2023-09-15 17:52:00
Clacking hooves in the street. A bellboy with his eyes glued to the clock. Three, two, one, that’s it, we can cross the line. Jurors who do the same on their big clock. The teammates waiting to take care of the arriving horses. A team that is there to unharness and harness the new pair of horses. And then a little audience to come and appreciate the beauty of the carriage features. The heart of the village of Lavacherie (Sainte-Ode) hosted a relay of the Belgian Luxembourg Route yesterday late in the followingnoon.
Since Wednesday, thirteen teams from Belgium (mainly from our province), from the four corners of France and Switzerland, have taken over the site of the Libramont Fair for this new edition of this competition modeled on the legendary Route du Poisson.
The stress is palpable in the teams.
The captain runs everywhere
The captain runs around to make sure everyone on his team is in place. The judges are attentive to see if all the elements are put back in the right place for the safety of the horses and the drivers. And it is not yet the time to draw an initial assessment of the first special stages which have already taken place. “We must first see how the start of the road goes, admits Patrick Schouckens, captain of Traits Union, holder of the European trophy following his success at the Route du Poisson. We were hoping for a little better on one of the special stages, but we’re staying in the race for now.”
No time to wander around because the clock is restarted and the crew must take the road to Chenogne, then to Vaux-sur-Sûre for a special test as night sets in. The organisms are getting tired and the heat of the last few hours does not improve the situation. You have to stay focused to avoid the slightest pitfall and lose points.
And it’s often consistency that pays off in this type of competition. This Saturday, the teams will have more special stages before hitting the road towards Bertrix. And the apotheosis of Sunday will take place in the landscaped park of Libramont with a presentation of the results at 6:30 p.m. A real celebration for everyone in the draft and even in provincial riding.
This content is not available in this configuration.
Find out here.
1694815341
#SainteOde #Belgian #Luxembourg #road #route #completed #seconds