On August 11, Flanders Classics organized the first and only European Unbound Gravel Qualifier with Heathland Gravel, attracting an international field of participants. The diverse crowd was evident at the RV site, with license plates from Luxembourg, the United Kingdom, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, and France. Sixteen nationalities had traveled to Maasmechelen from far and wide to secure a qualifier for the 2025 edition of Unbound Gravel, one of the most iconic gravel events in the world.
Heathland Gravel takes place in National Park de Hoge Kempen, Belgium's largest national park. The park's vastness makes it the perfect location for a gravel event. Add to that Maasmechelen Terhills Park as the host venue, complete with an expansive festival site for three days of good fun, and you've got an event not to be missed.
From the beginning of August, the heathlands (moors) are in bloom, offering a stunning purple patchwork in National Park de Hoge Kempen. Combined with tropical temperatures well above thirty degrees and six hundred enthusiastic gravel riders, it's safe to say that on August 11, “The Heat(h) is on!”
Organizing large-scale riding events is becoming increasingly difficult. With a 160-kilometer route, it is nearly impossible to close off all hiking, riding, and biking trails to other nature lovers. So the setup for Heathland Gravel was straightforward. Riders started by age group on a challenging and closed start course across the Terhills of Maasmechelen. This approach ensured the field was well broken up within the first five kilometers. From there, it was a race against the clock to complete the nine timed segments (143 kilometers in total), with those times added up to create the final ranking.
The big advantage: the safety of riders and their surroundings is not compromised, as busy parts of the route were neutralized, and through roads could be crossed safely with the assistance of police and traffic controllers. Along the route, there were four well-equipped care stations. Kudos to the course builders for designing a route with only 15 kilometers of asphalt, complemented by a mix of gravel, sand, forest, and bridle paths. Riders traversed dunes, mud passages, steep climbs, technical descents, singletracks, and farm roads through a rolling landscape.
Heathland Gravel was my first introduction to the Gravel fondo. Everyone around me had already warned me about the addictiveness of gravel racing, so I was curious to see if I would catch the bug as well. At 49 years old, I am a senior in the M40-49 category, and with a strong gravel field featuring top riders like Jasper Ockeloen, Niki Terpstra, and Daniel Oss, I had few illusions about a high ranking. Due to the race concept, it was really about your position throughout the day—who was riding in front of you? Who was riding behind you?
The key was to keep the legs going strong and push extra hard on the various segments. My buddy for the day was Micha Gross from Karlsruhe. Together, we rode at a brisk pace, sometimes just the two of us, other times in groups that constantly changed composition. It took some getting used to racing along a narrow gravel path at 40 km per hour, dodging branches, jumping over holes, and avoiding getting stuck in a mud puddle. But how much I enjoyed it!
The combination of speed, technique, nature, racing, and distance absolutely gripped me. My Orbea Terra was the perfect companion, offering a blend of speed, comfort, and control. After more than 5.5 hours, I crossed the finish line, fairly wrung out. Turning to the scoreboard, I was surprised to see that I finished third in my category. My last podium finish in an official race was exactly 25 years ago. And there I was, standing on the podium of a gravel race on a warm Sunday afternoon in Maasmechelen, alongside Niki Terpstra, with a qualification certificate for Unbound 2025 as a bonus. I couldn't have imagined a better introduction to the Gravelf ondo. I enjoyed Heathland Gravel immensely and hope the event returns to Maasmechelen in 2025. I'll definitely be there.
Check here for all the results. Even more atmospheric images from Heathland Gravel can be found here.
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