Podium Cafe - All PostsYou can check out, but you can never leavehttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/25744/podiumcafe_f.png2024-03-29T06:30:00-04:00http://www.podiumcafe.com/rss/current/2024-03-29T06:30:00-04:002024-03-29T06:30:00-04:00Easter Weekend Races LIVE
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<img alt="67th E3 Saxo Bank Classic - Harelbeke 2024" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/-NhVHHi5YXDmOaNguveDddRZcMw=/0x0:8256x5504/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73240887/2104705955.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Tim de Waele/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p id="uRpMBE">Couple of races as we eat our eggs and wait for Mathieu to win the Ronde van Vlaanderen.</p>
<h3 id="hkOH4E"><strong>Route Adélie de Vitré</strong></h3>
<p id="EdIYZ4">Vitré-Vitré 174.2 Km</p>
<p id="eAEpIs"><em>Estimated finish: 15:45-15:55 CET</em></p>
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<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/IOvvA7jNlH47bxFzv_lE832NvUY=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25361319/Plan_grande_boucle_denivele_1024x405.png">
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<p id="5f7RtS">5 laps of the big 21.1 km circuit</p>
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<p id="DzEvHS">8 laps of the small 8.9 km circuit</p>
<p id="BxBPbQ"><a href="https://routeadelievitre.com"><strong>Official Site</strong></a><strong> , </strong><a href="https://firstcycling.com/race.php?r=134&y=2024&k=8"><strong>Startlist</strong></a></p>
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<h3 id="RK1pjZ"><strong>GP Miguel Indurain</strong></h3>
<p id="30FEeX">Estella Lizarra - Estella Lizarra 198.1 km</p>
<p id="SfgcNE"><em>Estimated finish: 17:05-17:20 CET</em></p>
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<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/oeCu_dSkoQNiAE9ih5pxaBTzh68=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25361322/Sk_rmavbild_2024_03_29_kl._10.01.44.png">
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<p id="ju3J9s"><a href="https://gpmiguelindurain.com"><strong>Official Site</strong></a><strong> , </strong><a href="https://firstcycling.com/race.php?r=48&y=2024&k=8"><strong>Startlist</strong></a></p>
https://www.podiumcafe.com/2024/3/29/24115328/easter-weekend-races-liveJens2024-03-27T22:07:07-04:002024-03-27T22:07:07-04:00Classics Greatness: Whose Records Are In Play?
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<img alt="Cycling: Team Quick-Step Floors 2017" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/EPhhtLpzN97p1I0xd4CQGn83A3k=/0x0:5568x3712/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73237779/630928892.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Tim De Waele/Corbis via Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>The Different Ways to Measure Excellence... and Who Meets Them</p> <p id="3rTIBJ">Sunday’s Ronde van Vlaanderen is the day. There is no more talking about the season to come, or people building to this or that goal. It’s all happening in four days, on the “roads” of Flanders. And it’s going to be ... probably incredible? Always beautiful. Rarely dull. Something.</p>
<p id="CLHRxN">When it is over, or maybe a week later following Paris-Roubaix, it will be time to take stock of what this season is about. For now, it seems pretty clear that it’s not a rerun of last year’s March of the Superteam, when Jumbo Visma — now Visma Lease-a-Bike — won arguably the first five Cobbled Classics that matter, from the Omloop through Dwars door Vlaanderen, and then after a brief pause set about winning all three grand tours. There doesn’t seem to be that sort of phenomenon brewing.</p>
<p id="EPJcio">Nor does it seem like there will be a wide range of outcomes in the next month, where every race will have an array of contenders from several super-strong teams, just waging total war on each other. We can hope for that — we see you there Lidl-Trek — but it doesn’t feel overly likely.</p>
<p id="ZePMJc">No, I would say that with the departure of Tadej Pogačar from the Spring Classics (for now) and the ultra-strong performances of Mathieu van der Poel heading into the Ronde van Vlaanderen, it seems like the best way to describe this current Classics Campaign is the March of the Superstars. Sometimes head-to-head, sometimes alternating dominance, but my guess is that it’s going to be a lot of these two from Antwerp to Liège. Maybe a couple Belgians — Wout Sunday, Remco in L-B-L — will interrupt this narrative, and if nothing more we should all be hoping for robust competition at every stop.</p>
<p id="g8hiCL">But if we don’t get that, might we at least get Greatness? This subject popped into my head today when I saw this:</p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Reply of the month <a href="https://t.co/QCNR8XJGjF">pic.twitter.com/QCNR8XJGjF</a></p>— Cycling out of context (@OutOfCycling) <a href="https://twitter.com/OutOfCycling/status/1772683724288557522?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 26, 2024</a>
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<p id="vjNdZP">Pretty hilarious given that Gilbert, you know, won all four... and some other stuff. I did my requisite number of fawning posts over Gilbert’s career accomplishments but I don’t know that I really gave him his due. As someone who once spent an entire week writing long posts about Tom Boonen, and then <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Love-Cobbles-Chris-Fontecchio/dp/1365018342/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2Y4EK4RDM4ALD&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.T_Y8Iqx0n0jEQ7gJ7Zfthw.7izGHqy52wjZ0X7bjObTL4sRIPWjgP53FI4mwOBHuzs&dib_tag=se&keywords=fontecchio+cobbles&qid=1711506688&sprefix=%2Caps%2C145&sr=8-1&tag=sbnation-20" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">appending them to his book</a>, I have set a rather high bar for myself when it comes to levels of fawning over classics stars. And by any measure, Gilbert qualifies for such treatment. But first... let me dig down into what historic performances look like. There are a number of versions.</p>
<p id="x0d0rz">Oh, and one more ground rule — the races worth including in an historic assessment are the Five Monuments-plus-Worlds Elite Road Race, along with some of the very top Monument-adjacent races that we commonly lump in there. Those would be, at a minimum, Strade Bianche, E3, Gent-Wevelgem, Dwars door Vlaanderen, Amstel Gold Race, La Flèche Wallonne, and if we go beyond spring, Paris-Tours and San Sebastián. Some might want to add in the Omloop or Euro Champs or maybe a few of the Italian fall races, but let’s stick to events for which there is clearer consensus. These are the races that crown the classics champions.</p>
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<img alt="Tour of Lombardia 1959: Rik van Looy" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/HQ8YA6Liguz7lzQwdnWSa22O0J0=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25358913/1173923517.jpg">
<cite>Photo by RDB/ullstein bild via Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>Van Looy wins Lombardia</figcaption>
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<h3 id="AKtYXK"><strong>Career Results: Collect Them All!</strong></h3>
<p id="r62WsG">Probably the greatest record a Classics rider can achieve is to win all five Monuments. Each one is such a singular, career-making accomplishment for any rider, and collectively they cover such breadth of styles, that there can simply be no denying a rider’s greatness once he’s checked all five boxes. Only three riders — Merckx, De Vlaeminck, and Van Looy — can claim this achievement. So far.</p>
<p id="6F4AFG">In the 21st century, only Gilbert can claim four of the five. He retired at the end of 2022 with the dream of a final win, in Milano-Sanremo, having slipped away, but coming up from behind are those two, Pogs and van der Poel, with three each. It won’t be easy for them to bump up those numbers, however. Van der Poel has only one attempt at Liège-Bastogne-Liège and Lombardia, each in oddball 2020, but those two lovely top-ten finishes mask what is a not-great fit for his riding style, and in an increasingly crowded field that is tough to envision. Pogačar, meanwhile, just tried for MSR and didn’t miss by much (Paris-Roubaix is more of a later-in-life goal for Pogs, he says), but he won’t be mollified by that when you consider the many great cyclists who couldn’t crack that slippery nut — Hinault, Boonen, Museeuw, Bartoli, etc.</p>
<p id="Noyzz1">Sadly, we live in a time where fans under a certain age will not have even heard of, let alone be able to pronounce, at least two of the three names on the All-Five list. So in the spirit of generosity, at least to younger fans, can we agree that a good way to plug a hole in your Monuments resume is with a rainbow jersey? If so, then then we can update the list a bit. Hinault got one, putting him at four major chips (plus, you know, his other stuff). Boonen and Museeuw both added one to their piles, which were otherwise light on breadth. Most significantly, Gilbert got his Rainbows, giving him five of the six. Van der Poel is of course the current World Champion, bumping him up to four of the six. That’s elite company. Oh, and the Holy Trinity of Belgians discussed above all won a World Title.</p>
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<img alt="Cycling: 101st Tour of Flanders 2017 / Men" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/adjD0J2A-QPHE7HNKrtMin4IARU=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25358915/663808316.jpg">
<cite>Photo by Tim de Waele/Corbis via Getty Images</cite>
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<p id="T0eicK">Expanding out to include the next level of top classics gets maybe a bit too convoluted for this post, though you can start by assuming that Merckx holds all the records, taking everything but E3 and Strade Bianche, the latter because it didn’t exist and the former eluding him inexplicably, including the time he lost a two-up sprint to Hubert Hutsebaut. Cycling is weird. Anyway, Gilbert again rockets up the charts with his two more Ardennes chips, San Sebastian, Paris-Tours, even Strade Bianche — ten of the fourteen greatest Classics races on Earth. This is absolutely the modern standard, well beyond even Boonen and Fabian Cancellara, his contemporaries in marauding campaigns.</p>
<p id="uc7c4m">[I haven’t forgotten the Olympics road race. It just doesn’t happen often and hasn’t been won by anyone worth talking about here. But maybe after Paris this changes.]</p>
<p id="bJJuws">Other names to include in this discussion: Jan Raas (three monuments, worlds, multiple E3 and Amstel wins); Francesco Moser (3x P-R, 2x Lombardia, MSR, Worlds, Paris-Tours, F-W, G-W); Sean Kelly (4/5 monuments and thrice second at Flanders, his only omission; scores of other wins)... Maertens, Kuiper... there are too many to name.</p>
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<img alt="2012 Gent - Wevelgem Cycle Race" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/due3fXKbh2R9AwLmM3PPe3duVnQ=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25358917/141874684.jpg">
<cite>Photo by Bryn Lennon/Getty Images</cite>
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<h3 id="iZDRu0"><strong>Career Results Plan B: Set Some Records</strong></h3>
<p id="cfsJcB">If your career marks can’t check all the boxes, the next best way to make yourself an all-timer is to hammer the ones within your reach at record levels. Let’s call this the Boonellara Strategy. Who holds the record for Paris-Roubaix wins? Tom Boonen and Roger De Vlaeminck (4 each), one ahead of Fabian Cancellara. Ronde van Vlaanderen? Several riders at 3, including Tom Boonen and Fabian Cancellara. E3? Boonen with five. Gent-Wevelgem? Boonen et al, with three. Strade? Cancellara with three. If you want, you can add Alejandro Valverde in here, with his record five wins at Flèche Wallonne. Valverde has four wins at LBL, second to Merckx, and a rainbow jersey, but no other Monuments, so his case looks a lot like Boonen’s. </p>
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<img alt="Tour of Flanders" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/YTaocMg9fk0wKgTcT8kvtHv3GsE=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25358921/165121491.jpg">
<cite>Photo by Bryn Lennon/Getty Images</cite>
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<h3 id="rWWsWg"><strong>Let’s Go Crazy: One-Year Deluge</strong></h3>
<p id="plNQck">This is probably my favorite measuring stick of classics greatness, guys just going on crazy heaters and winning everything in sight. A few notable examples:</p>
<p id="sJWwEZ"><strong>1962:</strong> Rik Van Looy is the first rider to sweep the trio of Gent-Wevelgem, Flanders and Roubaix. This was before the 8-day Holy Week format, taking place on three consecutive weekends instead. No rider ever pulled off the complete Holy Week treble.</p>
<p id="ATwNao"><strong>1969:</strong> Merckx goes on the first of several incredible spring classics streaks winning the three early monuments of MSR, Flanders and LBL, though Walter Godefroot gave him a two-minute drubbing in Paris-Roubaix.</p>
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<img alt="CYCLISME-TOUR DE FRANCE-1975" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/bUIkd3AgA8mFQxP9BMzm8Fy-A14=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25358910/1177874212.jpg">
<cite>Photo by -/AFP via Getty Images</cite>
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<p id="gOZn6k"><strong>1972: </strong>After two years of mixed results (for him), Merckx goes on another streak claiming MSR, Brabantse Pijl, Scheldeprijs, Flèche Wallonne and LBL.</p>
<p id="1wJi1E"><strong>1973:</strong> Determined to top Merckx, Merckx rattles off Het Volk, Gent-Wevelgem, Paris-Roubaix, Amstel Gold and LBL again.</p>
<p id="DcKP1T"><strong>1975:</strong> Take a wild guess at who won three of the four spring monuments and Amstel, while only missing out in Paris-Roubaix in a sprint?</p>
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<img alt="Cycling: Tour Lombardia 2009" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/34m03qd498uKtJoepmZksRT039k=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25358908/990794006.jpg">
<cite>Photo by Tim De Waele/Getty Images</cite>
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<p id="sd7OxZ"><strong>2009:</strong> Finally someone else to talk about. This was the first great Gilbert run, in fall, where in ten days he won Coppa Sabatini, Gran Piemonte, Paris-Tours and Lombardia. I believe, without checking, that his P-T/Lombardia double was unprecedented — surely I wrote multiple posts to this effect at the time — because Paris-Tours is notably a sprinter-friendly race, even more so then than now, and Lombardia could not have been more different. The number of riders even starting both of those races is probably in the teens. [Gilbert brought a couple lieutenants; a few Italians went to both...]</p>
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<img alt="Boonen vs Cancellara. 2010 RvV Kapelmuur" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/_hbpSBcoWs4J5IfKReSiCfRWPfU=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/14270435/4494779852_0a8b761fef_z.0.1363421257.jpg">
<cite>ef2204 PdC Photogroup</cite>
<figcaption>Boonen vs Cancellara. 2010 RvV Kapelmuur</figcaption>
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<p id="bYJl4M"><strong>2010:</strong> Cancellara levels up from a P-R winner with no luck in Belgium to a guy with supporters clubs breaking out all over Flanders, after taking <em>the</em> trio of E3, Flanders and Roubaix, each time off Belgium’s reigning king Boonen. Coming into 2010, he’d been a bit of an enigma, the strongest solo rider in the world with all the time trial records to show for it, plus a very cool MSR win and his breakthrough at P-R in 2006. Statistically his 2010 streak wasn’t long, but if you believe that the quality of a win is measured by who finishes second, then his run in Flanders/Roubaix was one of the greatest performances in modern times. Oh, and that year E3 and G-W were on consecutive days, and he made only a token shake-out-the-legs appearance in the latter after a <em>pletwals</em>-rolling win in E3. All of this happened in front of my face, including me almost getting run over by him when the G-W peloton left the station prematurely without him, so my feelings about this are not especially neutral.</p>
<p id="itXHpG"><strong>2011:</strong> Gilbert, again, goes on his all-time hot streak, starting in Belgium at Brabantse Pijl, before becoming the second rider ever to sweep the three Ardennes races (Amstel, FW. LBL) — another four-wins-in-ten-days trick. Oh, and the other rider to sweep the Ardennes was Davide Rebellin, soon to be recognized as a notorious doper, so either Gilbert joins slimy company or wrests a glorious record from the late Italian’s dirty fingers.</p>
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<img alt="2012 Paris - Roubaix Cycle Race" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/qjINcoC3CVgacdDmWU8QnRQzKoU=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25358909/142583118.jpg">
<cite>Photo by Bryn Lennon/Getty Images</cite>
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<p id="InMOpm"><strong>2012:</strong> After watching Cancellara take the mantle of top cobbles rider for a couple years, including the decisive head-to-head battle in 2010 Flanders, Boonen battles back and sweeps the four major cobbled classics (excluding Dwars, which he skipped) over three weekends. [Note, again, the Holy Week Trinity was no longer an option.] Note, Cancellara crashed out in Flanders, though Boonen earned two wins over his rival directly. He also one-upped Cancellara’s famous 50km escape from 2010 by taking off with 56km to go for his Hell of the North win. Also, each of these wins tied or set the career marks for most wins. Boonen never won a major cobbled classic again.</p>
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<img alt="Cycling: 115th Paris - Roubaix 2017" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/CDXOeV0K0ATmwCG8w8Yb37Jxnzc=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25358903/666555316.jpg">
<cite>Photo by LC/Tim De Waele/Corbis via Getty Images</cite>
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<p id="9yC9Wi"><strong>2017:</strong> The ever so slightly overlooked Greg Van Avermaet Golden Rampage! Van Avermaet’s early career was spent riding in Gilbert’s shadow, and included a lot of impressive almost-wins, but he turned the tide with his Olympic gold medal in Brazil in 2016. The following winter/spring he won the Omloop, took second in Strade Bianche, then matched Boonen’s E3-Gent-Wevelgem weekend double. From there he took second in Flanders, interrupting a perfect run, which he then capped off by winning Paris-Roubaix. Except for the Omloop, which he’d won already the previous year, these were his first and last victories in each of the cobbled classics. On, and the guy who took Flanders off his plate? Philippe Gilbert. Van Avermaet settled for second, but only after his pursuit got derailed when Peter Sagan’s bars tangled with a spectator’s coat. Gilbert had taken off from like 75km out, on a flier. That’s how close Gouden Greg came from history... one fucking coat away.</p>
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<img alt="120th Paris-Roubaix 2023 - Men’s Elite" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/SxZTBxpDAvCJLEtLIMpQMWoOsis=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25358902/1481026295.jpg">
<cite>Photo by Alex Broadway/Getty Images</cite>
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<h3 id="ljnuNR"><strong>Who Can Join The All Time Ranks?</strong></h3>
<p id="MZaSII">If this is how you become great, who among the current generation looks like they can join the conversation? The candidates are obvious so let’s jump right in.</p>
<p id="Dn8wpb"><strong>1. Mathieu van der Poel</strong></p>
<p id="5apywv">The Dutch star has few limitations, and unlike anyone else here, you can see him achieving breadth, win totals, and even a legendary one-season run. He has three Monuments to his name already plus a world title, and is looking at an Olympics road race that suits him pretty well. He’s winning lesser cobbled classics, took a Strade Bianche in 2021, and we will all collectively never forget his lone Ardennes win, the 2019 Amstel drama, which he won right after a breakthrough rookie-year victory in Brabantse Pijl. He’s a heavy favorite to tie the career record at Flanders this weekend, and probably break it before long, though Boonen’s other career marks look safe for now.</p>
<p id="y7q44s">The single knock on him is that he is highly unlikely to ever challenge for Liege or Lombardia, both of which he rode in 2010, taking sixth and tenth. Lombardia seems fundamentally out of reach for him, and I will guess that he never turns uo there again. Liège, less so? But his sixth happened in the weirdness of 2020, and before he was the singular figure he is now. If he tried for that again, he would be well marked and have very little hope, but I wouldn’t completely dismiss the idea.</p>
<p id="5xEuwk">I don’t know if I would predict a huge heater for him, though. This year could have been one, with him being near the front at MSR and a bike length away from doubling E3 and G-W, but he seems to enjoy sharing the spoils in his team more than Boonen or Cancellara or Gilbert ever did. </p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="107th Ronde van Vlaanderen - Tour des Flandres 2023 - Men’s Elite" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/LKRbgTI4_iYZXpYe637dhrnmmt0=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25358900/1479151116.jpg">
<cite>Photo by Luca Bettini - Pool/Getty Images</cite>
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<p id="EumMQh"><strong>2. Tadej Pogačar</strong></p>
<p id="EaKAqB">The Venn Diagram with van der Poel might make you see their careers in very different lights, but in terms of their classics greatness cases, they have a lot of similarities. Pogačar, of course, has different skills, and already has LBL and Lombardia (x3) in his pocket, along with his glorious Flanders win last year. He also has the other Ardennes covered, and almost made the treble last year, had he not crashed out of LBL. Tack on two Strade and a few other smaller races and you have a nicely broadening resume. Trying new things is his hallmark.</p>
<p id="K4Vm0J">For career records, Lombardia is in his sights, as he’s now two away from Coppi’s record, before turning 26 years old. He is also one off Cancellara’s Strade record, and if he wanted to, he could tear up the rest of the Ardennes records. TBD. He is almost certain to go on a legendary heater one year where he triples up the Ardennes... right? Is that too aggressive a thing to say? Other riders do exist. But when he’s at his best, it doesn’t really feel like they do.</p>
<p id="WA277s">The real questions are two things: will his Tour de France legacy eventually pull him away from chasing classics? Is his thirst for new forms of excitement something he will slake and put aside as he ages, focusing on chasing Yellow? Maybe. Also his two missing Monuments are the trickiest ones for him, with MSR being the enigma — open to all but easy for none — and Paris-Roubaix being a sort of final frontier as far as his classics dalliances are concerned. He says he will ride it someday. Nobody has a better chance to get all five Monuments. But he trails vdP in world titles, and only one of them can win Gold in Paris, at most.</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="ITALY CYCLING MILAN SANREMO RACE" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/hrMYEMC4OV-XipyBDMVeA8B2Av4=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25358898/1227967050.jpg">
<cite>Photo by DIRK WAEM/BELGA MAG/AFP via Getty Images</cite>
</figure>
<p id="tdBwgc"><strong>3. Wout Van Aert</strong></p>
<p id="nxS36A">As I write this, the Belgian superstar is laid up in a hospital with seven cracked ribs and a broken collarbone. He will be fine before too long and be Wout again, I have no doubt. So I feel like his inclusion here is completely fair. We are talking about a guy who has won the Omloop, KBK, Strade, Milano-Sanremo, E3, Gent-Wevelgem and Amstel. Everyone who watches these races can envision him winning both Flanders and Roubaix, having already run second in both, and he was probably going to be favored in the latter had he not turned up at stupid Dwars today. </p>
<p id="xjMw06">At age 29, with van der Poel forever in his way, we can probably forget about him breaking any of Boonen’s or Merckx’s records. He could best his rival by bagging LBL, where he’s taken third and where the climbs are more to his liking, though Lombardia is probably out of reach (emphasis on <em>probably</em>). With Wout, you never say never. Worlds and Olympics, same thing. He probably breaks through at some point.</p>
<p id="YSBCam">Most credible is him achieving greatness through a Gilbertesque hot streak. If van der Poel ever had some issue in spring, as almost every classics star does eventually, it could open the door to Wout ripping off multiple major wins in a short time. At the moment, his team is so strong that he is wont to share the spoils, but a streak where he takes second in one of the big races because he let his teammate go around for the win is plausible. Van Aert is certainly due some better luck. The talent and drive are very certainly there.</p>
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<img alt="109th Liege - Bastogne - Liege 2023 - Men’s Elite" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/J6cMmAvNU17a-aGrWa0nJTor1OA=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25358892/1484531288.jpg">
<cite>Photo by Bernard Papon - Pool/Getty Images</cite>
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<p id="rGB5Sp"><strong>4. Remco Evenepoel</strong></p>
<p id="RQuH0j">OK, now I am getting into rampant speculation... but the kid is 24 and has two monuments checked off, Lombardia and a pair of LBLs, along with a rainbow jersey and a pair of San Sebastian wins. Evenepoel is not a cobbles guy at the moment, though being Belgian he dabbled in them in juniors, winning KBK once. What if his grand tour dreams get put firmly on the shelf, with both older and younger riders coming past him in that category? Does he branch out more in the classics? TBD. If nothing else, he could claim the all-time LBL record, with a decade-plus to match or surpass Merckx (5).</p>
<p id="CqW6nR"><strong>5. Anyone Else?</strong></p>
<p id="GwOif9">Obviously it’s way too early to say much about riders who are just coming into their own. But I am all ears.</p>
<p id="qjU0pH"><strong>6. How About the Women?</strong></p>
<p id="6vGHYx">Because Women’s Cycling has a much shorter history, with many of the top classics just coming into existence, and far fewer athletes historically, I will just point out a few standards that have been set, and invite you to guess which of the current stars might match them.</p>
<ul>
<li id="yraW37">Anna van der Breggen is the all time leader in breadth of wins, with a sweep of the Ardennes, Flanders, Plouay, Strade Bianche, an Olympic gold and two world championships. She is only missing Drenthe, Binda, Gent-Wevelgem, and the newly-created Paris-Roubaix.</li>
<li id="597Ov0">Marianne Vos is, of course, the other rider to note here, having just notched win #250, and hands-down the greatest woman cyclist in history. She surpasses even van der Breggen in total classics wins, with wins stacked upon wins at almost every event. But she has only one monument to her name, so far, a Flanders win in 2013, so this spring she can put herself clearly above the retired van der Breggen with a breakthrough in Liege and/or Roubaix.</li>
</ul>
https://www.podiumcafe.com/2024/3/27/24113137/classics-greatness-whose-records-are-in-playChris Fontecchio2024-03-27T14:36:22-04:002024-03-27T14:36:22-04:00Van Aert, Stuyven Suffer Fractures, Ruled Out of Ronde van Vlaanderen
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<img alt="67th E3 Saxo Bank Classic - Harelbeke 2024" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/lFMDMFCIMkz1HKUWDLvkTToZ0kc=/4x0:5202x3465/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73236912/2104635786.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Tim de Waele/Getty Images</figcaption>
</figure>
<p id="Dwy66q">Visma Lease-a-Bike star Wout Van Aert suffered multiple rib and collarbone fractures in a crash today at Dwars door Vlaanderen and will not ride the remaining spring classics, according to media reports from Belgium today.</p>
<p id="ByZbET">This has now been confirmed by his team:</p>
<div id="JEcHMV">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Update Wout van Aert: <br><br>Unfortunately, Wout van Aert suffered several fractures in the crash at Dwars door Vlaanderen today. <br><br>A broken collarbone and several broken ribs were diagnosed in hospital. It is unclear how long his recovery will take. He will definitely miss the Tour…</p>— Team Visma | Lease a Bike (@vismaleaseabike) <a href="https://twitter.com/vismaleaseabike/status/1773032348382081106?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 27, 2024</a>
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<p id="YylUxR">Lidl-Trek’s Jasper Stuyven, a key lieutenant and dark horse contender in both Flanders and Paris-Roubaix, is also expected to miss the cobbled classics from this point on with a broken collarbone from the same crash. His team has not confirmed this yet.</p>
<p id="6cUJai">For Lidl-Trek’s leader Mads Pedersen, the news is more cautiously optimistic.</p>
<div id="qw5378">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Danish media say that Lidl Trek are hopeful that Mads Pedersen might ride Flanders and Roubaix. He rode back to the bus himself and passed the initial concussion check. <a href="https://t.co/7MuO4UZHER">https://t.co/7MuO4UZHER</a></p>— Katie (@medicinexthings) <a href="https://twitter.com/medicinexthings/status/1773040481745707017?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 27, 2024</a>
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<p id="6RwcYS">Finally, Intermarche star Biniam Girmay is also expected to soldier on after going down in the same crash.</p>
<p id="xRakkw">Further details to come.</p>
<p id="781IdI">For Van Aert and his Belgian home fans, it’s a third consecutive disappointment on home soil, as he was held out of the 2022 Ronde with Covid, and seemed to peak too early last year after winning the E3 Saxo Bank Classic and sharing the victory at Gent-Wevelgem with teammate Christophe LaPorte, reducing his fitness just enough to see him miss the winning move at Flanders. Laporte is also out for Flanders, leaving the team short its two top options, though Matteo Jorgenson took the honors at Dwars today with Tiesj Benoot helping, and former Paris-Roubaix winner Dylan van Baarle waiting in the wings, so they are far from hopeless.</p>
<p id="sjQ2sO">Lidl-Trek have to hope Pedersen is 100% or close to it Sunday, though. No Stuyven means the former World Champ is their only rider capable of a win, in all likelihood, though if he can go he will have excellent support from Jonathan Milan and Tom De Clerq.</p>
<p id="2qAne4">Mathieu van der Poel will be a heavy favorite for a third win, though he will see an increased burden as a result of the crashes and the removal of other potential winners.</p>
<p id="X6v30c"></p>
https://www.podiumcafe.com/2024/3/27/24113782/van-aert-stuyven-suffer-fractures-ruled-out-of-ronde-van-vlaanderenChris Fontecchio2024-03-27T07:15:00-04:002024-03-27T07:15:00-04:00Dwars door Vlaanderen: Jorgenson Escapes to First US Win
<figure>
<img alt="78th Dwars Door Vlaanderen 2024 - Men’s Elite" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/lnajfLfWkDgzIFv6GXMEx740Kb4=/0x0:2799x1866/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73235764/2117479414.5.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Tomas Sisk - Pool/Getty Images</figcaption>
</figure>
<p id="HjALSU">Visma-Lease-A-Bike’s Matteo Jorgenson escaped from the lead group to cap off a brilliant afternoon of tactics with teammate Tiesj Benoot to go clear inside the final 7km and win Dwars door Vlaanderen. Jorgenson’s strong riding, on display last weekend at E3 Prijs too, confirmed the team’s choice to bring him over from Movistar in the offseason to add depth to its cobbles squad. And they will need it, with Christophe LaPorte already on the shelf and captain Wout van Aert having crashed out of today’s race.</p>
<p id="ha5k54">That was the big story, as a violent wreck took down Van Aert, Gent-Wevelgem winner Mads Pedersen of Lidl-Trek, Biniam Girmay of Intermarché, and Pedersen’s teammate Jasper Stuyven. Stuyven is said to be injured and out for the weekend, while the other three departed the race in rough shape but perhaps not out of the question for Sunday’s Ronde van Vlaanderen. Pedersen remounted his bike before stopping, a sign of some hope perhaps.</p>
<p id="bV8ABr">A US win is no small thing. George Hincapie is recognized as the winner of Gent-Wevelgem, although he later confessed to doping at some point and had his other records scrubbed. Tyler Farrar won the Scheldeprijs, a lesser event but an important palmare for the former sprinter. More recently Nielson Powless won the Clásica San Sebastián last year. The major prizes are still out there (with Tyler Hamilton’s LBL win scrubbed), but a new generation will put USA Cycling in the conversation at least.</p>
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</figure>
<p id="Il7ifW"><strong>Roeselaere - Waregem 188.6 km / Waregem - Waregem 122.9 km</strong></p>
<p id="F29Lu7">It’s Dwars Day, once the greatest of all days, now a sad reminder that even what is most beautiful can be torn asunder by forces of non-cobbleism. But it’s still an ok race even I have to admit.</p>
<p id="vIQBHO"><em>Expected finish times: Men 16:40 CET / Women 17:55 CET</em></p>
<p id="WlghUh"><strong>Traversers of the Day: Alberto Bettiol & Demi Vollering</strong></p>
<p id="nQSecB">I’m just throwing darts at this board. All these people , except maybe some dazed and confused quicksteppers, are all mainly focused on Sunday. It’s hard to predict who is going to fall ass-backward into a win here. So here’s one wild outsider and one almost half certain bet (even if Vollering has been awful anonymous so far)</p>
<p id="QMur38"><a href="https://www.ddvl.eu/en"><strong>Official Site</strong></a><strong> , </strong><a href="https://firstcycling.com/race.php?r=75&y=2024&k=8"><strong>Startlist Men</strong></a><strong> , </strong><a href="https://firstcycling.com/race.php?r=9309&y=2024&k=8"><strong>Startlist Women</strong></a></p>
<p id="gPknt7"></p>
https://www.podiumcafe.com/2024/3/27/24112769/dwars-door-vlaanderen-liveJens2024-03-24T05:40:00-04:002024-03-24T05:40:00-04:00Gent-Wevelgem LIVE
<figure>
<img alt="22nd Bredene Koksijde Classic 2024" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/i-2U6vDCr7OAKIWOSRIB1EALqL0=/3x0:4242x2826/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73229055/2086358097.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Luc Claessen/Getty Images</figcaption>
</figure>
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<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/djehPEI4agD2uM_h3n-Et97ReNY=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25352207/Gent_Wevelgem_2024_mens_route_846x970.png">
</figure>
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</figure>
<p id="HjALSU"><strong>Ieper - Wevelgem 253.1 km / 171.2 km</strong></p>
<p id="F29Lu7">A long hard Sunday in West Flanders. Kemmelbergs, plugstreets and perhaps/hopefully unhelpful winds can make for a couple of great races.</p>
<p id="vIQBHO"><em>Expected finish times: Men 16:35 CET / Women 17:45 CET</em></p>
<p id="WlghUh"><strong>George Hincapies of the Day: Jasper Philipsen & Lorena Wiebes</strong></p>
<p id="nQSecB">The men’s startlist looks more sprinter heavy than ever and it’s impossible to look past Jasper at this point. In the women’s race it might be time for Wiebes to put it all together in GW for the first time.</p>
<p id="QMur38"><a href="https://www.gent-wevelgem.be/nl"><strong>Official Site</strong></a><strong> , </strong><a href="https://firstcycling.com/race.php?r=7&y=2024&k=8"><strong>Startlist Men</strong></a><strong> , </strong><a href="https://firstcycling.com/race.php?r=9048&y=2024&k=8"><strong>Startlist Women</strong></a></p>
<p id="7WyGx0"></p>
https://www.podiumcafe.com/2024/3/24/24110284/gent-wevelgem-liveJens2024-03-22T06:45:00-04:002024-03-22T06:45:00-04:00E3 Saxo Classic: van der Poel Slowly Takes Over
<figure>
<img alt="67th E3 Saxo Bank Classic - Harelbeke 2024" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/0ZhuMUW4qFHPttjs1nWKXzZMh4k=/0x0:5894x3929/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73225211/2104334574.5.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Tim de Waele/Getty Images</figcaption>
</figure>
<p id="exPg9N">It took several tries, and a lot of watts, but eventually World Champion Mathieu van der Poel asserted his dominance in the cobbled classics over the field to win the E3 Saxo Bank Classic for the first time. With two podium places on his palmares, just like his dad Adrie, the Dutch star set out to put the family name on the roll of honor in Harelbeke, Belgium, and he eventually succeeded after several attacks in the final block of climbs, getting free for good over the Paterberg and staying away, tenuously at first before winning by close to two minutes.</p>
<p id="9qhN1n">With Visma-Lease-a-Bike and Lidl-Trek staffing the main chase group (behind a leading break that would melt away before long), the race heated up over the Boigneberg and Stationsberg, as Oier Lazkano and Mads Pedersen kept close track of van der Poel’s accelerations, with Visma’s Wout Van Aert always right on the Alpecin man’s heels too. But no shattering of the group would stick until the Paterberg, where van der Poel hit the gas dramatically, and where van Aert slid out on the road’s edge while in pursuit. That left van der Poel alone with a gap. Van Aert recovered, and then with teammate Matteo Jorgenson keeping the group in control over the Oude Kwaremont, the Belgian former winner got clear and went off in pursuit of the rainbow jersey, his eternal rival.</p>
<p id="PMTTij">From nearly thirty seconds, the gap shrunk to around ten until the race reached the E3 Col, known most of the year as Karnemelkbeekstraat, straddling Belgium’s linguistic border, where van der Poel increased his effort and at last Van Aert could not respond. It was all over but the shouting at that point, with groups straggling home for the remaining places. Jasper Stuyven caught the sagging Van Aert and took second place.</p>
<p id="LQQMkz"></p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="CYCLING-BEL-CLASSICS" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/aEMC8gln9HrmeyuxfPkIPfTkw10=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25349916/2097693690.jpg">
<cite>Photo by DIRK WAEM/Belga/AFP via Getty Images</cite>
</figure>
<p id="z2XjPY"></p>
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</figure>
<p id="kKxIlP"><strong>Harelbeke - Harelbeke 207.6 km</strong></p>
<p id="F29Lu7">The ultimate semi-classic, the happy-funtime version or De Ronde, the often best race day of the year. Just a great way to kick off the weekend.</p>
<p id="vIQBHO"><em>Expected finish time: 16:15-16:55 CET</em></p>
<p id="WlghUh"><strong>Harelbekian of the Day: Tim Wellens</strong></p>
<p id="nQSecB">At some point he’s bound to win something big and this could be it. The form is good, Visma are sneaking around worrying about blowing their load before the monuments, Mathieu isn’t completely sharp. The door is ever so slightly ajar for nearly there guys like Wellens.</p>
<p id="QMur38"><a href="https://www.e3saxoclassic.be"><strong>Official Site</strong></a><strong> , </strong><a href="https://firstcycling.com/race.php?r=47&y=2024&k=8"><strong>Startlist</strong></a></p>
<p id="eHV1Ml"></p>
https://www.podiumcafe.com/2024/3/22/24108512/e3-saxo-classic-liveJens2024-03-22T04:30:03-04:002024-03-22T04:30:03-04:00Volta a Catalunya LIVE
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<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/xFItEhOyIME6s9aYP3xquQekWxw=/0x24:556x395/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73225095/volta_catalunya_libro_de_ruta_2024_volta_press.0.jpg" />
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<p id="6BCHts"><strong>Stage 5</strong></p>
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<p id="iLx4KK"><strong>Stage 6</strong></p>
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<p id="O9ln7m"><strong>Stage 7</strong></p>
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</figure>
<p id="H0HyFQ"><a href="https://www.voltacatalunya.cat/en"><strong>Official Site</strong></a><strong> , </strong><a href="https://firstcycling.com/race.php?r=14&y=2024&k=8"><strong>Startlist</strong></a></p>
<p id="XwEtOu"><a href="https://www.podiumcafe.com/2024/3/18/24104631/volta-a-catalunya-live"><strong>First 4 stages</strong></a></p>
https://www.podiumcafe.com/2024/3/22/24108465/volta-a-catalunya-liveJens2024-03-20T10:45:07-04:002024-03-20T10:45:07-04:00The Paterberg Is Fine! And More Notes From the Fenced-Off Gutters of Flanders
<figure>
<img alt="107th Ronde van Vlaanderen - Tour des Flandres 2023 - Men’s Elite" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/W9b0pZi60S8ymRhXDSnmI8PM7sc=/0x4:4445x2967/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73220415/1479106040.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Tim de Waele/Getty Images</figcaption>
</figure>
<p id="Ij95ML">Welcome to Cobbles Season! This is my 18th year of saying this, and probably a good ten years since anyone needed reminding. We all know what’s about to go down. The next several weeks will see a widening war for supremacy across the cobbles of Belgium, France and the Netherlands (mostly Belgium). People will be talking a lot about beer, frites, wheel choices, sportives, and just the passion that makes this time of year so incredible.</p>
<p id="5rE7L2">In the almost two decades of the Podium Cafe, the Cobbled Classics have evolved into a truly international affair — I’m sure I’ve said this several times before, but the trend continues. The teams from across the Cycling landscape keep getting deeper, the athletes keep pushing the envelope, and the sponsor interest grows alongside it all. If you want to point to a downside, you could say that the Belgian presence has been diluted a bit as of late, but not that much, unless you want to go back a few decades to when the home country dominated and the rest of the world just sort of raised half an eyebrow. Now riders from all over are bred in Belgium to love these races, in the junior academies that take advantage of the affordability and the constant races happening to work their kids into shape. Belgium, a small country, might eventually lose its hold on its own races... but yeah, no, probably not.</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="106th Ronde van Vlaanderen - Tour des Flandres 2022 - Men’s Elite" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/xjRE5N_zpl9ClDjWgLTinmmJqpA=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25345932/1389310436.jpg">
<cite>Photo by Tim de Waele/Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>Up the Oude Kruisberg, Ronse</figcaption>
</figure>
<p id="gabocP">I do think the first big American victory is drawing near. Yes, Tyler Farrar won the Scheldeprijs, and George Hincapie is considered a former winner of Gent-Wevelgem — back when the race went from Gent to Wevelgem — in spite of his subsequent doping case. So we aren’t literally starting from zero. And I don’t think an American is going to top all that and win de Ronde this year. But it’s been a long time since riders of the caliber we see in EF’s Neilson Powless or Visma’s Matteo Jorgenson were present and challenging for glory on the Cobbles. I do expect results over the next few seasons. And I’m not putting any particular limits on what those results could be.</p>
<p id="pYALaU">Early indications are that we will have true spring conditions for the foreseeable future in the region, meaning cooler temperatures, winds playing a role, and even some rain to help paint a real Classics picture. </p>
<p id="xnfwiz"><strong>Disaster Averted</strong></p>
<p id="rpZtSn">Earlier this winter there was talk of the Paterberg being on the verge of elimination from the races, not just De Ronde but as soon as this Friday’s E3 Saxo Bank Classic. The issue was a corner in the road approaching the climb — and I use the word road somewhat loosely. It’s in the corner of Kalkovenstraat, shown on the map below, just “Wandelknooppunt 40”:</p>
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</figure>
<p id="3uheKy">For a more graphic image, that would be just beyond the short descent where Sep Vanmarcke got his tire stuck in a groove between the little concrete plates that make up this farm path, costing him his best chance at a Flanders win in 2017. You can see the Paterberg at the top of the screen. The Oude Kwaremont is to the left, and they swing around in a U-shaped course to get from A to B. </p>
<p id="G0WYb3">This winter, the steep bank alongside the turn where the various pathways meet had eroded and the road began to fall into the ravine. Not great for a World Tour race. But that fact alone undoubtedly shot it up the project priority list. <a href="https://sporza.be/nl/2024/03/08/burgemeester-stelt-wielerfans-gerust-paterberg-zit-zeker-in-de-e3-en-de-ronde~1709915016757/">In this story</a> you can see clearly the road (looking in the opposite direction that the cyclists travel) undergoing major work, just two weeks ago. [And definitely click on the story about how cyclists need to stay the fuck out of the work area! Very relatable.] It’s involved a pretty major bank stabilization effort, but supposedly the work was done with... about the urgency you would expect from a bunch of Flemish people, and the new concrete was to have been laid down by yesterday. It’s a short stretch that the riders will hit at some 40kph maybe, and you won’t notice it if you aren’t intent on spotting the former work site.</p>
<p id="rUw21x">Without this quick action, I’m fairly positive the Paterberg would have been out of De Ronde and E3. You could swing around to the north of the climb, but it would require swinging off the Oude Kwaremont in Kwaremont, halfway up the climb, and there are way too many VIPs around for that to happen. I kind of liked the idea (of mine, so yeah) where they do the Oude Kwaremont, then turn right and come back to Kwaremont, cutting across the course to head over to the Paterberg. But of course I don’t ride in giant pelotons very often and am probably failing to appreciate the logistics involved.</p>
<p id="BMRuaG">Oh, and for you cyclotourists, you should probably know about the Rampe. If you did cut back across the course in Kwaremont, on Keuzelingsstraat, you could take that to Watermolenstraat and cut across to rejoin the march to the Paterberg. But not before hitting the Rampe.</p>
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<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/IDDjcH1TkDXhkCHwuEhMdquoE4o=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25345895/Screenshot_2024_03_20_at_7.08.55_AM.png">
<figcaption>Rampe</figcaption>
</figure>
<p id="bSeWzA">Apologies for yet another terrible screenshot, but OMIGOD! This area has more cobbles than it knows what to do with, and these are some old school ones! The chances of me riding this next time I am in the Greater Ronse Metropolitan Area start at 100% and go up from there.</p>
<p id="hkszN8">As you can see from this terrible blog post, my mind is just slowly wandering around the Vlaamse Ardennen waiting for things to happen. There is less and less news to report each year, apart from startlists and speculations. The stories of what makes these races so special, and this area such a wonderful visit for outsiders, has been told many times. The riders themselves, the foreign ones, have now grown up on the legends to the point where practically everyone taking the start has drank the elixir and is ready to call the next six hours in the saddle the highlight of their racing careers. </p>
<p id="h2GZ5N">That’s a slight exaggeration, but you get my point. Which is that the last eleven months are finally over and we can clear the decks and get ready for some Cobbled action. Chop the frites! Stock up on heavy ales! Go ride whatever cobbles you can find close to where you live (and if it’s Seattle, I can send you a route with like 30 sectors) to fully put yourself in the mood. Pull out all the stops. This is pure cycling greatness, and the next chapter is always the best one.</p>
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<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/iLT9-0q8GuREt79dpou3_95fLVo=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25345922/338013337_609683321048038_7715966353370986786_n.jpg">
<figcaption>Seattle Cobbles, with our own Oudenberg Chapel</figcaption>
</figure>
<p id="vtdPvH">[Annual note: I did once write a book about this stuff, which <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Love-Cobbles-Chris-Fontecchio/dp/1365018342/ref=sr_1_1?crid=233BQL3A2H81V&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.T_Y8Iqx0n0jEQ7gJ7Zfthw.7izGHqy52wjZ0X7bjObTL4sRIPWjgP53FI4mwOBHuzs&dib_tag=se&keywords=fontecchio+cobbles&qid=1710945780&sprefix=fontecchio+cobbles%2Caps%2C124&sr=8-1&tag=sbnation-20" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">you can find on Amazon</a> at a shockingly high price. If you’re ever in North Seattle, come on by, I’ll give you a copy.]</p>
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https://www.podiumcafe.com/2024/3/20/24106546/the-paterberg-is-fine-and-more-notes-from-the-fenced-off-gutters-of-flandersChris Fontecchio