This wonderful report is from the Hardwicke family. Congratulations to Charlie and the rest of the family too.
We’d decided to visit Belgium on holiday, encouraged by their love of all things cycling, and found that we happened to be there the weekend of the Tour of Flanders, famous for its brutal cobbled climbs. It turns out that, the day before the professionals take to the hills, the We Ride Flanders sportive allows ordinary folk a chance to try their hand at the course.
Never one to turn down a challenge, Charlie (age 9) decided to have a go at the 75k course. What a day! The weather didn’t co-operate, with relentless rain all day, but a magnificent effort by Charlie (and his dad) saw them complete the course, conquering 973m of climb, including the classic hills of Koppenberg, Berg Ten Houte, Hotond, Oude Kwaremont and Paterberg, in just over four hours.
Not to be outdone, on his way to cheer Charlie on (with mum in tow), Daniel (age 7) cycled up Oude Kwaremont, one of the longer cobbled climbs on the route.
All in all, an amazing day with Charlie covering 50 miles in total (the car park was a long way from the start/finish!) and Daniel the best part of 25 miles in his role as chief supporter. Hopefully, in a few years, we’ll all be able to have a go (although Charlie has his heart set on the 144k course so daddy might be on a E-bike!).
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