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New tour service similar to 'Amazing Race'

If you've always dreamed of riding to the top of the Eiffel Tower and trying to persuade 15 strangers to dance the cancan, then Steve Belkin has the trip for you.

If you've always dreamed of riding to the top of the Eiffel Tower and trying to persuade 15 strangers to dance the cancan, then Steve Belkin has the trip for you.

Belkin, a 45-year-old Cleveland entrepreneur, is launching Competitours (www.competitours.com), an adventure vacation service that he has taken to describing as " 'The Amazing Race' for regular people."

With a teammate, contestants journey on an 8-, 10- or 14-day tour of western and central Europe, spending their days trying to accomplish - and videotape - challenges supplied by Competitours. The challenges can range from visiting the Torture Museum in Prague and filming a video that shows how a torture instrument could be used as a non-lethal household item to the aforementioned Eiffel Tower shenanigans.

Visiting three to six countries (depending on the length of the trip), travelers will get to pick about five of 10 daily challenges. The videos will be uploaded at the end of the day and judged by Competitours staff back in Cleveland. They'll be publicly viewable online when the competition is finished.

"You can be sarcastic, serious, whatever you want," Belkin said. "It's about whatever you do at each place, not just getting there. But you definitely have to be spontaneous to play."

The cost ranges from $1,995 to $2,950, but the prizes are various combinations of hotel nights (up to 40), airline tickets to anywhere in the world (up to four) and cash (up to $6,500). Cost includes airfare from a major city, a Eurail pass and lodging. *