Day Eight

We went round to see some of the East Flanderian sites in the same region as our stage race this weekend. On the car trip over I was surprised to see, for the first time, some real hills. And these weren’t just hills, they were 25% cobbled climbs, which are hard to complete let alone race on.
First stop, The Muir, which is the decisive climb in the Tour of Flanders. Not only was the Muir steep, but it was also ‘paved’ with some of the most uneven in Belgium and is the last cobbled climb 20k from the finish.
After seeing the Muir we went to a cycling museum. I got to Eddy Merck’s and other’s Tour of Flanders Bikes. Eddy Merck was a man, because unlike any of the more modern bikes he was equipped with 19mm tires, almost designed to get caught in a grove and cause a crash, and his smallest gear for the 25% pitches was only a 42-21. In contrast the Discovery team road 25s and rode 39-23.