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Veterans Cup 2011 in Weiterstadt: Thank you, thank you, thank you

There was much to be thankful for at this year's Veterans' Cup.

First of all, thanks to our loyal supporters: they have actively helped us to make this event possible in recent years. First and foremost Wolfgang F.r.i.t.s.c.h.e.r. and Dieter S.c.h.a.d.o.w.s.k.i. Both have been involved from the very beginning and have actively supported the Veterans' Cup with financial and material donations. Wolfgang stopped running his shop at the end of last year and is now in well-deserved retirement. Dieter is still involved in the scene, but has also given up his shop and is concentrating on running the 1st German BMX Museum.

Thanks to Dieter for his 70+ birthday: Thomas G.r.e.i.s. made him a super cake like a numberplate, take a look at the picture. And of course Dieter invited everyone to destroy it collectively. Mjammy!

Thanks to Christiane H.o.e.p.p.i.n.g. and TSV Braunshardt: For allowing the veterans to start and for the good organisation. Thanks to the Weiterstädter we can use the framework conditions of a normal BMX race with starters, track judges, paramedics, tent with catering etc. and guarantee a great race.

Thanks to all veterans who took part in the 17th Veterans Cup 2011. This time there were 32 riders, more than in the last two years. The oldschool BMX scene is alive and kicking and the trend is continuing upwards.

Thanks to all the visitors. Who was there? Oliver M.i.t.t.e. and Guido N.e.u.m.a.n.n.: But as soon as they arrived, they were gone again. The two old-schoolers, who took part in the Veterans' Cup for the first time in 1997, were there for training in 2011, but unfortunately had to return home early for personal reasons. Too bad for your participation statistics, you could have increased this time to 7 starts. I hope you will both be back next year and increase your number by one start. Who else was there? Andreas E.d.l, Rainer S.c.h.a.d.o.w.s.k.i., Dirk H.a.y.n.b.e.r.g. and of course many other former BMX'ers. It's nice that we meet up again every year and that you can always see some of the old faces again.

Thanks to Ingo K.e.l.l.e.r. and his BMX sidehack: he had brought it along to take part in the show race. Unfortunately there were no opponents, so he did a lap of honour with Elmar H.e.n.r.i.c.h. as monkey. A great show that went down very well with the audience. After all, many had never seen anything like it before. And Ingo's bike was a real eye-catcher, custom-made and, according to Ingo, almost priceless.

Thanks to Jochen M.e.n.z.e.n.: A two-time German champion and vice European champion at the start: A great enrichment of the Veterans Cup 2011. First start at the VC and immediately 4th place! Unbelievable. What's more, he still fitted into his old GT Factory gear.

Thanks to Massimo V.a.l.l.o.: Former veteran, now licence rider again and doing well! Thank you because he is a great example of the fact that being a veteran does not necessarily mean being permanently retired. It can also lead to a comeback as a licence driver. Similar good examples of this in the past were Henry P.a.w.l.a.k., Jens K.l.u.e.n.d.e.r. and Alex R.o.c.k.e.n.b.e.r.g.

Thanks to all the owners of the great bikes: As always, there were heaps of classy bikes on display at the bike show. It's unbelievable how well prepared these bikes are! After around 30 years, some of the bikes are in better condition today than they were back then. The meticulous restoration of the two-wheelers costs the owners an enormous amount of time and money, but the results of this effort are impressive. The recognition from the jury of the bike contest and the envious looks from colleagues are the maximum reward for the owners of these fine bikes.

Take a look at the great pictures and see who came first in the results list.

Thanks to the "Hajo" family! Germany's first BMX dealer had travelled from Bavaria to Hessen especially for this race to mingle with the former BMX'ers. Of course, they talked shop. He also met his former team rider Ivi V.i.d.a.k.o.v.i.c. and was delighted to hear that Ivi's white Redline from the 1980s, which he had provided, had won first prize in this year's BMX beauty contest. Congratulations, next to the perfectly restored bike there were photos, trophies and clothes from Ivi on display, so the 1st prize was absolutely justified.

Thanks to the weather gods: the weather was once again amazing. That's Hessen, that's Weiterstadt; mostly good weather! The high temperatures and the many hours of sunshine made us very thirsty, so the Oktoberfest free beer tasted great.

Thanks to the TSV and the helpers for the first-class track: As so often, the track was perfectly prepared. The Weiterstadt track is a pleasure for all riding classes. You can roll all the obstacles, but also jump or simply push. The fun factor while riding was maximum, and nobody was seriously injured. So the race went really well.

Thanks to Elmar H.e.n.r.i.c.h.: For the presentation of the auxiliary motor for BMX bikes. This accessory led to discussions as to whether the technical tuning of the bike with engine sound is more like doping or braking. In any case, it looked cool and was extremely eye-catching thanks to the massive sound. All the kids wanted one of these eye-catchers. Let's see where you can order one ...

Thanks to Rini W.e.n.d.t.: He was the only double starter in the veterans' class, so he took part in both the oldies and veterans' classes. Of course, this took a lot of energy and stamina. He made it to the final in the veteran class and finished in 5th place! Take a look at a few race impressions below; the veterans still look just as good in 2012 as they did 2-3 decades ago....

Thanks to the Oktoberfest atmosphere in the Bavarian tent of Jörg A.r.n.o.l.d. and Christian P.e.n.n.o.: The Veterans Cup organisation donated beer, pretzels and white and blue accessories, and Jörg and Christian made their tent available as a decorative object. This year's theme was Oktoberfest. As a few Bavarian veterans were already worried that they would miss a weekend of the Oktoberfest, we simply moved the festival from Munich to Weiterstadt. There was free Oktoberfest beer for all veterans, and the high temperatures ensured that all the beer was drunk. Here in the picture you can see Jörg approving a small sip....

Thanks to DomStadt Pokale from Limburg for the generous donation of the trophies for the veteran class. Only through such donations can we realise the financing of the event including all prizes. The picture also shows this year's Veterans Cup shirt, which was dark blue in 2012 and stylised the starting straight of the Weiterstadt track with a simple graphic.

Thanks to Elmar H.e.n.r.i.c.h. for donating OSBMX mugs for the old school class. These look great and were very well received by the finalists. I myself was one of the lucky ones who received a cup; since then my coffee tastes twice as good.

Thank you to all the finalists and those honoured. Even if the actual rankings are not the main focus, anyone who wants to can read the results of this year's Veterans' Cup on the "Veterans' Cup results" page. If you would like to see pictures of the award ceremonies, you can do so here:

Award ceremony veteran class

Oldie class award ceremony

King-of-Oldschool award ceremony

Award ceremony Best-of-Bike-Show

After all the thanks, I can draw the following conclusion: Great weather, great course, no serious crashes among the veterans; lots of chatting and lots of fun, everyone got home safely. A perfect day. Many thanks to everyone who made this possible. Anyone who would like to experience this again or is annoyed because they weren't there should come to the Veterans' Cup next year. Because we will be organising the Veterans' Cup again in 2012, for the 18th time! See you next year in the same place!

Ralf M.a.u.r.i.t.z.