A bike ride through the largest forest in the Netherlands
A study abroad visit with an unexpected outcome
👋 Hi friends, it's Hesam with issue #36 of 4 bits. 4 bits is a biweekly newsletter where I share thoughts and musings on how to build memorable experiences.
🎶 Here’s what I’ve been listening to: Cash Cash - Surrender (Dzeko and Torres Remix) (Apple Music, Spotify).
Not a new track, but it’s high energy and lovely to listen to on good speakers. I came across this track while at a workout class. The instructor would regularly use it towards the end of the session. As we’re running out of steam, he’d play this, and a rush of adrenaline would appear out of nowhere. It’d be just enough to keep us going.
I file tracks like this under a special category - one that can instantly change your mood. While this particular genre/track might not fit your taste, I’m curious - what’s the song that instantly changes your mood? Let me know in the comments below.
A bike ride through the largest forest in the Netherlands
Last summer, I led a two week study abroad design course in Amsterdam with 12 students from Rice. Much like any study abroad course, there's a mix of curriculum, site visits to companies, and free time in the schedule to become familiar with the city we're visiting.
Out of all the activities in a study abroad, site visits to companies in particular are a good way to see the topic we're exploring within the context of the country and culture.
Having been a part of study abroad programs in France, Brazil, and Peru, I've noticed that the average site visit goes like this: we show up, have the students awkwardly shake hands or introduce themselves to the host, sit down in a conference room, go through a slide presentation, ask questions, maybe have a brief tour, then say goodbye.
There's nothing wrong with the average site visit, but it leaves you wondering...what would it look like if there was more? How could we make it unforgettable?
Cold emails and an unusual request
I've shared my love for cold emails on 4 bits before, but I'll say it again: cold emails, done right, have repeatedly shown to create new, unexpected things to happen that I never thought possible.
When planning last summer's Amsterdam visit, I knew one of the students on the trip, Max, was a biking enthusiast. He had previously owned a mountain biking business and what attracted Max to the Netherlands was the biking culture. Max had also taken a course with me before where he had to cold email,and he had seen the value in doing it to chase their interests and new opportunities.
So I reached out to Max and asked: "What if you planned one of the site visits?"
Max emphatically said yes. For weeks, he cold emailed different bicycle companies. Unsurprisingly, most didn't respond. Cold emails have a low success rate. But he kept going and eventually connected with a project manager at Gazelle, the largest bicycle manufacturer in the Netherlands.
When Max and I got on a call with the project manager, I was surprised by the questions the project manager was asking.
"So what do you learn in the class?"
"What does the design process look like that your class follows?"
"What would you like to do while you're here?"
We answered their questions and offered to share some of the course materials so they could better understand how we approached design. Right before we ended the call, Max gave an unusual request:
"We'd really like to ride some bikes around the town where we're visiting you. Would that be possible?"
The project manager looked surprised. He explained that the nearby area was a fairly small town and there wasn't much to see. Also, Gazelle had an "Experience Center" at the factory location we were visiting where people could see and try different bikes on an enclosed test track. Nevertheless, he said he'd see what he could do and get back to us.
A week before the visit, the project manager sent the schedule. Max and I were both delighted to see that there was a group bicycle ride scheduled at the end of the day. But how would it work? Where would we go?
Visiting Gazelle
During the second week of the study abroad trip, it was finally time to visit Gazelle. After a one and a half hour train ride, we ended up in Dieren, a small town close to Germany. We walked into the Gazelle factory, and were greeted by the project manager, an engineer, and a designer. They'd all be spending the day with us.
We started with a fireside chat. The Gazelle team shared their design process and linked it to many of the concepts we were exploring in the course. It was a good way to see how design worked in the real world, particularly at a company that had been around for over 100 years.
Then, we had lunch at the cafe on site with the Gazelle team. From sharing Dutch views of American culture to talking about Formula 1 racing, we had a chance to have informal conversations.
Afterwards, we went on a factory tour and visit to the Experience Center. We learned about the history of Gazelle and viewed early bike designs.
As we neared the end of our time at the Experience Center, the project manager said: "Pick a bike! We're going on a ride through the forest."
We were all taken aback. What Max and I hadn't discovered in our research about Gazelle is that it was located right next to the largest forest in the Netherlands. And after each of us picked either an electric or traditional bike, we were on our way.
We navigated through a few small neighborhoods and were soon surrounded by trees and small roads. We weaved in and out of trails. The weather was perfect and the smell of trees and nature was a refreshing change. After about 20 minutes, we ended up at a small cafe that appeared to be the only place to stop in the area. We had some ice cream at the cafe (courtesy of the Gazelle team), and continued riding around.
We ended up back at the factory, returned the bikes, thanked the team, and were on our way back to Amsterdam. Hours later, the students were still glowing about the visit.
For some of the students, it was their first time on an e-bike. For others, it was the first time to ride in nature on an open trail. And for nearly all of us, it was our first time biking in the Netherlands, with new people we had just met hours before, who were kind and creative enough to build an unforgettable experience for us.
Such a cool experience! So glad you decided to write about this