donderdag 20 april 2023

The rider (from the archive)

He rode a giant mole. Ever since he was four years old. He was world famous because he was the best rider. The art of mole riding was not easy. The hardest part of it was leaving the mole's back at the very last moment, before the mole disappeared into the earth. Again and again he tried to push his limit. He had already managed to disappear completely into the earth, really underground, and still come up in one piece. Indeed, the giant mole became a feared carnivore underground, indiscriminately, as it was called in official circles at the time.

Many made attempts to surpass him, but without success. Many paid with their lives. Most did not even reach the mole's back. The biggest advantage for him was that there was only one giant mole. Actually, he had no real opponents. He was the only one who really knew the mole, including his voraciousness.

He had announced his intention to break his existing record and stay underground for at least five minutes. The crowd had turned up en masse. He mounted his mole, rode several laps above the ground, until the mole suddenly disappeared underground. It remained silent for a long time. The audience became restless and tense. After fifteen minutes, the ground moved. Battered, the rider emerged. A tremendous applause resounded. All cheered him on. Like a great victor, he left the arena.

Afterwards, nothing was heard of him. He fell into oblivion. The giant mole was also never seen again. Rumor has it, that in order to survive he had to kill his mole. However, this has not been confirmed to date.