These are the corona measures for the Weissensee Alternative Dutch 11-City Tour

De Weissensee Alternative Dutch 11-City Tour is taking specific measures because of the coronavirus. With these the organisation hopes to prevent COVID-19 spreading further. “Only with these measures can we organise an event safely.”

An addition to the basic rules

Standards such as keeping your distance and washing your hands still apply. The AEW corona measures come on top of those basic rules. The 2021 edition on the Weissensee will clearly be different from other years.

The AEW’s specific corona measures

Through its online channels the organisation has announced several measures . Participants are spread over starting groups of no more than 200 people.

• Each starting group also has its own colour and its own refreshment post.
• At organised tours spectators are barely allowed, if at all, with certain zones off limits.
• Mouth and nose protection in the zone around the start and finish, the refreshment posts, the organisation tent and the toilets.

Corona measures: starting pack, finish and disinfection

The day before the tour you collect your ‘starting papers’. That is a kind of starting pack with important items. Among them is a transponder. This small device records your lap times.

• You can collect your starting papers in the organisation tent. A maximum number of visitors applies there.
• Furthermore “it is compulsory to wear mouth and nose protection and to disinfect your hands on entering”.

Disinfection plays a part after the finish as well. At that point you hand in your transponder to the staff, who will be clearly recognisable. Every transponder is disinfected. The toilets near the ice are disinfected regularly too.

The blister ball and the bingo?

We regularly refer to skating the Weissensee as an experience not to be missed. And to the fact that it is ‘different from other years’ every single year. But there are ‘constants’ as well.

• The bingo and the blister ball are two of them. These fixtures have been scrapped, along with the entire entertainment programme.

As if a bingo were anything special. It is. The bingo is well known, notorious and famous on the Weissensee. It is the hippest, maddest, merriest version you could imagine. Which is why we will rather miss it.

And the blister ball? Well, that is the skating version of après-ski. Squared. A fantastic part of it all.

Despite the absence of the classic festivities, we are glad to be there again. The sporting challenge remains. So does the beauty of the nature park.

A skating holiday at the source of calm and zest for life. We are looking forward to it.