Another beautiful sunny morning and I could not resist taking the Vortex out for yet another long ride. I decided to start along the tracks of the Haasrode - Huy - Haasrode ride - which was also taking place today - and then past Jodoigne iject myself on the L142 ravel route. And indeed, as I expected, the HHH crossed the Ravel at Huppaye. So from there I followed the 'Croix the La Hesbaye', a tarmac bikepath following the trail of the old Line 142 railroad. You can read more about this here.
The wind was blowing rather strong from the northeast - again - and while I passes through Eghezee and Vedrin I knew the way back home would be difficult. But at least on the way back the track would go downhill. Now I climbed until I reached the 200m mark . At Cognelee the trail started to descend , an 8km long descent riding towards the Saint Servais area of Namur. Arriving at the end of the line I turned around and took a picture of the bike at the 43K waypoint.

I then started the long ascent back to Cognelee. Pausing for a bite to eat overlooking Saint Servais and again taking some pictures.

The wind was blowing from the right now, and from time to time it was blowing hard in my face. But all went well and again I passed Eghezee and now followed the Ravel to Jodoigne and Hoegaarden. Here I left the L142 and rode towards the Marollen Kapel , Oorbeek and Hoksem. Riding on towards Kumtich and Willebringen I was quickly back in Bierbeek and Haasrode. The wind was blowing in my favour now - at last - and on the downhill into Blanden I nearly did 50kph. Good solid long ride in excellent circumstances ;  dry and sunny , with only the strong northeasterly wind playing spoilsport to make the conditions perfect. Still managed a good average and had a low heartrate of only 113bpm on average throughout the ride.

Ride Stats : 120K and 655/695 heightmeters (Polar/Garmin) in 4h23mins

2504/25160

01-05-2011, 16:29 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf

Saw some green arrows during my ride yesterday and I was pretty sure they belong to the Circuit du St Georges, a 90K road ride starting in Grez Doiceau. So today I took the Vortex for a long road ride . The Circuit passed in Blanden so I picked up easily. The arrows were very visible but sometimes inconsistently placed. One time on the right side of the road, one time on the left side. But as a whole the arrowing was good. The sun was out but there was also a strong wind blowing from the east, dampening the euphoric feeling somewhat.
The track went through Sint Joris Weert, Terlanen, Ottenburg and Archennes towards Grez Doiceau. Here I passed the start for the rest of the ride. First they went to Longueville, then though Incourt and Dongelberg in the direction of Jodoigne. But they didn't quite go so far, stead turning to the right for a nice loop through Bomal and Autre-Eglise towards Huppaye. Had a bit to eat here before braving the wind that was blowing in my face now on the plateaus.

From time to time the track veered to the left or right which gave me some time to recuperate. Through Jodoigne and then towards St Remy Geest where a long stretch of cobbles reminded me of the difference between a roadbike and a mountainbike. Even though the frame absorbs a lot it still kicks from time to time on these uneven cobblestones. But I survived and continued my way towards Melin and then towards La Bruyere and Beauvechain. Here I left the route which veered to the left towards Opvelp to add another loop to reach a 100K. Towards Meldert , Willebringen and Bremt and then into Bierbeek where I picked up on the Circuit du Saint Georges again for the last stretch through Haasrode and Blanden. Not bad as an training ride and with 800 heightmeters not that easy either. But today the wind was the biggest adversary.

Ride Stats : 104K and 840/825 heightmeters (Polar/Garmin) in 4h2mins

2384/24465

30-04-2011, 15:52 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf

Some rain last evening and this morning but I didn't mind waiting a bit to start my ride. Watching Prins William say 'I do' to his princess Catherine while waiting for the tracks to dry out a bit. Sun was out and skies were blue when I rode out half past noon.
I wanted to do a substantial ride so I chose to combine a couple of Meerdael Bloso routes with the majestic hilly section of the Meerdael Classic 100K organised ride. This section comprises around 35K and close to 700 heighmeters. No comment on the toughness.
Starting with the Green Bloso in the opposite direction, connecting soon with the Blue just outside Blanden. I decided not to do the Red because that would lead me too far before I got to the start of the Hilly Section. So when I arrived in Nethen after the downhill of the Savenel, I crossed the road to Sint Joris Weert and climbed into the Ruelle du Curé. Down and up in and out of Pecrot and then I was at the little train station where the Meerdael Classic passes. The Hilly section is what makes the difference between the 65 and 100K distances of the Meerdael Classic. When I started the first serious climb up in the Bois de Laurensart I met Johan of Vaalbeek. It had been a while since we last met and I was pleased to be able to say HI to him. Hope to meet you again soon, Johan.
Into the Ottenbrug area next where the track goes up and down relentlessly. I stopped for a couple of pictures in the little secluded valley before attempting the steep climb in the opposite direction of the Overijse Red Bloso.

I only had to stop once on that climb because of a slippery root so I must have a very good condition. Its been a while since I was able to ride this climb. Into the Sint Agatha Rode bos next for another 21% climb, which is easier because there are no roots. The temperature was ideal for this kind of demanding ride, around 20 degrees C with a refreshing breeze from the east. During the ride the sun would hide and some darker clouds would emerge but it hasn't rained yet. Again a steep climb in the right direction this time of the Overijse Bloso to a plateau where you have a magnificent view of Huldenberg.

Down into Huldenberg and then following the river Ijse for a while. When the track arrives at the Margijsbos there are 4 successive climbs waiting for me. After the last one the trail descents towards the Wolfshagen and then another climb takes me back up to the Smeysberg plateau. Down towards Sint Agatha Rode and then crossing the Marbaise to reach Pecrot. A last steep climb into the Beaumont forest and I can descent towards Nethen to find the Blue Bloso again. Following this until it connects to the Green Bloso just before entering Heverleebos.

Now there are some easier kilometers waiting for me, ideal to recuperate a bit from the heavy work on the Meerdael Classic loop. When I reach the point where I injected on the Green Bloso I have close to 80K on my counter. Just a little connection to reach my home, tired but very satisfied with the ride.


Ride Stats : 85.5K and 1080/1200 heightmeters (Polar/Garmin) in 4h31mins30secs

2280/23640

29-04-2011, 00:00 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf

Some rain has fallen today and the tracks were a little bit wet when I rode through Heverleebos towards the meeting point for the start of the weekly KBC MTB club ride. The sun was shining but in the forest temperatures were only around 15 or 16 degrees, a far cry from the 25 degrees we had last week. But there was more oxygen in the air and the pollen had been washed out by the rain.
There were 7 guys and one girl at the start and we set out through Heverleebos towards Korbeek Dyle where we entered the Doode Beemde, following the river Dyle for a while and then the little tracks in this Nature Reserve. From Neerijse we followed the river Ijse until we reached the Margijsbos.

Here we climbed upwards and then rode towards the Wolfshagen and Sint Joris Weert. Entering the Doode Beemde again and following the old train track the girl in our company suffered a flat tyre. 2 man to help her, and one to put it on a digital camera, and several minutes later we could continue our path through the Beemde towards Sint Joris Weert.

Entering Meerdael Forest now and while the others rode back to the start, I chose to ride home through Vaalbeek and the Prosperdreef. Had a good ride with a very low intensity heartrate-wise. Only 108bpm on average. But with an average speed of nearly 20kph we were not exactly slow. The tracks turned out to be mostly dry with some small puddles here and there. The bike will need cleaning but I can do that tomorrow since I took a day off from work.

Ride Stats : 35.5K and 220/295 heightmeters (Polar/Garmin) in 1h47mins

2198/22440

28-04-2011, 21:20 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf

Another fine day and when I came home from work I just had to go out and ride. 7th straight day in a row but my legs felt surprisingly good. I chose to ride the Meerdael Bloso's with just a couple of extra snippets along the way to spice things up. Starting off with the Green I could maintain a very good speed, spending lots of time on the big ring. I was amazed that after 1 hour of riding I had more than 21.5kph on average. Obviously the average dropped when I engaged the Blue but on the Red I could set out all sails and speed along the forest trails. During all that time my heartrate was surprisingly low so I didn't even have to push myself. It seemed like my feet were pushing the pedals down all by themselves. Switching on the Blue and then finally again on the Green I started to feel the efforts though but then I was alsmost home. 7 days, 500K and 4400 heightmeters and 20 hours of riding. The good weather made me do it ! 
Now its time for a day of rest and a kine session to check my healing shoulder muscles. My average heartrate today was 112bpm and my max 133. 

Ride Stats : 58K and 525/610 heightmeters (Polar/Garmin) in 2h45mins

2163/22145

26-04-2011, 19:52 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf

Beautiful day - again - and I took the Litespeed Vortex out for an easy ride along the Vaart towards Mechelen. From Mechelen I followed the Zennegat until I reached Willebroek. Here my counter was almost on 50K so that was sufficient for a good ride. Riding up to Mechelen I could make good speed, the wind was more or less in my back and at times I saw my speedometer go towards 36-37kph. The tarmac trails along the Vaart were pretty busy with all kinds of people so speeding along at 30kph+ I had to scream a lot to make my presence known. Note to self, check if you can put a little bell on the Vortex.
When I reached the midpoint of my ride I stopped for a little snack and to take some pictures of a Sherman Firefly tank that had been put there to commemorate the liberation of Willebroek in WW2.

Turning the bike around I immediately felt the wind in my face. The track runs more or less to the southeast and I'm guessing the wind was blowing from the east. When I neared Mechelen and rode next to the Vaart I was riding more towards the south but could still feel the wind coming from my left. I rode at the left side of the water as much as possible to minimize the wind. Halfway I caught up with another biker was was riding more than 30kph as well and we rode along together until he had to veer off towards Linden at the Remy towers in Wijgmaal. We had a good conversation and could keep the speed well up. Now all I had to do was ride around Leuven and reach Blanden. Here I did another little loop to reach the 100K mark. Very pleasant ride and due to the high average probably more taxing than imagined.
My average heartrate was rather low though - 123bpm - so I hope I got some recuperation during this ride.
  
Ride Stats : 100K and 225/255 heightmeters (Polar/Garmin) in 3h27mins

2105/21535

25-04-2011, 14:46 geschreven door Big Bad Wolf