CyclingFans: Wednesday's La Flèche Brabançonne departs Leuven at 12:30pm CET (6:30am U.S. Eastern) and is expected at the finish at Overijse at around 5:23pm CET (11:23am U.S. Eastern).  La Flèche Brabançonne live streaming video should get underway at around 3:10pm CET (9:10am U.S. Eastern).

EuroSport: The 25-year-old from Bourg-en-Bresse beat Cyril Bessy (Saur-Sojasun) and Jean-Marc Bideau (Bretagne) in a three-man sprint at the uphill finish in Vimoutiers.

VeloNation: No operation needed for knee problem.

RedKitePrayer: At BMC, Tejay Van Garderen is being groomed to take over the Tour de France leadership role of Cadel Evans when the Aussie retires, and Taylor Phinney is the natural successor to his veteran teammate George Hincapie. Over at Garmin, a truly homegrown squad, Peter Stetina is working toward contender status in the grand tours, starting with next month’s Giro d’Italia, and Andrew Talansky is shaping up to match him. And while Armstrong has quit RadioShack as a racer, his team is schooling such talents as U.S. road champion Matt Busche and under-23 standout Lawson Craddock.

PEZ: Over the last week, we've been working with Joao Correia's new cycling tour group, InGamba Tours, leading rides and showing a few guys our favorite roads in one of our favorite places in the world - the Vlaamse Ardennen/Pays des Collines.

VeloNation: Haematoma on right knee for Italian Classics star after Paris-Roubaix crash.

Paris - Roubaix - April 8 (Results),
Vuelta Ciclista al Pais Vasco - April 2-7 (Stages & results),
Scheldeprijs - April 4 (Start list),
Circuit Cycliste Sarthe - April 3-6 (Stages & results),
UCI Track World Championships - April 4-8 (Races & results),
Amgen Tour of California - May 13-20 (Stages ),
More...

CyclingNews: Jan Barta brought in another win for both himself and Team NetApp, winning Rund um Köln in a solo effort. The Czech rider soloed to the win 2:02 ahead of Gediminas Bagdonas (An Post-Sean Kelly) and Tomasz Marczynski of Vacansoleil.

VeloNews: Northwave’s new Extreme shoe line offers up impressively low weight, near-seamless uppers, multiple closure options and an innovative three and four-bolt-compatible sole.

VeloNews: The road to the Ardennes goes through Brabantse Pijl for Andy Schleck this year. The RadioShack-Nissan-Trek superstar will race in Wednesday’s semi-classic to put in one final hard day ahead of his first major goal of the 2012 season at the Ardennes classics.

VeloNation: Says Boonen must try to win more varied races.

VeloNews: Davis Phinney made a bold prediction about his son, Taylor. Noting that the 21-year-old Phinney was on good form and especially well-suited to the race as its only two-time U23 winner, Davis suggested Taylor could land a top-15 finish in his pro debut.

PodiumCafe: Hey! Wake up, get out of your post-cobbles hangover and smell the coffee! The Ardennes are coming!

CXMagazine: This year, I have a new goal in mind, and I think it’s pretty do-able. I want to get that UCI point that eluded me in my first elite season (two different times, it eluded me by a single spot!).

BikeRadar: Aero wheels used to be regarded as things you owned and used only if you were doing time trials or indulging in the demanding sport of triathlon.

VeloNation: Riders for the cobbled Classics need to focus both on distance (MSR, Flanders and Roubaix are all more than 260km) but also on very short intense efforts. This will get them ready for the type of riding they will experience at these early Classics: short, sharp efforts over the bergs of Flanders or over the sectors of Roubaix.

BikeRadar verdict: 3.5 out of 5 stars. "The Vitus is easy on the wallet and the spine, but slightly soft when pushed hard."

RBAction: CatEye’s latest headlight produces up to 250 lumens in its high-power setting, 140 lumens in its lower setting, and it includes a flashing mode. It can be recharged via your computer’s USB 2.0 port in a little over three hours, but perhaps its best feature is its ultra-wide beam, capable of lighting up a sizable chunk of the road ahead of you.

InnerRing: Today’s Paris-Camembert race was won by Pierre-Luc Périchon of the small La Pomme Marseille team, trumping the bigger French squads. It’s the oldest continuing sponsorship deal in cycling, with cheesemaker Lepetit sponsoring the race in 1943, although today Lepetit is just a brand in the portfolio of Lactalis, the world’s third largest dairy products group.

InnerRing: Slosse is a family-owned stonemason business from Orchies in northern France, a cobblestone’s throw from the route of Sunday’s race in Orchies. The company was started by 1898 and has flourished since, these days supplying everything from bathroom tiles to tombstones and shiny bank atriums.

Today's Quote

"Tom is the best spring rider of the last twenty years, but now he needs to try and win Milan-San Remo and the Giro di Lombardia like I did." - Roger de Vlaeminck CyclingNews

Mary McConneloug & Mike Broderick: It was a bit of a shock to step into the early spring in Europe after enjoying the warm embrace of South Africa for the past weeks. The leafless trees and grey skies of Bavarian Germany had us feeling like it might have been a better plan to stay south a bit longer to train or take the option to participate in one or more of the world class stage races that highlight the global endurance cycling scene - next year perhaps...

Off The Beaten Path: Last weekend was the 24-hour Flèche team ride, traditionally held over the Easter weekend. The Flèche was officially inaugurated in 1947, but its origins go back further to the early 20th century when Vélocio gathered cyclotourists every spring in Provence.

Bike-eu: In the next years over 40% of the e-bike sales will take place by consumers who are younger than 50 years. This is an increase of 15% compared to the current market situation. In its press release Sparta cheers: “Finally the e-bike market is rejuvenating!”

road.cc: Shhh! The latest incarnation is still a secret.

RBAction: Team TIBCO riders Jennifer Wheeler and Megan Guarnier displayed great tenacity as they contested the final stage of the Energiewacht Tour Sunday. The two placed as the top Americans in stage 5 of the Dutch race.