Bike messenger vs pro downhill rider…..

Back in 1999 my television career started when someone from the Dutch television called our company (Velocity). With the question if one of the messengers was willing to take on the Dutch champion downhill racing on a race down the longest stairs of europe for this tv show called ‘Dat kan ik ook’ (I can do that too). Everyone knew I liked going down the stairs here in my hometown (Arnhem). So I got this woman on the phone asking me if I would except that challenge. And of course I would, damn the longest stairs in europe you must be crazy not to except a challenge like that.
But she warned me because she first asked the messengers in Rotterdam and none had the balls to do it. Then see called the messengers in Amsterdam and they refused also but said to here you should call Arnhem, there’s a guy crazy enough.
So a couple of months later we went to Liège (Luik) in Belgium and searched for the stairs, then suddenly there it was….

That’s gonna be a whole lot of fun riding down this shit!

So after a couple of minutes we meet the camera crew and the girl who was presenting the show (Aniko van Santen). And also the man himself Gerwin Peters, dutch downhill champion and at that moment fourth in the UCI rankings. Later that year he would get second place in the overall ranking. A really nice guy who brought two massive machines with him. Two downhill bikes from the Dutch national team. I never owned a suspension bike let alone a full suspension downhill bike… And then they also gave me the bike from Bas de Bever a famous BMX and downhill rider here in the Netherlands and right now hard coach of the Dutch BMX team.

To make a long story short I told my colleges, i’ll crash or i’ll win!

So here is my television debut and for all the none Dutch speakers you can go to the action right here!

And a last shot looking down because it brings great memories.