SSWC06 in Stockholm, Sweden.
Skrivet av
Markus F den 15e januari, 2006
Text: Markus Femling (markus@happymtb.org)
Photo: Tobbe Arnesson (tnt@happymtb.org)
No stain, no gain. The full truth about the upcoming Singlespeed World Championships in Stockholm, Sweden 2006
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.. just enjoying the trails..
In order to gather some information about the SSWC that will happen in Sweden this summer, we at HappyMTB met with organizer Tobias Jönsson. We met him at our favorite Czech pub to ask some questions:
Why Stockholm? What is it that you and Joachim Simonssen can offer that made the guys at Surly decide in your favor?
- Well, first of all I think that we made a good impression. We did the Swedish Singlespeed Championships in 2003 and 2004, and they liked what we did with the Tour de Retard (a 100km SS/Fixie race on gravel roads, in the same spirit as the early 1900´s with wine, salami and blueberry pie at the feed stations.) Another thing that probably meant a lot was that this event can be pretty much car-free. The only internal combustion vehicles needed will be the supply trucks for the arrangers. Participants will not need rental cars to get from the airport to town or to get around town once here. The racetrack is within easy biking distance from the city center, and the course that we are planning to use is a 20+ km loop of rooty, rocky singletrack. That is pretty unique for a city with a population of one million. Besides, it was Europe’s turn to hold the event. The Germans did it in 2004 and the Italians are busy with the European Championships in September.
What can you tell us about the racecourse?
- The racecourse will be great, but we want to keep it secret as long as possible. We have to come to agreement with the landowners first and we will need to do some trail maintenance.
Oh come on, everybody knows that it has to be in Hellas! (Hellas recreational park southeast of Stockholm City.)
- I’ve been waiting a long time to say “No Comment”, so i finally get to say it: “No Comment!”
I Think we do need to clarify the difference between the SSWC and XCWC a little, in which way does this event differ from any other international races?
- Mostly it is the participants. The only license we ask for is the one we give out ourselves during registration; it’s a ”license to drink beer during the race”. But, as this is the World Championships we are going to demand some commitment. Racers should compete on real Singlespeeds. We won’t allow ordinary XC-bikes with the shifters fixed into one gear by tape. Anybody showing up with that setup can expect to have their cables cut, and we might even auction off the shifters and derailleurs.
License to drink beer? Then you have set a minimum age of 18 years?
- Yes, everyone who registers will have to sign a waiver stating that they are over 18 and that they participate at their own risk. We won’t be insuring the racers.
What about registration? Are you going to have some kind of quota for different countries?
- Yes, were going to do that. We haven’t decided yet about how we are going to do it exactly, but well keep some wildcard spots available. If some people from Kyrgyzstan turn up at the last minute, we want to make sure they get to race. (Note: Be prepared to show passports if you plan to show up at the last minute claiming to be from Kyrgyzstan!)
Singlespeeding has gone from being an alternative way of cycling to being more mainstream. Many XC-racers dump their gears and find themselves being at least as fast as before. What is your opinion on that?
- Everybody is welcome to our party. But the winner must remember that the tattoo is not an option, it is compulsory. If you don’t want the ink, don’t win. We are going to write in the registration papers that the winner agrees to be tattooed by our official artist directly after finishing the race.
OK, so where’s the party going to be, and will there be any other happenings?
- We have three different venues we are discussing at the moment. There aren’t many places in central Stockholm that can take as many as 500+ persons, that have a stage and that can take the abuse of so many singlespeeders for three days. Also we want to have a good area for informal street racing outside the official bar. Since people will be traveling long distances we want to offer guided tours on the days surrounding the race. One idea is to take cyclists out on boats in the archipelago and inland on the lake and guide them on the trails there and back to the city.
This is going to be big. So, how do you going to put this to the authorities, that Stockholm is going to be invaded by 500 beer-drinking cyclists this summer?
- It’s the World Championships, and those are magic words. We don’t necessarily have to reveal all of our plans in advance, but some cooperation with the police will be necessary, of course. Imagine having an entire peloton of singlespeeders cruising out to the race with a police motorcycle escort!
And finally, what is the date?
- The race itself will be on Saturday, August 19, but the party starts Friday, August 18 and will continue until Sunday.
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Jocke, AKA "Newsboy"..
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Tobias is rumoured to be switching to a 29-er for his next bike..
The SSWC 2006 forum is here
markus@happymtb.org
jonas@happymtb.org
Photo: Tobbe Arnesson (tnt@happymtb.org)
In order to gather some information about the SSWC that will happen in Sweden this summer, we at HappyMTB met with organizer Tobias Jönsson. We met him at our favorite Czech pub to ask some questions:
Why Stockholm? What is it that you and Joachim Simonssen can offer that made the guys at Surly decide in your favor?
- Well, first of all I think that we made a good impression. We did the Swedish Singlespeed Championships in 2003 and 2004, and they liked what we did with the Tour de Retard (a 100km SS/Fixie race on gravel roads, in the same spirit as the early 1900´s with wine, salami and blueberry pie at the feed stations.) Another thing that probably meant a lot was that this event can be pretty much car-free. The only internal combustion vehicles needed will be the supply trucks for the arrangers. Participants will not need rental cars to get from the airport to town or to get around town once here. The racetrack is within easy biking distance from the city center, and the course that we are planning to use is a 20+ km loop of rooty, rocky singletrack. That is pretty unique for a city with a population of one million. Besides, it was Europe’s turn to hold the event. The Germans did it in 2004 and the Italians are busy with the European Championships in September.
What can you tell us about the racecourse?
- The racecourse will be great, but we want to keep it secret as long as possible. We have to come to agreement with the landowners first and we will need to do some trail maintenance.
Oh come on, everybody knows that it has to be in Hellas! (Hellas recreational park southeast of Stockholm City.)
- I’ve been waiting a long time to say “No Comment”, so i finally get to say it: “No Comment!”
I Think we do need to clarify the difference between the SSWC and XCWC a little, in which way does this event differ from any other international races?
- Mostly it is the participants. The only license we ask for is the one we give out ourselves during registration; it’s a ”license to drink beer during the race”. But, as this is the World Championships we are going to demand some commitment. Racers should compete on real Singlespeeds. We won’t allow ordinary XC-bikes with the shifters fixed into one gear by tape. Anybody showing up with that setup can expect to have their cables cut, and we might even auction off the shifters and derailleurs.
License to drink beer? Then you have set a minimum age of 18 years?
- Yes, everyone who registers will have to sign a waiver stating that they are over 18 and that they participate at their own risk. We won’t be insuring the racers.
What about registration? Are you going to have some kind of quota for different countries?
- Yes, were going to do that. We haven’t decided yet about how we are going to do it exactly, but well keep some wildcard spots available. If some people from Kyrgyzstan turn up at the last minute, we want to make sure they get to race. (Note: Be prepared to show passports if you plan to show up at the last minute claiming to be from Kyrgyzstan!)
Singlespeeding has gone from being an alternative way of cycling to being more mainstream. Many XC-racers dump their gears and find themselves being at least as fast as before. What is your opinion on that?
- Everybody is welcome to our party. But the winner must remember that the tattoo is not an option, it is compulsory. If you don’t want the ink, don’t win. We are going to write in the registration papers that the winner agrees to be tattooed by our official artist directly after finishing the race.
OK, so where’s the party going to be, and will there be any other happenings?
- We have three different venues we are discussing at the moment. There aren’t many places in central Stockholm that can take as many as 500+ persons, that have a stage and that can take the abuse of so many singlespeeders for three days. Also we want to have a good area for informal street racing outside the official bar. Since people will be traveling long distances we want to offer guided tours on the days surrounding the race. One idea is to take cyclists out on boats in the archipelago and inland on the lake and guide them on the trails there and back to the city.
This is going to be big. So, how do you going to put this to the authorities, that Stockholm is going to be invaded by 500 beer-drinking cyclists this summer?
- It’s the World Championships, and those are magic words. We don’t necessarily have to reveal all of our plans in advance, but some cooperation with the police will be necessary, of course. Imagine having an entire peloton of singlespeeders cruising out to the race with a police motorcycle escort!
And finally, what is the date?
- The race itself will be on Saturday, August 19, but the party starts Friday, August 18 and will continue until Sunday.
The SSWC 2006 forum is here
markus@happymtb.org
jonas@happymtb.org