




The first time Kate and I came to Europe, we did a whirlwind tour, including a day in Belgium. We stayed overnight in Liege, and I remember saying something like "Liege is the the Des Moines of Belgium"... well, now that I have seen a lot more of Belgium, I stand by my earlier description. In fact, not only is Liege the Des Moines of Belgium, Belgium is the Iowa of Europe. The trip to Lille went through the country, and out the windows were cattle, corn, and farm towns (I didn't spy any grain elevators though). Not only did it look a lot like Iowa, it even smelled like it. We went for a quick ride on Sunday with the '72 olympic gold medal winner in Tandem Sprint (who knew that they used to have have tandem events in the Olympics?). It only took about two minutes to get out of town, and we were in the country, with farm fields on both sides of us. We were on a paved country road that was only about 1 1/2 bike lanes wide - skinnier than even any gravel road I have ever ridden. But I digress. Not even 7 minutes into the ride, we went past one of the farms, and my nostrils were assaulted by a familiar smell. That's right, Hogs!.
Need further proof that Belgium and Iowa were separated at birth? Check out the photo of the Columbia Service Course. (service course is the mechanical headquarters for a pro cycling team. Each team has their own, and Belgium being pretty much the world center of bicycle racing, Columbia, Sky, and Radio Shack all have their service courses within maybe 15 miles of each other) . You won't have to look closely to see what I mean about Iowa and Belgium. Quite literally right across the street from the main shop for one of the best teams in the world is... a cornfield.


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