Embark on the GCCC Christmas Cruising on Sunday 15 December!

The year is almost over. We can look back on enjoying many domestic and foreign events. But before the year is finally over, we have one more time to get together.

This time it will be a bit different from the usual. After all those kilometres of driving, we have now chosen to sail (well, float actually) on the former flagship of the Holland America Line, SS Rotterdam, moored in Katendrecht, Rotterdam.

Verder lezen CHRISTMAS CRUISING

 

On Sunday 29th September, Thijs will take us for a beautiful ride in the area around Soest. Thijs was introduced to GCCC by Peter “Rolls Royce” Tapijt. His love for big and old cars dated from an early age. Watching the programs on (inter)national television, he dreamt of driving one one day.

The first car Van Buuren drove was a Ford Escort, with which he wanted to go to Berlin. The car lasted until Potsdam, where the front started to steam. Shortly afterwards, he was allowed to take over his parents’ car, a Volvo Polar 240 Station, which had driven a neat 500,000 km on the counter and unfortunately, due to a burst tyre, was parked with a pirouette against the crash barrier.

Verder lezen A Guide through the Purple Rain

On Sunday 25th August, our GCCC members Paul and Marchel will take the GCCC members to the area around Nijmegen.

The day will start just below Nijmegen in Groesbeek and we’ll soon cross the border to go and have a look at the beautiful houses and natural beauty at our neighbours’. After a wander through the nature reserve called “Düffel-Kellener Altrhein und Flußmarschen” we cross the border back into the Netherlands to admire Ooipolder. Some of you may know this from Bisonbaai, a place to sunbathe and swim along the river Waal.

Eventually we’ll end up below Nijmegen at Mookerheide where Jachtslot Mookerheide will be on our route. This beautiful castle, built in 1904, is owned by Vereniging Natuurmonumenten, which also provides guided tours. The hunting lodge was restored between 2016 to December 2023.

Verder lezen Having a peek at the neighbours

Bad Bentheim Classics 2024

The last weekend of October is here: for the fourth time in a row, the Bad Bentheim Classics will start, co-organized by the GCCC. A fantastic weekend full of automotive, culinary and steamy highlights together with our eastern neighbours.

This year we are counting on at least as many participants as in previous years. Since the number of single rooms in the hotel is limited, it would be great if you, as a single participant, would find a roommate. The hotel has been very accommodating to us in this regard.

When? From October 25 to 27, 2024.
Where? We will be staying in a hotel in Bad Bentheim.
What? The program is as follows:

Verder lezen Bad Bentheim Classics – October 2024

We always know where the popular and fun GCCC picnic ride ends, but its starting point is an annual surprise. And so again this year.

We gather at 11 a.m., have coffee and cake, a chat, are amazed, and start the route at a well-kept car secret in Bleiswijk, South Holland. There, Bert Roubos, car and in particular Packard enthusiast, has collected a beautiful collection of cars from the stately American brand Packard after a successful career in well-known snacks. Most models are pre-war and strikingly large, strikingly beautiful and – especially for that time – remarkably fast. And all are in tip-top condition.

Verder lezen Picnic Ride: Olympia

Just above Amsterdam lies an unexpectedly picturesque area of ​​unprecedented silence, space and beauty.

The Beemster and Schermer polders were already drained in the 17th century and are therefore among the oldest polders in the world.

The Beemster was placed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1999.

Sunday, June 30th

On Sunday, June 30th, we will take a beautiful ride along winding country roads, past wide views, through charming towns and along IJsselmeer.

Come and be surprised by this piece of Dutch glory.

Verder lezen Much Ado in the Polder

 

On Sunday, May 26th, Buurman & Buurman will organize their first ride: Past perfect tense

This day we will start and finish at a beach bar in Katwijk aan Zee. From 12:00 you will be welcomed there with unlimited coffee/tea and a choice of 3 pastries.

The ride

The ride starts at 1:00 PM, which takes us from the Katwijk boulevard to Noordwijk. We’ll then drive to Valkenburg Airport and visit a small museum founded by Richard’s father in a real communications bunker. Here you can enjoy a cup of coffee and a cookie, while you can read and see about the history of the airport. Or enjoy the weather and the surroundings outside on the grass.
After this break you continue towards Wassenaar and The Hague, and then return to Katwijk.
Around 5:00 PM we will be back in Katwijk for drinks, the awards ceremony and an optional delicious 3-course dinner on the beach!

Verder lezen PAST PERFECT TENSE

A weekend in Belgium, that sounds fun. The Belgian Kempen are located in the north not far from the Netherlands. It is a very beautiful region, so we have arranged a weekend in September for you.

We will start on Friday evening, September 20, with the arrival at the hotel at Grobbendonk from 5 p.m. onwards. The hotel has spacious, beautiful rooms. Friday evening will start with dinner at the hotel and before and after that the bar will, of course, be open.

What will the rest of the weekend look like?

Saturday

After breakfast on Saturday we’re leaving for Lier, the location of Abarth Museum. Unfortunately, due to renovations, we cannot view the entire collection, but that should not spoil the fun. That day we can admire the most beautiful specimens (about 150).
After our museum visit lunch will be at a restaurant in Lier. From there we’ll drive to Lichtaert where we will visit Het Eersselshof, a very young wine estate with a guided tour through the vines a taste of all the goodies in the Tasting Room.

Then we’ll drive back to the hotel for Saturday evening dinner, preceded and followed by a nice get-together at the bar.

Verder lezen Classic Car weekend in the Kempen (BE)

It has been a while, but now you can really enjoy the first ride of the year organised by Fred and Alexander on Sunday April 7th! Because the weekend at Waterloo, Belgium, in honour of the 50th anniversary of ABBA’s Waterloo, unfortunately did not get off well, there will now be another program. Our apologies for telling you this so late.

From 11 am we will be welcomed at a nice location in Valkenburg (ZH) with coffee/tea and cake.

Where are we going?

The ride will take us through the dune area towards Katwijk aan Zee, past bulb fields, where you can take beautiful pictures of your car among the colourful flowers! When the weather is nice, please be careful when you meet cyclists and other road users, because the roads will be quite busy. Ultimately we will end up at a restaurant in Vogelenzang around 5:30 PM for a drink and a nice chat.

Verder lezen Steam at the Bulbs

Now that Christmas and New Year’s Eve are behind us, the period for New Year’s drinks has arrived. The board would like to invite you to the New Year’s drinks 2024.

We will continue this beautiful tradition and raise a glass together on Sunday, January 21, somewhere on the outskirts of Utrecht. This beautiful location welcomes us with a free bar from 4 to 6 p.m. so that we can discuss the past and coming year over a snack and a drink and catch up with each other outside of a ride. We will also give you a glimpse of what we will do together in 2024 and that  promises to have a lot in store!

Verder lezen New Year’s Drinks 2024

This year the Christmas crib ride takes place in the Peel, originally a swamp and peat area. The raised bog area stretched approximately from Weert in the south to Grave in the north. So during the ride we will pass through both the east of North Brabant and the north of Limburg, traditionally predominantly Catholic, so blessed with the necessary nativity scenes.

Start and finish

This day we start and end at a restaurant in Bakel. From 12 noon we will be welcomed there with coffee/tea and cake.

What will we see?

First we head for the beautiful village of Deurne. And indeed, this is ‘HET DORP’, that Wim Sonneveld sang about, thanks to the lyrics of his life partner Friso Wiegersma, who came from Deurne. The 1st stop is the St. Willibrordus Church, located on Markt, right in the center. The nativity scene is located inside the church, which is also a national monument. Be sure to take a walk through the center, the old town hall and the market are around the corner and very worthwhile.

Verder lezen Christmas Crib Ride 2023

 

On November 26, 2023 we will have a ride in Brussels.

Brussels you say? I know that, don’t I?… Of course, everyone knows Brussels. The Grand Place, the Stock Exchange, Manneke Pis, the gay scene behind the town hall, the cathedral… All of us have been to Brussels before, for business or pleasure.

But do you really know Brussels? I want you to be surprised by our real city tour with Romanesque buildings, Gothic, Baroque, Renaissance, Art Nouveau and Art Deco. And because of the many, many green areas.

Because Brussels is spread over 19 municipalities, each with their own character, each with their own policy and insights into environmental planning, each with their own view on mobility. So don’t be surprised: in one municipality it is “priority from the right” everywhere, 50 meters further in the other municipality there are priority streets and side streets.

You see now that Brussels is a mix of everything and anything.

Where does the ride start?

We start at 11.30 am just outside Brussels in the Flemish Region.

This time there is no coffee and cake, but a Burgundian dessert buffet à volonté (unlimited) with coffee (worth €10.95; included in the participation costs). Of course there will be plenty of time to get to know everyone during this penultimate ride of the year.

At 12.30 we start our engines and will stay in Flanders for a very short time. Then we will drive into the city. Large avenues, along parks, the 19th century belt, will take you to the highest point of the city: Altitude 100 (100 meters above sea level) crowned with a church. Then we go past ponds, churches and castles back into the Flemish Region to have a brief stop at the Africa Museum in Tervuren. You have plenty of time to visit this museum and admission is €12 (own expense). Or you can simply marvel at the beautiful gardens, which are free. When we drive back into Brussels we pass our kings Philip and Mathilde (literally pass, we are not going to say hello) and the Atomium, which is known to everyone. We will end where we started, and there we can also have a meal.

Verder lezen Brussels With A Difference

 

On Sunday, October 29th, our GCCC members Paul and Marchel will take the GCCC Gentlemen to the Achterhoek region. Ladies, don’t worry, you are also very welcome, of course.

The Achterhoek is characterised by peace and space. Arable farming, livestock farming and forests alternate continuously during this ride. Lots of narrow roads winding through nature and taking us to the most beautiful places. Well, at least, the places that Paul and Marchel have labelled as the most beautiful.

Groenlo

Halfway through the route we pass through Groenlo. This fortified city was founded at the beginning of the 7th century.

Over the years, the name has been written in different ways in books and on maps: “Groenlo”, “Groenloo”, “Groonlo”, “Gronlo”, “Grol”. This last variant is where the popular beer brand Grolsch gets its name from. Grolsch originated in Groenlo. Nowadays one can find another small beer brewery “Brouwersnös” in Groenlo. Just before entering the old centre we pass the tasting room.

This tasting room is a great place for lunch.

Verder lezen GCCC Autumn Ride: Gentlemen in the ‘Achterhoek’ region

 

On Saturday, September 23, it is time for the Night Ride again. But as organisers we thought that the title evening ride would be more appropriate this year, the reason being that we would like to slightly increase the number of participants by bringing the time forward.

Salland

The natural surroundings in Salland and the Overijssel Regge valley offer plenty of space and truly are a gem.
We meet at around 3:00 pm at a restaurant in Ommen and when the weather is nice we can, of course, sit outside on the terrace along the river Vecht. A nice quiet place with a view of the river, the (locally) famous hotel De Zon and the bridge that we will cross later. Upon arrival, coffee and a petit four await you and it is time to catch up. Of course, we will explain what the purpose of the ride is.

Verder lezen Night Fever Part 3

 

Sunday August 27th, is not only the day of the Grand Prix at Zandvoort, but it is also the day of a fun GCCC ride The Petit Prix!

The Riff

The theme initially was Land Art in Flevoland, but due to the slightly too large distances between the various objects, we have, instead, found a beautiful route, more suitable in kilometers that passes at least one Land Art object: The Riff, a wonderful piece of land that has been pulled up from the bottom. At least, so it seems.

The route

The route starts near Biddinghuizen at a good restaurant with ample parking space for our dear beauties.

 

Verder lezen The Petit Prix Ride

On Sunday 30 July, the familiar but always surprising picnic ride will be on the programme again. The theme this year is La Vie en Rose and we hope that everyone who comes along will give a colourful interpretation of this again.

We have found a great starting point for this edition in Noordwijk.

Normally, this location is not freely accessible to visitors, but we will be welcomed there on July 30 between 11:30 and 13:00 with coffee and tea, cakes and open arms.

The main building, the historic garden and park located on and next to the site, the residential house annex herb drying house, the garden dome and the coach house all have the status of national monuments.

A small but fine number of old and young-timers worth seeing can be found there shining gracefully to us.

This space is covered, so if the weather is bad, the coffee can be drunk dry.

Verder lezen Picnic Ride: La Vie en Rose

Everyone is welcome in Southeast Groningen on Saturday 24 June!

From 1 pm we will have our traditional coffee and cake at a campsite in Sellingen.

Then the ride , organised by Frank and Herman, starts which will take us past old farms, beautiful nature reserves, and fortress Bourtange (where you can take a break at a nice terrace).

Probably a ‘Terra Incognita’ for many of us! That is why there is no competition this time, but we will tour in a relaxed way using a more extensive route booklet with cultural-historical information.

Afterwards we can catch up during a well-prepared BBQ, ending with an ice cream buffet at the same campsite where we started.

Verder lezen Summer Night Ride

 

Have you always wondered where petrol actually comes from? Or the electricity for your electric car? And where in Europe that car drove off the boat?

You will see that – and much more – during the ride on Sunday 28 May. The event, organized by Paul, takes us through the Rotterdam port area, via Botlek and Europoort to the most recent land reclamation, Maasvlakte 2.

Right next to this unreal industrial landscape is the island of Voorne-Putte. Also a kind of land reclamation but from centuries ago. We drive over narrow, medieval dikes, through Brielle fortress and through pious villages.

The ride starts and ends at a restaurant in the Oostvoorne area. You can be sure the kitchen brigade can manage the extensive BBQ with buffet. When the weather is nice, the roof opens!

Does this ride sound familiar to you? You are right!, it is a variant of the 2010 October tour. The difference is that Maasvlakte 2 has now been completed and is largely in use. And the beautiful beach road, with a view over the North Sea, is now open again. We have now cut off the piece through the endless potato fields of Farm Frites. This time you will not see where your chips come from!

What time does it start?

From 12 o’clock you are welcome for coffee or tea with apple, chocolate or cheesecake. Around 1 pm we leave for Maasvlakte 2.

What does the BBQ with buffet consist of?

BBQ with choice of chicken satay, hamburger, salmon from the oven, pork tenderloin mushroom sauce, vegetarian snacks.

Buffet with twelve different salads and raw vegetables, baguette with herb butter, chips, mayonnaise and other sauces.

Dessert with a choice of dame blanche, vanilla ice cream, ‘kaat-mossel’ or coupe caramel.

How much will it cost?

Taking part in the ride, including reception with coffee & cake, costs €9.50 for members and €11.50 for guests. The BBQ costs €30.

Are dogs welcome?

Dogs are allowed in the beach pavilion. Leashed, quiet, clean and only on the floor.

Register

You can register until Sunday 21 May via the registration form.

Disclaimer

GCCC excludes any form of damage whatsoever. Photos and videos are also taken during the ride. If you do not appreciate this, you are responsible for this yourself by kindly asking the photographer or videographer not to take any images of you or your car (number plate). The photos and videos are generally shared on personal Facebook and Instagram pages of individual participants and the GCCC Facebook page.

On Saturday, April 29, 2023, Erik and Aldrin have organized a culinary ride for us with a visit to Metropole Druten, a major car museum.

We will meet in Winssen at 11.30 am for the traditional coffee/tea and cake and, of course, a nice chat after the long winter break. The ride will then take us to Druten for a visit to the amazingly beautiful car and truck collection. More than 300 classics and trucks are displayed on 20,000 square meters, not only for viewing but also for sale! You can find a preview here: About Metropole Druten

Being the opening ride of the year, this is a day not to be missed for lovers of classic vehicles.

Verder lezen GCCC KING’S RIDE

Now that Christmas and New Year’s Eve are behind us, the period of the New Year’s drinks has arrived. The board would therefore like to invite you to the New Year’s drinks 2023.

We will continue this beautiful tradition and raise a glass together on Sunday 15th January on the outskirts of Utrecht.

This beautiful and for us new location will welcome us with a free bar from 4 to 6 pm so that we can discuss the past and the coming year over a snack and a drink and catch up with each other outside a ride. We will also give you a sneak preview of what we will all be doing together in 2023 and that promises to be a lot!

What will it cost?
For a mere € 15 p.p. (GCCC will pay the remainder of the costs) we will be pampered by them for two hours in this unique setting and we will make a great start to the new year.

And our four-legged friends?
Your four-legged friend is also welcome, provided he is well-behaved and kept on a leash.

Event arrangement
This event has not been registered for the events scheme.

As you know, it is the members who make the club, so we expect you in large numbers (with the old-timer?) at this kick-off of 2023!

Until then!

The board: Mick, Rob, Cees, Jerry and Wilfried

Disclaimer

The GCCC excludes any form of damage whatsoever. Photos and videos are also taken during the ride. If you do not appreciate this, you are responsible for this yourself by kindly asking the photographer or videographer not to take any images of you or your car (number plate). The photos and videos are generally shared on personal Facebook and Instagram pages of individual participants and the GCCC Facebook page.

What started as an experiment last year will lead to a sequel this year on Saturday December 17th. Apparently we, Gert-Jan and Mick, as organizers managed to create something nice at the time, because there will be another one. Thanks for the enthusiastic sounds last year!

But how do you follow up on such a night ride? We asked ourselves that question. And we found the answer in expanding the team. Jeroen turned out to be a perfect addition with his knowledge and experience.

Because, gentlemen, as you know: a night ride challenges you! We are going one step further from last year. This time the ride requires an (even) greater involvement from the navigator. Communication between navigator and driver is of great importance, but perhaps even more important is the intelligence of the navigator. So choose him wisely…. (By the way, we don’t want to cause any awkward situations within a marriage here….).

Start

We start in the centre region of the Netherlands and expect you at a restaurant in Soest at 2:30 PM.

If you don’t come alone, but you want to come with your dog, it is of course also very welcome.

While enjoying a snack, Jeroen will give you a brief explanation about the different ways of route description. You should actually use some of these on this ride.

 

Verder lezen Night Fever, the sequel! Premiere on December 17th

 

On Sunday November 27th Ton and Piet will take us from Bocholt to the Lower Rhine region. The ‘Weihnachtsmarkten’ (Christmas markets) start here at the end of November (and they have all gone right after Christmas). We will visit two or three.

We will also visit two castles, with unique collections of modern art and art from the past. There is a lot of ‘go as you please’ at this event.

It will be crowded everywhere. No routes have been worked out so driving from place to place is done just using your own satnavs.

You can choose to come on Friday or on Saturday. You can also go home on Saturday or stay until Sunday. If you go home on Saturday, you have to book your hotel in Bocholt yourself. However, we have reserved 26 double rooms (€79 per night) and 8 single rooms (€64 per night) at this hotel until November 1st.

The hotel for the overnight stay and how to book will be in the separate email sent to members.

Breakfast is always € 10 and there is plenty of free parking space. If you leave booking late, there is a (more expensive) alternative which can also be found in the members’ email. (You can still have breakfast with the others at the other hotel). Bocholt is one of the nicest places in the Lower Rhine region and is a 60 kms drive from Arnhem or 70 kms from Nijmegen or Boxmeer.

Verder lezen CHRISTMAS MARKETS, CASTLES AND ART