Murray Writes:
Flat??? Flat my ass! Today we rode from Leuven to Brussels. There was not 1cm of flat ground. Different gradients for sure, there were no 20%+ grades like the Muur, but up and down all day. Then I looked up the meaning of Leuven and to my surprise it means the ‘town of hills’. So I looked up Brussels, meaning, ‘city of no flat ground’. (disclaimer. You have to do your own research as to the meaning and origin of the names above.)
I think today the bike roads were in the worse condition of any we have traversed so far. Poor asphalt, bumpy concrete and a section of what would be loosely termed as gravel, that had a very steep down slope. We rode it and with the slope alone, no pedalling, we were going far to fast for the conditions.
Some of the route was along a state highway. Noisy, dusty and not a very pleasant ride. After following canals far from any road most of the time till now the highway ride is a bit of a down grade.
I think the bike road designers have been trained by the folks that design XC ski trails in Canada. You know the trails that have a right angle turn at the bottom of a very steep slope. At the bottom of every downhill on the bike paths is a set of lights. Always red of course and you don’t get to use any momentum gained from travelling with gravity to carry along the flats because you have to halt right at the base of the descent.
The Belgian bicycling culture is noticeably different from that in the Netherlands. The bikes are different and the riders are different. Although there is a major overlap I note some differences. The bikes, in the Netherlands the everyday bike is huge. Everyone is very upright and I think the wheels are bigger than standard wheels. In Belgium that type of bike has standard 700 wheels. The bikes do not look as ungamely as in Holland.
There are far more bikes with drop handle bars in Belgium. Not just riders in kit but everyday commuters have ‘racing’ bikes. To that there seemed to be a lot more serious riders out and about in Belgium, both on Friday and Saturday. Riders in spandex on expensive ‘racing’ bikes riding very fast, alone or in small groups. It is a bit scary for a couple of off the continent slow riding tourists as there is not a word spoken when they pass. It is just whoosh and you’re looking at someone’s back wheel.
The serious riders are not the only ones that pass without warning. The ebike crowd does the same. Maybe saying ‘ passing on the left’ would have to be repeated 1000 times per ride and it would get rather boring but it would be nice if we knew there was someone about to overtake us.
A bit of getting lost on the way into Brussels but we end up at the proper hotel and check in. We start looking at the info we have gathered we found we were a couple of blocks away from a walking tour of some of Europe’s best examples of Art Nouveau Architecture. A very famous architect Victor Horta did a couple of the buildings and they are now UNESCO heritage sites. If you are out this way the walk takes just over an hour and is worth the time. Tomorrow we brave the centre of Brussels on a Sunday.
Debbie Writes:
It’s Saturday today, so we see sights we wouldn’t on a weekday. A group of young girls riding horses on the bike path during a riding lessons. Their instructor is at the head of the line riding a bike. We say Good morning to the young ladies as we pass by slowly and they politely reply back.
Earlier we meet a girl riding a horse walking beside her friend, pushing a scooter. The horse seemed unperturbed.
As we ride over an overpass across a major highway, we look down on a major traffic jam. One direction is moving at a crawl. I wonder where they are all going?
By the time we reach greater Brussels, it is close to noon and everyone is out doing their shopping, meeting friends, having coffee. We ride through one section where there are cars and people everywhere. This is where I would like to have a big Canadian flag on my back so everyone knows I have no idea how to ride in the congestion!
Ah, the hills! Today was the hilliest riding so far. It felt like we were either going up or going down, no flat bits. All the training in Ardrossan, outside Edmonton, has paid off! The longest up hill was leaving Leuven, and Murray says it was a two kilometre climb.
We have arrived in Brussels and have two days off our bikes and onto our feet to visit art museums, palaces and interesting alleys and streets.
