This morning I waited a couple of hours more before riding out. Temperatures were above zero by then but there seemed to be more wind than yesterday. And it was blowing from the cold East-North-Eastern corner. I started out along the Weertse Dreef and then rode through Sint Joris Weert and Nethen towards Pecrot. From Pecrot I rode to Archennes and then started the long climb up to Ottenburg. Down into Basse-Wavre - the road was flanked by snow in the left bank - and then another long climb up to the Chaussee De Huy. This big road has a terrible bikepath and ondulates up and down towards the south-east. This meant that the wind was picking on me from the front left side. When I turned towards Maleves I had it full in my face. Through Maleves and Sainte Marie and Wastinnes towards Opprebais. Here I took a right turn, full in the wind again, to reach the N91. I started following this big road towards Pietrebais and ultimately Hamme Mille. The wind was blowing from my right now and I was struggling with it in the exposed areas on the plateau. Dropping into Hamme Mille provided some shelter and following the N25 through Meerdael Forest I also was protected from the wind by the forest. A little loop into Blanden ended this ride. It turned out to be quite a difficult one. My legs did not feel fully recuperated from yesterday and the aftermath of the cold I had last week is still leaving me a bit weaker than I would have liked to be at this stage.

Endomondo track


Ride Stats : 60K and 600 heightmeters (Garmin) in 02h31mins

Arriving home I added 4mm to my saddle height on the Moots Psychlo-X. The Brooks saddle will give when it becomes broken in, and I already felt like I was sitting a bit too low. Hence the adjustment. Comparing it to my other bikes it looks like it should be OK now.
On to the Hilset next for half an hour of cooldown on the Tacx Satori. The legs felt full but I was able to maintain a good speed and with the resistance on 1 I could keep the revs high.

Ride Stats : 22K in 00h31mins

3605/8880

30-03-2013, 15:05 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf

Yesterday saw the demise of a brave and joyful companion. Our cat Rambo finally lost the battle against diabetes and old age. He passed on at the age of 19. He was a great cat, always friendly, not a mean bone in his body. He will be sorely missed but it is comforting to think that he is already chasing mice in cat heaven. He weighed more than 6kg in his prime. When he passed away yesterday morning he barely made 3kgs.
Fare thee well, Rambo. You will be in our thoughts forever !

29-03-2013, 12:12 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf

This evening I was home late due to a party at work. But I wanted to  do a ride so I got on the Tacx Satori for an hour of sustained effort. The last 10 minutes were done at resistance 2, the rest on resistance one. Legs felt Ok but they needed a little stretching when I go out of the hot tub after the training.

Ride Stats : 46K in 01h01mins

3469/8050

27-03-2013, 21:15 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf

26-03-2013, 18:47 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf

Last week my newly acquired used car - the Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX - was at Wax-it.be for a detailing job. They scrubbed, cleaned and protected the paint, cleaned the engine bay, the wheels, revitalized the interior and coated the front glass with a nanocoating that should allow me to ride through the rain without using the wipers. At the end it nearly looked like a new car. Some pictures of the finished car can be seen on their Flickr account.

Riding it to and from Oudenaarde proved to be quite an experience. The cars exhaust note -  a 3" Milltek - is not something that is easily disguised. It emits a low growl at normal paces, swelling to a dangerous level each time you hit the accelerator . Things start happening very fast when that happens, the turbo pressure shoots towards 1.7 bars and the car becomes ballistic. A steady hand and a lot of experience and control is demanded from its driver to keep things on the right side of the law. It's big fun to drive, but you need to be able to remain in control all the time.

I did not ride last week, caught a throat-ache that evolved during the week and also invaded my sinuses. Nothing much but just enough to take away any desire to ride a bike.
By last friday things seemed to be clearing out but I decided to wait until after the weekend .
So today I got on the Tacx Satori to check out my legs and my health. Both turned out to be reasonably good. I could maintain a good speed and did not suffer any short of breath or excessive sweating, things I usually experience after a cold.
I just have to wait now how my body will react and hope to pick up my daily routine of riding a bike. The only thing that can be improved is the weather. This weekend again saw some snow falling and today it was cold and windy.

Ride Stats : 45.5K in 01h01mins

3378/8050

25-03-2013, 19:17 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf

Time for another ride with the Moots Psychlo-X. Started out early but the wind was already out, blowing hard and cold from the south. I started out riding towards Bierbeek, Meldert and Hoegaarden. Here I got on the Ravel 2 . The wind was now blowing straight into my face, making the ride difficult . The Ravel 2 climbs gradually all the way and I had some difficulty keeping the chain on the big ring. But it is still early in the season so I guess I have to get stronger.
Riding past Jodoigne towards Eghezee the small tarmac road was covered in snow at places, some of it too high to ride through. Around Molenbais-Saint-Pierre I was forced to take a little detour. With a mountainbike I might have tried it, but with this bike and its narrow tyres I did not risk riding through the feet-high piles of snow.

17-03-2013, 14:14 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf

This morning saw me driving the Evo IX to Oudenaarde. It has to stay there for a couple of days to undergo a cleaning and detailing job, inside, outside and also the motor compartment will get the once-over. I'm curious to the result. This was my first long ride with this car and it went well. The Milltek exhaust and the shape of the car prevent passsing unnoticed but it all stays within the law. Which is the way it should be of course. The handling and power of this car makes it a toy for experienced drivers. To me the excellent braking and power , coupled with a rail-like handling gives a feeling of safety.

When I got home I decided to ride out. Despite a strong southern wind I opted for a road ride. The offroad being too muddy and wet with the ongoing melting of the snow. Time to get the Moots Psychlo-X out for its first ride. I drove off along the Naamse steenweg , then took the Weertse Dreef towards Sint Joris Weert and took a right turn towards the Zoete Waters. The bike ride sweetly. No surprise, it is brand new and well set-up by Filip Sport. I have to get used to the roadie position but it looks to be the same as my Litespeed Vortex. A little shorter perhaps and I also felt I sat a smidgen too low. But when I measured the pedal-top of saddle distance it was exactly the same as on my Vortex. I will keep it for the time being and get used to the different position as compared to my mountain bike. The 172.5 crank arms may be the cause - I usually prefer 175mm crank arms - or maybe its just that it has been a while since I rode a road bike.
The speed was there, and despite the wind which kept trying to push me over and was a real force to be reckoned with when you turned into it, I kept a good average. The Campagnolo Chorus works perfectly and I felt the CX brakes were pretty good. I heard some horror stories that CX brakes don't brake, they just slow you down. Well, my experience from this first ride is different. They DO brake.

16-03-2013, 16:55 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf

Today saw me in meetings for the entire time at work. Just having 2 coffee breaks and 45 minutes for lunch between intense sessions of brainstorming on strategies and business plans. Truely fried but with a feeling of accomplishment I arrived home and planted myself on the Hilset on the Tacx Satori. I finished an hours worth of fast riding going up to level 4 in resistance. The snow melted further today with temperatures going up to 6 degrees C. Only downside is that the offroad gets drenched with the melting water.

Ride Stats : 44.5K in 01h01mins

3182/7370

15-03-2013, 19:59 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf

Yet another Tacx Satori ride. This morning saw some new snow flurries but during the day things cleared out and when the sun came through the snow started melting. Not all but it's getting there. Nevertheless the temperatures only reached 3 or 4 degrees C. On the Tacx I pedalled for the best part of an hour. Good workout and I kept the resistance on an easy level 1 to fully aid recuperation.

Ride Stats : 45K in 01h01mins

3135/7370

14-03-2013, 18:56 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf

This night saw the passing of the coldest temperatures of this years, reaching -12 degrees C. During the day the March sun managed to lift the temperature over the zero border , all the way up to a full 2 degrees C. The snow was melting but there was still enough to make any ride outside a bit bothersome. So my choice fell again on the Tacx Satori. Working up to resistance 3 throughout the ride I managed to break a good sweat during the hour that I was on the Hilset.

Ride Stats : 44K in 01h01mins

3093/7370

13-03-2013, 18:38 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf

Last night and this morning through the early afternoon saw the arrival of yet another period of snow and cold temperatures. I stayed home from work and after Teleworking all day I had no other option but to get on the Tacx Satori for an hour of relatively easy cycling. Fast and at low resistance. It looks like the snow will hold until at least the weekend, with temperatures dropping way below zero during the upcoming nights.

Ride Stats : 43K in 01h01mins

3049/7370

12-03-2013, 18:08 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf

Last week saw temperatures as high as 19 degrees C but when I rode out this morning it was -2 degrees C and there were light snow flurries hurried along on an icy cold northeasterly wind. I decided to stay in the forest as much as possible and went for the 3 Meerdael BLOSO routes. Starting out on the Green, making my way on to the Blue, then tackling the Red , back on the Blue again and finishing my ride on the remainder of the Green. At first the ride was fast, the forest trails were not too wet and seemed a little frozen over. I opted for an alternative route along the E40 and avoided the small, muddy trails as much as possible. Along the Zoete Waters up to the Chapel of Steenbergen and then up the long climb to the Herculesdreef. Into Sint Joris Weert along the Speelbergstraat and straight up to the forest again following the Polderstraat. A couple of extra climbs in the Kluis area and then an alternative route down to the Savenel Wall. Long climb here and when I arrived on the Walendreef things had become a little muddier. Due to forestry works, passing tractors and jeep had left deep ruts and those ruts were filled with mud and water. On to the crossroads with the Red and then following that route past the edge of the forest and down to the Warande Ponds for an extra loop. Crossing the Naamsesteenweg I decided against the long passage in the fields of Valduc and stayed inside the forest perimeter instead. Picking up on the Red trail again at the eastern edge of the forest. Braving the wind that was blowing from the northeast straight into the forest I made my way to the Mollendaal forest, crossing the Sint Joris Weert straat and once again staying inside the forest instead of following the Red trail to Bierbeek. A loop down and up to the Mollendaal cabin and then I decided to follow the Sint Joris Weert straat to the Naamsesteenweg. Crossing over the bridge and following the Naamsesteenweg until I reached the Walendreef. Following past the Prosperdreef that I came to the crossing with the Grez road where I left the Red trail and continued on the Blue once more. My left hand began to lose its feeling in my middle and ringfinger by now and I hurried along into Vaalbeek and on the Green route for a last loop through Heverleebos until I reached the Sapellenbos where I took a right into Blanden. Despite the cold and the wind I had a good, solid ride. The snow flurries became intenser near the end of the ride, making me more cautious on the tarmac and cobble sections . But all went well and I managed to keep the rubber side down.

Endomondo track


Ride Stats : 55.5K and 615 heightmeters (Garmin) in 02h57mins

Arriving home I changed into less warm gear for a cooldown/Warmup ride on the Tacx Satori. Cooldown for the leg muscles, but warmup for most of the rest of my body. Especially the aforementioned 2 fingers on my left hand were giving me some pain while they recovered from being numbed by the cold. I managed 40 minutes during which time I was able to keep a good pace on low resistance.

Ride Stats : 29.5K in 00h41mins

3006/7370

11-03-2013, 15:23 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf

This morning saw some light snow and just-above-zero temperatures. I was not looking forward to riding out in such conditions so I decided to stay indoors and have another workout on the Tacx Satori. Reading and listening to music I upped the resistance to 2 for the latter half of the ride. Legs felt good and I could maintain a good pace.

Ride Stats : 51.5K in 01h11mins

2921/6755

10-03-2013, 13:02 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf

This morning had me fix the licence plates on my Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX. Should be riding that car very soon. Its very first long trip will take it to Wax-It in Oudenaarde for a thorough detailing job, inside and outside. The car is 6 years old and while it has been maintained rather well it still could do with a good cleaning. Wax-It are professionals and I'm confident that they will restore it to its original shine and luster. Until then it hides in an undergound parking lot.

09-03-2013, 16:20 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf

It still was warm today with temperatures just over 15 degrees but when I got home it had already started to rain very lightly. Still needed to recover from yesterdays' ride so my decision to stay inside and train an hour on the Tacx Satori was quickly made.

Ride Stats : 45K in 01h01mins

2824/6755

08-03-2013, 18:57 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf

Today saw overcast but still relatively warm weather. When I got home from work I decided on another offroad ride. Riding out around 4.30pm I had around 2 hours of sunlight left. I started out on the Blue Meerdael Bloso. In the beginning it was dry but soon it began to rain very lightly. As the kilometers rode on and I came near to the Kluis I decided to add a couple of extra climbs. I felt good and with the Mountain King/Rocket Ron combo on my Obed I had good traction. A lot of the trails were in a very bad shape due to forestry works but even that did not stop me and I conquered them all. When I set on the long climb along the Savenel wall I had already close to 300 heightmeters on my Garmin. When I had crossed the Weertsedreef earlier I noticed that the statue of the Bosprotter had regained its place. It looks like it got a couple of layers of varnish. That would protect it from the elements in the coming years.
Dove down towards the Warande pond and then crossed the Naamsesteenweg. I was on the Red Bloso now and it started to rain a little bit harder. Nothing really bad but the trails got wetter. Especially some of the passages on cobbles were taken with great care. Darkness was upon me by now and I had to avoid some of the darker passages in the forest, opting instead for bigger roads with more visibility and less potholes. Into Vaalbeek for a last loop along the Prosperdreef and then into Blanden. It was nearly dark now and I was glad I made it in time out of the forest.

Endomondo track


Ride Stats : 43.5K and 555 heightmeters (Garmin) in 02h09mins

2780/6755

07-03-2013, 19:40 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf

After yesterdays' fine but exhausting offroad stint I decided to take it easy this evening and settled for a relaxed recovery ride on the Hilset on the Tacx Satori . Keeping a good pace and enjoying an E-book on my Kindle whilst listening to my favorite music on Spotify I whizzed away an hours' worth of cycling.

Ride Stats : 43K in 01h01mins

2736/6200

06-03-2013, 21:30 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf

Today saw the return of the sun and positive temperatures. Temps were up as high as 18 degrees C when I rode out with the Litespeed Obed. On the hard Hutchinson Python Airs which offer a very fast ride but little in terms of comfort, especially pumped up to 2 bars. Good thing the titanium frames and the front suspension take the edge off the nastiest bumps. I decided on a Perimeter ride around Meerdael Forest. Starting clockwise in Blanden, then making my way to the Bremberg and the outskirts of Bierbeek and Mollendaal. I sticked mostly to the bigger tracks but couldn't resist the occasional singletrail. The forest was smelling fresh and the air was full of scents of nature awakening after a long winter sleep. I rode into Mille for a loop outside the forest. The trails were mostly dry and the cobbles didn't bother me a single bit. Returning to Meerdael Forest near Valduc, crossing the Naamsesteenweg and then entering the western forest for an intenser and hillier intermezzo. My legs were strong but not strong enough to stay on the middle ring. I had to shift to the granny often to keep the tension on the muscles from raising too high. The downhills were taken confidently, the grip of the Pythons was amply sufficient on the forest floor. Steep hills and steep descents kept on following each other while I made my way to Nethen and the Kluis area.

05-03-2013, 19:56 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf

After this weekends' intense and long rides - for the state of the season that is - I could do with a little recovery ride today. The sun was shining outside and the temperatures were up to 14 degrees C but I had to much daylight left to ride out. And I also wanted to recover. So I got on the Tacx Satori for a relatively easy 30 minutes on resistance 2.

Ride Stats : 21K in 00h31mins

2651.5/5730

04-03-2013, 18:23 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf

Ready for another mixed ride with the Obed. I started out early and it still was cold with temperatures around 2 degrees C. But it was dry and the sun looked like it wanted to play a more important role than yesterday. I started out along the N25 and then into Meerdael Forest to reach Mollendaal. From there I had my first 2.5K section of cobbles, over the plain to Beauvechain. With the Hutchinson Python Airs these were pleasant and easily digested. From Beuvechain I rode to La Bruyere and then into L'Ecluse. Through the small tarmac road I reached Hoegaarden. To Zetrud-Lumay and on the Ravel 2 for a short stint before taking a right turn into Saint-Marie-Geest. Towards Saint-Jean-Geest and then onto a second section of cobbles. These stretch for 2K and take me to Jodoigne. Crossing the N240 I set towards Dongelberg. No luck with the castle gate - it was closed - so I rode on through Incourt towards Longueville. The wind bothered me a bit , blowing from the East, but it was getting marginally warmer and I did not complain. From Longueville though Biez and then down into Grez. From Grez I rode to Bossut and made my way through another cobble section leading me over La Malaise towards Pecrot. Steep uphill had me drop the chain on the 24 in front and then I was on my way down to Nethen. I passed from Nethen to Sint Joris Weert where I tackled the Speelbergstraat again on my way to the Weertse Dreef. The last section was the same as yesterday with a passage through Vaalbeek before follwing the Brainestraat to the Naamsesteenweg and then into the Duivenstraat .

Endomondo track


Ride Stats : 66.5K and 590 heightmeters (Garmin) in 2h55mins

2630/5730

03-03-2013, 13:25 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf