The members of student’s mountainbike and cycling association Dutch Mountains in Maastricht are in for sports and a sociable time. Cycling and mountainbiking is possible on any level, from starter who never rode on a racing- or mountainbike before to experienced competitive riders with a license. Besides sports, there is also more than enough time to be sociable. We have monthly activities, three member’s weekend a year and more than enough fun in between.
New Year’s Dinner 2020
At the end of January, Dutch Mountains members met up for the annual New Year’s dinner at De Haselderhof in Valkenburg. The members, dressed up in their nicest suits and dresses, were rewarded for their small trek up the hill to the restaurant with delicious meals and wines. Pictures were made, stories were told and Willem gave an entertaining speech.
We would like to thank De Haselderhof for the lovely evening!
Ook nu weer bedankt aan alle sponsoren voor een schoon 2010 en hopelijk een nog beter 2020
Members’ Weekend in Malmedy
Dutch Mountains spent last weekend in Malmedy, Belgium, cycling up and down the hilly Ardennes. It was the first members’ weekend of the new academic year, allowing old and new members to get to know each other on and off the bike.
On Friday afternoon, members headed south from Maastricht on their bikes against a strong headwind. Most managed to get to the hostel in Chôdes before nightfall, with a few arriving slightly later. A delicious Nasi Goreng was served at dinner, after which new members were asked to introduce themselves. While some cyclists went to bed early to recharge for Saturday, a fair number stayed in the main hall, playing card games and telling tall tales past midnight.
Saturday started off a little cloudy, prompting members to wear warm clothing on their rides. All in all, there were five groups; the MTB group, and the 60 km, 100 km 140 km, and 200 km road-cycling groups. While the distances varied, all groups encountered steep climbs and had to push themselves to reach the hilltops. After conquering each summit, they were rewarded with breathtaking views of the Ardennes. After a tasty pasta dinner that evening, most members went bowling in Malmedy, whilst a few others stayed at the hostel and played board games. One of these games took considerably more time to explain than to actually play. Similarly to the night before, some people stayed up late and sang songs together.
On Sunday, while some members were still in bed, a small group walked down the hill from Chôdes to Malmedy after breakfast and had coffee in the morning sun. After all members had eaten breakfast, everybody packed their belongings and helped clean up. The weather (25 °C and sunny with a small tailwind) was perfect for the trip back to Maastricht, allowing people to reach new speed averages on Strava.
Owing to the fantastic weather and with no reported accidents, this members’ weekend was a definite success and a lot of fun!
New years diner at Haselderhof
Dutch Mountains went to Valkenburg on a snowy Thursday. Why could you ask? Well we had a diner at the restaurant of one of our sponsors: Haselderhof. Everyone was dressed fancily and excitement was all around. Also some hungry bellies, but that would be taken care of as soon as we entered the restaurant. The food was great, the atmosphere too. There was a lot of laughter, interesting conversations, delicious meals and even a speach from Thijs to top it all of. It is save to say that we all enjoyed the evening and some of us also the night, because they kept on going until the small morning hours, when the sun rose almost. The evening was a complete succes, we cannot wait until the next time this many members are present to celibrate an event. Hope to see you all soon!
Thanks to all our sponsors for a great 2018 and hopefully an even better 2019!