Two regions, two kinds of races
Almost every Dutch or Belgian ultrarunner ends up training in one of these two regions: the Veluwe or the Ardennes. Both are within cycling distance of a large part of the Benelux, but the terrain — and therefore how you need to train and race — differs enormously. Here's an honest comparison, with concrete races from our calendar.
The Veluwe: fast, sandy, forgiving
The Veluwe consists mainly of pine forest, heathland and drift sand, with little elevation change. That makes the terrain relatively fast and predictable: no rocks, no steep descents, just the occasional patch of loose sand that costs energy. For beginning ultrarunners, this is generally the more forgiving of the two.
- Veluwse Ultra Trail (Elspeet) — the region's best-known 100K
- Otterlo Trailrun (Otterlo) — quieter and just as flat
- Stakenberg Trail (Elspeet) — a mix of forest and heathland
- Hoge Veluwe Loop (Otterlo) — through the national park itself
- Groot Boeschoten Trail (Voorthuizen) — wooded and well marked
The Ardennes: slow, technical, weather-beaten
The Ardennes — with the Hautes Fagnes as its backbone — are hilly, rocky and far more changeable in terms of weather. Stream valleys, mud and relentless climbs mean the same distance here easily takes an hour longer than on the Veluwe. Training here builds strength and stability you'd never need on flat terrain.
- Ultra Trail Haute Ardenne (Waimes) — the toughest 100K in this overview
- Wairfaaz Challenge (Spa) — forest and heath with plenty of elevation gain
- La Redoutable (Sprimont) — technical and tough, not a beginner race
What does this mean for your training?
If you mostly train on the Veluwe but race in the Ardennes (or vice versa), explicitly build in time for the unfamiliar element: hill training and technical descents if you normally run on sand, or tempo and volume work if you're used to Ardennes climbs and the Veluwe suddenly feels "easy" — which, over the long haul, it certainly isn't.
- Choose the Veluwe if you're working on speed, volume, or your first ultra.
- Choose the Ardennes if you want to train climbing strength, technical terrain, or weather resilience.
- Do both if you want to become an all-round ultrarunner — the two regions complement each other well.
Check out the full offering in the Netherlands and Belgium on our calendar.