Discover the city on rollerblades starting tonight

HUY • Roller parade Discover the city on rollerblades starting tonight All on your rollerblades. Tonight, Huy puts on its skates for a 20 km Roller Parade through the city streets. To celebrate its inventor, who was from Huy. ITS inventor was from Huy. A man with an overflowing imagination who, for the first time, conceived of the inline skate. Jean-Joseph Merlin from Huy invented the rollerblade. That was in the 18th century. A musician at heart, a quirky jack-of-all-trades who, though he ended his life in London, was born in Huy, where he lived for some time. It didn't take much more for the people of Huy to celebrate the man. The brilliant inventor who, at a masked ball in London, ventured among the guests with a violin and wearing skates. Unfortunately, he knew how to roll but not how to stop. And he crashed nose-first into a mirror. History only remembers the price of the broken mirror from this anecdote. History will now remember the celebration of Jean-Joseph Merlin that the people of Huy plan to hold all summer. Starting with this evening's Roller parade, before those on August 7 and September 25. Rollerblading enthusiasts will be there from 7 PM on the Grand'place in Huy. With the possibility of renting rollerblades and protective gear for those who don't have any. How many participants? The Tourist Office, the City of Huy, the Huy police officers, and Belgium Roller, which organizes roller parades across the country, can only imagine. But already, they can count on the students of the Athénée. Because their director, enthusiastic about the project, tried to rally them to the idea. And Annette Alloo believes in it: the young people will be there. So, from 7 PM, make way for the rollerbladers who will leave the Grand'place an hour later for a circuit designed by Commissioner Christian Collinet on flat terrain, without cobblestones. The result? Twenty kilometers from Huy to Huy, passing through Ombret. The rollerbladers will thus leave the Grand'place for the Avenue des Ardennes. They will take the Baudouin Bridge, Rue Neuve, turn right onto Rue Saint-Pierre, pass along the Récollets park, emerge onto Quai de Compiègne as far as Amay. In Ombret, they will cross the bridge and rejoin the old Ombret road, Avenue de l'Industrie, Grand'route in Tihange, Rue de la Motte. And the small streets of Huy until the Grand'place where the return is scheduled for around 10:30 PM. There's no question of organizing a race, of getting from one point to another as quickly as possible. The Roller parade is a stroll. With several refreshment stops to allow latecomers to catch up with the more athletic. And above all, the circuit is also open to cyclists. Parents can thus accompany their children without risking breaking a bone. Once on the Grand'place, it's party time. With an evening of music. Wild rock, with rollerblades on your feet? Roller parade, Grand'place of Huy from 7 PM, this Saturday. Departure 8 PM, arrival 10:30 PM. Jean-Joseph Merlin, brilliant inventor, was also a musician. While playing the violin, the man from Huy imagined rollerblades. Three police officers on mountain bikes Will they go unnoticed? It's not certain. Especially if they wear their uniforms. Tonight, some police officers will mingle among the rollerblading fans, also with their feet attached to skates. Just to ensure their safety. Two from the Namur police zone and one Huy police officer will put on rollerblades, while others will prefer mountain bikes. Three Huy police officers, on bicycles, will intersperse themselves among the rollerblading fans tonight. And among them, Commissioner Christian Collinet who, from atop his bicycle, will direct the maneuvers. Supervising this crowd of rollerbladers is no small task. Vehicles in front and behind, motorcyclists, secured intersections: there will be nine Huy police officers, two from Namur, and two from Amay. Police officers on mountain bikes, not common in Huy. "It's true, it will be an innovation. The mountain bike is interesting because it allows you to go everywhere, on cobblestones, in mud. And then, there's this proximity to the citizen which is interesting." For tonight, Commissioner Collinet didn't have to assign the mountain bikers among his men. They volunteered. And if he were to assemble such a team, the Huy commissioner would be spoiled for choice, as the candidates are numerous. Police officers on mountain bikes in the streets of Huy? Commissioner Collinet is thinking about it more and more. Especially since Mayor Anne-Marie Lizin has followed suit. "We could indeed move in that direction, provided we plan a budget next year." The Huy police station currently has these equipped bicycles for about fifteen days. And Inspector Pierre Wilmart will test them. He will test their usefulness in the streets of Huy before a decision is made.