Another rainy night in Belgium had left morale low for today’s ride. The rain continued in the morning during breakfast and stretches time. It looked like Dad and I were going to get soaked today! I put on my raincoat whereas Dad went for the highly waterproof shorts and tee shirt combo. We set off in a clear window of weather and made our way out of the campsite (see VIDEO 1).

The first part of the ride was successful! We cruised along quiet roads through a number of different villages. I was constantly checking the route because there were lots of twists and turns. The next turn sent us down a dodgy looking road towards a forest. Check out VIDEO 2!  The views were awesome though!

This road soon turned into this lovely track (see VIDEO 3)! Dad wasn’t too happy with the road quality. I heard lots complaints about his tyres etc but he still enjoyed the adventure.

Finally we got onto a decent road and things were looking up. I then got a message from Mum saying that the van wouldn’t start. We called them and they explained that the mechanic was coming in an hour or so. We carried on and as we exited off a roundabout the van appeared at the side of the road! We stopped and waited with the gang until it was fixed. Apparently a weasel was in the engine and had chewed through some of the wires! We stopped for about 45 minutes but we were soon on the road again.

Next, Dad’s tyre got a puncture (I blame the earlier roads) so we pulled up by the side of the road and changed it. It then started raining heavily so we retreated to some cover under nearby trees. The changing of the tyre wasn’t straightforward and we couldn’t really fix it properly. After 45 minutes we were back cycling but it wouldn’t be long until we had to stop again. It was too dangerous for Dad to ride so he had to get off and push. It was still raining and we were on a main road. Why not call the others and get the van to pick him up I hear you ask? The van was at the campsite but it wouldn’t start again. Hahaha typical stuff. No International Rescue! So Dad had to push his bike. I pedalled along slowly next to him until we reached the campsite (see VIDEO 4). Our trip took us 5 and a half hours in the end. We were cycling for nearly 3 and completed 46km. Let’s hope tomorrow is less eventful and the van gets fixed!