It was still dry and not too cold this morning. Great, so I could try to ride in the forest. I wanted to re-ride my january 6th ride in the idle hope of stumbling on the red tail light I lost in the snow during that ride. With the Edge 705 its very easy to re-ride any of the rides in its history so i was quickly out and about. The forest was moist but not overly wet, a single patch of mud and some water on a track notwithstanding. Traction was good but I nearly went on the ground when at one point my front wheel skidded away on a piece of wood I didn't see. Granted, I was riding next to the official track at that time, and on top of a hollow road to boot. I nearly fell into the hollow road but luckily I managed to control myself and the bike just in time. From that moment on I was a bit more concentrated.

Still no sign of the missing person , Gilbert Peels, but I did look around as much as possible. I was also looking for concentrations of birds, a sure giveaway when a dead body is lying somewhere. A bit grim to say something like that, I know, but it is hardly realistic that someone who went missing on january 5th and fell in the forest in minus 5-10 degrees temperatures, might still be alive today. Obviously there is also the possibility that he has simply disappeared and is still alive somewhere. Either way, I hope for his family and friends that some sign of him is picked up soon. It must be a hard ordeal to go through. The not knowing must be awful.

The ride went fine, the forest was clear and bright even though the light was not great. Managed to take some pictures and also looked around at several places for my little light. But, as Gilbert, it was nowhere to be found. There is still one spot where it could be, a secret spot not far from the Dikke Eik. I went there on january 6th but didn't go there today. When I type this it has started to rain very lightly. Lets hope it clears out so that I can do another ride tomorrow.

Ride Stats : 22.5K and 260/290 heightmeters (Polar/Garmin) in 1h39min

589/6270

Dusk set in and I rode out for a ride that would turn out a little different than I had first anticipated. I always have an idea where I want to ride to, before I ride out. But sometimes I change directions during the ride itself. This evening was one of those moments. The weather was great, no wind, a temperature around 2 degrees C and a clear sky with a small crescent moon on the rise. The weekend weather forecast looked a bit uncertain so I agreed to do a longer ride instead of the quick 30K I had originally in mind.
Setting out towards the Zoete Waters I rode to Sint Joris Weert and from then turned to Nethen and Pecrot. From Pecrot I rode to Archennes and onwards over Grez Doiceau to Cocrou. Riding on the road to Pietrebais was like riding into a pitch black tunnel. All was quiet except for a dog that jumped at me from one of the houses I passed. I howled at it and it let go, turning back into its safe haven. Now and then a car passed me or crossed me. From Pietrebais I rode towards the 1St Wing entrance in La Bruyere. I felt good and decided to add another loop taking me to Meldert and from there over Opvelp to Bierbeek. I passed a biker who had no front light and he struggled to keep up with me, taking advantage of my bright Lumicycle Led 3 system. In Bierbeek we took different turns and I set out on my own again along the E40 to reach Haasrode and then over the Slagbaan to Blanden. I really felt good and did a fine 2h30 of riding. If the weather turns out good tomorrow I'll see about doing another ride. If not I already have a good one under my belt today. My pace was brisk possibly due to the low amount of heightmeters and the fact that I opted for the long climbs instead of the short steep ones .

Ride Stats : 54K and 400/450 heightmeters (Polar/Garmin) in 2h27mins

566/5980

22-01-2010, 23:03 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf

This evening I wanted to check out the shortest way to Duisburg, so I set out with the Hilset riding through the Weertse Dreef, into Sint Joris Weert and then up the smeysberg ridge. Dropping into and riding out of Huldenberg, passing the Ganspoel and then up another ridge to make it to Duisburg. From there I rode towards Eizer where I took the direction of Overijse. Taking to the left on a small earthen road I rode around a bit aimlessly until I found a connection to Overijse. From here I rode in the direction of Wavre, down into Tombeek and the up again and towards Terlanen. Here I took a right for the long climb towards Ottenburg. From Ottenburg it went towards Archennes and Pecrot where I added another couple of climbs to my daily konto. From Pecrot towards Nethen and then towards Sint Joris Weert and the Zoete Waters I managed to include a couple more climbs. So I wasn't really surprised when I noticed I totalled more than 600 heightmeters. The weather was calm and dry and with an average temperature of 3 degrees C quite enjoyable.

Ride Stats : 57K and 615/660 heightmeters (Polar/Garmin) in 2h46mins

513/5530

20-01-2010, 19:37 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf

No big tour today, I settled for a medium distance ride on the road, just relaxing a bit and recuperating from the weekend rides. My tour took me along Haasrode, Bierbeek, Opvelp, Beauvechain and then through Tourinnes and Hamme Mille towards Nethen and Sint Joris Weert. Finishing the lap over the Zoete Waters and Vaalbeek. The roads were dry, there was an easy breeze blowing from the west and the average temperature was 5 degrees C.

Ride Stats : 32.5K and 185/220 heightmeters (Polar/Garmin) in 1h29mins

456/4870

18-01-2010, 14:51 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf