Yet another year (almost) over. And what a special year this was. The measures for Covid mostly behind us (at least here in the Netherlands), a terrible war in Europe that made and makes millions suffer and for me personally it was the year of my open heart surgery. I must mention that again, because the fact that my heart was finally fixed was a turning point in my life. I am still dealing with the consequences in my mind and also physically, but I am doing really well. I never missed my posting schedule though. Not even when a post had to go out just two days after that surgery. I had lined up many posts and videos and all I had to do was alter a few of the words to update a post before it went live. Yes, I did that on my phone in my hospital bed. For some it seemed I worked all the time during my rehabilitation even though that was certainly not the case. You may call it mad, or dedication. I do understand both!
I tricked you all a bit this year. Most of the footage I published this year was filmed earlier. Sometimes years earlier, but most of it was filmed during the winter of 2021/2022 and most of that in the 2021 part of that winter. That is why the first half of this year seemed like an eternal winter on my blog and in my videos. I did not cycle at all between My last recreational ride on 9 March and the first time I was allowed to carefully ride a bicycle again on 25 April. It took until My first ride in ʼs-Hertogenbosch on 11 May that I felt certain enough on the bicycle to film the ride.
As always, I am surprised by this year’s top ten lists. You can never predict what will get most attention and views. But, also as per usual, I am happy that it is a mix of infrastructure, riding and people watching. It is also nice that my trips abroad, to the neighbours in Germany and Belgium ended in my top 10s! It seems that if I would want more views on YouTube I should be more negative, but rest assured, I don’t go for the views alone. I much rather show people the good the Netherlands has to offer than the bad. So I will continue to do that!
Top Ten Posts on my blog
- Ride in Utrecht 19-01-2022
- Why is cycling not allowed on this Utrecht street? 02-03-2022
- An award-winning cycling bridge in Antwerp 02-11-2022
- A new cycling viaduct over an also new turbo-roundabout 05-01-2022
- An international cycle route from Nijmegen to Cleves (Kleve) 03-08-2022
- A cycle street where buses are guest 04-05-2022
- My last recreational ride 18-05-2022
- A pleasant ride from Etten-Leur to Breda 16-02-2022
- Extra Post: Relaxed cycling on a Saturday afternoon 29-06-2022
- Where ʼs-Hertogenbosch got things wrong for cycling 07-09-2022
Top Ten Videos on YouTube
- Antwerp cycle bridge 02-11-2022
- Where ʼs-Hertogenbosch got it wrong for cycling 07-09-2022
- An upgrade to the World’s largest bicycle parking garage 05-10-2022
- A new cycling viaduct in ʼs-Hertogenbosch (NL) 05-01-2022
- Why can’t you cycle here in Utrecht? 02-03-2022
- Closed street redesigned with more space for people and green 04-05-2022
- Ride Utrecht Central to Utrecht Overvecht 19-01-2022
- Cycling home after school in Waalwijk (NL) 08-06-2022
- Is 38C/100F weather too hot for cycling? 27-07-2022
- La Vuelta ʼs-Hertogenbosch (NL), start 2nd Stage 2022 10-08-2022
Let me end this post and this year with my recap video and a wish
Happy Holidays
and
a good 2023!
See you all in the new year!
BICYCLE DUTCH 
Thanks Mark for all your great vids again! They help keep me inspired and motivated while battling away here in Melbourne. Looking forward to watching more in 2023!
Glad to hear that you continue to do well after your surgery. Best wishes for 2023.
Thanks for keeping up the good work Mark!
Do you keep a list of the evergreens, the top videos/posts of all time?
Love your videos. Happy ( and healthy!) New Year.
Thank you for a wonderful 2022 sharing bicycling with us Mark! Glad you’re doing better and looking forward to more of your videos in the new year 🙂
Happy holidays to you too, Mark🥳