24 Hour Race

7th Dutch: the bike messengers’ answer to the Giro

1 May 2010
2 May 2010

Dutch bike messengers are just as much cycling pros as the Giro cyclists are. To prove this, Kees Vernooij and Mediamatic organized a 24 hour alleycat during which contestants covered 430 kilometers in only 24 hours. They battled each other, the distance, the exhaustion and most of all, themselves.

Enlarge

24 hour race - flyer via dutchmessengers.org

The race

The cyclists started in Amsterdam and passed the famous Dutch dikes and dams to visit Middelburg. Via Breda, Den Bosch and Utrecht they returned to finish in Amsterdam. Riders had to rely on their own orientation, skills and physical powers to connect the different checkpoints. They had to register at each point with an ikTag, which streamed a time notation with an instant portrait or status update to the web. Checkpoint volunteers gave the riders a moral boost, food and drinks before they were off on their own again.

The Mediamatic Bank headquarters

In the meantime, the direct stream of information to the web enabled supporters to follow the riders’ transformation from strong, fresh men to powerless sleepyheads. To see a full report, please check out the 24 hour blog.

Tell your story of the ride.

Checkpoints

Amsterdam: START group ride to Nes a/d Amstel – official start Amsteldijk Zuid
Rotterdam 1: Urban Delights, De Kempenaerstraat 1a (19.00 - 21.00)
Rotterdam 2: De Rotterdamse Fietskoerier, Daltonlaan 5 (19.10 - 21.10)
Stellendam: Bus Osdorp Fixed Gear / Bus Cycloon Fietskoeriers, Haringvlietplein (20.15 - 23.45)
Middelburg 1: Fruitigfris Fietskoerier, Veerseweg 24 (21.30 - 02.30)
Middelburg 2: Fruitigfris Fietskoerier, Nassaulaan 22 (21.35 - 02.35)
Breda: Bus Osdorp Fixed Gear, Speelhuislaan (00.45 - 08.15)
Den Bosch: Short-cut Fietskoeriers, Papenhulst 24 (02.00 - 10.45)
Utrecht: De Fietskoerier Utrecht, Oudwijkerdwarsstraat 61 (04.15 - 14.15)
Amsterdam: FINISH - Mediamatic Bank, Vijzelstraat 68 (05.30 - 17.00)