Gent Belgium and a Reading Eagle Article

I am in Belgium now, and looking forward to meeting my team tomorrow. Back home there was an article about me in today’s Reading Eagle.

Taking DeLong road to cycling success
Belgium is where more biking is, so that's where Wyomissing's John DeLong will be.

By Matt Neatock, Saturday April 19, 2003 Reading Eagle, Reading, Pennsylvania, USA

With a dozen first-place finishes to his credit, Wyomissing's John DeLong wants more from his cycling career. But becoming a serious cyclist in the United States means paying large travel expenses while competing for the support of a professional team. Rather than spending more time driving to tournaments he described as expensive and boring, the 23-year-old DeLong has decided to move to Belgium, where cyclists are as common as football players in America. "Here it (cycling) is a hobby," DeLong said. "Over there it's a lifestyle. They use their bike as everyday transportation, so they've been riding since age 2. The shortest race there is 70 miles. That's a long race here." DeLong's desire to relocate came after he spent three months of 2002 racing in Europe, where his best finish in more than 20 races was fifth. "Last winter I decided I wanted to go spend at least one month there," he said. "I just bought a plane ticket on Priceline, I made a contact by e-mail who happened to live in Belgium, so I went over with a friend of mine from Exeter. "We spent one night in a youth hostel, and one month turned into three months. I made some connections and decided I had to go back." DeLong called his contact after one night at the hostel, and soon made arrangements to live in a Belgian native's farmhouse in exchange for performing small chores. During his stay, DeLong competed in the Triptyque Ardennais, a three-stage race in Belgium. Despite hanging in the top 50 for the first two days, DeLong failed to finish the race on Day 3, a result he said significantly impacted his decision to move to Belgium. "Because the race was so hard, I wanted more opportunities like that by getting on a Belgian team that does races like that all the time," he said. "Opportunities like that are rare, especially in the U.S." DeLong got his opportunity from the Royal Antwerp Cycling Club, which will take care of his bikes, clothing and entry fees while he races overseas. His main responsibility in the club will be to compete in local races in order to qualify for the larger ones. The club takes less than half of its 20 members to the larger races. Hopefully, DeLong said, the club will lead him to a professional European cycling team, allowing his career to flourish for a few more years. In the meantime, DeLong faces a challenge other than cycling. He will have to adjust to a different culture at a time in which the world is unstable. "It's a little scary not being able to read their paper and not having a clear idea of what their outlook on the war is," he said. "I'm not too worried because last time I was in Belgium, they were pretty tolerant people who understand that the world is always changing. "They don't hold too much against people. For them, it's all about respect, and if you respect them as individuals, they'll respect you no matter what you believe."

Contact Matt Neatock at mneatock@readingeagle.com.