The good news is that the ice is likely pretty thick in spots. The bad news is that the ice has a few inches of snow cover and also probably has some holes in spots.
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This is the best video of a skating tour that I found as its shows the requisite shots of windmills in the background (for this American), tour cards getting stamped at the checkpoints, and "kluning", or "portaging", around obstacles or weak ice spots on the canal by walking over carpet or plywood. (Click on the video below or better yet, the URL link and then view in high quality at YouTube.) Molentocht Alblasserwaard 2009 See it at http://nl.youtube.com/watch?v=QLO3cf0TNOo and click on the 'watch in high quality' link as the video quality is better. AP Photo of Kinderdijk mill area near Rotterdam on 3 January 2009. This past weekend of January 10 and 11, nearly 1 million Dutch people took to the ice of the canals of the Netherlands. It was reported that “…over 100,000 people took part in organized skating tours through the Dutch countryside on Sunday, the skating association KNSB told news agency ANP. In total, there were 23 organized routes, ranging in length from 10 to 200km. It was the first time in 12 years that skating tours over natural ice have taken place. All over the country, experienced and novice skaters flocked to rivers, lakes and outdoor ice rinks and there was heavy traffic congestion along the narrow country roads in popular skating areas. In total up to half a million people enjoyed the ice this weekend, ANP said.” (from DutchNews.nl 12 Jan 2009). Hendrick Avercamp, A Scene On The Ice, National Gallery of Art, Washington DC, USA A little belated, but last Friday marked the 100th anniversary of the first official Elfstedentocht in the Netherlands held on 2 January 1909. As if on cue to celebrate, Europe had a cold snap and the canals were frozen. While a thaw is expected, dreams of the first Elfstedentocht since 1997 were shared by many a Dutchman (and skaters around the world as well). It appears from several videos and photos of the recent freeze that the ice was good, with the skaters comfortably skating over smooth ice in clap skates and traditional long-track speedskates. Not every Elfstedentocht had it so well...the 1963 race was infamous for its difficult conditions and the winner was 3 1/2 hours slower than the winning time in 1954. Video from Radio Netherlands Worldwide. http://www.radionetherlands.nl/currentaffairs/region/netherlands/090102-Eleven-Cities-Tour-mc Europe's recent cold spell has managed to freeze the canals all over the Netherlands. While it has been less cold in the north and a warmup may come before there can be an Elfstedentocht, there are many skating tours . This weekend, Jan 9 - 11, a variety of tours will be held with distances from 5km to 100km (see http://www.knsb.nl website, and then click on the button for "toertochten op natuurijs", which means 'tour on natural ice" tab, or the "toerschaatsen" tab (skating tour). The website is inundated with demand right now as skating fever has gripped the Dutch. A midweek tour with a marathon distance of 40km near the village of Kortenhoef attracted 20,000 skaters with some 250 members of the newsmedia. A check of www.videos.nieuws.nl/binnenland shows the news media has already done a fair amount of skating stories and now has managed to do a feature about people falling on the ice and getting injured. Local media everywhere do similar things--in the US the features on safe winter driving tips and sending the local reporter to the grocery store to show depleted bread shelves never fail to amuse, as if that 6 inches of snow is going to entrap your household and make your neighborhood into the Donner Party. |
Editor - JimThis blog weighs in on topics such as long-distance skating, the Illinois canals, cycling, and a variety of related (and occasionally not-so-related) topics. I'd like to correspond with others interested in skating the Hennepin and I&M canals. Archives
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