madison Square Garden. Initially, these races were contests of raw endurance, with a single rider completing as many laps as possible. By 1898, the format evolved to focus on a handsling pairs format that became known simply as: the Madison (aka course à l'américaine, in French, as Americana in Spanish and in Italian, and koppelkoers in Dutch.)
The success of Madison racing in the USA led to Six Days' introduction in Europe. Initially in Toulouse in 1906 (scratched after three days due to disinterest) Then, Berlin tried, three years later, with success. Five races were held in Germany in 1911–12. Then Brussels followed in 1912 and Paris in 1913. The Rotterdam Six Days tradition has been going (minus a big break between '38 & '67) since 1936! Friday was a blast! Congrats to Yoeri Havik & Jan-Willem van Schip on the overall win & thank you again, 2Moso, for the tickets! : )
Six Days Ghent is one that is still on my list. Who wants to go with me in 2024? : )
Lastly, just a quick note to keep the ‘From Scratch’ screening on Jan 12th and our next #doxunderthetracks on Jan 26, on your mind. And a mention I'll also be heading back down to Kortrijk for Velofollies once again next year. Likely only on Friday the 19th, but if you've got reasons, we should stay an extra day. Say hey!
Thank you, as always, for reading & wishing you an awesome week ahead!
Jon
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