Tag: lifestyle

Although the pro cycling season usually starts with the Tour Down Under in Australia and with other races in January, the real start of the pro cycling season begins with the Spring Classics races. These are usually one day races and considered the monuments of the sport of cycling.

They are called monuments because these races (Milan–San Remo, Paris–Roubaix, Liège–Bastogne–Liège, and the Giro di Lombardia) are considered “the oldest, hardest, longest and most prestigious one-day events in men’s road cycling, with distances between 240 and 300 km.” Another race that is also considered a monument is the Tour of Flanders. Ever thought you might want to ride the same course the pros do? You can! It’s a sportive called the Tour of Flanders Sportive (Ronde van Vlaanderen Sportive).

All the About the Ronde van Vlaanderen (Tour of Flanders)

The Ronde van Vlaanderen, another name for the Tour of Flanders, refers specifically to the sportive event that occurs before the pro UCI sanctioned race every year in the early spring. 2025 will be the 108th edition of the pro race.

The Tour of Flanders road race, which was first held in 1913, is known for its difficult cobbled sections scattered throughout the Belgium course. Although these sections aren’t long, they are grueling and can take a toll on a rider’s body and bicycle because they can be uneven. The cobbles can also be treacherous, especially when wet, which can cause some riders to dismount and even lose their bikes to damage.

Of the seven races that make up the Flanders Classics, as they are called, the Ronde van Vlaanderen is deemed the most important and the hardest.

The Tour of Flanders Sportive (Ronde van Vlaanderen Sportive) Amateur Cyclists

If your fitness is in good form and your bike is in efficient working order, you might want to sign up for the Ronde van Vlaanderen Sportive and take on the cobbled roads of Flanders, Belgium. Registration opened on October 4th, 2024 and is ongoing.

Cyclists will ride the same exact course the pros will face the following day. Unlike the pros, however, event cyclists will have four courses to choose from: 242km (150 miles), 177km (110 miles), 144km (90 miles), and 80km (50 miles). Cyclists will also have access to feed stations every 30 kilometers (every 18 miles). While the course is not all cobbled, 11 sections are. The cobbled sections are also graded from 9% to 17%, so this event will definitely test your cycling mettle. They are as follows:

• Molenberg: Molenberg, Zwalm. Climbs 32m from 24m to 56m. Maximum 17 per cent.
• Oude Kwaremont: Broekstraat, Kwaremontplein, Schilderstraat, Kluisbergen. Climbs 93m from 18m to 111m. Maximum 11 per cent.
• Koppenberg: Steengat, Koppenberg, Oudenaarde-Melden. Climbs 64m from 13m to 77m; Maximum 25 per cent at inside of bend, otherwise 22 per cent.
• Taaienberg: Taaienberg, Maarkedal-Etikhove. Climbs 45m from 37m to 82m. Maximum 18 per cent.
• Berg ter Stene: Stene, Horebeke. Climbs 68m from 32m to 100m. Maximum 9 per cent.
• Leberg: Leberg, Brakel-Zegelsem. Climbs 39m from 60m to 9m. Maximum 15 per cent.
• Berendries: Berendries, Brakel-Sint-Maria-Oudenhove. Climbs 65m from 33m to 98m. Maximum 14 per cent.
• Valkenberg: Valkenbergstraat, Brakel-Nederbrakel. Climbs 53m from 45m to 98m. Maximum 15 per cent.
• Muur-Kapelmuur: Abdijstraat, Ouderbergstraat, Oudeberg, Gerardsbergen. Climbs 77m from 33m to 110m. Maximum 20 per cent.
• Bosberg: Kapellestraat, Geraardsbergen-Moerbeke. Climbs 40m from 65m to 105m. Maximum 11 per cent.
• Tenbosse: Olifantstraat, Brakel. Climbs 28m from 45m to 73m. Maximum 14 per cent.

Registration and Cost for the Ronde van Vlaanderen Sportive

Seeing that the Tour of Flanders is a monument and one of the most important races on the UCI spring calendar, this sportive is very popular among cyclists who are aching to make this event part of their personal palmares.

16,000 riders can sign up to participate. And at 95 euros per rider (a little over $100), the cost isn’t prohibitive. But all the cobbles and the weather, which can play a huge factor on the day of the race, might be. Late March/ early April weather in Belgium can be cold and rainy.

Last Thoughts

If you can get yourself to Belgium in the spring and you’re physically and mentally prepared, the Tour of Flanders Sportive could be a memorable event. Not many cyclists are bold enough to take on this challenge.

But if you survive this event and can stake out a decent hotel, you can stay to witness the pros suffering through this course the next day and cheer them on to victory. I’d say if you have the time and resources, why not? Perhaps you could stay even longer still to watch Paris-Roubaix (Hell of the North). It takes place a week or so after the Tour of Flanders.