Mud = Cyclocross.

One of the main draws for traveling to the Netherlands, besides seeing old friends and meeting new ones, was to attend a cyclocross race in a southern Dutch town called Hoogerheide. (here's a quick video on cyclocross). I can sort of pronounce this city name in Dutch, but only if I'm half in the bag... yes yes, which is most of the time.


We awoke to some snow in the town I was now staying in, Nijkerk (pronounced "Knee-kirk", just like Kirk Cameron). I also found out, for the Dutch, this is alot of snow. It's merely a dusting for a Minnesotan, but for a drive to the southern part of the country, we needed to be prepared for the racing action.


No snow to speak of down south, so it was time to break out the Wellies. I was lucky enough to borrow some thick socks and these perfectly suitable green badboys. (I only packed one bag, no room for Wellies).


Next, keep your hands warm with the Dutch hand warmer. Yes, Doris, that is mayo on the fries (or as they say, "frites"). No before you complain about mayo on the fries, try it first. This mayo has a hint of lemon and is not the consistency of American mayo. It was delicious, warm, and my lunch.


Finally, toss in an Umpah band, a large mobile TV screen, a few thousand Dutch and Belgians (only 4km from Belgium) and you have the makings of a race. Where's the bikes!?!

Ah-ha!








As I said, this was my first UCI World Cup Cyclocross event. It was awesome. The crowd was great (not too big, not too small... and not too drunk), the racing was superb, and the day couldn't have gone much better.

The 1.5 hour drive back (a real roadtrip in Europe) was spent talking about the warming of extremities, what we could snack on, and how much cold body parts hurt near the end of the day. I think it was perfect.

A View of Amsterdam.

Don't let the pot-rep fool you, this place is sweet!

So, for those not in the know, I took a short trip to the Netherlands last weekend (I had miles, I didn't pay for hotels, it was a VERY cheap trip - I won't even tell you how cheap). This is also why everyone that I met looked at me funny for staying only 3 days. They were like, "Wha???!!!", but then I told them why it was so short.

Anyways, the first day and a half was spent in Amsterdam. I though it might be nice to toss up some quick pics of a very cute city.

First, get a lay of the land from the place your staying. Due to a wonderful friend and host, I lucked into a 4th and 5th floor condo on the first night's stay. I did have to help pumping up an air mattress by hand, drink my share of beer, and ride a young lady around the city on the back of a bike... but hey, it's a small price to pay and I was glad to oblige.

Westerly


Easterly

Then, a trip through the city to the "Jordaan" through one of their bigger parks, called the "Vondelpark"


They have a large park with large houses all along the outer ring. It was something to see alright


Hurry, the light's fading fast (at about 4:30-5pm)


Catch this canal shot before the sun sets


And one more for good measure. The city has many many many canals b/c they used them to move goods from the harbor into the warehouses that stored/owned the goods. It makes alot of sense to me


So this is a shot from the bar we stopped in about when we arrived. Not to full... just wait.


Fuel up with some raw "ox" sausage and some good ole liverwurst. This is not the kind Oscar Mayer makes, a bit of a step up. We also had some Pringles (limited selection in this little nook), but they tasted great with the meat selection.


Wash down the vittles with some local brew, which in Amsterdam happens to be Heineken. And is that a ghost in the picture? Woooo-ooooohhhh!!!!


Here's our guy again... lots more people, and still only one bartender, handling it all like nothing's doin'


And finally, a shot of the swans hanging out in the RedLight district. Now whatever you've heard about the RedLight is probably true. I've not ever seen anything like it... but it's also kind of like an outdoor strip club. Makes you feel a little dirty and, at least for me, I just want to get out.

As a sidenote, the pot thing has never seemed to influence much about the city for me. I think of the city as very normal, hardworking, and just the right amount of design and Euro-flair. I like the place a lot.

The Netherlands, Intro.

A small series of posts will go up here over the next couple weeks. I'm thinking something like one on Amsterdam (aka "A-dam" or "XXX"), one on cyclocross, one for some random stuff, and maybe one with someone else's pics. Check back for the rest, please leave comments or even ask questions.

Song of the Trip.

For a couple of reasons this was the song of the trip. I'm a sucker for Pop... she's also easy on the eyes. Goto this YouTube link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nrm05oolntA&feature=youtube_gdata

Luggage Tag

It's important to have a luggage tag on any airline. Look closely at
this shot, right under the hanging coat. It maybe the biggest luggage
tag I've ever seen. He may get great benefit from the homemade,
supersized tag.

PBR!

How much do you like your favorite beer? This much:

IDS Center, Downtown MSP.

It's the glassy, tall one in the back. Great indoor spaces, shopping,
and restaurants. Of course, almost nothing is open downtown on Sundays.