A Few Spots Left in Tour of Cyprus 2010

Wanna join me???

Here is the info in CYCLOCROSS Magazine

Vardaros Looks Ahead to Tour of Cyprus

Here’s what regular Cyclocross Magazine contributor and World Cup cyclocross competitor Christine Vardaros will be doing once her season wraps up. She encourages any ‘crossers with a hankering for competition in warm weather to come out and join in on the fun.

Read the Press Release for the Tour of Cyprus below:

A Few Spots Left for Tour of Cyprus 2010

The 6th edition of “Tour of Cyprus 2010” to be held on March 25th through 28th has a few spots left in both their competitive and cylco-tourist tours. The ToC Stage Race offers amateurs the unique opportunity to race with the pros. It is also an important fundraiser for charities such as “Make a Wish” Foundation.

There are two groups to choose from:

Group A – elite/competitive riders. They will complete a tour of approximately 400 km with intermediate sprints. Three leaders jerseys of yellow, green and red will be awarded, in addition to top prizes.

Group B - amateur riders and cyclo-tourists. They will do the same routes but at a more relaxed untimed pace. They have the option to complete as many ToC stages as they wish. In addition, they can step into the follow vehicle at any time to rest and continue later whenever they choose.

Each stage takes riders through the beautiful landscape of the Republic of Cyprus, with sections of the stages climbing into the Troodos Massif and along a number of coastal routes. There are also sections of the Tour that include rides through major cities and picturesque villages. The entire ride will be fully-supported, including energy food, gels, drinks, clothing/luggage transport, mechanical support, security escort motorbikes, police escort and traffic management.

Tour of Cyprus offers all-inclusive packages for the event. Included are: housing, meals, feed stations, farewell party, service and mechanical support, medical support, event tee, event DVD. And the experiences and friendships you make are priceless.

Team and charity sponsorships possible. Last day for registrations to the Tour is January 31, 2010 For those wanting to raise money for the official ToC charities, “Make a Wish” Foundation and "SYKANA" Larnaca, there is the possibility of a “Free 3-nights extra” in Cyprus.

The temperature in Cyprus is expected to be about 70°F (22°C) at this time of year.

TO REGISTER before January 31, or for more information on the tour, visit http://www.tourofcyprus.com/.

You can also visit them on Facebook HERE.

The “Tour of Cyprus” (ToC), is a large scale international cyclosportive event in the Republic of Cyprus. ToC is a multi stage endurance event and is open to elite, amateurs and cyclo-sportive riders.

“Tour of Cyprus 2010” is aiming apart from local participations to encourage international cyclists to live their passion outside of their country and enable them to discover new horizons, in terms of both sport and culture.

The Week of the Yin-Yang

Actually i guess it would be the "weeks" of the Yin-Yang.  Since my last race a couple of weeks ago, i've bene working on balancing my life - equal work and play.  The problem is that my work and play is often the same. Sometimes writing seems like a job, other times it's a riot!  Same goes for bike stuff. Some workouts i just want to throw the bike off the proverbial cliff and others I never want to end. 

Lately I've been doing a bit more writing than usual which mostly felt like fun because i really enjoyed the topics - and the interviews.  I've gotten to write about some of my favorite cyclocross riders like Sven Nys, Tom Meeusen, Marianne Vos, Daphny Van den Brand, Sanne Van Paassen, Lars Boom, Gerben De Knegt, Bart Wellens.  And of course my off-the-cuff personal column on CYCLOCROSS Magazine (click on the names to read the articles.)  

As of this week, I am back up to a semi-normal training program that was once again halted due to an untimely rib break. I honestly dont know how World Champ Niels Albert can race so well only one week after breaking his rib. He is incredible.

As for the fun, Jonas and i actually went shoe shopping - something we've been meaning to do for a while now.  We went into about fifteen stores in search of that perfect pair of knee-high boots, or at least a pair that wasnt so wide it swallowed my teeny ankles and calves whole.  No luck, so that outing i guess was actually work, now that i think about it.

We've been watching more movies on tv which has been fun since most movies niether one of us has ever seen.  This really opens up our movie-watching options.  In belgium, on basic tv, you have at least six movies to choose from every night.  To further get into the movie-watching spirit, we got electric blankets at the local ALDI discount supermarket so we can watch TV in bed.  It goes on the bed under the fitted sheet and you turn it on about an hour before you get into bed so it's nice and toasty.  This is a magical experience for us since the heat is never on upstairs where the bedrooms are located.  So instead of my normal agony of sliding into a frozen bed that turns my back into a stiff wooden board, it's now like a sauna under the blanket. Now it's not uncommon for us to be in bed by 7pm for "movie night".

Tomorrow is offroad day.  Thanks to the warmer weathers hovering just above freezing, all the snow and ice has melted. I expect it will be a muddy day - yippee!  Actually today was a muddy day too!  When i got back from my morning workout of motorpacing, i was covered in spatters of mud from helmet to bootie.  I dont mind the mud but I could have been happy to skip the steady stream of salt-water that nailed my lips thanks to the immense amounts of salt they've used on the roads here for the ice.  The salt also did a number on the roads.  Belgian roads are not made for salt, so there are now a million more potholes scattered throughout the country.  Some i swear are as big as the ones in NYC where cars fall in and cant come out.

Photo is taken by Krist Vanmelle (thanks Krist!)

As always, thanks for reading!!!!!

Pétange, Tervuren, New Writing Gigs, Parties and Workouts (of course)

If you want to know what i've been up to at the last two races, CLICK HERE.  It will take you to my latest stories on CYCLOCROSS Magazine.

I also started writing for a new client, http://www.cyclingnews.com/ .

My first article was on Holland's Gerben De Knegt. Click HERE to read it.
My second article was on Belgium's Bart Wellens.  Click HERE to read it.

I also wrote CYCLOCROSS Magazine pre-Nationals exclusives on Belgium's Sven Nys and Holland's Lars Boom .  The Sven Nys one is HERE and the Lars Boom should be HERE shortly.

Scheduled for next week are a few more big cross names so keep your eyes on CYCLOCROSS Mag and cyclingnews.com.

As for the workouts, they are going a bit better.  The rib is healing nicely, eye infections are almost gone, pancake-sized bruises on the legs are fading and spirits are lifted.  Jonas has been especially helpful with that last one, keeping me entertained during the workouts. Thanks to the neverending rain that's keeping the roads covered with a shiny layer of ice, all my rides lately have been indoors.  Most trainer workouts jonas has been riding side by side with me on the trainer while we play the music real loud and sing offkey at the top of our lungs - when i'm not burying myself in intervals, of course.  He even joins me on the snow runs.  The last run yesterday we chased each other a bit, had an impromptu dance contest while skipping to the beat of different iPod tunes, and made shapes in the snow with footprints. Two of Jonas' shapes was a heart and a rabbit while two of mine were a dinosaur and a drill.

Tomorrow is Belgian Championships so i have the day off. I really like racing in this kind of weather so i'm a little bummed but that's how it goes.  I'm probably better off so i can have a few more days of non-racing to let the body rebuild - or whatever it needs to do. My next race is January 13 in Surhuisterveen, Holland.

Thanks for reading - AND for all your kind words of support!!!

Zolder World Cup and GVA Trofee's Azencross report online at CYCLOCROSS Mag

Click HERE for the link to the article. 

Tomorrow is my last of 6 races in 16 days and thankfully it is one on home turf. It's about 8km from here - Fidea's Tervuren Cyclocross.  After that, i have a full TEN days before the next one.

Thanks for reading!