The Alternative Elfstedentocht: Racing Climate Change

As dawn breaks, skaters wearing headlamps set out on the first lap of the 200km Alternative Elfstedentocht on January 25, 2019 in Weissensee, Austria. The tour is held 4 times over two weeks, this edition, the second of the year, featured over 1000 skaters. The fastest time was just over 6:45, the longest was nearly 5 hours longer at just over 11:38. The Elfstedentocht is a legendary Dutch speed skating race and a victim of global warming: it hasn't been held in 22 years; the longest such period since its inception. Beginning in 1989, organizers have held an "Alternative Elfstedentocht" race in Weissensee, Austria, where the ice is reliably thick enough to skate the grueling, 200km tour.

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Contained in galleries: The Alternative Elfstedentocht

As dawn breaks, skaters wearing headlamps set out on the first lap of the 200km Alternative Elfstedentocht on January 25, 2019 in Weissensee, Austria. The tour is held 4 times over two weeks, this edition, the second of the year, featured over 1000 skaters. The fastest time was just over 6:45, the longest was nearly 5 hours longer at just over 11:38. The Elfstedentocht is a legendary Dutch speed skating race and a victim of global warming: it hasn't been held in 22 years; the longest such period since its inception. Beginning in 1989, organizers have held an "Alternative Elfstedentocht" race in Weissensee, Austria, where the ice is reliably thick enough to skate the grueling, 200km tour.