Tour of Flanders recon disrupted by rubbish truck mishap, but not for impressive Evenepoel

While Dwars door Vlaanderen is often seen as a dress rehearsal, the recon ride for the Tour of Flanders a day later can be viewed more as the final technical run-through. It is not about going flat-out uphill or reaching top physical condition for Sunday, but about making the last adjustments and reviewing the key points of the route one more time.

So it was no surprise that many teams were out in force for the recon. The weather in Flanders was not exactly inviting: temperatures were around eight degrees Celsius and there was steady rain throughout the day. Riders were heavily wrapped up in gloves and rain jackets. The conditions are not expected to mirror race day, however, with Sunday forecast to be dry and mild, although there could still be plenty of wind.

Rain, of course, means slippery cobbles, and that was exactly the problem. The stones were treacherously slick. Many will remember the 2024 edition of the Koppenberg, when world champion Mathieu van der Poel was one of only three riders to make it over the climb without unclipping. This time the riders again found it difficult, though not only because of the weather. A rubbish truck had also been involved in an incident on the descent, making matters worse.

As a result, the brutally steep cobbled climb was left smeared with mud. That made it even more slippery, and many riders were forced to get off and walk on the Koppenberg. Remco Evenepoel, who is set to make his debut in Flanders’ Finest on Sunday, showed no hesitation at all: he still rode all the way to the top on the slick stones. The Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe leader clearly passed this particular test.

The incident on the Koppenberg did leave the organisers with work to do. “This morning a rubbish truck started slipping on the descent,” Simon Lamon of Flanders Classics told Sporza. “There is mud on the road and the climb was temporarily closed because another vehicle was also involved. A lot of earth from the verge ended up on the stones.”

That means the cobbles on the Koppenberg were due to be treated by the fire brigade immediately after the recon. “The cobbles need to be cleaned in any case. We had just done that yesterday, but now we have to start all over again.”