Goudsberg
What a brilliant tour! Only 45 km, but it felt like far more. To start with, the weather this year was incredible. We set off in the cold, only ten degrees, and that meant that there was a faint mist about. So with the sunbeams shining through the trees, there were incredibly beautiful 'special effects' and at times it was a job to keep my eyes on the trail and not gaze too much at the scenery. Then it warmed up and it was over 20 degrees by the time we had finished. But keeping our eyes on the trail was definitely necessary. The organisers had done an incredible job in setting the trail out, making the most of every possible twist and turn that could be made. Especially in the first half, there was section after section where the steering was highly technical, 180 degree turns, narrow passages through a gap between two trees that required a bit of a wiggle of handlebars to get them through and slippery piles of loose sand on the corners to keep us on our toes. In the second half, we moved onto the Goudsberg ('golden mountain') itself. That features some very steep-sided cliffs, which although not very high are quite tricky because of the loose sand which means it is very difficult to get up them, Many people were walking the steepest bits, ourselves included. Finally, we found ourselves coming back to the start point, a last bit of twisty woodland, and then across the fields back to the village of Wekerom. Today's tour was really a showpiece for the Veluwe!
