Since it’s this weekend, next year the Whaka 100 or the miler
I’ve been wanting to do this for a while. Make a week of it and bring the mtb too because lapping Coler and Slaughter Pen is so much fun.
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If you really want to maximize the trip head across the ditch! The Whaka 100 or Volcanic Epic in Rotorua would be good options.
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You should do Radl gravel in Adelaide Australia at the same time as the Tour down under is on( sister event to Fnld gravel. Than hang around Australia and do 3 peaks in March!
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Would be so excited to see you come do 3 peaks.
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Maratona do Dolomiti - epic event, well organized, fantastic atmosphere and stunning views.
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I would say the 177km which is the route I’ve done both times. The 242km obviously has challenge of the additional distance but most of that is along fairly featureless roads to get from the start in Bruges (or Antwerp for the years I rode it) to the cobbles and the climbs around Oudenaarde, at which point it picks up the same route as the 177 anyway
On the long route, you’ve also got a very early coach transfer from Oudenaarde to the Bruges whereas the other routes start and finish in Oudenaarde, so much easier logistically
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And as tuff mentioned, since you flew all the way over there, it would be really cool to do the Roubaix Sportive the following weekend. It is very close, like 45 min drive away. We went to Roubaix last year and had some extra time to ride in the Flanders area, but we were kicking ourselves of not scheduling it to do both.
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Not what you’re looking for in 2025, but the best tri experience of all time!
SWISSMAN Xtreme Triathlon – The most incredible triathlon adventure on this planet
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Which route has the most people doing it?
What I’m getting at here is I want to make sure I’m doing the most competitive option. Unbound, for example has the XL option. It isn’t the most competitive, but it is the biggest on paper. I’d want to do the 200 since that is the most competitive.
This looks incredible! Also incredibly brutal, haha!
I really want to do IM Switzerland Thun in 2027.
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The 177 km at Flanders is the most competitive from my experience - there’s just too many boring miles in the 240 km’s distance to attract the majority. But it’s also an open start time, so “competitive” is less of an emphasis - not really a racers race.
The Three Peaks in Aus is a great event … but surely the best in the Southern Hemisphere has to be SeVeN!
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Agree with adamralph above, the biggest entry is the 177km route but it isn’t a mass start, you can roll up and get going whenever want
That’s interesting. I guess that is how some fondos work here in the states as well. Not many though.
I want a proper race experience 
It’s all pointing toward Australia 
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They missed the dropbears.
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A vote for the Maratona Dles Dolomites, absolutely incredible event, definitely a race if you’re starting in the front group, less so if you’re in group 2 and a lot of cyclist traffic and more of solo effort if you’re starting in group 3 or 4, but it is possibly the prettiest place to ride a bike in the world.
Lucky enough to have done it 7 times and it’s not lost any of its appeal and I’m debating when to do the 8th 
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Maybe consider a Haute Route? Close to a pro experience with the organisation, motorbike outriders, crowds out supporting etc and very competitive at the pointy end
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A good few of the suggestions here are what I’d call “sportives”, definitely not races. But I get the sense you want an event with finishing positions and /or timing? That tends to imply off-road events as road races in Europe anyway have limited entry due to practical limits like bunch size. I don’t know how Gran Fondos work.
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