Discover everything about cycling IN FLANDERS 1 INTRO “Flanders. Nowhere else is the gap between epic and ordi- fields and ancient villages they crisscross. Bicycles are cutting nary, mortal and hero, dream and reality closer than these edge craftsmanship in Flanders. 5,000 square miles of north Belgium. All of the things that make For hard-core cycling enthusiasts, a trip to Flanders is nothing cycling great reach a crescendo in Flanders. The legendary less than a pilgrimage to the most hallowed grounds in the sport. Flemish riders, called ‘Flandriens’, look more like you and me, Ride on the roads where natives like Eddy Merckx, Johan Museeuw winning with grit and endurance, not exact calculations of watts and Tom Boonen became legends.” * per kilo. The roads are winding, narrow and brutal, broken stones This brochure offers an overview of all you need to know about from a bygone era, vanquished in three- and four-minute bouts Flanders as an all year round cycling destination par excellence. of suffering, not hour-long exercises in balancing on your anaer- Simply flick through the pages and be inspired. obic threshold. The races themselves, such as the Ronde or Gent- Wevelgem are as much a part of the landscape as the farmer’s * As seen in Peloton Magazine 2 3 AMSTERDAM Discover everything about cycling < LONDON IN FLANDERS Brussels > Amsterdam: 1h54 FACTS & FIGURES P. 6 Brussels > London: 1h51 GENERAL P. 8 FLANDRIEN PER REGION WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS BERGS & COBBLES GENT-WEVELGEM CYCLO CROSS EAST-FLANDERS P. 16 BICYCLE INDUSTRY TOUR OF FLANDERS WEST-FLANDERS P. 30 Brussels > Cologne: 1h47 EDDY MERCKX FLEMISH BRABANT COLOGNE AND BRUSSELS P. 42 ANTWERP P. 48 LIMBURG P. 56 Brussels > Paris: 1h22 road race cyclosportive cyclo cross retro track EAST- WEST- FLEMISH ANTWERP LIMBURG museum + experience centre FLANDERS FLANDERS BRABANT AND bike manufacturer BRUSSELS PARIS P. 16 P. 30 P. 42 P. 48 P. 56 4 5 5 FACTS & FIGURES OVER A 100 1,2OO KM OF THEMED CYCLE LOOPS LONG DISTANCE CYCLE ROUTES TOUR OF FLANDERS 2000 ONE OF RACES PER YEAR THE FIVE BIG ‘MONUMENTS’ FIRST RACE OF CYCLING CYCLE NODE NETWORK OF OVER IN UCI WORLDTOUR RACE 12,000 KMS 1913 OF CYCLING ROUTES OVER 500 BICYCLE FRIENDLY ACCOMMODATIONS GLOBAL TV AUDIENCE A GOOD 60% OF HOUSEHOLDS 50 MIO DIRECT OWN TWO BIKES OR MORE 1,000,000 AND A TOTAL OF 40% SPECTATORS OVER 160 MIO OF THE TOURISTS FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD STAYING IN FLEMISH PEOPLE RIDE THE FLEMISH REGIONS 8,500,000 KILOMETRES A DAY CYCLE DURING OR THE EQUIVALENT OF THEIR HOLIDAY 212 TIMES AROUND THE WORLD PEOPLE IN FLANDERS 16,000 PEOPLE USE THEIR BIKE FOR RIDE THE SPORTIVE 500 ACCORDING TO STRAVA, 1/7 OF THEIR DAILY TRIPS THE DAY BEFORE THE RACE JOURNALISTS THE FLEMISH PEOPLE ARE AMONG IN FLANDERS THE FASTEST CYCLISTS IN THE WORLD AND RIDE THE LONGEST DISTANCES 6 7 Rollercoaster Bikes Flanders on Bike means: enjoying a luxurious holiday on www.rcbikes.be [email protected] and off your bike following the route of Rollercoaster Bikes organises guided www.flandersonbike.com the classic Belgian road race ‘The Tour of mountain bike trips in the vicinity of Flanders on Bike offers guided tours with Flanders’, and wandering through East Maarkedal for groups of up to six guests, a focus on the Tour of Flanders and the and West Flanders. After a luxury cycling including clothing and equipment hire. Flemish Ardennes. You’ll cycle the famous holiday with Biking+ you’ll fall head over This is where you leave the beaten track bergs and cobbles, see the nicest small heels (but not over handlebar!) in love and discover the rugged side of the roads, typical restaurants and it’s possible with Flanders and all of Belgium. Flemish Ardennes. to include a brewery visit if you like. They allow you to choose the distance, inten- sity and level of your rides and are able to adapt to changes when necessary. You Baguet Velo Events Guideon can bring your own bike or rent one. +32 486 30 82 01 www.guideonflanders.com [email protected] At Guideon, three experienced guides www.fietsstages-baguet.be offer three guided packages, including Serge Baguet is a former pro racer. His Classic Roads departing from Oudenaarde Biking+ organisation Baguet Velo Events offers through the Flemish Ardennes. This oper- Delirium Est BVBA, Jean-Luc Dewulf exclusive VIP packages for cycling races in ator is mainly focused on international +32 56 35 38 56 Flanders and abroad and also organises tourists. [email protected] custom team building events. www.bikingplus.com Biking Plus grew out of our passion for cycling, culture, architecture, history, beer, Museeuw gastronomy, nature, … in short, for all the Cycling Academy Belgian traditions. Biking Plus Belgium [email protected] www.museeuwcyclingacademy.be The Museeuw Cycling Academy provides guided cycling tours, coaching and advice by the legendary Johan Museeuw, three GENERAL time winner of the Tour of Flanders. The range of options includes a Tour of Flanders package aimed at cycling tour- INCOMING TOUR OPERATORS ists, social clubs and companies. Do you want to really discover Flanders from a local’s Go4Cycling perspective? There are many Flemish tour operators who [email protected] organise tours for both individuals and groups, on the routes www.go4cycling.com vzw Allez Roulez of the classic Flemish road races. They will be only too happy Go4Cycling mainly offers multi-day packages for national and +32 498 67 05 11 to offer you a fully personalised package tour. international tourists. The mix of amateur cyclo tours and VIP [email protected] road race packages is a great combination, giving you the chance www.beike-guide.be Veloflanders to watch the pros, as well as try out the same route yourself. Allez Roulez is a brand-new non-profit as- +32 475 76 61 63 sociation with a passion for the region. [email protected] They offer customised and guided cycling www.veloflanders.com tours following the classic routes of the Veloflanders offers one or several-day packages fully tailored Kortweg Cycling pre-season road races for both national to your wishes with an experienced local guide who can +32 497 48 06 57 and international cycling tourists, both put together the ideal route for you. That way you can race [email protected] individuals and groups. your own Tour of Flanders! This formula is particularly re- www.kortweg.be nowned and recommended by foreign tourists but is of course Kortweg offers cycling trips with professional bicycle transport also available for Belgians. services, support cars and a fixed team of experienced staff who know the Flemish Ardennes like the back of their hand. Guests even have the option of joining a cycling tour with Johan Museeuw himself. 8 9 TOUR OPERATORS WITH A WIDER RANGE THAN CYCLING groups yet, so they don’t have an English Flamme Rouge Flamme Rouge offers customised and website. Still, they have the infrastructure, Dieter D’Haene guided cycling tours. These include a tour Cycling luggage arrives in time. You can rent one There is no cycling offer on the website: experience and knowledge to organise in- +32 485 97 24 28 through the Flemish Ardennes and theme the western front of their road race bicycles if you don’t all programmes are on request. coming cycling holidays and they’re open [email protected] tours on the Tour of Flanders and Gent - Carl Ooghe want to bring your own bike. for requests. [email protected] Wevelgem. +32 475 81 06 08 www.flammerouge.be [email protected] www.cyclingthewesternfront.co.uk Vos Travel Carl Ooghe is a full time tour leader, high- All About Belgium (AAB) +32 51 24 03 40 BIKE TRANSPORT ly specialised in cycling tours, specifically Kathleen Vermeiren, [email protected] in Flanders Fields (+ northern France). General Manager www.vostravel.be/en/cycling SPECIALISED BIKE TRANSPORT one day, both suitable for recreational and ence’ for a couple of days. Mostly clients Most of the tours start in Ypres. Carl works +32 53 80 98 18 VOS Travel has been an independent Bel- sportive cyclists. Cycling support can also cycle a classic route on the day before together with a licensed travel agency for [email protected], gian tour operator for 20 years. They’re spe- Evidently, vans can be rented from the provide guides (like Eric De Clercq, a former the professionals do so. On the next day, hotel bookings, bicycle transport, … He [email protected] cialised in cycling and have increased their major car rental companies (Hertz, Avis, professional cyclist) and hotels (in cooper- they watch the race live (with the camper offers day tours as well as longer pro- www.aab-allaboutbelgium.be incoming activities significantly during the Europcar, …). But there are some attrac- ation with a licensed travel agency). parked at a place where a race passes). grammes. All tours are flexible and can be AAB is an incoming travel agency for last years. VOS Travel cycling holidays are tive alternatives which are adapted to Clients can combine this with more adapted in consultation with the client. the Benelux countries, founded in 1997. suitable for the individual and recreational the needs of cyclists: cycling or sightseeing on a couple of AAB offers hotel accommodation, typical cyclist, as well as for the gourmet. extra days. Programmes are flexible (the meal, guides, entrance tickets for exhibi- Cycling support X-cycling: motorhomes cycling can be challenging or recreation- tions and special events, transfers, local Huttegem 4, 8570 Anzegem Mr. Rik Geers al) and upon demand.