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| Tales from the Woods |
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| 30-09-2007 |
 Eucharist |
At last, some sun and bright skies which lured me out and had me do an easy ride along Korbeek Dyle, Neerijse and Huldenberg. Coming back throught the Weertse Dreef I thoroughly enjoyed the forest with its smell of autumn and the sun shining through the trees, causing the wet floor to disappear in a misty haze.
September has been another month where I was not able to get a 1000 km , mainly due to a nasal infection in the beginning of the month causing me to take a few days off. These last few days haven't been easy as well since I had another cold that had me stay on the rollers instead of going out. The rainy weather hasn't helped either. With only 889 km I am not pleased and a bit frustrated as well. The only worse month this year has been last June where I only managed 618 km due to an insect bite and the resulting infection and allergic reaction. I hope the last 3 months of 2007 are a bit more favorable to me.
Ride Stats : 34k and 280 heightmeters in 1h29mins
8614/80595
30-09-2007, 13:46 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf
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| 29-09-2007 |
| Marta |
This morning saw me follow an exciting race for the World Championship jersey with the Elite Women in Stutgart. Italian Marta Bastianelli put in a brave effort and made a run for it about 3/4th of a lap before the end. She stayed away from the pack to clinch the World Title. Pre-race hot favorite and 2006 World Champion, Dutch girl Marianne Vos could do nothing but win the sprint for the Silver with another Italian girl taking the Bronze medal. I also saw a very hard working 2007 Time Trial World Champion Hanka Kupfernagel who saw her efforts for the German team unrewarded since Germany fell out of the medals.Marianne Vos was obviously very disappointed but might do well to wonder why there was only Chantal Beltman to help her in the finale. Belgian Lieselot Decroix was 12th which was a very hopeful prestation for Belgian Women Cycling. Lieselot is only 19 years old and clearly ready for future grandeur.
Me I just finished another round on the rollers, contemplating the race, reading another chapter of the Covenant saga and hoping for better weather during the coming days.Ride Stats : 32K in 1h30mins8581/80315
29-09-2007, 15:38 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf
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| 28-09-2007 |
| Indoor again |
Still not feeling up to riding outside, the temps are low and the rain makes it all even worse. So I again turned to my rollers for an hour and a half of easy recovery riding, reading a book and enjoying Michael Schenkers' latest album on the MP3 player.
Ride Stats : 33.5k in 1h30mins
8549/80315
28-09-2007, 14:36 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf
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| 27-09-2007 |
| Inside |
Had a running nose yesterday evening so I decided not to go out today , instead doing an easy ride on the rollers, catching up with my reading. I am reading the first book of last chronicles of Thomas Covenant at the moment, the Runes of the Earth , in which Linden Avery has to find her son who was abducted by the Despiser. The next installment in this series is to be released soon. Thrilling stuff, thats for sure.
Ride Stats : 30k in 1h21mins
8515/80315
27-09-2007, 14:27 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf
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| 22-09-2007 |
| Longest uphill and downhill |
Fine weather this morning so I decided to ride to Theux and take a shot at the Longest Uphill, linking Theux with the Signal de Botrange which , at 692 metres of altitude, is Belgiums' highest point. I started out at the Chateau de Franchimont, as usual, but decided to follow the Green Adeps Loop first, which took me towards Polleur and then up into the majestic Bois de Staneu. A quick downhill took me to the other side of that forest and there I caught up with the trail leading towards de Golf de Spa and my regular route towards the Signal. I was with the Moots and was a bit curious how the Nokian NBX Lite tyres would perform in the Ardennes, which are of course rocky, wet and with steep climbs and descents. Had no worries whatsoever with my tyres except a flat caused by a thorn just before I reached the Signal de Botrange. I only had to grab the map 2 or 3 times to make sure I was taking the right road (usually when I was on tarmac - I tend to remember the offroad bits quite well) and the extra starter loop made for a longer uphill, and almost a 1000 heightmeters before I reached the Signal de Botrange. The trails were astonishingly dry. When I arrived at the Vecquee, I tried a new path, which took me down again over a very technical and rocky descent - glad they were dry ! - and then back up towards the bridge over the Hoegne. All this to avoid a privately owned area in the middle of the Hautes Fagnes National Park!
I encountered a group of some twenty teenagers who looked lost and asked me how to get to Hockai. I pointed them into the right direction, adding to their horror that it would take them at least 10k before they would get there. I am mean I know , but that will teach them walking into the Fagnes without a map. It couldn't have been more than 4 or 5K, so they will be happy in the end.
I still had some K's to go myself so I got back on my bike and ascended towards the Signal, the tracks remaining dry and smooth-rolling. Near the end I felt my rear tyre losing air but I made it to the viewpoint overlooking the Fagnes towards neighbouring Germany. There were a lot of tourists around and I was joined by a Forester who was also a keen mountainbiker, so we had something to talk about while he watched me change my inner tyre. He uses kevlar patches to protect his inner tyres but I'm thinking that I will go towards NoTubes. I already have specced NoTubes on my newest bike - the yet-to-be-built Merlin Works 4.0. I complained to the Forester about the lack of waste bins along the routes but he countered that the wildlife destroys them when they smell the food thats been left in them. Good point I reckon.
The descent then. I tried a new track, taking me towards the Croix des Fiances and the Vecquee again. A small track with some very interesting technical challenges. I'm not sure if bikes are allowed though, but I did not see any sign indicating they were not. At one point I had to cross a little stream by foot before having to ride over some plank-bridges that spanned some very wet patches of moor.
 Along the Vecquee then back towards Hockai and the Hoegne. The Hoegne is the red thread that leads throughout the descent, which obviously is one of the Longest to be experienced in Belgium. The bike was getting wet from time to time because the track crossed the Hoegne, either via a concrete ford or just plain through the little river itself. There is no way you can do a ride in the Ardennes without getting your bike wet, even in the midst of Summer. The bike preformed well and by now I began to feel the kilometers stacking up. Even during the downhill there are still a few uphills bits, not far but they hurt. When I arrived in Polleur again I went back up the hill for a nice little finale adding another 110 heightmeters to my Polar counter.
Ride Stats : 71K and 1120 heightmeters in 4h19mins
8311/78800
22-09-2007, 20:06 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf
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| 16-09-2007 |
| Epic Brabant Walloon ride |
Had a great and somewhat epic ride in the province of Brabant Walloon today. I still felt tired from last friday but decided to go out and get a 4 hour offroad ride in. I took the Moots since this is the bike that lets me relax the most while riding it. I started out in Meerdael forest, quickly crossing the language border , more or less following the Meerdael 2000 organised ride trail. Hamme-Mille, Bossut, and then further towards Biez and Longueville. There I could join the Accro Bike trail. I left out the worst bit where the trail is flooded because I did not want to get my bike wet. The trails were great, dry and smooth. I have been using a Nokian NBX Lite 2.2 tyre for the last month and this has proven to be a great performer. The Moots took me up on all the hills, even the impossible ones. I only encountered one stretch of mud when I descended next to the Bercuit Golf Course. I have found an alternative path there, which avoids a forbidden trail right next to the Golf course but the downside is that this new trail is heavily used by horses and it's a real mess in its lower regions where the water gets trapped. Add to that a lot of hooves and you get the picture. Still, I found a little trail through the undergrowth which left me with some thorn scratches but at least kept me out of the worse mud. I more or less did the complete Accro Bike except one loop of 5K or so, as I already explained above. At the finish I dropped back down towards Wavre and crossed the busy N25.
After that I made my way over to Archennes, with a nice climb onto the Bossut plain and then drop towards Nethen where I finished off with a hilly bit of my Meerdael loop. I was very tired but also very elated when I got home.Ride Stats : 78K and 1060 heightmeters in 4h11mins8128/76560
16-09-2007, 16:24 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf
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| 08-09-2007 |
| Happy |
My saturday started off great when I got a surprise visit from a dear friend. We hadn't seen each other for a few months and it felt wonderful to hug up and chat about all the exciting things in life. She has been cutting back considerably in her biking because of other more important issues in her life. Therefore we don't meet up as often as we used to do. Biking was mainly the glue that held us together for almost 4 years now but it feels damn good to know that there is more to our friendship than just biking-related stuff . Thanks for keeping me on your list, M !
After that it felt kinda weird to get on my bike and do a ride but I needed to get the heavy feeling out of my legs from yesterdays' ride so I grabbed the Hilset and rode out for an easy ride along Bertem, Vossem, Duisburg and Leefdaal. My cold is not completely vanished and I have cancelled an organised ride in the Ardennes because I feel I am simply not strong enough to tackle a challenge like that. I hope to be back to my old form in a few days though.
Ride Stats : 39.5K and 275 heightmeters in 1h38mins
7934/74665
08-09-2007, 00:00 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf
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| 07-09-2007 |
| Meerdael Loop 2 - Litespeed Sewanee testride Two |
Today I felt fit enough to try and tackle the second part of my
Meerdael loop. This is a very hilly 35K with a relentless succession of
steep short uphills and downhills. I took Rogers' Sewanee for its
second outing. I had put 140psi in the rear damper and along the ride I
would try the 3 ProPedal positions on the Fox RP3 . The track was
almost dry and the bike is very good in the climbs. The shifting was a
bit more to my liking now, especially the front shifting is nice. With
the X0 you can put the front derailleur in different positions so as to
always have the chain running in the middle of the cage. This is a good
thing. I never missed a shift up front. The only thing they should try
to remedy is the loud 'clang' when you shift a gear. Here they can
learn a thing or two from Shimano. With my XTR you seldom hear anything
. Oh well, I made do with what I had. Same goes for the Hutchinson
Python. It is beyond me why people like this tyre so much. Ok , it runs
great on tarmac and hardpack but lacks grip both on the profile as on
the sides. Especially the lack of offcamber grip had me scream a
few times when either the front or rear wheel skidded away.
I managed to bottom out the suspension again and my impression during the first ride that the
back end of the Sewanee flexxes proved to be correct. I was a bit stronger now
than during my first ride and I could feel it twitch quite a few times
when I accelarated or pushed hard uphill. It is not something that is
worrying but you do notice that the rear end gives in certain
circumstances. I was very quick in the downhills and I noticed the
brakes were not in their best form. I could almost squeeze the levers
against the handlebar. I think they need either more oil or new pads,
probably both. The lack of grip from the tyres also meant I had to
break a bit sooner than I can do with Nobby Nics or NBX Lites.
Halfway during the ride I began to feel that my cold was not completely
out of my system, but the bike got me through and I completed the lap.
I still have doubts about going to the Ardennes this sunday though . I will have
to see if my nose clears completely. Otherwise I will settle for a ride
in my neighborhood.
As for the Sewanee, this is undoubtedly a good bike. It is a tad short
for me - remember this is a size M and I need a size M/L - but still it
got me up the hill on all my nasty climbs and blasted on the downhills. I had to
lean back a bit more than I usually do though on those downhills,
especially on the 30% drops. It's a light bike - I weighed it at 11.1kg
ready to go - and its very nimble around corners and twisty singletrack.
The only time I had to walk was when that damn Python lost its grip on
a root. But it could also be that I was just too tired to lift it over
that root properly. Riding the Sewanee fast downhill resulted in it
bottoming out, although I did not feel this, I saw the marker was at
the end of the plunger, indicating all the available travel had been
used. Fiddling with the ProPedal positions on the Fox RP3 did not make
it noticeably better in the uphills, it still bumps over roots, but it
gave me a better feeling when speeding along over cobbles when I had it
in the 2nd position. The third position is useful when on tarmac. It
still takes the big bumps but is slower to react on the pedal input.
The titanium rear triangle did flex a bit - sometimes it almost felt as
if the rear wheel followed a parallel track to the front wheel - but
this is not something that bothered me. I think Litespeed is updating
it's rear triangle this year. Instead of round tubing they are using
box-section tubing which should improve the rear end twitching
considerably. I will have to make sure Roger gets his brakes looked at
though, I feel they need maintenance.
Ride Stats : 37.5k and 670 heighmeters in 2h29mins
7895/74390
07-09-2007, 18:44 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf
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| 06-09-2007 |
| Damn Crossmax |
Wanted to put my 1999 crossmax wheels - with the 2.1 Racing Ralph tyres - back on my Hilset when I noticed the rear wheel was severely out of true. When I looked at the spokes I saw that one spoke was very loose..
Oh no, not again.. yes, indeed, the spoke had torn out the nipple and cracked the outer rim wall . Spoke tension is crucial on these wheels and when you really apply a lot of power, like in a muddy affroad passage, you can put so much tension on the spokes that they tear the nipple out of the flimsy rim wall. I guess the weight gain has some disadvantages after all. I have had troubles like this at least 2 times before..This picture dates from 2004 when after a muddy nightride I found out the achilles heel of these wheels.
It has happened once more since then, I think last year around september as well . This last rim has been replaced under warranty by Filip Sport but the first one was already too old when I first cracked it. I always have to pay for new spokes and the work of course. Here is a picture that was taken today..
These wheels are amazingly light but at a high price. I think this rim is less than a year old and the wheel has only been used for road training. It looks like new . And yet I have again managed to tear the nipple through the rim wall. I must be superman indeed.So another appeal to Mavic's warranty policy to get a new rim. I mounted my new XTR wheel instead and got going for a quick spin around the blue road bloso which starts in Heverlee. The temperatures were nearly 20 degrees and the wind was warmer than yesterday. Still there was some light drizzle from time to time but nothing that really got me wet.Ride Stats : 31k and 215 heightmeters in 1h15mins7858/73720
06-09-2007, 15:55 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf
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