Hi all,
 
For the first time ever, in 2010 a 1200 km brevet will be organized in the Netherlands.
This brevet, “Lowlands1200”, will start on July 13 in Zwolle, a capital city in the mid-east of the Netherlands.
 
A great deal of the Dutch scenery will be included in the route, which leads through all major parts of the country. Little parts of the route will cross the borders with Belgium (for some km) and Germany (for around 150 km).
 
What can you expect?
-A rather flat ride. In the middle part there will be some hills, but you’ll never get higher than 100 meters above sea-level.
-Some dikes including one of 30 km length connecting two provinces and leading all the way through sea.
-No massive participation. We expect around 50 participants.
-At some checkpoints there will be facilities for resting and sleeping.
-The weather usually is mild, with a daytime maximum of 20-25 degrees (68-77 F), but highs of around 32 (90 F) are surely possible. Nighttime lows usually are between 12 and 17 degrees (54-63 F).
 
If you’re interested or just want more information, you can mail me personally (geri...@yahoo.co.uk) or reply on the randon-list.  
There is a site: www.lowlands1000.nl but this one is still building up and info in English will follow later.
 
Greetings,
Gerrit Schotman

Hi,

the 30 km "dike" is a causeway.

Regards
Andreas

Hi,

Indeed. There is a highway on this dike, but also a good cycling path.
For an image of this dike you can view:

http://maps.google.nl/?ie=UTF8&ll=53.016926,5.199537&spn=0.002265,0.0...
(cut and paste)

The highway is located under. Lowest there are 2 lanes going north-east .Marked A7 and E2.
Above this 2 lanes going south-west. Also marked A7 and E22.
With a slight curve there above is a two-ways cycling path. Most above is the highest point of the dike. You only can overlook the south side (down) of this dike when cycling. The height of the dike on the north is too much to overlook. But you can leave your bike for some minutes to climb the north side and have a view across the “Waddenzee”.
At the beginning, middle and end there are possibilities to look to both sides.

Most probably this dike will be crossed at Lowlands1200 during the night. The sight usually is very clear and the dike is very dark. There are little cars that will cross during the night.
Looking south you will be able to see the lights of small fishing villages on the borders of the lake. Looking north there are some islands which can be seen at very clear conditions.

Greetings,
Gerrit

--- On Sun, 11/15/09, Andreas <andreas.roesch...@gmail.com> wrote: