Wallonie, Slovakia, And Liège

Last night I had the privilege to join about 100 other guests at an open house and party to celebrate the opening of Belgianwerkx in Mequon.  Never mind that the shop actually opened back in January; it was great to talk the Belgianwerkx staff and to get expert advice from numerous factory reps.  One of the Shimano guys introduced me to electronic shifting as I sat atop a trainer-mounted road bike equipped with Ultegra Di2.  Unbelievable.  You just can’t imagine the precision until you try it for yourself.

Leaving the shop, we regrouped at a nearby restaurant and the party got started in earnest. Belgianwerkx handed out prizes valued at more than $2,500 and I garnered my share by answering three trivia questions:

• What is the name of the French-speaking region of Belgium?  Wallonie
• What is the home country of pro cyclist Peter Sagan?  Slovakia
• LGG is the airport code for what city?  Liège

I scored a really nice Focus full-zip jersey, a pair of Swiftwick socks and a Cannondale hat:

Maybe this is the free buffet talking, but last night made me wish I could attend a trade show! Interbike is just six months away.  That plus CrossVegas plus the USA Crits series championships will make Las Vegas the center of the cycling world for a few days.  And I have a lot of unscheduled vacation …