So my wife comes to me and suggests that for my 40th birthday that we go to belgium to watch some spring action. My tentative plans are to at least see the Paris - Roubaix and maybe some others in mid April.

This is a once in a lifetime shot for me to see some of the classics and want to make the best of this trip. I need help planning and suggestions on where to watch etc...

My initial questions are :???

When does the UCI calendar for 2008 come out?

What towns would be a good place to view?

Any web sites in english or french that could give me more info?

Any local Belgians or Francophones out there with local knowledge?

Thanks in advance for any advice!

The best week to go is the Flanders/GW/PR week

for 2008 Flanders is April 6th, GW is April 9th, PR is April 14th. Make sure you get there a few days early and you can do the Flanders Cyclo
Flanders
http://www.rvv.be
http://www.sport.be/cycling/rondevanvlaanderen/2007/eng/

The best week to go is the Flanders/GW/PR week

for 2008 Flanders is April 6th, GW is April 9th, PR is April 14th. Make sure you get there a few days early and you can do the Flanders Cyclo
Flanders
http://www.rvv.be
http://www.sport.be/cycling/rondevanvlaanderen/2007/eng/

De Ronde van Vlaanderen and the cyclosportif the day before are great. I did both in 2006. The Cyclosportif has three options, I did the middle one. Some people do the ride in race mode; others do it in a more relaxed way. All I will say about my ride is that I stopped at the beer tent at the last rest stop on the ride. I stayed in Gent/Gand/Ghent, which was about an hour from Ninove, where the cyclosportif began and ended. Belgium is compact enough that you can get from place to place fairly easily. The local train system is very good and can get you to most places easily. I had a car, but I think that you could do the trip without one so long as you had a bike with you.

Many of the legendary climbs of De Ronde are around Oudenarde. Some people try to dash by car from place to place so that they can see the race at more than one point. I stayed on one climb and watched the rest of the race from a beer tent. Here is a report about the day. http://forums.roadbikereview.com/showthread.php?t=56773

If you want it a bit more organised and you have got a bit of cash, there is a sports-tours company that might interest you, and they really are top dogs for this sort of stuff, last year the guys got to ride with Liberty Seguros during their training ride before G-W and you can chat to Eddy Merckx at Oudenaarde the day before. To top it all off they rode with CSC as you (and they) ride over the famous Arenbourg Pave and also sections such as Wallers,etc.

Here you go this is the website of all our dreams...............................:cornut:
http://www.sportingtours.co.uk/

De Ronde van Vlaanderen and the cyclosportif the day before are great. I did both in 2006. The Cyclosportif has three options, I did the middle one. Some people do the ride in race mode; others do it in a more relaxed way. All I will say about my ride is that I stopped at the beer tent at the last rest stop on the ride. I stayed in Gent/Gand/Ghent, which was about an hour from Ninove, where the cyclosportif began and ended. Belgium is compact enough that you can get from place to place fairly easily. The local train system is very good and can get you to most places easily. I had a car, but I think that you could do the trip without one so long as you had a bike with you.

Many of the legendary climbs of De Ronde are around Oudenarde. Some people try to dash by car from place to place so that they can see the race at more than one point. I stated on one climb and watched the rest of the race from a beer tent. Here is a report about the day. http://forums.roadbikereview.com/showthread.php?t=56773

Drinking beer, eating pork products covered in mustard, and watching a bike race...only thing that would make it better is if you could somehow get a comfy couch to the top of the Koppenberg to lounge on.

Gee, does she have a sister that thinks the same?

Thanks for the info! Havent found the 2008 calendar but would assume that the races are generally around the same time frame. Thinking the Paris - Roubaix /Fleche Wallone would make for a nice week.

Belgium beer and a cold wet cobblestone laden ride sound wonderful.

Thanks again for the info...

I'd suggest Lille as a possible base. The Flanders bergs are about a 1hr drive and Paris - Roubaix finishes in one of its suburbs and the City itself has quite a bit to offer.

As far as veiwing goes, I reckon getting one really good view is better than, say, three poor views. I've tried mixing it with the locals and watching the Ronde at a few points during the and without very good local knowledge its quite difficult and certainly not for the feinthearted!

I think if you look at the small print in your car insurance policy, trying to follow a spring classic is not covered...