Starting at 10AM for a long ride towards Namur. From Bierbeek I rode to Honsem and then took a left towards Willebringen. Through Kumtich and Hoksem I then reached Hoegaarden where I took the Ravel 2 towards Namur. With 61K on my counter I arrived in Saint Servais, my furthest point today. The ravel tarmac was wet under the trees and there must have been some rainfall earlier.
When I rode back towards Hoegaarden I was overtaken by a group of 6 or 8 riders and I was able to ride with them for a couple of kilometers. They were surprised at my speed - I was doing around 34kph when they overtook me - and I was surprised how easy it is to ride in such a big group. Hiding in the group allowed my heartrate to drop 10 beats per minute whilst doing 37kph without any trouble. Sadly in Jodoigne I left them behind since they were slowing down too much for my liking. Or they were simply slowing their pace because they had to go much further than me. They had also been to Namur but they would have around 180K when returning to their homes.
Anyway, upon reaching Hoegaarden and then riding back to Hoksem I began to feel my legs as well. The long downhill from Cognelee to Hoegaarden was easy on the big ring, but between Hoegaarden and Bierbeek I had to do some climbing and the wind was blowing against me. Just before Willebringen I encountered my friend Roger - again - who was also doing his daily ride. Reaching home I had an average heartrate of 120bpm which was quite good considering the last 20K were tough. The weather was OK with some sunshine and clouds but no rain.

Endomondo track


Ride Stats : 121K and 575/625 heightmeters (Polar/Garmin) in 4h25mins

6714/61795