International Rhineland-Palatinate Tour 1970
The International Rheinland-Pfalz Rundfahrt 1970 was a cycling - stage race , the ten stages by the German federal state of Rhineland-Palatinate introduced. The Rhineland-Palatinate Tour took place from July 21st to 30th with start and finish in Landau. The organization was mainly carried out by the Association for the Promotion of Cycling with the support of some companies and the state government. Despite the predominantly bad weather, the tour received a very high level of audience response. The organizers then decided to continue the tour the following year.
Attendees
At the start were 64 racing cyclists from 16 teams with four drivers each. Seven foreign selection teams met six German national association teams, two teams from the Federation of German Cyclists (BDR) and a mixed team (names according to the official starting list):
- Belgium
- Denmark
- England
- Holland
- Austria
- Norway
- Turkey
- BDR I
- BDR II
- Regional Association of Bavaria
- Regional Association Berlin
- State Association of Hesse
- Lower Saxony regional association
- Regional association of North Rhine-Westphalia
- Regional association of Rhineland-Palatinate
- Mixed team
route
The tour led over 1433 kilometers from Landau via Ludwigshafen, Lauterecken, Wittlich, Bad Neuenahr, Bad Marienburg, Bad Schwalbach, Diez, Simmern, Kirn, and Kaiserslautern back to Landau. There was no day off.
Race course
The first week was initially marked by the rivalry between some German teams and drivers, which benefited the drivers of the Dutch team in particular. The first stage had no major difficulties with the terrain. Nevertheless, it turned out to be a dramatic stage when, after 35 kilometers, a shy horse got into the peloton and brought down many riders. With Ludwig Kretz from Austria one of the strongest drivers had to retire, Dieter Koslar also suffered some injuries. The finish sprint was won by Henk Nieuwkamp after the photo decision .
The 2nd stage led to the northern Palatinate . After 70 kilometers the German champion Erwin Derlick from the North Rhine-Westphalia team started a solo escape, the wearer of the leadership jersey could not keep up on the slopes. Ironically, some German drivers resolutely followed up Derlick, who had the chance to become the overall leader. Derlick saved a few seconds advantage and won the stage, but only just took the lead in the overall standings.
On the next part of the day ( 3rd stage ), competition within Germany again prevented the German participants from doing better. Popke Oosterhof and Tino Tabak took advantage of this disagreement to win the day, although nine Germans were represented in the top group of eleven. Derlick remained the front runner.
The fourth stage was tackled by 59 riders. After the food check, the Belgian Bellemans pulled away from the field and quickly gained a solid lead. The wearer of the yellow jersey had fallen behind, the tactical driving style of the Germans meant that not one of their ranks but Tino Tabak took the lead after Bellemans had crossed the target tape with a sure margin.
On the 5th stage , Oosterhof successfully attacked the lead. In strong winds and rain showers, he pursued a leading group in a solo, overtook them 5 kilometers from the finish, and won safely. He took over the helm as planned.
Tobacco won the divided 6th stage thanks to a solo in the first section. This was enough to get the leadership jersey back into his possession. Karl-Heinz Muddemann had meanwhile worked his way up to second place overall thanks to a consistently strong driving style.
Henk Nieuwkamp was again the winner of the final sprint of a breakaway group on the 7th stage , but this did not result in any major shifts in the overall standings.
On the 8th stage , Oosterhof attacked again vehemently, to the detriment of his team-mate in the leadership jersey. Oosterhof attacked on the most difficult incline of the tour, the Lettweiler Berg. Tobacco fell behind immediately. Muddemann stayed in the chasing group and took over the yellow jersey with a very narrow margin over the stage winner. After the end of the stage, we were able to resolve some situations that had led to tough competition among some German drivers on the first stages. There was now a chance for a local driver to win.
The 9th stage was characterized by a long solo escape by the Belgian Bellemans, whom the field let go in the pouring rain and who was the day's winner with almost 5 minutes ahead. Muddemann lost some time, but remained the front runner.
Shortly before the end of the 10th stage , three riders managed to break away, and Nieuwkamp won the sprint, celebrating his third stage victory. The overall victory of Muddemann from the BDR I team in front of Oosterhof and Tabak was no longer in danger.
stage | Start finish | Length (km) | winner | team | Time (h) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Landau in the Palatinate - Ludwigshafen | 141.5 | Henk Nieuwkamp | Holland | 56:05 |
2 | Ludwigshafen - Lauterecken | 118.5 | Erwin Derlick | North Rhine-Westphalia | 4:32:50 |
3 | Lauterecken - Wittlich | 152 | Popke Oosterhof | Holland | 4:04:17 |
4th | Wittlich - Bad Neuenahr | 130.5 | Walter Bellemans | Belgium | 4:24:45 |
5 | Linz on the Rhine - Bad Marienberg | 147 | Popke Oosterhof | Holland | 5:01:54 |
6th | Bad Marienberg - Bad Schwalbach - Diez | 135.5 | Tino tobacco | Holland | 4:35:28 |
7th | Diez - Simmern (Westerwald) | 138.5 | Henk Nieuwkamp | Holland | 4:35:28 |
8th | Simmern - Kirn | 165 | Popke Oosterhof | Holland | 4:35:28 |
9 | Kirn - Kaiserslautern | 171.5 | Walter Bellemans | Belgium | 4:35:28 |
10 | Kaiserslautern - Landau | 133.5 | Henk Nieuwkamp | Holland | 4:35:28 |
Final results
driver | team | Time (h) | |
1 . | Karl-Heinz Muddemann | BDR I | 36:40:54 h |
2. | Popke Oosterhof | Holland | 36:41:47 h |
3. | Tino tobacco | Holland | 36:42:51 h |
4th | Andreas Troche | BDR I | 36:45:05 h |
5. | Michael Becker | LV Berlin | 36:50:27 h |
6th | Erwin Derlick | LV NRW | 36:51:57 h |
7th | Harald Sütterlin | BDR II | 36:52:10 h |
8th. | Hans Kuhn | BDR II | 37:04:10 h |
9. | David Vose | England | 37:07:09 h |
10. | Johann Ruch | LV Hessen | 37:07:18 h |
... |
team | ||
1 . | BDR I | |
2. | BDR II | |
3. | Holland |
literature
- Cycling, 30/1970, Association of German Cyclists, Deutscher Sportverlag Kurt Stoof, Cologne 1970
- Cycling, 31/1970, Association of German Cyclists, Deutscher Sportverlag Kurt Stoof, Cologne 1970