The strangest new sport in the Netherlands: tegelwippen, "tile whipping"
April 15, 2024 11:39 PM Subscribe
The strangest new sport in the Netherlands: tegelwippen, "tile whipping", or "whipping away" the paving stones. "A lot of people think that tiles are easier, but actually when you have larger trees, you get very few weeds underneath them and you can make it really easy," she says. "When I had paving I would never sit here, but now it’s a garden, it’s cooler in summer and in the spring, it’s lovely."
Two weeks ago, the starting gun fired for the NK Tegelwippen, a lighthearted competition where, up to October, municipalities compete to get rid of the most paved infrastructure. The "tile table" is currently dominated by Venlo in Limburg (14,636 whipped away, 144 per 1,000 residents), with Menalda’s Amersfoort in third rank (3,271) and the Dutch capital Amsterdam trailing with just 2.
The Steenbreek foundation – named after the saxifrage plant that literally means “stone breaker” – is another partner. Its research suggests that of 5.8m Dutch domestic gardens, only 8.64% reach its target of being four-fifths green, to allow rainwater drainage and biodiversity.
Two weeks ago, the starting gun fired for the NK Tegelwippen, a lighthearted competition where, up to October, municipalities compete to get rid of the most paved infrastructure. The "tile table" is currently dominated by Venlo in Limburg (14,636 whipped away, 144 per 1,000 residents), with Menalda’s Amersfoort in third rank (3,271) and the Dutch capital Amsterdam trailing with just 2.
The Steenbreek foundation – named after the saxifrage plant that literally means “stone breaker” – is another partner. Its research suggests that of 5.8m Dutch domestic gardens, only 8.64% reach its target of being four-fifths green, to allow rainwater drainage and biodiversity.
Yeah, it took me five minutes of reading and re-reading to figure it what the fuck was going on. I realise it's an extract from the Grauniad (a warning about which would itself have been nice) but it's the most confusing possible paragraph on its own.
Personally, we are about to start paving our two square meters of "garden" (currently a literal gravel pit), because we assume it will be easier. Not easier to weed or keep tidy, but easier to practice skateboard tricks on.
posted by Dysk at 12:29 AM on April 16 [2 favorites]
Personally, we are about to start paving our two square meters of "garden" (currently a literal gravel pit), because we assume it will be easier. Not easier to weed or keep tidy, but easier to practice skateboard tricks on.
posted by Dysk at 12:29 AM on April 16 [2 favorites]
Onder de tegels, het strand . . .
In 1978, I was hired [MetaPrev] by Blijdorp Zoo Rotterdam as spare hand for a huge new exhibition of tropical fish. I did the grunt work while the permanent staff built and populated aquariums. The centre-piece was the 30-meter-bak: a U-shaped aquarium for tropical-reef fish.
There were mishaps. One afternoon, two caterers from the restaurant at the end of the exhibition hall were pushing a trolley laden with dirty plates across the building when they disappeared into the ground. Rotterdam is built on sand - formerly the sea-bed - which makes digging trenches for utilities particularly easy. But sand has very little cohesion and will wash away quickly in running water. It seemed that one of the many pipes servicing the aquariums had developed a leak underground and this had eaten away the sand supporting the paving-flags of the floor. The concentrated weight of two people and 200 plates was too much for the residual structure and >!KARASH!<
posted by BobTheScientist at 2:39 AM on April 16 [14 favorites]
In 1978, I was hired [MetaPrev] by Blijdorp Zoo Rotterdam as spare hand for a huge new exhibition of tropical fish. I did the grunt work while the permanent staff built and populated aquariums. The centre-piece was the 30-meter-bak: a U-shaped aquarium for tropical-reef fish.
There were mishaps. One afternoon, two caterers from the restaurant at the end of the exhibition hall were pushing a trolley laden with dirty plates across the building when they disappeared into the ground. Rotterdam is built on sand - formerly the sea-bed - which makes digging trenches for utilities particularly easy. But sand has very little cohesion and will wash away quickly in running water. It seemed that one of the many pipes servicing the aquariums had developed a leak underground and this had eaten away the sand supporting the paving-flags of the floor. The concentrated weight of two people and 200 plates was too much for the residual structure and >!KARASH!<
posted by BobTheScientist at 2:39 AM on April 16 [14 favorites]
I kind of don’t understand the “whipping” part unless it’s a Dutch phrase, although I’m generally in favor of the practice.
I was walking in Tokyo, and outside a store, they had cut 2 narrow pieces out of the sidewalk and planted very lush green grass. It was a surprisingly shocking site in that concrete and glass canyon.
posted by GenjiandProust at 6:10 AM on April 16 [4 favorites]
I was walking in Tokyo, and outside a store, they had cut 2 narrow pieces out of the sidewalk and planted very lush green grass. It was a surprisingly shocking site in that concrete and glass canyon.
posted by GenjiandProust at 6:10 AM on April 16 [4 favorites]
When a problem comes along…
posted by Jon_Evil at 6:24 AM on April 16 [14 favorites]
posted by Jon_Evil at 6:24 AM on April 16 [14 favorites]
I kind of don’t understand the “whipping” part unless it’s a Dutch phraseI think it’s a strange translation. Dutch wippen is related to English whip but has a different meaning. It means “to flip, to overturn, to teeter.”
Both come from a Germanic root meaning “to move back and forth.” So does English wipe, so it would be equally plausible to gloss this as “wiping away the tiles.”
posted by mbrubeck at 7:11 AM on April 16 [6 favorites]
I kind of don’t understand the “whipping” part unless it’s a Dutch phrase
The word is used in British English in a similar way. To "whip" something is to steal it or snatch it away.
When I'm walking my dog around the village I find myself getting increasingly annoyed by the sheer number of people who've concreted, paved or tarmac-ed what used to be the green space out in from of their house, and how none of them do it in a way that will allow water to soak away; beginning to think we need to start charging people by the square metre. Our storm water infrastructure here in the UK just wasn't designed to cope with people replacing their gardens with hard surfaces at this scale. And an increasing number of people now have a plastic lawn at the back of the house, which only makes things worse.
posted by pipeski at 7:12 AM on April 16 [6 favorites]
The word is used in British English in a similar way. To "whip" something is to steal it or snatch it away.
When I'm walking my dog around the village I find myself getting increasingly annoyed by the sheer number of people who've concreted, paved or tarmac-ed what used to be the green space out in from of their house, and how none of them do it in a way that will allow water to soak away; beginning to think we need to start charging people by the square metre. Our storm water infrastructure here in the UK just wasn't designed to cope with people replacing their gardens with hard surfaces at this scale. And an increasing number of people now have a plastic lawn at the back of the house, which only makes things worse.
posted by pipeski at 7:12 AM on April 16 [6 favorites]
people who've concreted, paved or tarmac-ed what used to be the green space out in from of their house ... And an increasing number of people now have a plastic lawn at the back of the house
How positively American of them.
posted by Greg_Ace at 8:23 AM on April 16 [1 favorite]
How positively American of them.
posted by Greg_Ace at 8:23 AM on April 16 [1 favorite]
I’m here for that awesome tegelwippen rap in the video. Years of learning Dutch has finally paid off.
posted by misterpatrick at 8:52 AM on April 16 [2 favorites]
posted by misterpatrick at 8:52 AM on April 16 [2 favorites]
Paved surfaces will absolutely bake the crap out of you in a heat wave, even the ones that aren’t asphalt.
And almost needless to say at this point, those heat waves are going to get worse and become way more common.
posted by jamjam at 9:07 AM on April 16 [3 favorites]
And almost needless to say at this point, those heat waves are going to get worse and become way more common.
posted by jamjam at 9:07 AM on April 16 [3 favorites]
...a lighthearted competition where, up to October, municipalities compete to get rid of the most paved infrastructure.
[...]
But for now, Dutch citizens’ enthusiasm must be contained to their own gardens. “The aim,” says one civil servant, “is not that people go around pulling up the pavements.”
[emph. mine]
Disregarding the "whipping" thing, which clearly is born of linguistic quirks, this is just pure Graunism. People prying up a couple of pavers winding through their garden are not, by any stretch of the imagination, greening up a city's infrastructure. This is especially so when they are expressly forbidden from greening up the city's infrastructure.
posted by majick at 9:37 AM on April 16 [1 favorite]
[...]
But for now, Dutch citizens’ enthusiasm must be contained to their own gardens. “The aim,” says one civil servant, “is not that people go around pulling up the pavements.”
[emph. mine]
Disregarding the "whipping" thing, which clearly is born of linguistic quirks, this is just pure Graunism. People prying up a couple of pavers winding through their garden are not, by any stretch of the imagination, greening up a city's infrastructure. This is especially so when they are expressly forbidden from greening up the city's infrastructure.
posted by majick at 9:37 AM on April 16 [1 favorite]
"whipping tiles" makes me think of whipping shingles, specifically the pieces of shingles from a pile of discarded shingles, at each other, like we were ninjas
when a piece lodged in my friend's head that ended it. his older brother was furious for ruining the fun. we ended up advancing to bb gun wars until the same friend took one to the eye, just under the lower lid. the blood in the snow was terrifying, the bb (pellet to be precise) lodged to the bone of his eye socket because he was too scared to let his mom know until much, much later
jesus we were dumb, thank god someone invented paintball guns
sorry for the derail
posted by elkevelvet at 10:21 AM on April 16 [2 favorites]
when a piece lodged in my friend's head that ended it. his older brother was furious for ruining the fun. we ended up advancing to bb gun wars until the same friend took one to the eye, just under the lower lid. the blood in the snow was terrifying, the bb (pellet to be precise) lodged to the bone of his eye socket because he was too scared to let his mom know until much, much later
jesus we were dumb, thank god someone invented paintball guns
sorry for the derail
posted by elkevelvet at 10:21 AM on April 16 [2 favorites]
Sous les pavés, la plage
posted by Hogshead at 10:47 AM on April 16 [1 favorite]
posted by Hogshead at 10:47 AM on April 16 [1 favorite]
came here to say 'Sous les pavés, la plage' but somehow missed someone had beaten me to it.
posted by Hogshead at 10:48 AM on April 16 [1 favorite]
posted by Hogshead at 10:48 AM on April 16 [1 favorite]
came here to say 'Sous les pavés, la plage' but somehow missed someone had beaten me to it.
It's plage all the way down!
posted by notoriety public at 9:59 AM on April 17
It's plage all the way down!
posted by notoriety public at 9:59 AM on April 17
"Our storm water infrastructure here in the UK just wasn't designed to cope with people replacing their gardens with hard surfaces at this scale. And an increasing number of people now have a plastic lawn at the back of the house, which only makes things worse."
My county (the smallest in the US) recently instituted a sewerage surcharge for runoff. At the same time it's rescinded residential zoning limits and is actively promoting multi-family housing development. Previously, the hard surface:permeable ratio was capped at 20%, although variances could be obtained.
My house, and that of most of my neighbors fall within the previous limits and yet our water bills are up around $120 annually.
The county infrastructure was built in the '50-early 60's. The population has grown 35% and 20% of the land area is government owned. Pentagon and National Airport are effectively 100% impermeable. Population density is about 9K/sq. mi.
On the one hand you have a government that is actively seeking population increase and an infrastructure which doesn't support the population it has. Go figure.
posted by MarcWolfe at 2:47 PM on April 17
My county (the smallest in the US) recently instituted a sewerage surcharge for runoff. At the same time it's rescinded residential zoning limits and is actively promoting multi-family housing development. Previously, the hard surface:permeable ratio was capped at 20%, although variances could be obtained.
My house, and that of most of my neighbors fall within the previous limits and yet our water bills are up around $120 annually.
The county infrastructure was built in the '50-early 60's. The population has grown 35% and 20% of the land area is government owned. Pentagon and National Airport are effectively 100% impermeable. Population density is about 9K/sq. mi.
On the one hand you have a government that is actively seeking population increase and an infrastructure which doesn't support the population it has. Go figure.
posted by MarcWolfe at 2:47 PM on April 17
Smallest *self-governing* county, to be more accurate. And the new stormwater charge sounds like a sensible change to me.
posted by tavella at 3:12 PM on April 17
posted by tavella at 3:12 PM on April 17
Smallest *self-governing* county, to be more accurate. And the new stormwater charge sounds like a sensible change to me.
And the distinction?
Acknowledging a problem exists and encouraging actions that exacerbate it is the issue, and surcharges certainly don't, or at least haven't, provided relief.
posted by MarcWolfe at 8:24 PM on April 17
And the distinction?
Acknowledging a problem exists and encouraging actions that exacerbate it is the issue, and surcharges certainly don't, or at least haven't, provided relief.
posted by MarcWolfe at 8:24 PM on April 17
So that the people of Hawaii don't go what the fuck? Kalawao is a third the size in terms of land. Arlington's only the fourth-smallest, but is distinct in being fully self-governing as opposed to partial or totally run by the state or city. I'm Arlington-born, I care about these distinctions!
And the point of the stormwater rules is to encourage actions that relieve the issue, if you read the articles; there are rebates for such. Population growth in the DC area *should* be focused in places like Arlington, close into the city and with the dense corridors focused on public transit to allow less resource usage.
posted by tavella at 7:21 AM on April 18
And the point of the stormwater rules is to encourage actions that relieve the issue, if you read the articles; there are rebates for such. Population growth in the DC area *should* be focused in places like Arlington, close into the city and with the dense corridors focused on public transit to allow less resource usage.
posted by tavella at 7:21 AM on April 18
« Older Here I am | Gig-a-Break Newer »
posted by Reasonably Everything Happens at 11:53 PM on April 15 [5 favorites]