I just found out I am being transferred to Den Helder in the Netherlands next year. I'll be there for 2 years. Apart from it being flat, knowing the Dutch love cycling, and what I found on Wikipedia, I am not at all familiar with the place. Any weenies over there?

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TED ESSENFELD
Schoorl, Noord-Holland, Nederland
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Ted - I worked for a big Dutch company many years ago and used to travel to Den Helder every 2 weeks. It's up in the North West next to the North Sea and you can guarantee that it will be windy. So, no hills but some days you will feel as though there are.

This will give you an impression of the landscape, there's not always this much wind though
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8qgjyqibwY

Do you ride competitevely?

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http://www.cyclingtorrents.nl - Torrent Tracker dedicated to broadcasts of racing

I still occasionally enter master's races... mostly cyclocross.

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TED ESSENFELD
Schoorl, Noord-Holland, Nederland
Bike Pics
English Custom Steel Internal di2
Litespeed Ghisallo

Ah ok we do have a regional master cyclocross competition in winter. Start working on your dutch
http://www.rabotopnh.nl/

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I'm going to begin a 6 month, full immersion, language program in Dutch beginning in February.

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TED ESSENFELD
Schoorl, Noord-Holland, Nederland
Bike Pics
English Custom Steel Internal di2
Litespeed Ghisallo

Holland's a great place to ride a bike and nearly as good to live there.

Indeed. You are very fortunate - it is a very pleasant part of the world, great riding and great people. You will certainly enjoy the experience.

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And you can call me Macktastik Honey Pete Kicks, thank you.

Bring the road bike, cross bike and mountainbike, you'll need them all Den Helder isn't the prettiest part of our country, but as an American you're probably used to long drives to get to interesting places. Amsterdam is about an hour away, the hills of the Amstel Gold Race are about three hours away. There's a fun mountainbike track in a town called Schoorl which is about 20 minutes from Den Helder.

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Chains to the right!

Wind is the Dutch mountains. Especially along the coast (I come from The Hague) you can be sure there's always wind. I always enjoyed riding against a strong headwind and, when tired, turn round your bike and be blown home at high speed!
It's a very cycling friendly country, quite a contrast with Jakarta where i'm living now...

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2007 Bianchi 928L (update Sep '11)
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There's also 2 tracks closeby. One in Alkmaar at 40km and one in Amsterdam at 110km.

Will you be working for a maritime company?

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http://www.cyclingtorrents.nl - Torrent Tracker dedicated to broadcasts of racing

It's true that Den Helder aint pretty, but if you go back towards Allmaar and make for the coast, there are a couple of nice seaside resorts: Castricum and Bergen.

Some training pics 30km south of Den Helder
http://cyclingtorrents.nl/bitbucket/koe.JPG

and this is the area KB is reffering too.
http://cyclingtorrents.nl/bitbucket/gvd2.JPG

(edited links....pics too large)

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http://www.cyclingtorrents.nl - Torrent Tracker dedicated to broadcasts of racing

You have a lot of options actually:
-MTB @ Schoorl
-Road riding, some crazy winds which are pretty awesome and makes you handle your bike like a pro!
-Beach racing (mtb)
-Winter cross competition

Also, in the Netherlands there are a LOT of cycling clubs that do training rides etc. You can basically do everything you like

Ted, you could opt for a race license from the KNWU (Royal Dutch Cycling Federation) which shouldn't cost too much. Then you can benefit from reduced fees (you'll pay a few euros) to enter training races and you'd get some sort of insurance every time you go out on your bike, providing you're training in your club's outfit.

In terms of cycling, there are few countries in the world as advantageous as NL. I'm sure there are plenty of WW members who can provide you with all sorts of information about cycling activities. Also, be sure to check out events such as e.g. the Amstel Gold Race for recreational riders. Then you can get a taste of what litle undulating terrain NL has to offer (albeit at the complete opposite side of the country from Den Helder about 200 miles away). It's also less windy over there. Also, be sure to check out the island Texel, just a stone's throw and short ferry trip away from DH.

A GPS is handy to have. There are cycling paths everywhere and you can make full use of them if you know how to get back home. I might also be available if you just wanna go out riding for the time I'm in the country. In any case, I wish you a trouble-free preparation and a smooth transition in advance.