During last week in Houten there was a bicycle festival, and this culminated in a cycle ride on Sunday for the people of Houten. It started at a point just inside the Rondweg, or the circular road for vehicles which surrounds the city of Houten, and finished a bit further around, at the sports centre. I guess we cycled about a third of the way around our part of the Rondweg. I should say there were many different types of wheels, as can be seen by the photographs below.
Raphy, Abi, Kylie and a friend who insisted on being in the photograph as well. All ready to start. We needed to stand in the shade as it was a beautiful sunny day but also very warm.
The band were fantastic, not only were they musically very good but rode this multi seated bicycle together, whilst playing their instruments. The man at the back used a huge horn and used his feet to play the drum at the back. He did not pedal! They turned the bike around on some very tight corners, and lead the procession of people on wheels all the way to the sports centre.
I think there was about 600 people taking part in the event.
Kylie took the photographs below of the different forms of bicycles and scooters. There were also a large number of people on roller blades. I also saw a small child in a pedal car, but am not sure how far he went, as that would have been hard work.
Thank you Kylie for allowing me to use the photographs.
The bakfiets, a two wheeled bicycle with a box on the front. It requires good balance on the part of the rider, I think.
The mayor of Houten, giving a speech before the ride.
I am not sure what the little wheel is used for on the bicycle above.
A stable bicycle with a box on the front, as it has three wheels. This was a very colourful participant.
A bicycle with a trailer, more my type. There were plenty of these scooters with large front
wheels and smaller back wheels.
Another bakfiets with a child sitting happily in it. Plus a shared bicycle.
The following two photographs were taken by an official photographer. Kylie and Raphy starting off together. Both looking very happy. I am behind Kylie. I think that Raphy had very tired legs by the time he reached the Sports Centre.
And that is me, looking very serious. I found it scary at first, due to riding in amongst so many people, with children darting in and out around us. The Dutchies were quite unconcerned, I might add. I started to relax about five minutes after this photograph was taken.
Abi, on her roller blades, at the finish. She of course found it all very easy, as she goes to ice skating lessons every week. She has great balance and poise.
Just a couple of photographs of bicycle paths in Houten. The city is a peanut shaped with a vehicle road running around the outside of it. There are roads leading into each suburb, with a speed limit of 30 kmh, so it is possible to drive to the carpark by your house, but impossible to drive from one suburb to another. Much of the city is vehicle free, except for scooters, and little electric cars.
This bicycle path is the one we take to get to Aaron and Kylie's house,
and this one leads to the shopping centre.
The shopping centre in this part of Houten, with the railway station at the rear, plus the shopping centres on both sides of the cycle path. No cars!
In this bicycle heaven there are a couple of problems, one is the increasing use of electrically powered bicycles, which in this country often do not have speed restrictions built into them, and the other are the young people on scooters. The scooters shatter the peace, and the riders tend to ride quite carelessly and the fast electrically powered bicycles are just going too fast, especially in the mornings when there are also children riding to school.
After talking to Kylie this evening, I have found out that there is a government concern, and one idea is to have a fast cycle lane, for the fast cyclists on super electric bikes. And I guess for the scooter riders also.
But in the meantime life cannot be perfect, but it nearly is in Houten.
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