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RonnieOatmilk
jamesl
Thought I should update after our visit earlier this month.
We had a great few days completing completing the Flandrien Challenge. We followed the recommended routes although we stayed outside Oudenaarde, so we joined some of them in the middle of the route. The 59 Flandrien segments you have to hit have start/finish lines painted on the road and a little box naming the segment, length, average and max gradient - it was a nice touch knowing what climbs you were doing and recognising some of the big names/knowing what you were up against. We did the Ypres section on the way from the Tunnel, and then we stayed at the Flandrien Hotel which had an amazing collection of ex-pro bikes and was designed for cyclists (the owner used to run a cycling team).
Belgian drivers were a dream. I think you are supposed to use the cycle lanes if they exist, but most of the routes are on country lanes and the few cycles lanes we had to use were all much better quality than in the UK.
Its a beautiful and quiet part of the world, but on the slight downside, Belgian cyclists generally ignored you ('they are all too serious thinking they are the next Remco') and there weren't as many village cafes/shops etc open outside of Oudenaarde/Geraardsbergen as we were expecting for lunch/snacks/drinks. We also got turned away from a couple of restaurants in the evening where we didn't have a reservation - apparently we should have planned further ahead, or planned to eat in the bigger towns instead.
Would thoroughly recommend for a few days of good riding - or a single day, if you are as mad as the guy we met on the way round!