Flanders 2017

ic.

Looking forward to going back for a second dig at this. Hope for slightly better weather than 2015

With the Muur being back on the race route, what do we think the chances are of it being on the sportive route?

kirkee

Iv rode the sportive on old route that started in Brugge then finished in Ninove years back. That was the exact route all 270 od km's of it.
The only reason that the newer sportive route is shortened is due to the pro race covering Kwaremont etc more than once. If the 2017 route is a simpler A to B without a hills circuit repeat then I would say that the sportive will cover the exact 'full' race route.

kim10

I'm looking to do this next year with a couple of mates as we've always wanted to do one of the "classics" sportive's. Do anybody know if its easy to get tickets or will it sell out quick once entry is released?

Any advise about the event welcomed.

ic.

It does sometimes sell out, but only closer to the date. As long as you register fairly promptly when it opens, you won't have a problem

kim10

Okay - thank you very much. I'll keep an eye out for when the tickets go on sale.

rc856

We were there this year. Registered here

http://www.sport.be/rondevanvlaanderen/ ... v=15102014

and kept an eye on it updating. No problem getting entries.
Flew to Charleroi, van hire to a BHotel, cheap and cheerful, which is about 5km from Oudenaarde where
it finishes.
Used the bus service to the start in Bruges.

Same company that does LBL and I've been impressed with the organisation of both.
Pretty much trouble free and a great day out.

PostieJohn

RC856 wrote:

We were there this year. Registered here

http://www.sport.be/rondevanvlaanderen/ ... v=15102014

and kept an eye on it updating. No problem getting entries.
Flew to Charleroi, van hire to a BHotel, cheap and cheerful, which is about 5km from Oudenaarde where
it finishes.
Used the bus service to the start in Bruges.

Same company that does LBL and I've been impressed with the organisation of both.
Pretty much trouble free and a great day out.

Can you please give me an idiots guide as the the transportation, thanks.

I'd love to do the (an) event, in full, but I'll be on my own and driving over.
This years race will start in ANTWERP.

The only thing giving me concern, beyond the actual ride, is the logistics of finishing 50 odd miles from the start.

kirkee

Ref the 2017 edition I have not seen the details but regards logistics it will be no different to any of the previous editions. For the full distance sportive riders are required to get the official organised transport from the finish location to the start. Park your car or get your accom at finish location, you will get a bus to start location. You will finish the ride where you parked your car or ideally booked your accom.
Be aware that accom has always been scarce at the finish towns Oudenaarde, or wherever it is next year. Once the exact details are online try to book your accom in a place nearby to the finish as poss. Once there its a good shout to recce parking and route to the coach pick up point, that will save any messing about at 0500hrs on the big day!
It will be sorted so look out for website to update to see details. The last time I rode the sportive in 2015 ending in Oudenaarde the organisers had laid on loads of parking at coach pick up area so it should be fine.
Have a good one.

kiteloopy

Entries are open.

http://www.sport.be/werideflanders/2017/en/inschrijven/

slowbike

PostieJohn wrote:

RC856 wrote:

We were there this year. Registered here

http://www.sport.be/rondevanvlaanderen/ ... v=15102014

and kept an eye on it updating. No problem getting entries.
Flew to Charleroi, van hire to a BHotel, cheap and cheerful, which is about 5km from Oudenaarde where
it finishes.
Used the bus service to the start in Bruges.

Same company that does LBL and I've been impressed with the organisation of both.
Pretty much trouble free and a great day out.

Can you please give me an idiots guide as the the transportation, thanks.

I'd love to do the (an) event, in full, but I'll be on my own and driving over.
This years race will start in ANTWERP.

The only thing giving me concern, beyond the actual ride, is the logistics of finishing 50 odd miles from the start.

2016 there were 3 routes available for the sportive - the shorter two started in the same town as the finish - they had busses available to book to get you to the start from the host town for the longer one.

PostieJohn

kirkee wrote:

Ref the 2017 edition I have not seen the details but regards logistics it will be no different to any of the previous editions. For the full distance sportive riders are required to get the official organised transport from the finish location to the start. Park your car or get your accom at finish location, you will get a bus to start location. You will finish the ride where you parked your car or ideally booked your accom.
Be aware that accom has always been scarce at the finish towns Oudenaarde, or wherever it is next year. Once the exact details are online try to book your accom in a place nearby to the finish as poss. Once there its a good shout to recce parking and route to the coach pick up point, that will save any messing about at 0500hrs on the big day!
It will be sorted so look out for website to update to see details. The last time I rode the sportive in 2015 ending in Oudenaarde the organisers had laid on loads of parking at coach pick up area so it should be fine.
Have a good one.

Thanks.

The booking is now open, and I've had my holiday from work confirmed.

I'm now desperately looking for an excuse to get out of it!!

the_fuggler

PostieJohn wrote:

Thanks.

The booking is now open, and I've had my holiday from work confirmed.

I'm now desperately looking for an excuse to get out of it!!

Don't - it's a brilliant day out! We watched the pro race on the Kwaremont the following day - superb. We stayed in Gent and took a tram into the city for a night out, which was excellent. The beer....mmmmm.

rc856

^^
I did Flanders this year and Liege the year before.
Both times I've been really worried about getting the miles in and surviving but they've both worked out fine. Great event and a real sense of achievement at the end.
We had a walk round Oudenaarde and watched the race in a pub on the Sun....left it too late to get out on the course...but even that had a great atmosphere.

Get as many miles in, pace yourself on the day and collect your quality t-shirt and medal at the end

Beatmaker

I'm in, it will be the third time for me, I'm recovering from a broken tibia/fibula at the moment and this will provide a great fitness target for early year.
I love the whole weekend, from the sportive and Saturday beers in Ghent, to watching the race on Sunday with even more beers!

Frenchie71

Hi All - especially those with previous experience of the Flanders Sportive.

Booked on this year and travelling down on the Friday in a motorhome. Does anyone have details of any specific areas to park Friday/Saturday night? Usually do Paris-Roubaix and they open up a sports field next to the velodrome for "campers" - last year we met some others who had come from Flanders the week before in their 'van so hoping there is something similar?

Any advice or information appreciated!

durhamwasp

Check our website, we stayed at a activity centre called The Outsider. Think it was about €10 per night to park there, the place had no hook-ups but you could use their toilets and they also let us use their showers after completing the sportive. Excellent bar there.

The place was full of camper vans (see our gallery linked on our page), tho it immediately emptied after the pro race finished. The site was no more than a 10 minute walk to the official finish line, and 15-20 into Oudenaarde.

https://snookcycling.wordpress.com/tourofflanders/

Frenchie71

Brilliant - great info. Thank you

durhamwasp wrote:

Check our website, we have stayed at a activity centre called The Outsider. Think it was about €10 per night to park there, the place had no hook-ups but you could use their toilets and they also let us use their showers after completing the sportive. Excellent bar there.

The place was full of camper vans (see our gallery linked on our page), tho it immediately emptied after the pro race finished. The site was no more than a 10 minute walk to the official finish line, and 15-20 into Oudenaarde.

https://snookcycling.wordpress.com/tourofflanders/

colinsmith123

Email Regina at Outsider with your proposed arrival date and number of days, vehicle size and registration number.

sales@outsider.be

Arrive unannounced and you might be disappointed and turned away.

durhamwasp

If you are willing to 'wild camp' theres also loads of opportunities around Oudenaarde and the course, especially near Oude Kwaremont from what I remember. (and several places on the road leading to The Outsider.

When we have gone to Flanders on other weeks for cycling, we have stayed at a campsite called Camping Canteclaer, pretty nice and a pleasant ride into Oudenaarde, but maybes a bit too far out for the Sportive/Classic weekend.

n1ckster

Has anyone created a tcx or gpx route of the courses that they'd be happy to share, or know of any online resources for the 2017 routes?
I see the official website has this years routes published but they have no links for downloading.

TIA, Nick

The Kennington Kaiser

I've got a place to ride the 141km route. Not having done this before I wondered whether anyone could advise about which bike I should be riding. I've got a steel winter bike with guards, discs and 700x28c tyres, or a carbon summer race bike with 25c tyres and dura-ace wheels. Is the summer bike going to get battered, or are the cobbles not as numerous and savage as I think they might be?

Thanks

Piton

Although I'm a Campa rider ;-) I would not go to Flanders with the Dura Ace wheels. For the carbon bike there is no harm.

If you have never ridden 20km of cobbles before it sure wil be savage.

gingermagician

The Kennington Kaiser wrote:

I've got a place to ride the 141km route. Not having done this before I wondered whether anyone could advise about which bike I should be riding. I've got a steel winter bike with guards, discs and 700x28c tyres, or a carbon summer race bike with 25c tyres and dura-ace wheels. Is the summer bike going to get battered, or are the cobbles not as numerous and savage as I think they might be?

Thanks

You'll be fine on either set up but, given you have a bike that'll run 28c (clearance for 30mm/32mm?), I'd go with that one - especially if the prospect of riding the carbon option makes you nervous. Tyre pressure is more important.

Just ditch the guards, not a good idea on the pavé...

The Kennington Kaiser

Thanks both. Are there really 20km of cobbles? Thought it was a bit less than that

itboffin

Yep at least that much but it will feel like more, 25 are fine 28 might be more comfortable but go with as low pressure as you dare, cobbles hurt when descending for long periods or riding flat out i found climbing easy and a relief from the death grip i had the rest of the time, flanders is the only time I've had to stop with cramp in both hands

Ankles50

I ran 25mm with 100psi and had no issues last year, it was bone dry though, if it was wet it may well have been different!

The cobble sections really are not very long, the longer ones had a good gutter to ride in for parts of them. Just commit to good tempo and keep that with minimal deviation, the vibrations are tolerable, it's the fuzzy feeling in the hands in the week following that's odd.

What i will say from post ride beer chats with other riders, those that did the medium were fairly vocal in their frustrations at the crowds, especially on any cobble climbs, we did the long route and had no congestion to contend with, got to stay in the saddle all day as the first 90-100Km serves to spread the field.

I'd give thought to not starting early if you take on the medium route, take a longer breakfast, avoid the crowds and enjoy the ride

The Kennington Kaiser

Thanks everyone - good advice. Think I'll check the weather close beforehand and then make a decision on the bike. More importantly though, what beers do you recommend?

rc856

I rode it last year on my Giant Advanced SL with Campag Shamal clinchers with Vitoria Open Pave 25mm tyres.
I was pretty comfortable all day

itboffin

no gutter for 2017 apparently, not sure how they intend to enforce that in the sportive

ic.

I don't understand going all that way to ride the course then riding gutter to avoid the cobbles? Last time I went I avoided any gutters, fully intend on doing the same this time

Fingers crossed we get good weather this year.

My mate has just had to pull out of this, so if any is missing an entry let me know

durhamwasp

Yeah, amused me too! Paying to ride a famous cobbled classic, and people avoiding the cobbles