GP Groot Winter Competition

The new GP Groot Winter Competition was born on the initiative of three well-known faces from the cycling world: Niki Terpstra, Laurens ten Dam and Reinier Honig. Ever since they heard that the track in Alkmaar, on which they have ridden many thousands of laps since their youth, could well be closed within a few years, they have been working on a rescue plan.

The cycling track in Alkmaar dates from the sixties. It started as a 250-metre open-air concrete track; later the track was covered and the concrete was replaced by a fast wooden track. Dutch championships and stayer races, among others, are held here. For several years now, Sportpaleis Alkmaar has been the subject of new renovation plans to make the building future-proof.

In January, however, it was announced that the municipality is not yet going ahead with the plans and first wants to carry out a new study into whether a cycling track in Alkmaar is still desirable. With the new race series, Terpstra, Ten Dam and Honig want to show that there is still a lot of interest in track cycling among riders and that the Alkmaar track is very much viable.

Super Tuesday
This winter, a weekly omnium for pairs is organised in which young talents can ride with today’s top Dutch track riders. And every first Tuesday of the month is Super Tuesday, when, unlike in the regular races, everyone is free to choose their gearing, there is prize money and riders can ride with a partner of their choice. The cycling figures also secured the promise that the Dutch derny championship, the Dutch omnium championship and the Dutch stayer championship will all be held in Alkmaar.