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| Tales from the Woods |
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| 07-03-2008 |
 Alien |
Yesterday evening I felt a little muscular twist in my lower back and this morning I was a little stiff in that section. During the day things warmed up a bit and I decided to stay indoors nevertheless and have a ride on the rollers to check out how my back felt. Didn't bother me at all and I managed a good recovery ride while outside it was raining.I had some good Nightwish music on my MP3 and started reading Alan Dean Fosters' Alien. I got that book in 1981 and saw the movie in 1984. I consider both to be classics. The book was novelized after the movie was made but it captures the atmosphere pretty well. Ride Stats : 22K in 1h01mins1458/12880
07-03-2008, 20:50 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf
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| 05-03-2008 |
| fresh |
Last day of a heavy course at Telindus John Cordier Academy so I wanted to clear my head of all the bits, bytes and other routing information. What better way to do that than to grab my bike and ride out. I set out through Meerdael forest, dropping down into Sint Joris Weert and riding towards Sint Agatha Rode where I got on the Red Overijse route. A nice alternative drop in Sint Agatha Rode bos but after that I followed the route going up and down towards Ottenburg and Eerken. Back at my injection point ( I am still chewing about proprietory Cisco routing protocols as you can see ) I rode back and was in just before dusk set in. A good ride, with the usual tricky downhills and with moderately wet trails, never bothering me except one or two spots were tractors had left a bit of a gully. But these form extra challenges and I welcome them.
Ride Stats : 35K and 390 heightmeters in 1h50mins
1436/12880
05-03-2008, 19:43 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf
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| 02-03-2008 |
| watje |
Ah, I couldn't bring myself to go out today. Lots of wind an menacing clouds plus the idea of heaps of mud on the offroad made me decide to stay in and do another hour on the rollers. It didn't rain after all and from what I hear the mud wasn't that bad after all but what the heck, I got another easy ride and its good for the recovery of my body I guess. Sven Nys' book and Nightwish on my MP3 kept me company throughout the ride.
Ride Stats : 22.5k in 1h01mins
1377/12090
02-03-2008, 19:28 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf
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| 01-03-2008 |
| Hide from the storm |
A fierce storm is blowing, with windy gusts reaching up to 100kph. Not the ideal weather for a ride outside so I did the sensible thing, got on my rollers and rode for an hour at an easy recovery rate. I am catching up on my reading as well, with Sven Nys' book, 'Ik, Sven Nys' giving me a great insight on the physical and psychological stresses a pro rider has to endure. Great reading from what I believe to be a great champion, in all aspects.Ride Stats : 21.5K in 1h001354/12090
01-03-2008, 14:28 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf
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| 24-02-2008 |
| Overijse reverse |
I had plans to go to Theux but when my bike partner cancelled with gastro-enteritis I decided not to go either. So early in the season I believe it is safer to ride with someone else instead of going out alone. An accident is always looming around every corner and every downhill is a trap. In summer I don't mind that much riding alone but for now safety is in numbers. So I had to find an alternative. Because I was feeling kinda tired - this would prove to be another 200/2500+ week and this number of kilometers and heightmeters gets to you - I decided to do the Overijse BLOSO routes.These offer some nice hills and are always very crowded. Furthermore I rode them in the opposite direction, which makes for an entirely different track. I crossed a lot of bikers - one of them was a clubmate from BigM - and the nice weather also brought out a huge number of walkers and horses. Each enjoying their hobby, there is room enough on the trails for all of us. I had a good ride, the Moots saved my back from most harm and as usual took me up every uphill that was thrown before my front wheel. No, not all of them, I failed to make one - the steep one on the red trail got me when the combination of roots and steps caused my rear wheel to slip into oblivion. I had to walk a few metres before I mounted the bike again, and I made the rest of the climb - but it took a lot of sweat and persuasion, and a great bike. I rode home over Pecrot and Archennes and in that way I accumulated some more heightmeters and nice trails - I did the railroad singletrack twice today - bringing todays' total to 780. Not bad for a 55K ride. With an average temperature of 13 degrees C it almost felt like spring. Ride Stats : 55K and 780 heightmeters in 3h04mins1248/11375
24-02-2008, 18:02 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf
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| 22-02-2008 |
| Bois de Laurensart and more |
Had some time before a dental appointment so I decided to make the most of it and get some heightmeters under my belt. I set off for the Red Overijse route, passing through Nethen , Pecrot - with its famous railroad singletrack - and Archennes. There I climbed into the Bois de Laurensart for some loops taking me alternatively up and down the slopes. I then followed the Red Bloso route in the reverse direction, adding another extra climb or 2 along the way. The weather was cloudy and there was some wind but with temps of around 10 degrees it was nice to be out there. I looped back over La Malaise adding some more hills before heading back to Meerdaelwoud.Ride Stats : 36K and 515 heightmeters in 2h12mins1134/10125
22-02-2008, 15:18 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf
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| 20-02-2008 |
| Whirling |
Left work 15 minutes earlier because I had a plan for this evening. I wanted to ride the Meerdael Bloso's and be home before darkness set in. Well, I made it, and the ride was a blast. I started out on an easy pace to feel how the legs were and gradually upped the tempo. I was counting on a 2h30 ride and guess what, I was in a 2h31 and my forecast 50K turned out to be almost exactly on the spot as well. Am I good or what?
The front suspension on the Litespeed - a 2002 or thereabouts SID SL - felt harsh and my neck muscles were getting a good workout. There is also some scratching on the fork arms causing a slight loss of oil along the inner forklegs. I am considering to change it for a brandnew SID or something similarly light . have to look into that the next month or so, no hurry.
The trails were just amazing, dry and fast with only the occasional wet spot and I managed to skip most of the bad sectors, either by following a parallel road, or by cutting off a bit. Thats why I only have 51K - normally the 3 BLOSO's yield me around 55K - but as I said, I had a plan to be in before dusk. Yesterday saw a lot of fine dust in the air, but today there was a wind out of westerly corners and the air felt clean. It was certainly pleasantly warm - around 11 degrees when I left and just over 7 degrees C when I arrived at home. I wore my summer gloves, which tells it all. Had a fair amount of heightmeters as well and my legs felt good and strong on the climbs. I think I am ready for that first Ardennes trip now.
Ride Stats : 50.5K and 470 heightmeters in 2h31mins
1098/9610
20-02-2008, 18:56 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf
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| 18-02-2008 |
| Farm Archaeology |
Today a lot of fine dust was forecast - dust that was visible as a foggy band over the horizon. I felt tired from this weekends' rides so I settled for an easy recovery ride along Opvelp , Meldert and Beauvechain. Took some time to look around and made some pictures from an old farming machine that has been standing alongside the road in Bierbeek for quite some time now. With an average heartrate of 106bpm I am quite pleased with the intensity of the ride, and also by the fact that my recuperation works well. The weather was splendid - as you can see on the pics as well - but as I said before the lack of wind causes fine dust to remain in the lower atmosphere, making for an unhealthy situation.Ride Stats : 41K and 270 heightmeters in 1h58mins1047/9140
18-02-2008, 15:10 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf
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| 17-02-2008 |
| Accro Bike |
I was planning to go to Theux today, but due to the forecast low temperature, we decided not to go. Instead I opted for another of my regular rides, the Accro Bike. This is a track that once was a race starting in Grez Doiceau and spanning 43K for the short version (the actual race track) and 52K for the longer version. The track in this shape has been out of use for quite a while now. The organising Vélo Club Blancs Gilets - my club actually - chose 5 or 6 years ago for a version that would only run on the community of Grez-Doiceau instead of crossing over to nearby Chaumont Gistoux. I have known this trail for quite some time and I continue enjoying to ride it. Accro comes from "accrocher" , a French word that can be translated as 'persevere'. And you need a lot of perseverance on this trail. The 43K has some 700 heightmeters in it, and is a continuation of uphills and downhills, mostly steep and short with only a few areas where you can catch your breath. So in order to do well on this track you need to spread out your efforts , taking it easy in the beginning. Remember, it is a track that was designed for XC racing - one loop of 43K. The best guys could do it in well under 2 hours, depending on the state of the trail. This morning it was minus 5 degrees C, but the sun was out very quickly and the wind - which was an unpleasant foe yesterday - was completely gone today. When I rode out around 11.30am it was 5 degrees C but it felt a lot warmer than yesterday. I took the Moots out for the first time this year. I need to have the Fox F80 front suspension overhauled. It works a bit shoppy and generally feels too hard for my liking, even though it does use the full 80mm of travel. Other than that the Moots works as it should - smoothly.The trails were treacherous at places were the sun was melting the top layer, causing it to become quite slippery. My front wheel slipped sideways at one stage and only a cat-like reaction saved me from kissing the floor. From that moment on I was warned and took it easy on the sunny bits of the trail. In the shadows there was still ice on the scarce puddles and the trail was hard , sometimes with deep gullies. But I have been here before and I know about the traps of these trails. So I took it easy concentrating on the beauty of the vistas and generally enjoying myself. There was an organised walk on some of the trails, and I was glad I had the Moots because the Chris King real wheels' idle sound is better than a bell. It's bee-like sound alerted the walkers to my presence and I only had to grumble a few times at the loose dogs who took an interest in me whilst I was passing their owners. "Les chiens en laisse, merci"
I also crossed quite a few mountain bikers - it was a pleasant day to be out and about. After completing the Accro Bike, and on my way back home I took a break at the house in Bossut where my dads' cradle once stood. 
17-02-2008, 00:00 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf
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| 10-02-2008 |
| Zoenk not |
No Zoenk for me. I didn't want to be engulfed by the mountainbike masses that would surely gather on this bright but cold morning. Instead I chose to wait until 1pm when temps had reached a pleasant 11 degrees C to head out into Meerdaelwoud. Following the last part of the Zoenk ride to start out - and still having to cope with some flocks of bikers who were almost home - I set out towards Egenhoven and Bertem. Making my way through the hollow roads and into the fields I reached Neerijse. Here I briefly followed the river Ijse and then climbed up to the Bertelsheide and into the Margijsbos.  Up and down the Smeysberg crest and then back towards Sint Joris Weert where I took the climb starting from the La Hetraie camping. Up and down a few times and then I was back on the Zoenk marked trails - passing the guys who where de-arrowing the last loop - and I followed this all the way back to Blanden. Ride Stats : 35K and 425 heightmeters in 2h10mins820/6620
10-02-2008, 16:25 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf
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| 08-02-2008 |
| 12+1 |
Wow, an average temperature of 13 degrees for a ride in the beginning of February.. feels weird but why not take advantage of it and get a ride in. So I did. I set out along the Haasrode tour, a road ride going over Haasrode, Bierbeek, Willebringen, Oirbeek and then back over l'Ecluse , La Bruyere and Pietrebais. I cut it short over HammeMille to stop at a little chapel in Nodebais where I go from time to time to say a little prayer.By the time I was back in Meerdaelwoud the temps were already dropping - it is only February after all and I was glad to have gotten a good ride in.Ride Stats : 55K and 395 heightmeters in 2h27mins785/6195
08-02-2008, 17:16 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf
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| 07-02-2008 |
| Enchanteur |
So, after a long day at work and some trouble with the Fox RP3 rear suspension unit that wouldn't hold air, I was ready to go out for a first ride with my Merlin Works 4.0 . The thing with the RP3 is that the inner valve easily loosens, preventing a good seal and thus allowing the pressure to escape when you remove the pressure pump. I had the same problem with Rogers' Sewanee when I tested it a few months back. With Rogers' bike I could twist the inner valve enough to fasten it without any tools but this time it wouldn't move . So I had to go to a tyre shop to get a little valve fastener with which to turn the inner valve tight. I promptly put his valve fastener into my toolkit, along with a spare inner valve. This might come handy along the road. I also have a HP pump in my backpack. Suspension forces different rules upon a biker. With the valve troubles over, I put in 100psi, which turned out to be fine for what I had in mind. I set out to the Tienne Vincent in Nethen to give the discbrakes a good bedding in. This climb is about 300 metres long and gives you the opportunity to grab the brakes and bring the bike to a controlled stop. You can do this 4 times per run. This heats up the disc pads, which in turn enables them to bed in with the discs. After 4 runs - and obviously also 4 climbs of the Tienne - I could feel that the 'bite' of the brakes had improved considerably, up to a point where you could lift the back wheel whilst applying the front brake.  
07-02-2008, 19:35 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf
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