What did you put in the hosts file?
It should be like <destination ip> <alias name>.
(example: "192.168.0.1 router")

Also, you should flush your local DNS records before trying the changes.
If you don't and the DNS name is listed locally then it will use that listing, not the new entry in your hosts file.
From the commandline: ipconfig /flushdns

BTW, this is not routing.
Routing is the process of getting the package from the sender to the receiver and on the internet this occurs at the IP layer.
Routing is done by routers (hence the name) and not by your PC.

The hosts file helps with resolving a DNS name (like vbforums.com) to an IP address.
Usually DNS adresses are resolved by DNS servers and your computer will store past results in a local cache.
Your hosts file will override the DNS server, or rather prevent the DNS server from being queried at all.