Andy Wright Tackles Liege-Bastogne-Liege Sportive

Liege-Bastogne-Liege or ‘La Doyenne’ is the oldest of the 5 spring classics, based in the Ardennes region of South Belgium. There are 3 options; the full distance same as the Pros 276km, 160km or 79km. I chose the middle distance, easy right? Well, no because the main climbs all come one after the other in the last 70 km.

The first main climb of my route was the Cote du Rosier 4.5k average 6%, climb number 6 for the Pros. Luckily there’s always someone to ride with, I heard “come on VC Walcot” in many languages. The famous Climb of La Redoute, 2k max 20 %, local rider Phillip Gilbert’s name was painted all over the road, unfortunately for him Team Sky lead the way up the next day. The last categorised climb, Cote de Saint-Nicholas was another 20% slog, apparently only 1km but felt much longer after 2500m of climbing during the ride.

The run into the finish featured another hill through the Liege streets, this is where Dan Martin attacked to win.

Next yea? I might go for the full distance if anyone is interested?