Ah, Dreams ...

This morning I had one eye on work and one eye on the pro cyclocross race from Niel, Belgium.  Cyclingfans.com is a great resource for links to streaming cyclocross races, much in the same way Steephill.tv keeps me linked to road events.  Today’s winner, Sven Nys, has been one of the sport’s dominant riders.  Nys won the world championship in 2005 and has reached the podium of the world championships on six other occasions.  I grabbed a screen shot as Nys neared the end of the last lap:

Niel is a small town with one big industrial site for concrete and landscaping products.  Each lap took the riders through the site, where the course was lined with stacked bags of the company’s wares.  The course also included grassy fields, cobblestone streets and other features you would expect, but what a cool way to bring attention to a local business!

Someday we’re going to develop Park Site O—which today is an unknown and unused city property tucked between US 45, the Kettle Moraine Ice Center and Northfield (Bend Industries)—into a permanent cycling park like this one.  At about 80 acres it’s big enough for an outdoor velodrome, mountain bike trails, a pump track and a cyclocross course.  And when we host our annual cyclocross race we'll team up with Northfield and run part of the course through its yard.  The race will finish with a mad dash around the apron of the velodrome.  Someday.

Can you imagine?