The Ardennes Monster · Hardennes Gravel Tour
Stories from the trail.
They rolled out of Namur or Saint-Hubert. A few came back with a story to tell. Here are their words, on their own pages.
Photo: Patrice Hornez
The last stage is ridden at the keyboard.
Back home, legs still heavy, a few of them take to the road one last time: in writing.
Finishers, scratches. The Mur de Huy in the dead of night, the mud of 2024, the Mosan Cauldron at the end of four countries. Each story opens on its author’s own page, in their own language.
Read them before the start. Or after.
The stories
In their words.
Newest first. Each story opens in a new tab, on its author’s own site.
The Ardennes Monster · No5 · 2026 · 500 km
Ardennes Monster 2026: 500 Kilometres Through the Night
Fabian Wurm · Cyclite blog
A 500 taken on with almost no preparation: an 8 pm start from the Citadel, the Mur de Huy after 40 km, a whole night alone, never sitting in a small group's draft. He wanted a test. He got one.
FinisherIn EnglishRead the storyHardennes GT · No2 · 2024 · 700 km
Hardennes Gravel Tour
Philipp Gesang · his blog
His first gravel race, in the rain from the start line. The mud of 2024, the night climb towards Signal de Botrange, the old railway from Bastogne to Libramont… then a wallet lost near Virton.
Scratched · km 503In EnglishRead the storyHardennes GT · No2 · 2024 · 700 km
712 kilometers offroad in 55 hours
Nol van Loon · FatPigeon · told by Ridley
50 mm tyres, an 11-50 cassette, three-hour naps: Nol van Loon and his riding partner Erik through 712 km of mud, all the way round.
FinisherIn EnglishRead the storyHardennes GT · No2 · 2024 · 700 km
Change of plans
Team MTBMasters · MTBMasters blog
A crash around km 30, a broken saddle rail, rain that never let up: an honest account of stepping off, and of what comes next.
ScratchedIn DutchRead the storyThe Ardennes Monster · No2 · 2023 · 1,050 km
Race Report: The Ardennes Monster 2023
Julio Greff · his website
Second Monster: he knows the ground and aims higher. The loop now crosses four countries, Merckx keeps watch atop the Stockeu, Luxembourg is deserted, and the Mosan Cauldron still waits at the end.
FinisherIn EnglishRead the storyThe Ardennes Monster · No1 · 2022 · 1,000 km
Race Report: The Ardennes Monster 2022
Julio Greff · his website
After Europe's flattest ultra, he went looking for its steepest. A section-by-section account, from the Citadel to the Mosan Cauldron, where, as he puts it, the Monster really lives.
FinisherIn EnglishRead the storyThe Ardennes Monster · No1 · 2022 · 1,000 km
The Ardennes Monster Ultra Cycling Race
Kevin Shaffer · his website
Over from the United States for the very first edition: a night start, a protesting ankle, a drivetrain down to two gears, and the Montagne de la Croix to finish.
FinisherIn EnglishRead the storyYour story
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In the wake.
Bikes laid bare, a route to ride again in five stages, the very first article about the Monster: more to read on.
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