The Fons

The original Fonsarelli.

Alfons De Wolf's career was coming to a close just as I started my courtship with the bicycle, so I never really got to enjoy his years as a PRO rider. The Fons was among the multitude of Belgian riders that endured life under the impossible shadow of a recently retired Eddy Merckx.

Now, I know Belgians are brimming with passion, knowledge, and talent in the world of cycling, but it's profoundly delusional to expect another Eddy. Thus, I have a soft spot in my heart for any Belgian rider, especially if it elicits images of a cheesehead in a black leather jacket whose schtick is being cool and giving the thumbs up all the time .

It says on Wikipedia that The Fons is now a funeral director in Antwerp. So it goes, as they say. Still, I'd like to give a shout out to ol' Alfons. He may not have been the next Eddy, but he was the original Fonsarelli.