Beautiful Belgian Ride: 150 km around Brussels

Our "Gordel" for us...

At the beginning of this season, we offer you a warm-up round that is not only very close... but also quite atypical. At the starting point of this route, the question arose: Are there still roads that truly deserve their name, in the outskirts of Brussels for motorcycles? Let's find out!

Text by Philippe Bonamis and Jacques Berghmans

You know the Gordel? Yes, it is this event that is nationalistic, sporty, and family-oriented, taking place every year around Brussels since 1981 ("gordel" means belt in Dutch) to emphasize the Flemish character of the outskirts of the Belgian capital.

Depending on the year, the Gordel has sometimes focused more on politics (it is a platform for the Flemish nationalists, who never hold back on demands), and sometimes on sports, because at each edition around 100,000 people participate by bicycle or on foot in a course of about a hundred kilometers. The Gordel 2017 takes place on September 4, 2017, and honors the municipality of Leeuw-Saint-Pierre, pardon, Sint-Pieters-Leeuw (!), which also visits our route.

It was not our intention to revisit the route of the Gordel here, which is not at all intended for motorcycles. Therefore, we decided to move further away from the capital, extending our loop around Brussels to just over 150 kilometers. Offering you a minimum of interesting roads for motorcycles was worth the price. The area is obviously heavily built up. There is quite a bit of "gardening," but the region does not invite you to push the gas. Rather, one should drive leisurely along the road and admire the landscape... as long as it still exists. Let us enjoy this before everything is completely concreted over, monitored, and industrialized!