The cobbled season is really picking up pace, today should be quite the clash between a group of the very best cobbled riders in the Continental Tour.
It is a small field of 84 riders so it is fascinating to see a large group of 11 riders forge clear in the early going.
Taubel Predatsch Van Aelbroeck Veyt Kavsek Ferreira Van Keirsbulck Bablidze Routley Vandenburgh Peeters
As one of the few teams to miss the breakaway BCR are leading the pack.
But they are allowing the 11 man break to go well clear, with 150km to go the lead is up to eight minutes. Looking back at the lead group Taubel, Vandenburgh, Routley, Van Keirsbulck, Ferreira and Kavsek are all decent cobblers so we could get a different outcome to what we might have expected here.
With the breaks lead nudging on ten minutes there is some confusion in the pack as HTC and Bpost come up to support the BCR pace.
It is confusing because neither team seems to want to work together so Bpost do a bit, drop back and allow BCR to rocket through en masse.
Then HTC comes through.
They seem to want to try and keep it pegged at ten minutes for now.
The break reach the first of eight sectors of cobbles still with the ten minute advantage.
Here is a summery of the first six cobbled sections.
There is two more, with one in the last ten kilometres that is probably the key section along with the Oude Kwaremont - Paterburg climbs
Bpost and HTC are beginning to lay down arms and work a bit to reduce this ten minutes by the time the pack get to the first cobbled section.
The weather conditions are quite friendly for a northern classic today with the wind fairly moderate. The pack though will have a very tough task of catching this break who still have well over nine minutes by sector two with 80km to go.
It seems as though every time the pack starts to eat into the lead they pause and allow the BCR boys through, which only allows the break's gap to increase again.
The short sectors three and four pass without incident and with 50km to go this ten minute gap remains. The realisation is that with each of the big cobbled teams with a decent rider in the break they will not chase.
40k to go and it is still a ten minute gap as we see the big finale.
As the pack approach the Pre - Oude Kwaremint non cobbled climb Nico Maes attacks.
His teammate in the break Taubel is leading the break on the Oude.
Predatsch starts to struggle off the back of the break here, it appears as if he is the weakest link.
Credit to the German though as he grimly hangs on, eight minutes behind the break Maes climbs the Oude determined to at least test himself.
Zepuntke, Albert, Grashev are heading the pack as Veelers tries to use the Kwaremont to attack.
He gets away and Vanspreybrouck goes after him.
The BCR rider behind pacing is Steegmans who is probably the most disappointed with the way things have been left to now.
The break meanwhile still some seven minutes clear have just climbed the steep short Paterburg with Van Aelbrouck and Predatsch just hanging on.
Maes rides up the Paterburg five and a half minutes back with Veelers and Vanspreybrouck just 30 seconds back.
Steegmans, Breschel, Thomas, De Maar lead the pack over but they are nearly two minutes behind Veelers and Vanspreybrouck.
The Patersburg does completely splinter the pack though with a lead group of 13 getting clear.
The two AMEX riders sit up and wait for team leader Eisel who is leading a 12 man group 30 seconds back.
Vansummeren, Broers, Albert Meol, Kopp De Haes, Armee Bucciero Oelirich, Traksel Okrouhlicky are also here.
Machado is further back in a slow moving 'peloton'.
Prio Porto though may be happier with the break situation still nearly five minutes clear and onto the penultimate cobbled sector.
They are still 11 too, with Ferreira leading them through.
20km to go:
The 11 man break has 4.30 on the chasing three.
Veelers, Maes, Vanspreybrouck.
Group Baugnies, Steegmans, Thomas, Gaudin is at 5.31
Group Eisel is at 6.18
The Machado group is at 7.27 with riders scattered behind that.
The break have a good lead here, though the big favourites are really eating into their lead very fast. We still have that cobbled section to go and Van Aelbroeck and Predatsch realise this and attack the break.
As the weaker cobblers they are trying to get a gap going into them, Bablidze attempts to join these two.
15km to go and these three get reeled in on a small climb.
Behind Veelers, Maes and Vanspreybrouck get caught as well, Vansprey definitely sitting up.
12.5km and the break have three minutes on the front chase group and four on the Eisel group. Bablidze attacks again.
He cannot get away though and the break is back together with 10km to go.
The breaks lead is down to 2.30, they have lost two minutes in the last 10 klicks and they still have that last cobbled section to go!
Eisel and Albert have attacked out of their group in an effort to bridge across to the front chase group.
Having attacked twice and been caught Bablidze in the break just feels desperate to get ahead before the final cobbled section.
But he still cannot get away.
Quick time check with 7.5km left and the break have 1.40 on the front chase group with Eisel - Albert at 2.20.
Sieberg is absolutely burying himself to try and reduce the gap and its almost becoming bridgable.
Eisel and Albert are struggling to get across with Taillefour also riding alone behind,
It is looking like another bad day for AMEX, then again they do have Veyt in the break. The other riders in the second chase group have sat up and are absorbed into the Prio Porto led Machado group.
Here we go them the final sector with 7km to go, you can see the chasers behind.
The chase group is really motoring and the gap reduces very quickly over the cobblestones. Veelers is really forcing the pace.
Here we go as Steegmans, Gaudin, Thomas, Baugnies, Maes and Vanspreybrouck try to follow.
Gaudin makes the junction with the break with 4.5km left.
He uses a car as a shield to attack past, none of the break bats an eyelid. The other six attackers are attaching themselves to the break.
3.5km left and Gaudin has a slender 15 second lead. Vandenburgh though now with his leader lifts the pace behind.
Bouygues missed the move from the chase group and are left 40 seconds back chasing forlornly still 49 seconds clear of Albert and Eisel.
We hit the three kilo marker and of course that means a sprint.
Gaudin has about four bike lengths on Vandenburgh, Baugnies, Veelers, Peeters, Thomas, Steegmans, Vanspreybrouck, Ferraira Maes Veyt
2.5 to go and Gaudin is rumbled by HTC who are possibly going a bit hard a bit too early.
Gaudin falls away completely as Baugnies is leading out Peeters with teegmans scrambling for the JK man's wheel.
Vanspreybrouck is powering through with Ferreria and Veelers also in the hunt. Further back Veyt and Kavsek are battling for good placings.
1.75km to go.
Vanspreybrouck is putting pressure on Baugnies as Peeters continues to wait on his wheel with Steegmans and Thomas interested. Veelers seems to be fading. Maes incidentally is way out of it.
Under the kite.
It is surely one of these five: Baugnies, Peeters, Steegmans, Thomas and Vanspreybrouck.
As Baugnies fades we pan back.
Peeters could be getting blocked out by Baugnies here as Ferreira is racing up. Van Keirsbulck, Veyt, Kavsek and Routley are also going well
750m left. Peeters steams through.
Vanspreybrouck is fading now with Steegmans, Thomas and Ferreira battling.
Peeters is destroying them
Baugnies and Vanspreybrouck appear to be getting a second wind.
But they will not deny a massive shock winner in Peeters.
Steegmans takes second ahead of Vanspreybrouck, Thomas, Baugnies and Ferreira.
Vanderburgh gets 7th over Kavsek, Van Keirsbulck and Veelers.
A massive surprise result following a very tactical race.
