Oldtimerdag Ruinerwold 2022. Enjoying a glorious return

The alarm goes off early on Saturday morning, August 20. It's the third Saturday in August, and classic car enthusiasts know what that means. A beautiful day is approaching. With Peter, Thomas and Arnold I go to the Oldtimerdag in Ruinerwold. At eight o'clock in the morning I drive from home. On to Jonkerslân, where I made an appointment with Thomas. Peter and Arnold are there around that time as well. They will take the beautiful 1600 VW 1970 TL with them. After coffee, I step into Thomas's 1956 Oval Beetle. You know this classic, it was in the Auto Motor Klassiek spotlight. And we'll tell you already: the 1600 TL will soon be the turn.

After coffee we ride the two air-cooled Volkswagens through to Ruinerwold. The route runs via Oldeberkoop, Noordwolde, Vledder and Havelte. It is a pleasure to enjoy that nice driving and fresh feeling. It's cozy on board. In the meantime, we enjoy the beautiful route - with the VW 1600 TL from 1970 in our wake. This is the prelude to one of the largest classic events in the Netherlands. The reunion with the Volkswagens and their owners is excellent, the imminent reunion with the Oldtimerdag Ruinerwold beckons. And that's a nice prospect.

Expectations are high. The Oldtimerdag Ruinerwold is a household name. Three years of waiting, in combination with the beautiful weather conditions, results in a large turnout. “It could take a while before we find a place,” we say. Nothing is less true. On arrival in Ruinerwold, one of the many skilled volunteers shows us a spot, this goes very smoothly. And that idea gets extra weight when another member of the crew tells us that there have been 1400 pre-registrations. fourteen hundred. We don't notice it, and are at our assigned spot in no time. The VW 1200 Export and the VW 1600 TL include a Triumph Herald, a Mercedes-Benz W123 and a nice late one Alfa Romeo Spider troupe.

Ruinerwold is already well underway, the starting gun sounded early in the morning and people have come from far and wide. There is much to see, we see that immediately. Thomas' Oval Beetle also stands out. We have just arrived at our spot, but immediately ten people gather at the VW from 1956 painted in Korallenrot. The attraction of the Oval is great, people want to know everything about it. Thomas patiently tells the story behind and about his Volkswagen.

Then it's time to the whole thing to explore. We walk past classics of all sorts, from different vehicle categories. And a little later we walk across the well-filled open area. There too, and there is too much to mention, and that 'too much' is only a fraction of more than fifteen hundred participants who have come to Ruinerwold. Registered participants, of course, because more than two hundred unregistered old-timers are said to have come to the Oldtimerdag Ruinerwold.

After a while we go into the village for the final chord of the day. And that chord has a long breath, the apotheosis lasts a pleasantly long time. The Dijkhuizen street is full of old-timers on both sides and offers space for the countless owners who live in the Netherlands blocks structured drive out of the village. They are flanked by an incessant stream of visitors. Left and right, it just goes on. Meanwhile, the catering establishments in the street are also filling up nicely. They are undoubtedly doing good business, because there are said to be at least twenty thousand visitors. All records are broken today. In terms of visitors, in terms of registrations. And yet there is never a moment of chaos. Everything runs smoothly in Ruinerwold, literally and figuratively. And that goes beyond routine.

There is no dissonance, you can hear the classic combustion engine sound. And that is part of a wide variety of classics that were once newly built in all corners of the world. There are beautiful trucks, beautiful pre- and post-war old-timers, beautiful classic motorcycles, mopeds, tractors. It is almost impossible to point out the most beautiful and/or special classic vehicle of the day. The offer, which all participants bring together, is simply beautiful and very varied, also in terms of condition.

Impressions abound, and the impressions are more than pleasant.. Around three o'clock Peter, Thomas, Arnold and I decide it is time to head north again. It will take a while before we are back on track. Once again there is a lot of interest in Thomas's Oval Beetle, which forms a beautiful duo together with the VW 1600 TL. We are driving again, and are at Dijkhuizen suddenly part of what we were just looking at. We belong to the column leaving the village.

The flow of people left and right is still incessant. Thomas again gets many compliments for his Beetle. His 1200 Export is captured more than once by people with a smartphone. We wave to people, hear through the open windows “hey, that VW was recently in AMK”, and have mini-conversations - driving at walking pace - with several visitors, passers-by, people who enjoy more than fifteen hundred old-timers. And we also enjoy this closure in Ruinerwold, Dijkhuizen evokes a special feeling.

The meandering stream of people feels like a continuously moving hedge of honor for the heritage and their owners. The honorary hague also belongs to the organization of the Oldtimerdag Ruinerwold. Because she delivers a top performance all day long. That happens almost unnoticed. And in that unnoticed hides the quality of today. It's right on all sides. Thomas, Peter, Arnold and I enjoy this together with thousands of visitors for a day. And we all see that the return of the Oldtimerdag Ruinerwold is glorious. And simply great.