Categories: Awesome Belgian GuysLook ProTechnique

Look Pro: Going Belgian Style

Belgian Style isn’t just for Belgians. Photo: Cycling Tips/Cor Vos

To keep chickens is to walk a path towards introspection. From the songs they sing after laying an egg (which I assume is “chicken” for “I’m Every Woman“) to the sheer glee they show when they find a worm in the mud, chickens provide a perfect example of living life in and for the moment. The most interesting aspect of their social interaction is whenever a new chicken is introduced into the flock: all of them freeze in place and stretch their necks out as high as they can, the winner presumably being the one whose head boasts the highest elevation.

As a Dutchman, I am born with the genuine belief that I can stretch my head higher than anyone in Belgium can. Where Americans make Polish jokes, the Dutch make Belgian jokes; we unrightly view them as a sloppy, dim-witted lot. Jokes of indoor airstrips, helicopters with ejection seats, and windshield wipers perplexingly installed inside the car windshield filled my youth and caused endless side-aches from laughter. This is all to say that I carry a healthy sense of superiority over our neighbors to the south with two notable exceptions: riding bikes and making beer.

Especially when it comes to riding bikes, Belgians have the market cornered on Rules #5 and #9, not to mention the entire lexicon pertaining to being Casually Deliberate and every Look Pro article not having to do with climbing, if you can ignore Lucien van Impe. But mostly, they own the art of riding Belgian Style.

Riding with hands on the hoods is a critical element of finding both power and comfort on our machines; it blends aerodynamics with leverage and casual cool like no other position does. The key to keeping from getting sore (or even numb) on a long ride is to constantly change positions; beyond the tops and drops the Belgians have explored the vast world of possibilities of riding on the hoods like no other group has. Learning from their lessons, we can distill the usual V points of reference:

Riding elbows locked is strictly for relaxation or intimidation. If you’re laying down The V, keep your elbows low to the tops like Roger de Vlaeminck. (Pronounce it Correctly: The Flemish pronounce “Roger” like the French, “r oh ‘sz ai “. There is no Dutch/Flemish version of “Roger” as in “Roger Rabbit” – the closest name would be “Rutger” as in “Rutger Hauer” who is not as cool as Roger De Vlaeminck.)
Keep your wrists rolled in and elbows tucked towards the top tube. This applies to the drops as well, but its still a good time to bring up the point. We’re riding bikes, not wrestling elephants.
Experiment with how many fingers go in front of the brake levers and how many go behind; whether or not to also wrap the bar itself with your pinky and/or ring fingers. Mix it up to keep your shoulders loose on long rides. If you get out of the saddle, make sure you grab a handful of hood like grabbing the horns on a buckin’ bull; don’t stay choked up on the bars as you’ll lose leverage and steering control.
Always keep a loose grip on the hoods. You’re riding a bike, not trying to milk a cow; keep enough tension in your hands to maintain control of the bike but not so much that you’re suffocating the poor thing. And speaking of grip…
Belgian Style riding is best employed in smooth or moderately technical terrain. If shit be gettin’ bumpy, best to grab the tops or drops. Thumb holds and rocky bumps don’t mix and you don’t want to do a Jens when a blind bump comes knocking.

frank

The founder of Velominati and curator of The Rules, Frank was born in the Dutch colonies of Minnesota. His boundless physical talents are carefully canceled out by his equally boundless enthusiasm for drinking. Coffee, beer, wine, if it’s in a container, he will enjoy it, a lot of it. He currently lives in Seattle. He loves riding in the rain and scheduling visits with the Man with the Hammer just to be reminded of the privilege it is to feel completely depleted. He holds down a technology job the description of which no-one really understands and his interests outside of Cycling and drinking are Cycling and drinking. As devoted aesthete, the only thing more important to him than riding a bike well is looking good doing it. Frank is co-author along with the other Keepers of the Cog of the popular book, The Rules, The Way of the Cycling Disciple and also writes a monthly column for the magazine, Cyclist. He is also currently working on the first follow-up to The Rules, tentatively entitled The Hardmen. Email him directly at rouleur@velominati.com.

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View Comments

wiscot says:

Oct 23 2014 at 3:43 pm

@Ron

Well goddamn, am I relieved. I thought I was the only one constantly changing how many fingers I have in front/behind the hoods/lever. Phew!!

Also, I have owned "A Sunday in Hell" for a good few years now. I have never been able to force myself to finish watching. Something about keeping it forever new and awesome. I've started it countless times, but I have yet to watch the finale. It's okay, I know my logic is illogical.

There's a helluva lot about this site that's illogical, but we keep coming back for more and more . . .
Buck Rogers says:

Oct 23 2014 at 4:10 pm

Great read! My immediate thought on seeing the "riding the hoods" BelgiumStyle was that Alex told me that whatever I did during my Paris Roubaix Cyclo, do NOT ride the hoods on the pave'. Only the tops or drops, NEVER the hoods. I took his advice for at least the first twenty sectors but on one of the final sectors, being completely brain dead, as well as physically dead, I forgot and hit a sector on the hoods. FUCK! And I had thought that they were hard on the drops! Closest I came to crashing that day was by far trying to ride pave' on the hoods.

But, being the good Velominat that I am, I actually read the entire article and saw your Vth reference point about the pave'. Spot on!
frank says:

Oct 23 2014 at 5:06 pm

@EBruner

I have always done 90% of my riding from some version of the hoods. I feel most control from hood positions. Drops on major descents or murderous head winds only for me.

This to me is a very bad habit; the hoods are too easy to slip off from; the drops are much safer because you're not just holding on by your thumbs.

One of my most strictly-adhered to principles for descending is to do it in the drops; I get what you're saying about getting sore but I'll take sore over in the ditch or on the face.
frank says:

Oct 23 2014 at 5:16 pm

@Owen

Here I thought I was German and Swedish. Turns out a Belgian barmaid slipped in there somewhere.

Seems to me that when I'm trying to move it on flats this works better than the drops. Think it has anything to do with long monkey arms?

I switch between them, no question. But for a combination of power, control, comfort, and speed, there is little that tops the hoods.

@Haldy

@frank -

I'm shocked you forgot this pic-

Or this one.

This one is more badass than it is demonstrative of my point.

And lets not forget the biggest head-scratcher in terms of leg warmers ever:
EBruner says:

Oct 23 2014 at 5:22 pm

@frank

I agree completely on descending to be in the drops, and I do on 'real' descents. But on generally level, climbing, or rolling hills I have been a hood rider for 30 years. Just natural to me. On rough or uneven pavement I will quickly go to the tops, or sides behind the hoods.
frank says:

Oct 23 2014 at 5:23 pm

@Buck Rogers

Great read! My immediate thought on seeing the "riding the hoods" BelgiumStyle was that Alex told me that whatever I did during my Paris Roubaix Cyclo, do NOT ride the hoods on the pave'. Only the tops or drops, NEVER the hoods. I took his advice for at least the first twenty sectors but on one of the final sectors, being completely brain dead, as well as physically dead, I forgot and hit a sector on the hoods. FUCK! And I had thought that they were hard on the drops! Closest I came to crashing that day was by far trying to ride pave' on the hoods.

But, being the good Velominat that I am, I actually read the entire article and saw your Vth reference point about the pave'. Spot on!

I'm with you. @Marko rides them on the hoods and it fucks with my mind. For me, I have been moving more and more towards riding them in the drops; they flex more and your hands feel better in the long run.
frank says:

Oct 23 2014 at 5:25 pm

@wilburrox

The young lady early this fall knocking off a 10 mile TT PR was Belgian dang near 100% for little over 30 min's vs in the drops insisting she has more control... just maybe, she secretly wants to keep the white bar tape pristine. I wouldn't be surprised. Getting the forearms parallel with the top tube is just worth the effort. Regret my inability to figure out embedding the .mov file and crummy screenshot. Cheers

There is so much awesome in this photo, including the bumble bee kit and aero fucking helmet. Those are V-inch cuffs on the socks, I think as well.

@DeKerr

@wilburrox shooting a video in portrait mode? For shame.

The fact that cameras even allow this to happen is enough to start imposing trade embargos.
frank says:

Oct 23 2014 at 5:28 pm

@rfreese888

@ Frank - you gotta go Chaka Khan with 'I'm Every Woman'. Whitney's version just doesn't cut it.

I am pleased to confirm that I have neither the inclination nor the experience to estimate which version of that crap song is the version that "cuts it".

@Dave

I did a Jens several weeks ago. Will be a while before I am back to form. Amazing how the pros seem to shake off crashes. Maybe their youth, pain tolerance, or secret sauce.

Or the frequency with which they do it?

@antihero

@frank

Always keep a loose grip on the hoods. You're riding a bike, not trying to milk a cow; keep enough tension in your hands to maintain control of the bike but not so much that you're suffocating the poor thing.

Yes. This is the cause of much unneeded discomfort that should be otherwise channeled into V. People wonder why their hands hurt after four hours of deathgrip on the bars. Just this simple change created huge improvement when I figured it out.

This is also the key to good technique on pavÃ© or offroad - it's impossible to maintain control over the bike unless you loosen your grip.

Fo sho
John Liu says:

Oct 23 2014 at 5:32 pm

Very humbling. To the inadequacy of my legs, lungs, and spirit, I now must add the wimpiness of my thumbs. Is there any tiny part of me that measures up to the Ancient Rouleurs? Maybe my earlobes.
Haldy says:

Oct 23 2014 at 5:33 pm

@frank

This one is more badass than it is demonstrative of my point.

And lets not forget the biggest head-scratcher in terms of leg warmers ever:

So...much awesome... V-ness in these pics....