SAVING TRACK CYCLING CULTURE

It’s the traditional LSRF teambuilding trip: a visit to the Six Days of Gent. This indoor track cycling event is, next to the cyclocross season, a perfect way to escape the long winter months and to compensate for the lack of cycling races. These two disciplines are very much different, but there are also similarities. Both races are held on a 'handkerchief', as we Dutchies would describe it. You can pretty much watch the race unfold from your seat or standing place. The music is loud, the beer runs faster than it does in summer. You take your wellies and your warmest coat to the cyclocross, but at the Six Days, you show up in your best shirt and you have your coat taken to the cloakroom. Different styles, but with one thing in common: a fun day or night out as a light in a tunnel of endless cycling darkness.

The Kuipke of Gent, where the Six Days are held, has a track build for this one week per year and for one extra day when the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad is scheduled. In Rotterdam, Sportpaleis Ahoy has a complete track build for only one week per year, the Six Days of Rotterdam. These events form the highlights for track cyclists, next to the Nationals, Worlds and Olympics of course. Our Dutch men and women track champions have a fine reputation for setting the tone, but a new generation is difficult to build when the options for indoor cycling are becoming more and more limited. Where do you learn to ride an indoor track as a young athlete? How and where do you train?

Cees Bol changing gears. Lorena Wiebes crosses the finish line in front of Lonneke Uneken. Photos by @rick_slijkhuis 

History of the velodrome (of Alkmaar)

Track cycling has been part of the Olympic Games since 1896 and has always been on the menu. The only exception was when Stockholm was the host in 1924 and only the cycling road race was held. Track cycling is still popular in Europe, notably Belgium, France, Germany and the United Kingdom. In the United States, track racing was mostly popular in the 1930s when six-day races were held in Madison Square Garden in New York. The "Madison" is now known as a type of track race. In Japan, people like to bet on the so called keirin races. Nowadays, there are about 900 velodromes throughout the world of which 80 are indoor velodromes spread over 37 countries.

Now this is foremost a story about the Velodrome of Alkmaar, called Sportpaleis Alkmaar, but this could be a story about any other velodrome in the world, that is struggling to stay alive. In the early 1900s there used to be a massive 200 velodromes in this little country. Sportpaleis Alkmaar is one of the only three remaining indoor velodromes in the Netherlands, only one outdoor track still exists. There is a 200 meter long indoor track in Amsterdam, but it lacks the 50 meters necessary to comply with Olympian standards. In Apeldoorn, there is a modern track with a brand new wooden floor that was installed in 2016 and in Alkmaar, we have the Sportpaleis where Laurens ten Dam rode his first laps 25 years ago. The structure is very old, it was build in 1964 but the track has been renovated in 2003. The concrete floors were switched for wood and the semi-covered structure was given a full ceiling. In the Netherlands, it is the only velodrome where you can still see the rare discipline of motor-paced cycling, called ‘stayeren’. Not to be mistaken for derny-paced cycling, which is a more common discipline. The wooden track is still up-to-date and ready for action.

Stayeren: the art of motor-paced racing

Velodrome: on the verge of falling 

Having a solid wooden floor isn’t enough, unfortunately. In 2023, the condition of the Sportpaleis Alkmaar itself was a reason to sound the alarm. When it was raining, and it rains a lot in Holland, the water would not only get through the ceiling, but would also come up from the ground, seeping through the floors. Since Covid-19 had hit the world, things had gone south for this building. Less and less races were held because of the diminishing number of club members and less and less people came to watch them. The initial idea of renting the mid section to other sports teams did not work out due to the unfavorable conditions of the building. End of 2023 there was not much hope for the velodrome. Nobody really felt responsible anymore. A petition to keep the velodrome was organized, but this action was simply not enough to actually make a difference. Renovating the velodrome was going to cost around 10 million euros and who was going to pay for that?

In november 2023 Laurens got a phone call from his former and first ever trainer, Herman. He asked him to join him to see the city council. Together with Niki Terpstra and Reinier Honig, who had also started their careers on the concrete track of the Sportpaleis in the nineties, they were informed about the state of the track. The city of Alkmaar did not know what to do with it anymore. Not enough cycling activities were organized by the local club, there was a bigger need for more indoor sports halls than a cycling track, the maintaining of the building was very expensive, etc, etc. There was no decision yet about whether to put the whole thing down or to start renovating it with a different purpose in mind, but it was clear the future for track cycling did not shine bright. 

The track simply needed to be used more and generate income. There was a need for races and animation. Sportpaleis Alkmaar had been degraded in the eyes of the local residents, with a gate that was always closed, green algae and moss on the walls and windows and weeds around the building getting to immense heights. Niki, Reinier and Laurens had done so many training sessions and races on this track. They rode races on Tuesdays, where they tried to dubbel their allowance for that week by winning a few more guldens. It’s where Laurens bought his first pair of click cycling shoes and where he trained his balls of on Thursdays. Niki had a great cycling career and was an important Six Day participant and Reinier is the European Champion Stayeren of 2024 and 10 time National Champion. If Sportpaleis Alkmaar would stop existing, track cycling would become a very regional sport near Apeldoorn with very limited options for those living further away. Nonetheless, the city council was right about the current state of things.

From left to right: Reinier Honig, Niki Terpstra and Laurens ten Dam

New initiative to save the velodrome

The trio couldn’t do much about the situation with the building itself. That care is done by Alkmaar Sport, a public private organization that also does the job of taking care of the pool, the ice rink, the soccer fields, the indoor sports halls et a lot more facilities. The exploit of the indoor track had not been lucrative for many years and therefore, it had taken a steady place down at the bottom of the to do-list, resulting in even less initiative. 

What they could do, was to jump in the hole that was left by the club in Alkmaar, when they had admitted they could not fill the calendar anymore with training sessions and races. That’s where they thought they could make a difference, with their own enthousiasme about those Tuesday races from the early days . The three former pro-cyclists, with at least 15 years of experience each, had so much to thank for because of this place. They created the necessary foundation and got to work.

Niki is the president (how can he not be?), Reinier the secretary and Laurens is the treasurer. They had gotten a lot of help from Joeri Stoop, who has a lot of experience in organizing cycling races and was responsible for getting the Dutch National Championships Youth Cycling to Alkmaar. All four of them have been working hard to make sure their money is where their mouths are - the creation of a full season calendar with 15 Tuesday Night races and three Dutch Championships. Having these races costs money and with zero euro on the foundation’s bank account, they hade to use their network big time. The boarding surrounding the track still mentioned sponsors that had already been declared bankrupt for years. They found a new head sponsor for this competition in the likes of GP Groot, thereby creating the second business club of Alkmaar, next to AZ, the city’s big soccer team. Now, 25 companies are giving this track a second chance to proof itself.

The indoor track cycling season so far

On the 15th of October it was go time. The opening night was a big success with a lot of audience interested in seeing this place come to live again. Meanwhile, 13 Tuesday Night races and two Dutch Championships have been held. Twice the amount of cyclists came to the open training sessions and more than 70 cyclists are competing for the classification. On an average race night, about 100 people are spectating. Niki, Reinier and Laurens have been present every race day, helping out the volunteers, taking part in the jury and making sure everybody was having a good time.

New ideas are planned for next season, deo volente. In January, a lot of pro cyclists, that use the track as an indoor escape from the cold an wet winter, leave the country to prepare for the early road season. By organizing more races for the younger age groups (under 18 years old) and the masters age group (+35), the foundation hopes to keep the spirit alive. Laurens might even take his old track bike from the attic.. By getting the open training fee down from 12 to 5 euros for kids, they hope to get rid of that final barrier to get the young people acquainted to this exciting sport. It would be such a missed opportunity if money would be a dealbreaker for a young boy or girl. 

The verdict - game of politics

In the national and regional press, the Tuesday Night races have gotten a lot of attention, as well as the National Championships, in which world champions and Olympic medalists have participated. The vibe around Sportpaleis Alkmaar is turning and people are more positive about a possible future. This year has been the best financial year ever for Sportpaleis Alkmaar. The KNWU, the Dutch National Cycling Federation, is keen on contributing to the future of indoor cycling with organizing more championships in Alkmaar and intensifying the training program for regional talented cyclists. Very promising indeed, as it turned out that on Jan 15th the city’s college of mayor & aldermen decided to be in favor of keeping the velodrome.

End of February, this decision will be taken into the City Council for voting. The game of politics is about to start. Let us hope for a positive outcome for the track that is so important to educate our future stars and to bring joy to the cyclists of today. A fierce renovation is on the program, yes, but if it will be done properly, there will be a velodrome to dream of for many generations to come.