Albert · 82 years old · rides every day
A Man
of Steel
Stuck behind a screen, I’d see Albert set off on the dike each morning, head down, pedalling into the wind, driving rain or melting mist. He rides around 60km a day through the winter. In summer, that can be 100km or more. Where did he go? Why? How far? How old was he? How old was his bike? That’s how the project and the conversations began, a story of a steel bike and an iron will. Albert is 82 and still rides every day. His generation has set the benchmark. His grit and determination to push himself on a daily basis is a standard by which we should judge ourselves, whether that’s in the saddle or life in general. The result was a photographic project, A Man of Steel, photographed by Ryan Edy and written by Dan Mawdesley
Introducing Albert, he’s 82yrs old and bikes every day.
He plans his own routes, makes his own sandwiches and builds his own bikes. A cyclist’s cyclist.
This is his story.
60KMdaily winter
100KMdaily summer
Watery light trickles down through leaden skies. Fields, river and road merge into one muted palette when a flash of yellow punctures the gloom.
It’s the middle of December and we’re stood on a Dutch dike waiting to meet a man who’s been cycling since he was 5 years old.
A man, who despite being in his 82nd year, still cycles almost every day, averaging around 100km in Summer and 60km in Winter. He’s a man of grit, determination, character and resourcefulness, in short, a man of steel.
Born in 1935, Albert vd Bosch learned to ride his first bike at five years old. By the age of fourteen he completed his first ‘custom build’ and cycling has been an integral part of his life ever since.
We followed Albert out on one of his Winter rides, intrigued by his drive and conscious that we were witnessing history, pedalling swiftly and stoically towards us.
A cyclist’s
cyclist
A former Brigadier in the Dutch Military, Albert bikes daily unless it’s truly impossible (heavy snow, personal issues, illness).
He’ll even head out when the local dike’s suited more to skating than cycling. A true inspiration from the ‘hard as nails’ generation.
Wind power
Black ice, melting snow, dense mist, torrential rain and glacial winds are just some of the ‘joys’ of Lowlands cycling in Winter.
Fierce North Easterlies or stormy South Westerlies regularly rip across the polders and push back on the resolve of even the most hardened cyclist.
Which is why Albert checks the wind direction before his ride. Pedalling against the wind on the outward leg of the ride and then heading home with the wind behind him.
His wife, Corrie, worries about him when he’s out, “I’m careful,” he says with a wink.
Albert hand-built his first real racing bike back in 1949. He uses just 8 gears (“More than enough”) on his home runs in The Netherlands but he’ll make additions for the more mountainous terrain of France, Spain and Switzerland.
“Shimano or Campy?”
“Always, always, always Campagnolo.”
Man of steel
The bike is a custom build, its backbone is a lightweight Gazelle steel frame Albert bought in The Hague back in 1988.
Reynolds 531 tubing was the frame builder’s preferred choice at the time offering the best combination of strength, ride comfort and minimal weight.
The 24 speed Campagnolo group set (50-40-30) provides the perfect balance of power and speed. Ideal for steep ascents in countries a little more undulating than The Netherlands but it’s equally adept at zipping along the dikes and powering through the polders of Albert’s homeland.
The only parts of the bike that have been changed from the original, are the tyres. Every season (or 10,000km whichever happens sooner) sees Albert change from a Winter to a Summer pattern. There’s very little that comes between him and his daily ride.
Despite cycling for 75 of his 82 years, Albert’s never owned, ridden or even trialled a carbon bike. A true man of steel.
His legs feel heavier and his muscles take a little longer to recover after every ride, but remarkably in 75 years of cycling, his vision has never deteriorated.
Refreshment. What does an 82 year old cyclist keep in his water bottle to get him through a 60km ride in Winter? Water.
Remember musical chairs? Albert’s first taste of competitive cycling was a race around his Dutch village. Every lap, the slowest rider was eliminated until they were down to the last two.
A former Brigadier, Albert established cycling as a key category in The World Military Championships, attracting teams from Iran and Iraq as well as Belgium, France, Holland and Great Britain.
He’s cycled in South Africa, across Europe and most of the routes in The Netherlands, but France is Albert’s favourite country for cycling. “Stunning scenery and the drivers give you a lot of room on the road.”
Albert’s longest ride was from his Dutch village down to San Sebastian. I asked if he liked the Spanish city, now widely famous for its food, “I wasn’t there long, I had to bike back.”
Back in ‘96, Albert completed the famous London to Edinburgh (& back) ride in 113hrs (cut off is 115hrs). Slower than he expected as he’d unintentionally fallen asleep under a tree, “Or I’d have been far faster,” he says with a wince.
Albert’s also participated in the Cape Town Argus Race together with his son-in-law and 35,000 other competitors. This event takes in some of South Africa’s more stunning scenery but it’s not without its unique challenges. Hazards include roaming animals, bush fires, extremely high winds and road melting temperatures.
Apple pie
Albert’s approach to ‘sports nutrition’ is also admirably old skool. No state-of-the-art isotonic energy drinks or micellar casein powders not even an energy bar, he’s a fan of strong, sweet fruit cordial as well as brown bread and cheese sandwiches or a few croissants when in France.
But his absolute favourite is a slice of traditional Dutch apple pie mid-way through the ride.
River land
Based in ‘Rivierenland’ (River Land), Albert’s daily rides often follow the dikes that run along one of the major rivers in the area like the Waal, the Maas or the Lek.
“What was your favourite period to cycle?”
“The Fifties, because I was getting faster & fitter, not slower & older.”
At my age, cycling’s easier than walking.
No isotonic drinks, gels or powders for 82 year old vet Albert, just strong coffee and ontbijtkoek (a traditional Dutch gently spiced ginger cake) to get him through 60k on a Winter ride. A proper chap.
True grit
Even in cycling friendly Holland, Albert legislates for one accident a year, which isn’t surprising if you ride each and every day as he does.
Amongst his ‘greatest hits’ are a smashed jaw and fractured cheek bone which happened after he crashed into a French rider who’d stopped without warning. Fortunately, an ambulance took him all the way back from France to his home in Holland where it took two weeks to recover.
He also smashed both knees after hitting the side of a car during a high speed descent, he now has two iron plates (one in each knee) as a souvenir to commemorate that collision. They match his iron will.
In 1999, upon hearing he’d beaten cancer, the first thing he did was go for a ride.
Stuck behind a screen, I’d see Albert set off on the dike each morning, head down, pedalling into the wind, driving rain or melting mist.
Where did he go? Why? How far? How old was he? How old was his bike? That’s how the project and the conversations began, a story of a steel bike and an iron will.
Albert and his generation have set the benchmark. His grit and determination to push himself on a daily basis is a standard by which we should judge ourselves, whether that’s in the saddle or life in general.
“Chapeau Albert, it was an honour.”
Created, Designed & Produced by van North.
Photography by Ryan Edy.
Chapeau Albert, it was an honour.
Credits:
Photography by Ryan Edy.
Created, Designed, Produced and Written by Dan Mawdesley @ van North.
All the photos from this and other series are available on www.cyclingprints.nl - also as postcards, calendars etc -
Creative/Idea/ArtDirection/Copy/Production: Dan Mawdesley, I’m a Creative Director (worked on global advertising campaigns for Nikon, Vodafone, Mitsubishi Motors etc.) and run my own creative agency: www.vannorth.com and have won a few awards for advertising and photography.
Photography: Ryan Edy is a commercial lifestyle/outdoors photographer and has shot for Toyota, Aldi, GymShark, Columbia etc. also won a few awards www.ryanedy.com
Neither of us have big egos (just big kids) and loved following Albert out on his rides, shooting him on our bikes and from the back of my old LandCruiser.
100kmsummer
60kmwinter
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