Steenbeekdries

{{coord|50.4818|3.3649|display=title}}

{{Infobox cycling hill climb

| name = Steenbeekdries

| image =

| caption =

| max_elevation_m = 69

| location = {{flagicon|Flanders}} Flanders
{{flagicon|Belgium}} Belgium

| start = Etikhove, Maarkedal

| altitude_m = 59

| length_m = 820

| gradient = 7.6

| maxgradient = 12.8

}}

File:Maarkedal_Etikhove_Steenbeekdries_(3)_-_242269_-_onroerenderfgoed.jpg

Steenbeekdries is an uphill cobbled road in the municipality of Maarkedal, in the Belgian province of East Flanders. With its top at 69 m altitude, it is one of many hill formations in the Flemish Ardennes, in the south of East-Flanders. The entire road is paved in cobbles; in 1995 the road of the Steenbeekdries was classified as a protected landscape monument.

Cycling

The site is best known from road bicycle racing, as it regularly features in the spring classics, most notably the Tour of Flanders. The 800 m climb immediately follows the Mariaborrestraat, a long flat sector of cobbles, and at 7.6% average gradient, is not very steep. The descent following the climb, the Stationsberg, is a straight poorly-paved cobbled road and in fact steeper than the Steenbeekdries.{{cite web|title=Insider's guide: Climbs of the Ronde van Vlaanderen|url=http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/road/2007/apr07/rvv07/?id=/features/2007/flanders_climbs07|website=Cycling News|access-date=5 December 2015}}

The Steenbeekdries was first included in the Tour of Flanders route in 2002 and has remained a fixed location in the race. In recent years, it comes at 39 km from the finish in Oudenaarde, usually the first climb after the notorious Koppenberg.{{Cite web|url=http://www.rondevanvlaanderen.be/en/elite-men/race/track|title = 404|date = 10 February 2017}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.nieuwsblad.be/sportwereld/extra/rvv2015/parcours|title = Parcours Ronde van Vlaanderen 2015 - Sportwereld}}

The Steenbeekdries is also regularly included in Dwars door Vlaanderen and the Tour of Flanders for Women.

References

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