Monumental Bergs: The Nokereberg

What a difference a week makes! This morning we treated ourselves to a glorious sunshine ride through some of the twisty farm roads of Flanders in the direction of this weeks climb, the Nokereberg. This climb runs through the town of Nokere on the edge of the Flemish Ardennes, and just inside the border of East Flanders. The Nokereberg is the focal point to this Wednesday’s race Nokere Koerse, as it will be climbed 10 times during the race!

A completely cobbled climb, the Nokereberg is 350 meters long with an average gradient of 5% and a maximum gradient of 7%. The climb is only 20 meters high from top to bottom and is one of the lowest bergs of the Flemish Ardennes.

The Nokereberg is best known for it’s central role in the in the mid March semi-classic Nokere Koerse, with the finish line at the top of the climb. It’s passage 10 times in the race means 3.5km of climbing on the Nokereberg, or 200m of vertical gain throughout the race. The Nokereberg has also been included in other races like Kuurne-Brussele-Kuurne, Dwars door Vlaanderen, and in the 2003, 2008, and 2011 editions of the Tour of Flanders.

Enough Said, Take Me There!

The Nokereberg is located on the Nokeredorpstraat, and runs through the town center of Nokere in the community of Kruishoutem. You can see it here on Google Street View, and ride it along the 80km RVV Blue Loop.

But before you go here’s a few pointers to help make the best of it.

• These cobbles are quite evenly spaced so you shouldn’t have any major issues riding them
• As this climb runs through the center of town please do keep to the right hand side, as oncoming traffic is likely
• There is a gutter along the right hand side which you can ride, though keep an eye out for gutters and parked vehicles

So who do you think will be victorious in Nokere this year? Last years race came down to a bunch sprint up the Nokereberg, with Geert Steegmans taking it at the line over Stefan van Dijk and Graeme Brown. The forecast is calling for more sunshine throughout the week, so here’s hoping for some great weather for Wednesday’s race. Fingers crossed! Enjoy your week, and hope you’re all able to get in some sunshine riding of your own!