Things are rolling in Mons!

■ The city will live on roller time during the summer holidays. The police will play along... MONS ▼ Discovering the city of Mons, head in the clouds and skates on feet, that is the main goal of the Belgium Rollers Summer Tour 2003, which will set up shop in Mons starting June 28 at 8 p.m. After a welcome and an intense warm-up session, the hundreds of participants expected every week will set off on a circuit of around twenty kilometres in the centre and region of Mons, a different way to enjoy the Cité du Doudou... “We launched this event in Bruxelles last year, and this year we are marking our arrival in Mons. The city is magnificent for this kind of project, and the surroundings offer us significant route possibilities; one obviously thinks right away of the Grand-Large site. Today, we carried out a final reconnaissance. The first meeting is set for Saturday, June 28, word to the wise,” confides Carl de Moncharline, head of the Belgium Rollers Summer Tour 2003. While no specific level is required from participants, the organizers have taken certain precautions by asking about twenty police officers to follow the route on rollers as well, a proposal that could lead to other projects. “We followed about twenty hours of training to start managing on rollers. We will probably become roller cops one day,” explains with a smile Pierre Maton, police commissioner for the Mons-Quévy area. “We have a project to develop certain roller patrol services at the upcoming Grands-Prés site. This mode of transport is really very fast, very maneuverable, and we will certainly try this possibility in a few months, once our training is complete.” While this project is above all an opportunity to spend a pleasant relaxing moment in a magnificent setting, certain safety rules must not be forgotten. Helmets and protective gear will be mandatory; the rest is up to the skater. “People who wish to join us can bring their own inline skates, or we offer the possibility to rent them. Throughout the journey, we will be there to guide the less experienced; this ride should not end up as an ordeal,” concludes Carl de Moncharline. If you fancy the adventure, Namur, Liège, Gand, and Bruxelles will play along too... Infos: 0900/24.064.