It is hard work on board the flat-bottomed boats. The route from Frisian Workum via the IJsselmeer to Warmond in South Holland and back is long and full of challenges. The ships sail on the wind, that is, with sails. But in places where the wind is in the wrong direction or where there is no wind, the ships are ‘driven’ or ‘boomed’.
Trees and hunting
When ‘booming’ the ship is propelled with long sticks that are placed against the bottom. ‘Hunting’ is certainly a challenge. Four or five people walk along the waterfront and pull the ship forward using a thick cable.
In the past, Frisian skippers transported large loads of manure from Friesland to the Bulb Region. On the way back they took flower bulbs home. The shit race is based on that tradition. The ship that returns first to the starting point of Workum is the winner of the race.
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