Never lose courage

"Bruges the jewel, after noon when the sun is shining. A background of gothic houses, towers and campaniles looking down on the still canals wherein, as clearly defined as if it were a painting, the beauty of the stones is reflected."

Felix Timmermans

This is the first time the path of the race goes through the Potterierei. I guess only habitual "cobblestone-grinders" just take them in stride...

And... the runners  are facing their first up-hill stretch. Under this watertower is a bunker, which is now being used as an archery, equipped with a four-lane shooting facility. The Derby Archers of Bruges has even installed a cafeteria on the premises.

Sixteen more days.
In the meantime, this sequence has now reached the New Testament. The Sacred Blood Procession is a depiction of three different periods :
1. The Old Testament
2. The New Testament
3. This Historical Part
Here, we have the beginning of the second part, the New Testament, which starts off with the birth of Christ.

 

Nobody expected yesterday morning's rainy weather to do a complete turnaround and, precisely at the start of the "Straight through Bruges" race in the afternoon, become really very warm. After ten kilometers of running in this heat, closing one's eyes probably helped concentrating on the intensity of the effort.

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.Straight through Bruges" is a running competition made to measure for young and old.

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Which one, do you think, has the better physique? This runner wearing a number or this boy gathering the sponges?

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Runners and joggers who hate cobblestones better abstain from the "Straight through Bruges" race. Such stretches are just too plenty in Bruges. Here, the runners enter the Westmeers. The street, of course. And the terrace of the "Dolle Dries" (Crazy Dries) was quite a nice observation spot.

Towards the Jan Van Eyck square, ambiance and public assistance were rather lacking. Typical Belgian behaviour. Compare this with the enthousiasm of the millions of people along the path of the New York Marathon, where all runners, from the first to the last, are greeted and applauded.

A few more snapshots of the .Straight through Bruges" race. The people frm Bruges did participate in great numbers.

Tableau of the Prophets. Yesterday, you saw Moses with his Ten Commandments. Today, here is King David and his harp. He expresses his confidence in God by means of playing songs on this instrument.

Competitions such as the .Straight through Bruges" race are for everybody, young and old, talented runners and slowpokes. For the lesser athletes, it's a good thing is to know that, even after 10 km, they won't be running alone and there will still be dozens of participants around them, running at a like pace. This is the Begijnenvest, a much steeper climb than the participants ever suspected.

A greater contrast between this picture and the previous one, is hardly possible. This young lady is still smiling from ear to ear. And one can see her, literally floating towards the finish line.

Sometimes, neither music nor the encouragement from spectators are sufficient to refuel participants' endurance and courage. And this young lady cannot hide her disappointment when she has to abandon the race at the Minnewater bridge.

Music mellows manners...
and the pain from running.

The path of the "Straight through Bruges" race literally runs straight through the city but, contrary to previous years, the stretch along the Langerei was was not included in the path this year, and the runners had to proceed along a different stretch. But this had the runners huff and puff along two real "legkillers", the Potterierei (Pottery street) and the Spinolarei (Spinola street).  

And now, the "Straight through Bruges" race isover and done with. Here is a first impression of the event. Young and old, from 8 to 80, everybody ran. The weather, this morning, was foggy, then came rain and, suddenly, right before the start of the race, the skies cleared. In the end, it became warm and, of course, that did not make it any easier on the runners.
Notice the second runner in this photo. It just so happens that I know him : Mohammed Guenar. He seems to be holding a pair of replacement shoes.
And yes, I managed to get my second bicycle ready on time which gave me a chance to follow the runners and snap pictures all along the path of the race.