Hondsrug Rally

Dutch TT weekend, June at Drouwenerzand. Organised by M.C. Martinistad. Groningen, Holland.

Another fine rally for people in the know. The best of both worlds if you wanted it. The racing at Assen and a rally to boot.

The rally was held in a large tent pitched right next to a large pub/restaurant with the camping to the left of the pub. The tent was filled with rows of tressle tables and bench seats. The normal type of disco was there with an area clear for those that wanted to dance. Again this was a very well attended rally by riders from several nearby countries. A short distance from the pub/cafe/campsite was some large prehistoric arrangment of stones, the Dutch version of Stonehenge, only much smaller, perhaps about five or six stones. John Jocys from Manchester turned up one year with his girl friend (it could have been 1980 or 1981) and he had, for some unknown reason, taken up doing morris dancing and playing the squeeze box which he brought with him. The Dutch were treated to some folk music. It was hard to tell if they enjoyed it or were just being polite.

Alan Giddens was also there for the 1981 event as he was working with me in Germany at the time and we attended several rallies in Germany, Holland and Belgium.

One of the strange things leaving the rally and heading down the motorways was that three quarters of the local population had turned out to sit or stand by the roads and hang over the bridges to wave at all the bike riders going home from Assen. Absolutely unbelievable atmosphere. One question that springs to mind is, is there anybody out there that publishes a rally list for continental rallies anymore?

- Les Hobbs


Start of quotation I have been on the Hondsrug rally but in 76-78 & 79.

What I can remember from this rally is that the beer was very expensive and there were a lot off drunken people, mostly Danish and Germans.

The prehistoric arrangment of stones. We call them hunebedden. Some of them are 1000 years older then Stonehenge. They are grave barrows and usually covered with earth.

Oh, all the people that standing alongside the motorway and on the bridges? They are not waiting for us, but for the fools that are going to the Dutch TT that is always the same weekend as the Hondsrugrally.

The rally still exist but a lot smaller and is held on a motorcamping site near Stadskanaal (nice place) www.motorschuur.info End of quotation

- Hans Veenendaal