The weather conditions in Serres for the last three months has been very rainy, so everything is green and its vegetation is luxuriant!
The roads in previous years where flat, now almost everything has been destroyed by water and there are a lot of washouts and big ruts!
The plants, which did not exist at one time, now are one meter high, obscuring the roads, stones and gutters, making the average speed smaller and the ride more adventurous!
There is no dust in sight, not even a sample! As predicted, the weather will be the same until race day!
In addition to the stones we all “love”, there are awesome routes with sandy soils, such as the “Potatofields”, the “Perseki”, the “Pernieste”, the “Metaxas’ Fort Road”, the “Water Road”, the “Golden soils” at Krousia, and the flats of Vertiskos, without a stone in sight, which makes you ride flat out, giving you the feeling of a supermoto race with incredible grip!
The first day (31/8 Sunday) includes a ride – with the first taste of the stages which will follow the next days for calibration and identification. The afternoon will be followed by an 18km Prologue and the Formal Ceremony start in the Central Square of Serres.
The 2nd day (1/9 Monday), includes 3 stages:
The 1st stage is the «Sidirokastro» 70km, easy to navigate with fast riding, a variety of surfaces, getting into the climate of the race.
The 2nd stage is «Belles», the first major stage of the event, length 200km, quick and easy in the beginning, becoming tighter towards the end with navigation skills needed. This stage includes all kinds of surfaces, with emphasis on stone and soft sandy soil.
The 3rd stage is «Metochi», 50km with the same philosophy as the 1st stage, leading to the hotel where the finish will be. The Liaisons are between, 9 + 17km.
The 3rd day (2/9 Tuesday) takes us to the nearby town of Drama with a mere 70km ride, you will embark on a wonderful journey with the “Nestos River” stage, a total length of 80km. Stony at first, continued with soft soil and sandy surfaces…
The next stage 2nd is the «Rodopi» in Kara Dere and it is an Adventure cycle that will keep a smile on your face for years to come! 80km of absolute riding pleasure!
The 3rd Special stage is the 100km «Achladia-Vrontou», which takes us from the Nestos River to the Ski Centre of Lailias, to an enduro special stage in the dense forest of Perseki, nicknamed “Enduro Paradise”!
Night fall see us camping in the mountains, there will be food and drinks and also live Greek & foreign music from local bands! Caution: The temperature on the mountain will be significantly lower than in the city (10 to 12 degrees lower) so please make sure you have warm clothes and a sleeping bag!
The bivouac is free and authorized repairs can be done. Also, anyone who wants can sleep in the closed retreat with a cost of 10 € per person. The area will be open for visitors and support groups. It is 28 km from Serres, about 35-45 min driving road.
The next day, the 4th (3/9 Wednesday), we return to the Elpida Resort Hotel in Serres, after a small special 60km stage, and the rest of the day, it is a “rest day”, with pool time and lunch, under loud music, ice cream and pool party! Obligatory wet t-shirt competition with the riders! (lol just kidding),
The 5th day (4/9 Thursday) after a liaison 27km stage, we move on to the specific stage of 300km Marathon Stage! A fantastic round – trip over 3 mountains: We start on the Bosdakas Mountain, and crossed over from south to north, a special passage which was made by cows, believe it or not, on to the off road ridges at 1900m above sea level with shrubs, bushes and stones, in a landscape that resembles the Moon! Wild horses, cows, eagles, and tame wolves paint a landscape only found in puzzles, an experience that you will remember forever!
Demanding hard gravel roads follow, but with easy navigation leading to soft gravel roads and the potato fields at “Lailias” mountain, full throttle fun flat sandy roads, which ascend and descend fast but safe. Next is the “Agistro” mountain with beautiful views and easy navi way, to start our downhill return to Serres, finishing with an enduro stage through river streams.
The 6th Day (5/9 Friday) starts with a liaison of 23km to the town of “Nigrita”, followed by the fastest special stage of the race, «Vertiskos», 115km without trace of stones, reminiscent of WRC! We arrive at lake “Kerkini” at “Lithotopos”, where after a short break to refill our batteries, we continue to the next stage of 110km: «Krousia», a mountain with golden sands and thousands of turtles, which spread over the beautiful lake of Kerkini! Greenery and mud at first, trying to avoid …the turtles… please!, little rocky ground and followed by mud and sand concluding with the sun falling over the lake at the of village of Lithotopos where support teams will be waiting. Relaxation, and a free liaison 40km return to Serres .
The 7th day (6/9 Saturday) is ONLY for motorcycles, and it is a pure Enduro stage! Length is 100km, a demanding but beautiful epilogue for such an event! An Enduro MotoRally stage! There will be no excessive difficult passageways and it will be an easy pass for everyone, but the navigation will play an important role for the trials and off road paths, which dominate this stage! After 3-4 hours riding pleasure with start and finish at the hotel, we will rest up and the start the ceremony, followed by an all-night party at the next door bar «ΣΠΙΤΑΚΙ» (so close that we go and return on foot!)
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