Not to be meant as a criticism, Nijmegen has simply become too big. This year they had what was reported to be another record breaking crowd; 48,500 if you read the numbers on the Vierdaagse web site. But in terms of administration, the system fell apart.
First change was a limit of 47,000 marchers imposed in January 2004. The web site detailed that Dutch citizens could register on the Internet, the remainders of the countries were required to submit to their respective postal systems and wire the fees. Parity was the first thing to go. Registering on the Internet avoids the costly wire transfer fees. My initial fees to Camp Huemensoord, which lodges the military marchers, and the marching fees to KNBLO were $180 and $45 respectively. The wire fees were $30…each. OK, I can deal with that.
I faxed my registration and wired my money on 12 March, 2004. Two months went by and nothing in the mail. I sent an email and asked what progress there was and I was assured they had my registration. Another month…it is now early June and another email which stated I was confirmed to come to Nijmegen. I sent a reply to this and asked where my confirmation card was and no reply. I sent another email and was told I was "registered".
I left the USA June 23, marched in Denmark and Ireland, and on July 4 (no cause for celebration as it turned out) I telephoned my wife who was flying to Paris there next day if my confirmation card arrived, and it had not. I told her there was a glitch, to extent her ticket for one week and we would remain in France.
We returned home July 27 to find in the mailbox my confirmation card. My first thought was FOUR MONTHS. Hey, no problem, they are good folks, they will give me a refund. The short version of that was absolutely not. They insisted they could have found my name on one list and retrieved my card from the stack by the start number. I stood firm on the fact that a confirmation card is just what the name implies, it confirms that one will be allowed to participate and without same it leaves doubt that one will be allowed to receive a start card. But the sense of responsibility was lost on the KNBLO and the answer remained NO. My last email questioned why the long period of time between payment and the receipt of the card, and of the rumor some of their countrymen registered numerous times and were selling the extra cards on the internet, and they have yet to reply to that one.
This is not over yet. August 6 I received my confirmation for Camp Huemensoord. OK, add some salt to my wounds. Then within the text I see Reservists and Retired personnel will no longer be able to stay Huemensoord. That hit deep. We can be deployed to far corners of the world but we can’t stay at a military camp in The Netherlands.
So there are the facts as they transpired. I can no longer recommend to anyone attending the Nijmegen. Some of the marchers in Denmark referred to it as the National Dutch March rather than an IWA walk. In the event all interested parties, regardless of citizenship, can make all arrangements on the Internet including registration, payment, and receipt of confirmation, then the risk of confusion is much too high.
I continue to strongly encourage walkers to attend the other IWA walks, and in view of the USA getting a second IWA event in Washington DC this October, things are finally looking up for us. Please see my other articles for walks in Sweden, Denmark and Ireland and be assured there are many other alternatives to choose from when looking for a great walk.
Related: Nijmegen Registration Procedures for 2005 Announced
