Today saw me riding the Moots around the Blue and Red BLOSO routes of Meerdael. I wanted to do an easy ride in view of tomorrows' tough one and the BLOSO routes provide just that. The ride went well, I had 39.8K and 405 heightmeters with an average heartrate of 118bpm. Piece of cake .
It's the second time this week I take out the Moots because I have not ridden it as much as other years . I usually get around a 1000K out of it each year but this year has seen me a lot on the Litespeed and the Hilset, and less on the Moots. It's probably due to the bad weather last August (I only ride the Moots when it's dry - I haven't had to wash it in the 3 years I have it) but September is turning out to be a real dry and warm month so we'll get there.
Was a bit pissed to see that after more than 2 months, there are still at least two arrows missing on the Red Loop. I'm gonna email the Sports Representative (SR) of Oud-Heverlee later on and tell him exactly what is on my mind. The BLOSO routes are meant to be checked at least once a month by a so-called "Parent" . The Meerdael BLOSO has 2 of those Parents but since the beginning it was obvious that they were not doing there job. That coupled with the fact that they don't answer (or even read ?) their emails doesn't make it very easy for the users of the routes to report missing arrows , other fallen trees and such..
Normally, the Parents gather the complaints , bring these to the SR, who in turn alerts the BLOSO community. The BLOSO then takes the necessary steps to return the route to its original condition. I don't know where the trouble lies in this "chain of events" , but in Overijse for example (where I know the "Parent" personally ) I usually see that when an arrow is reported missing, it is replaced within a fortnight, sometimes even within the week !
Well as I said, I wil email the SR , with the elections coming up in less than a month, they tend to listen a bit more to their citizens.
And now it's time to relax a bit and watch the time trial events of the World Championships in Salzburg
So, I decided to create a Blog.. Why ? It's easier to be able to communicate some stuff without having to email around.
For the moment , I'm pretty excited to go back to Theux again. For those not familiar with what I do and what Theux means in that respect, check out these links : http://redridinghood.fotopic.net/c1082029.html
I want to go back, and plan to do so on thursday, to check out the combination of the 18K and 37K routes. Starting out from the Chateau Franchimont again I would first choose the 18K route (route Nr 7) climbing into the Bois de Staneu and descending towards the little Ry de Chawion. There I would hop over on the 37K route (route Nr 8) and follow this one further on At the furthest western point I would like to briefly hop on the 57K route (route Nr 9) to reach the Porallée area. Why? Well, I would like to descent from the Porallée area towards Noncevaux (260m drop ) and climb back up again following the Ninglinspo river. This area is one of the most beautiful in Belgium. Google it to find out more . This would yield a 50K ride with well over 1100 heightmeters. More than enough to keep me busy for 4 hours or thereabouts. I hope to be able to get some nice shots too of the area. A little plan of the Ningslinspo area and the route I want to follow can be seen by clicking HERE
