Dutch Treats

I went on European holiday the week before the Love to Hate Gypsies Run in NYC on August 23. My couch tourism took me to the mean streets of Amsterdam and the back streets of a sleepy hollow called Aarle Rixtel. The latter village was founded in the early 1600's, and is the home of a long-time friend and fellow chopper fanatic Paul DeJong. I delivered a new Biltwell helmet to our friend Paul, and at first he was skepticval about our helmet's one-size-fits-most capability. To prove my point, we strapped a shiny new lid on Paul's six-month-old son Boyd.



Okay--so maybe the Biltwell helmet doesn't fit everyone. If you're a six-month-old baby biker, you probably need to sprout a few more teeth before you try to burn up the highway in a Biltwell lid.



In other news from the Benelux, our friend Maurice (Flying Dutchman on the Jockey Journal) hung out with me at the 19th annual Fat BMX Jam in Aarle Rixtel. FATBMX.com is a website that Paul's brother Bart has been doing for years. Before the interweb, Fat BMX was one of the best BMX 'zines in the world. The BMX-obsessed guys at Biltwell count on Fat BMX to drop the hottest 411 on the 20-inch scene.



This is Fat founder Bart DeJong hanging out with a Fat Jam spectator on the quiet streets of Aarle Rixtel. Those streets won't be quiet for long, however; Paul has been testing out his new helmet on his XL1000 Dutch chopper...



Clearly, Paul DeJong is the king of American Iron in his revered homeland. Thanks for showing me such a good time, guys.

-- McGoo