Edition #1 recap

Full photo gallery here: 2024 edition

Almost one month ago, the riders for the first edition of Arden2Eifel landed in Bersillies l'Abbaye to pick up their caps and trackers. The weather the night before the start was horrible, but the weather forecast for the start and the days after was very promising. The riders were in good spirits and the bikes were all prepped. There was a healthy tension in the air as is common just before the start.

On start day, there was a small briefing, a few photos taken and then they were off! The first section of the route is fast and riders made quick progression. So much, that we as organization sometimes missed the first riders on intended photo spots. It was only towards the end of the afternoon and early evening that steeper (and muddier) tracks lowered the average speed significantly.

After Chimay, and especially after Couvin, the hills got longer and steeper. It slowly became dark and riders made their plans for the night, whereas some decided to push on with about 80k to go CP1. Many riders decided to stay in Revin for the night, following a very tough section before the French town. The breakfast for these riders were a few very steep (hike-a-bike), at times muddy, sections which made progress very slow compared to most of the first day.

The first rider was at CP1 in Herbeumont in the morning with only a short power-nap during the night. The section from Revin to Herbeumont was brutal he said. The next couple of riders were about 50km from Herbeumont at that time and came in later during the afternoon. Day 2 left its mark and the first riders had to scratch from the challenge.

After Herbeumont the riding became a bit less brutal and allowed the riders to cover more terrain in less time. This also meant the field got spread out a bit more with some riders progressing quickly, while others were still battling the steeper and slower section before CP1.

Arriving at CP2 in the small town of Neroth in Germany meant that riders in the meantime crossed all of Luxembourg and had only about 115 km to go. The last part until the finish knows a 40 km section which is particularly tough with hike-a-bike sections between steep and rocky trails. The awards are nice views while making slow progress.

The finish underneath the Porta Nigra in Trier saw its first finisher after 60 hours and 22 minutes. The next day (and the night after) other finishers followed, each with several hours interval. The last few riders had the bad luck of heavy rain and a thunderstorm, slowing them down in the last 40 km as they sheltered from the worst of it .

We look back on a succesful and fun first edition. The second edition will take place with start on Thursday August 14th 2025. We moved the start location to Namur, Belgium to enable easier travel to the start. Registration opens on October 15th 2024.

More details will follow!