The Hellingen of the Ronde Van Vlaanderen 2008

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The Hellingen of the Ronde Van Vlaanderen 2008 (Shown here is the Muur - Kapelmuur, number 16 of 17 climbs that will be faced in Sunday's race.)(Image credit: Ben Atkins)

Tales from the peloton, April 4, 2008

Between the start line in Brugge and the finish line in Meerbeke lie 264 kilometres of some of the toughest roads of northern Belgium. In addition to this, the race requires that the peloton traverses seventeen of the regions toughest climbs, the hellingen that make bike racing in this area so special. We produced the definitive guide for 2007, but the course changes from year to year. There was no alternative – Cyclingnews' Ben Atkins has once again been out with his bike and his camera to produce an up to date guide for 2008.

On the approach to this first climb, the race route sneaks across the river Schelde and in doing so crosses the border into Wallonia. No passports are required as they're still in Belgium, but they may need phrase books because they speak French in this part of the country. It really should be called the Mont d'Enclus – the Kluisberg's French name – as we're climbing from the Walloon side, but this is the Tour of Flanders and so we don't use that language!

The Kluisberg has been a fairly regular feature in the last few years, but this is the first time it's been climbed from this side. It's usually much later in the race too so it should be treated entirely differently. It's longer up this side, and much less steep; where the other side starts gently and rears up at the top, this side is a much more even gradient. Once over the top, the course crosses the border back into Flanders, descending the way they usually come up.

While it should be less of a shock because it's climb number three instead of number one where it has been for the last few years, this climb can take the uninitiated by surprise. The course is rolling along quite comfortably along a nice, flat, well-surfaced road when it suddenly takes a sharp right turn and is faced with a steep wall of cobbles. First time riders may find themselves almost grinding to a halt as they're stuck in too big a gear, simply because they weren't expecting it. The steepest section is near the middle before it begins to ease off and the cobbles give way to asphalt for the last few metres.

Despite being pretty steep, this is not the race's first exposure to uphill cobbles and there's not too much to trouble anyone here. Legs will be pretty fresh for all but the domestiques who've been doing all the work up to this point. The favourites will want to be near the front, because the climb is narrow and they won't want to be delayed behind any slower riders, but it's unlikely that any of them will show their hand at all this early on.

With a maximum gradient of 11.6%, it's not going to put too many riders in trouble, apart from those who are already getting tired, but the mere fact that it has 1600m of uphill cobbles really makes this one felt. Generally this is the point where one of the stronger teams starts to gently turn the screw by putting a few men on the front and increasing the pace a notch. This is to jettison as many of the weaker riders as possible, but also to get their man into a good position for the next climb where things start to get serious.

This one is a real monster. The riders turn a sharp right-hander at the bottom and it just rears up in front of them. With a maximum gradient of over 20 percent it gets steeper and steeper and doesn't seem to let up until the top – and it's cobbled all the way up. The one saving grace is that it's mercifully short, and also, due to it's exposed position it dries pretty quickly, so if it's showery then it doesn't stay too slippery for long.

With 76 kilometres still to go, it's still a bit early for a race-winning move to get clear, but its ferocity is usually too much for some to resist. There may well be a dig from one of the favourites – probably the one whose team was putting the pressure on the Oude Kwaremont – but there is still the Koppenberg to come so they may well bide their time. An attack, if it does go ,may have the effect of pulling a smallish group clear any favourites missing this split will have to get their team to do an awful lot of work to get them back, and they may well find that they've missed the boat.

This climb is never without incident, it's so steep and so narrow that what's left of the bunch after the Paterberg always has problems squeezing up it all at once. The steepest part is between trees and has banks on either side and so is often still damp when everything else in the area is dry. There also used to be an issue with water trickling on to the surface from the surrounding fields, but when Cyclingnews visited in early March this problem appeared to have been solved.

The only difficulty facing riders on this climb is the fact that it is cobbled – and comes at the end of a flat stretch of cobbles that will give stronger teams the opportunity to put the hurt on those riders who aren't so proficient at riding them. What's more frightening is the descent down the other side, a straight cobbled road that's steeper than the one they just climbed up – so much so that, if the direction of the course didn't dictate it, you'd expect them to be racing up this side (in fact, when this climb was first introduced in 2002, fans of Nico Mattan painted his name on the downward side – assuming that the course would climb up that way).

It has previously been used in 1957 and 1958, but in those days it was cobbled. Nowadays it's just a winding asphalt road; the surface isn't great, but neither is it too uncomfortable. The gradient doesn't present too many problems either, only approaching anything like steepness in the midsection. There may be an attack here though – or at least an acceleration – to soften up the opposition; firstly as that would ordinarily happen on the Eikenberg, but also because many riders won't have experienced this climb before and locals might want to exploit this.

As there's now less than 50 kilometres to go there may be some serious attack put in by one or more of the favourites at this point. No one will want to try to ride to the finish on their own from this point but a rider that fears sprinters like Boonen may try and drag a couple of like minded colleagues with him. If three or four get away here and work together, it would take a concerted and organised effort behind to get them back.

Not to be confused with ValkenBURG, the town in the Netherlands that hosts the finish of the Amstel Gold Race. This climb was reintroduced in 2005, after a break of many years, to break up what would have been a flat stretch of over ten kilometres. Positioned as it is it serves to break the rhythm of the race, and provide an umpteenth opportunity for riders to attack as they approach the closing stages of the course.

The climb through the town is never too severe, until it reaches the actual Muur itself, which is normally closed to traffic. The road swings left around that oft-pictured bend and suddenly riders see how the climb got its name as it rises to 19.8%. It's only a mercifully short section though before it levels out, but then it steepens once more to tackle the short sharp rise that is the Kapelmuur. Once over the top, the cobbles end, and the road drops down almost as sharply as it came up.

The Muur is a fixture in Flemish bike racing (many of the other great races climb it at some point during their course) and, while not always decisive, it's always proved eventful. In recent times attacks on the Muur led to the victory of Alessandro Ballan last year, and also Stefan Wesemann (2004) and Peter Van Petegem (1999 & 2003). In all cases they managed to pull a rider or two with them to share the last sixteen kilometres or so before taking victory in a small group sprint.

The surface was pronounced dangerous after the 2002 race and was resurfaced in time for the next year. Some said that this took away a lot of its character, but time and the Belgian climate are rapidly restoring this. Even so, a 19.8 percent section of cobbles at this stage of a race will always prove a challenge. If more than one rider reaches this point together, there will be an attack! Flanders expects, and it may be the last chance to shake Tom Boonen...

Rising through a wood (where it gets its name, 'bos' means 'wood') on the way out of the district of Geraardsbergen, it's not really steep enough to put anyone in trouble unless their legs are really tired and it hasn't produced a decisive attack for several years. In both his victories (1989 and 1991) Edwig van Hooydonck used the Bosberg to escape his breakaway companions and soloed away to win, because of this he became known as Edwig Van Bosberg. The climb itself has not been quite so influential since then and is simply a further obstacle on the way to the finish. Nevertheless, riders in the front group will be watching each other like hawks because a Van Hooydonck style attack is still possible.

If a rider does manage to escape here then it's only twelve predominantly flat kilometres to the finish in Meerbeke, and staying away is a real possibility. Failing that, there is still plenty of opportunity to get away on those last few kilometres, as shown by Andrea Tafi (2002) and Tom Boonen (2005) who both managed to escape a group of favourites by putting in powerful attacks on the flat roads of the run in.