Tomorrow is X-ray Day

and this is how i felt!

I earned that honor of subjecting myself to a set of x-rays when i behaved inappropriately at the doctor's office this morning.  My doctor had me lift both arms so he could put his hands on either side of my torso. But when he lightly squeezed, instead of telling him whether or not i felt anything untoward, i sprung across the room to hide behind Jonas.  Well, it was either that or a punch in the face due to my natural "fight or flight response". 

He tried to coerse me into coming back over towards him but i was in such pain I couldnt quite make out his words, although i expect it was something like, "come on over little girly, wanna piece of candy? I dont bite."  It didnt work.

In hindsight i realize that my response was a bit bizarre but at the time it felt like the smartest thing to do.  At least Jonas didnt get up out of his chair and pound his fists against his chest in my defense as i firmly hid behind him. haha!

Wanna know what it's like....

to be at a training camp as the only girl in a boy's cyclocross team?

CLICK HERE to read all about the ins, outs, ups, down, highs, lows...

Shot for the stars but landed on my head

start of Begijnendijk by Peter Schepens

The first of my scheduled four races went quite well. At the Begijnendijk road race in BE i sat comfortably in the peloton, finishing 29th in the bunch sprint out of 70 starters.

As my next two races located in Holland were UCI international events, where you need to be part of a team to participate, I guest rode for the  Green Coaching UK team. 




Valkenburg RR by Anton Vos

The first was Valkenburg Hills road race.  It was unfortunately not as easy as my last road race which i expected considering it was a higher level of competition.  With little peloton experience this season i found myself too far back when the neutral section ended and we were dumped at the base of narrow climbs at the start of the race.  My "excuse me, pardon me, can i get by" only got me so far - ok, well actually not one gal moved out of the way at my request. So by the time i got to the top of the narrowest climb, the gaps were already formed. Considering it is not possible for me to ride faster than or even as fast as the fastest gals in the race, i was pretty much relegated to my position.  I was, however, able to move a few spots up over the next kilometers to somewhere around 80th (out of around 150 riders) but since they only counted up to 72nd position in the official results, you wont find me and the rest of the gals who came in after the cut. 

me, Jonas, and Claire Fraser

The second race of 7-Dorpenomloop Aalburg was significantly worse than the first considering it left me in agonizing pain and covered in itchy welts.  This time around i got to the start line early so i didnt have to fight to get near the front during the neutral section before the race started. Somewhere after 10km into the race, i thought to myself, well this is going well. I feel nice and comfy. BUT shortly thereafter I was smacked into by an out-of-control cyclist. She hit me so hard that two of my spokes were crumpled. I had a split second to choose if i land in Nettle bushes or on the pavement and i chose the former. Still not sure if i made the right decision as i sit here, not even able to breathe without pain - and the itchies from head to ankle surely dont make things easier. In addition to the Nettle poisoning, i severely tore the muscles in my back in the rib area. If i find a comfy position and dont move, then i only have pain from breathing. Otherwise, if i make a wrong move - or almost any move - i have a stabbing pain in my back so strong that at times i come really close to the lights going out. Ugh. 

I know this too shall pass and i should consider myself lucky considering it could have been worse (ie. Marianne Vos broke her collarbone in Valkenburg Hills) but it doesnt seem to make the pain go away.

With all this said, I am sorry to say i will be sitting this weekend out from racing - no Belgacom Antwerpen MTB for me.  My goal is to try and get on the trainer by the end of the week - fingers crossed.  I miss my bike already.

Summer Race Schedule - in progress

As i have not received a team mountain bike this season (and my current bike is 10 years old and half falling apart), i have changed my whole race schedule around for the summer - now focusing more on road races.   But as i am changing it all around so late in the season, my racing will be limited.  I will try to throw in a few mtb races here and there because it's so much fun, although my current mtb may not be so happy about this!

My next 4 races are:

Begijnendijk  18 May
Valkenburg Hills Classic (UCI event) 25 May 
7-dorpenomloop Aalburg (UCI event) 26 May
Belgacom MTB GP: Antwerpen (UCI event)  2 June

Tour of Cyprus reports

Sorry...again...for being so lax on my blog updates. Just to catch you up quickly, here are links to two stories i wrote on my Tour of Cyprus race experience almost a couple months back.

For CYCLOCROSS Magazine's coverage, click HERE.

For Pelotonpost.com 's coverage, click HERE.

They are completely different stories from different angles, by the way. One is more of my goofy view of the trip and the other is more of what it is was like to be in Cyprus.

Happy reading!

Viva la Vegan Magazine's interview of me is now online!

Check it out by clicking HERE!
Thanks!
And later today I'm being interviewed by a radio station - so looking forward to it!! 
I gotta remember to say everything correctly the first time around since it's not so easy to edit on radio - :-)

Stories from my last races of cross season

Leuven by Krist Vanmelle

Since last i posted in January, i have raced a couple of World Cups where i finished 26th and 34th (Liévin, FR and Hoogerheide, NL respectively) and a handful of other races mainly with results in the teens.

BUT more interestingly, here are links to my rider diary on CYCLOCROSS Magazine detailing the last two races of my season :

Celebration Cookies at Oostmalle

Cycling under disco lights

I hope you enjoy reading these stories as much as i had fun living them!

Thanks ever so much for your continued support - and for reading my blog!!! It means a lot to know that I am not alone in my adventures.

Jersey Auction for 7-yr old kid

There is an Ebay auction of top CX stars' signed jerseys for a physically challenged 7 yr old boy so he can have a special bike and know what it feels like to ride like the wind like we all do!!! 

Want to help him to know the feeling you get every time you get on your bike?

Help to get him out riding!

Check it out and bid! Jerseys of ME, Margriet Kloppenburg, Gabby Day Helen Wyman Sanne Cant Marianne Vos Daphny van den Brand, Jonathan Page Christine Vardaros Sven Nys, Zdeněk Štybar Niels Albert and many more!

Go and Bid NOW! CLICK HERE TO START

Thanks in advance for  your help!!!!

TOUR OF CYPRUS - are YOU ready for the challenge???

Want to kickstart your season? Or get perfect preparation for an upcoming Gran Fondo event?  Then this is the perfect workout experience!!

I did this two years ago.  The memories i have from it will last forever which is why i am telling you about it!

It is a three-day stage ride/race from Friday through Sunday, March 23-25, 2012
Day 1 - 80km
Day 2 - 120km
Day 3 - 115km
Click HERE for the maps/charts

They offer two groups to join:

1. Cycling for glory - with timed sections where you can challenge yourself against the clock, claim the win of the day or even win the coveted leader's jersey
Each day, a timed section of about 20km or so is scheduled in the middle of the 80-120km ride.

2. Cycling for personal glory - same routes as the other group but no timed sections.

There are feed zones along the way with standard staples like bananas, etc but they also include exotic snacks that you'll want to stuff yourself with!

You can also extend your visit to make it a long holiday - contact organizer for help with this.

At the moment, flights are cheap to Cyprus so book NOW!!

Click HERE for Registration
Click HERE for more info

Christmas Period Racing = Overloaded, yet undercharged

GVA Baal by Luc van der Meiren

The last weeks were the toughest of the season for me. I had timed my fitness so i would kick ass during the Christmas period of racing  - even went to Spain a couple weeks previous for 10 days to get in the hard trainings.  But the outcome was not to be the way i had planned it in my head.

Usually it wouldn't be especially difficult for me to have done those 7 races in two weeks (or 9 races in three weeks) as i recover quickly from hard efforts but i unfortunately entered this race period with a bladder infection.  I tried to first treat it homeopathically for a few days with cranberry pills, lots of water, garlic, etc but only found out on the morning of Namen World Cup that my attempt had failed miserably. Not only had i missed out on sleep for a whole week from drinking an overload of water and having to pee every ten minutes through the night, but I 'woke up' that morning of the World Cup with a very strong pain in my kidney. Bugger!  Now i had the infection in both bladder and kidney.

Namen World Cup

And if i didnt feel like crap enough, on the drive to Namen, while the other racers were downing their pre-race meals and drinks, i was sipping at a nasty-tasting super strong antibiotic drink.  Needless to say, the race was a disaster.

Just after i crossed the finish line having only beaten a handful of gals, I was greeted by the sweetest group of folks who patiently waited there for me to arrive.  Their enthusiasm was so infectious (no pun intended) that for a moment i thought that maybe i had done better than I thought.  But alas, they were simply there to offer a bit of comfort to me on a very trying day. I got warm comments like, "Way to finish", "You looked great on the descents".  On top of that, my press and media friends jumped in to take photos and even grab an inteview of me.  I felt like a rockstar, a very sick one but nonetheless special. THANKS TO YOU ALL!!!!  I held it together until i got back to the "Peanut" van before i broke into tears.

Essen by Johan Pelgrims

With only four days of semi-rest till the next race i didnt expect much, and i got exactly what i expected. I was 15th but on a course like that i should have been better if health were on my side. I knew things were amiss when on the first long climb almost the whole peloton passed me at twice the speed.

Three days later was yet another World Cup in Zolder, BE - on a Formula 1 track actually.  Last year i cracked my pelvis on the track on an ice patch so with that in mind combined with my neverending recovery from the kidney infection, my expectations were not too high.  Again, even though the course suited me, the best i could manage was 29th.

Two days later i was back at it at GVA Trofee Azencross (Loenhout). This course is never a good one for me and that day it was no different from the years previous. I finished in 19th and put the experience out of my mind.

Essen by Dirk Bruylant

By this point, I was feeling pretty tired but a bit more recovered from the hit my body took from the infection.  I had one day of recovery before the next event so I used it to check out the upcoming course as it was nearby in Leuven. I was joined by some friends to help me with line choices, etc.  Our party on wheels included of course Jonas, Jo Croonenberghs, fellow vegan Frans Claes, and Jimmy Eecloo.    

The next morning after a night of heavy rain, the Fidea Leuven course was completely different. It was still fun to play in the mud the day previous though.  As for the race, it was a real mudfest.  My start was for the first time in a while not so disastrous. During the race i passed a couple of people and finished 12th.  It was a solid race and even more importantly a good feeling that my fitness is still there and confirmation that i am indeed almost recovered from the tool that infection took on me. 

Zolder by Krist Vanmelle

Again, with only one day of rest, I was at the venue of the last race of the Christmas period - GVA Trofee Baal (Sven Nys).  To celebrate a tough period for us, Jonas and I prepared a bunch of Gluhwein and candy to give to all our friends/supporters/fellow racers.  As we ended up parking 300 meters from the venue, almost nobody saw us to celebrate. Oh well, after the race we celebrated ourselves with a bit of gluhwein and a couple pieces of candy - our consolation party as we were in bed by 10pm the night before - New Year's Eve.

As for the race, again i had a decent start and again i passed a couple of riders to come in 14th. What thrilled me about this race was that for the first time this season i saw riders that i normally never see like Reza Hormes-Ravenstijn, Arenda Grimberg and even sprinted for 13th with Ellen van Loy. I cant say i felt like a superhero by any means, but it surely gave me hope for the rest of the season.  The course was also a good one for me i must admit as it was technical and riddled with heavy mud - something that suits me more than the road-race on cross bikes style.

Namen by Patricia Cristens

With another week until my next race (Liévin World Cup-FR), i took a few days to rest and am now back onto interval/power training and feeling optimistic.

I know i've said it before but i feel like i cannot say it enough - I want to thank you all for your unwavering support!! It really makes the racing experience so much more managable on the bad days and memorable every day - a feeling that I am not alone at the start line but with my extended family of sorts!!  It really means the world to me!!

GVA Baal by Filip François

Thanks Jonas (aka CakePie) for being the best husband ever, thanks to Jurgen Landrie, Sofie Piens, and Ernst van Looveren for being the best crew support, all my facebook/twitter/email friends, Jonas' and my families, all my excellent sponsors like BABOCO, STEVENS, 3T, ProBar, Challenge Tires, Mt Tam Bikes, and BikePure, and of course to all my friends and supporters who stand on the sidelines at the races to cheer their hearts out for me and to take such gorgeous photos of me; i hear - and sometimes see - you all!!!!!



Busy...busy...busy

I am just back from GVA Essen - our first real mud race of the season! I finished 13th - again, i suppose its not so bad considering yet another lackluster start. must work on this somehow...
Anyway, since i have to get ready for the Namen World Cup tomorrow BUT wanted to update you on what i've been up to the last weeks, i figured it's easiest to give you a link to my CYCLOCROSS Magazine update online that was just published yesterday. Hope the stories help you to feel you've "been in the basket" through all my adventures including my mid-season trip to southern spain! Here is the LINK.

What wasnt included in the article is a link to the article i just wrote about Orange Babies Cycling Team - a pro cross team that promotes a non-profit (helps pregnant African HIV+ mothers and their babies). Here is the LINK.

And here is another link to the Het Nieuwsblad photo gallery give you an idea what our first muddy race of the season was like. if you look at the photos in the mid-30's you'll see my big head! CLICK HERE.

Guest appearance in UK Magazine - The Vegetarian

In the UK Magazine The Vegetarian, I got to write about some of the common myths of a vegan diet - always a fun topic for me!
It was published over the summer. The face shot was taken by Russ Wright and the larger one was by Krist Vanmelle - just in case you cant read the photo credits.
If you want to read the whole thing, let me know.
Thanks!

As for my racing, it is finally going a bit better the last two races. I got 15th in Superprestige Hamme-Zogge and 14th in Superprestige Gavere. 

This weekend is Koksijde World Cup then the next day Jonas and i are off to Spain for some mid-season training. I have never done a mid-season training camp so i am really super mega excited! maybe i will even get some color in my pasty white legs.

Highlights of the last two months

My journal was just published on CYCLOCROSS Magazine. Enjoy!

My STEVENS bike is FAMOUS

CYCLOCROSS Magazine just featured it in their "Pro Bike Profile" category. CLICK HERE to check it out.

Sleepy-eyed
by Willem Beerland

As for the racing, last weekend I was on the starting line yet again for the Superprestige Ruddervoorde event. It was a chilly rainy day so i was fairly excited about the conditions after last weekend's disaster in the heat.  I was also excited to race an actual technical course - the harder the better for me it seems.
But much to my disappointment, I awoke that morning with debilitating middle back pain.  It was a constant pain that jumped a few levels every time i took a deep breath - like when trying to ride a bike. Tears immediately filled my eyes. 
I didnt figure out what it was from until Jonas and i were already at the race site 1.5 hours from home. It was from a burn in my throat that happened a couple of years ago when i drank an oversized bottle of SOBE energy drink thinking it was coconut milk. Who would have thought that milk and cream would be in that bright white energy drink. Energy and milk never went together in my mind.

not a good time to
fall asleep
-by Willem Beerland

Anyway, after mini camera crews and biopsy equipment were guided down my throat, it was discovered that the milk indeed left a burn mark on my throat and stomach. unreal.  Well, they do say that milk is toxic and since i hadnt had any in over 15 years i guess my insides were not well prepared for it and i paid dearly.  The burn seems to flare up every eight months or so.
So again in my race, i had one speed which fell just under the knife stabbing pain level - and only good for a finish in the high teens. bugger.  It is amusing to see the photos of myself from the race - in half of them my eyes are closed.  I took a handful of heavy duty painkillers (all legal according to doping control) to see if that would do something - it did almost nothing for the pain but it did put me in a dreamlike state.  Again i heard so many cheers for me - all of which strangely sounded like they were yelled in slow motion. And the faces in the crowd periodically came clear but then in a flash they were gone.  This is why i never even tried pot - i really dont like the feeling of being out of control!

Sleeping on the job
by Marc van Est

Good news is that the doctor put me on some pill i take for a month. Afterwards, theoretically the burn should be completely healed so this event will not be repeated. As of now, the pain is still there but thankfully not nearly as strong.
Friday we leave for Czech Republic for the first two rounds of the World Cup series. Fingers crossed i can ROCK IT!!

Cooking Demonstration NOW on Sidebar of Blog

If you look to the left of my blog ( christinevardaros.blogspot.com ) you will see my cooking demonstration that was recently on tv. it is also with my friend and fellow vegan Tonya Kay. I didnt expect they would make my mini cooking demonstration a "stand-alone" show so it is a little informal - oops. Anyway, i make these when i run out of PROBARs. If you dont know what a PROBAR is, you can see them on the counter while i put together my homemade version.