Perhaps the biggest talking point in the cycling pages of the Belgian media right now is the introduction of the new Côte de Cherave in Flèche Wallone and whether it will produce a successful late breakaway in the mid-week Classic for the first time in over a decade.
This is a moot point in anybody's book, given that the last time the winning break formed before the final haul up the Mur de Huy was in 2003. But the Côte de Cherave's proximity to the Mur de Huy, with just 5.5 kilometres between its summit and the finish line is the closest ever distance between a second last climb at Flèche Wallonne and the Mur itself. So on paper, the insertion of this new climb could – finally – change this race's overly predictable final scenario.
The climb itself is not the only issue, as Cyclingnews discovered when it checked out the final kilometres of the new route of Flèche Wallonne. The approach road to the Côte de Cherave is on narrow, twisting streets in the old quarter of the town of Huy and as such is fairly technical, with a sharpish left hand bend on a rough section of urban pavé meaning that early positioning for the climb will be crucial. The riders will then bump over a level crossing – mercifully, it appears to be a little-used single railway track, and certainly not one used by high speed trains, as was famously the case at Paris-Roubaix ten days ago.
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Then the real fun starts, on a recently-surfaced and usually quiet back lane that rises up through a residential district of Huy. Although not excessively narrow, and officially averaging 8.1 percent, the Côte de Cherave's gradient is relentless on what is essentially a strip of tarmac two cars wide going straight up the side of the hill.
For the length of the Cherave's 1.3 kilometres there are no breaks in the climbing and no sharp corners. With the steepest part in the first 500 metres or so, after what will presumably be a very fast and nervous run-in, any riders who are suffering will quickly find themselves sliding back through the peloton.
It remains to be seen, however, whether a breakaway of top contenders can go clear off the front on the climb. The lack of corners means that any rider who makes a move will not have the advantage of – like on the Poggio, say – disappearing quickly out of sight. On the other hand, with such a tricky approach road, it will be harder for the big names to have all their troops at hand to close down any moves.
You can read more at Cyclingnews.com
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