Vurig Nieuw Jaar!

December 31, 2015 6:44 AM

Last New Year's vreugdevuur in Duindorp, Holland, broke the world record of the biggest bonfire in the world. Building it was no small undertaking, after which it was burned down at midnight on New Years Eve. This year, the battle of the bonfires that has been raging for years between the neighbouring beaches of Duindorp and Scheveningen is reaching fever pitch. Scheveningen is doing their damnedest to build an even bigger towering inferno. You can follow the construction (and destruction at midnight local time, UTC/GMT +1) live on webcam:

Scheveningen bonfire
Duindorp bonfire

The next day, everyone goes for a sausage sponsored swim in the freezing cold North Sea.
posted by sively (15 comments total)

Unfortunately five people were lost when the largest smore in history fell on them.
posted by sammyo at 6:55 AM on December 31, 2015 [1 favorite]

Neat! I like how they can see each others' towers as they are building them.
posted by carter at 7:16 AM on December 31, 2015

Building those looks incredibly dangerous. I presume they have some engineers working on keeping it stable, but damn!
posted by dellsolace at 7:27 AM on December 31, 2015 [1 favorite]

“And Rohan will answer!”
posted by Fizz at 7:30 AM on December 31, 2015 [3 favorites]

Aggie bonfire 1999 collapse
posted by bukvich at 7:57 AM on December 31, 2015

I wonder if that huge impulse of carbon dioxide would show up in the OCO-2 satellite data (video).
posted by intermod at 8:00 AM on December 31, 2015

They need to work in the Top2000 somehow.
posted by sldownard at 8:13 AM on December 31, 2015

I like this. Pile all your regrets, your sadness, your grudges petty and grand, your unfulfilled dreams from the last year on the bonfire. But put your successes there to. Add the victories, the cutting ripostes, every imagined achievement. And then burn it all down in one tremendous conflagration. Remember that on the start of the new year, all you have is ash.

Strange that it's Dutch and not German, really.
posted by aureliobuendia at 9:04 AM on December 31, 2015

I think they've got the fuel side adequately covered and should start working on the other sides of the fire triangle.
posted by ctmf at 11:53 AM on December 31, 2015

What a cute little bonfire! You guys would love Belfast in July
posted by Damienmce at 12:10 PM on December 31, 2015

Jesus, that "building it" video is fucking terrifying. All of them just milling about on a loose and uneven surface 20-odd metres up in the air, no ropes or apparent sense of self preservation. Christ.
posted by howfar at 1:13 PM on December 31, 2015 [1 favorite]

I'm looking at the feeds right now, those are some huge bonfires!
posted by conic at 4:04 PM on December 31, 2015

I'm sure they'd achieve better flame height if they lit the things at the top and let them burn down into the core. Lighting them at the bottom makes them fall over early and spoils the draft.
posted by flabdablet at 5:35 AM on January 1, 2016

You'd also think it would not be beyond the wit of humanity to construct the stack in such a way as to generate a truly awesome vortex in the centre.
posted by flabdablet at 5:42 AM on January 1, 2016

That sausage swim video is gorgeous in terms of color, focus, etc. I want whatever camera and lens they used. Beautiful artwork, Dutch sausage marketing people!
posted by Mid at 5:43 AM on January 1, 2016