by Peter Spronkers and Marieke van Hoof – April 2026

Memories of the Tree Race

In 1986 and 1987 (or was it 1987 and 1988?), we competed in the legendary Boompjesrace with our Groningen tjalk. Legendary, because people still talk about it with a touch of nostalgia.
There isn’t much information about it online, and we haven’t kept any written records of it either.
Except for… the attached photo of our Alida Geziena and the clipper Adventure by Jan Aartrijk. It looks as if we’re ahead here, but that’s just an illusion. With light winds—like these—we’re certainly not the fastest. The Alida G really gets going at 5–6 bf, when many other ships have long since reefed their sails. In the photo, you can also see the Hef in its lowered position, as it was still in use as a railroad bridge. And on the left is the now-demolished building of the Oranjeboom brewery.

At that time, many of the participating ships were moored in the Oude Haven. Back then, it was reserved exclusively for ships that had come from the sailing cargo shipping industry. But there were also participants from farther away, such as Dordrecht and even Zeeland.
The Oude Haven was part of the Open-Air Inland Waterway Museum Foundation (SOB), which was founded in 1968. The driving force behind it was Pieter Blussé from Oud Alblas. With his extensive network (businesses, the municipality, the museum) and unwavering enthusiasm for old sailing (commercial) vessels, he accomplished a great deal. This included securing much-needed sponsors, as there were no subsidies initially.

Back to the Boompjesrace.
Sponsors “rented” one of the participating boats and sailed along with their staff or business associates. Great for their—and our—brand recognition! The course ran to Brienenoord and back. Of course, it was a race, so there was a winner who received a real prize: the Koningspoort Trophy.
That one wasn’t for us, of course… Already on the way there, our crew members realized it wasn’t going to happen. But, we said, when they come back later, heading straight toward us, that’s when you’ll get the best photos.