1/3 Juup has been working high up on a scaffolding for hours on one of the dolls (photo: Rochelle Moes).
The members of carnival association Da Hedde Wellus from Schaijk have completed an enormous construction marathon. They worked continuously for 33 hours on their carnival float for next year. With this they have broken a record set in 1989 by another Schaijk carnival club.
At five o’clock on Friday afternoon, the builders were finally able to put down their brushes and tongs. Most of them had been in the construction site since early Thursday morning. “The intention was for everyone to stay involved all the time, but that didn’t work. So we turned it into a kind of relay,” says car builder Juup van den Heuvel.
“Put on some music and talk a bit, and everything will be fine.”
The old record was 24 hours, but Juup and the other members of the club wanted to go one step further. Three times the carnival number 11 is 33 hours. He can still keep his eyes open, but that is not the case for everyone.
“Someone had already been in the construction shed for 26 hours and had not been outside in the meantime. At one point we found him sleeping on a chair and we took him home,” Juup laughs. Next to him, Fleur Schakenraad literally has to bend over backwards to apply paper mache. “It’s not necessarily the easiest position, but fortunately it’s already starting to make progress.”
A little further on, another doll for the carnival float is already being painted. “I was here for twelve hours yesterday and started again at half past six this morning,” says Zoë van Dijk. That takes a lot of hours to build, but she says it’s doable. “Just keep busy, sing along to some music and talk a bit. It will be fine.”
“I don’t need this every year.”
Meanwhile, someone is greeted with loud cheers when he enters with oliebollen. The last minutes are starting, but the carnival float is far from finished after this marathon. “That would be nice,” says Juup. “But no, we still have a while. Although this record attempt will ensure that people show up en masse and therefore the car will be finished sooner.”
Despite the success, it does not seem that such a construction marathon will become an annual tradition in Schaijk. “If we are pressed for time and we are behind, it is an option,” says Zoë. “But I also like being able to sleep in between. So this is not necessary for me every year.”
