TCRNo10 Day 7: Turkish Delights

‍

Turkish delight 

The Race has reached Asia, the luscious greenery of Europe swapped for dry, dusty heat and the lively sounds of Arabesque music. 

At the front, Robin Gemperle (002) arrived at 15:05CEST at the penultimate CP in Çanakkale, Türkiye, a location last seen at TCRNo4. Robin was the first rider to reach Asia and has a lead of ~100 km ahead of the chasers.

Behind him Abdullah Zeinab (021) arrived at 18:57CEST at CP4 and Christoph Strasser (001) at 00:23CEST. Christoph has significantly closed the gap on Abdullah and is now only 30 km behind the Australia at the time of writing.

‍

Also crossed into Asia and through CP4 are Tim de Witte (003) and David Tschan (050), while Andre Bachmann (005), Ben Chadourne (060), Florian Moreau (067), and Lucas Strittmatter (197) are heading for the ferry crossing.  

‍

Gereon Tewes (295a) and Sherry Cardona (295b) were the first Pair to reach CP3 in Kosovo, and this morning crossed into Greece. Sherry and Gereon retain their 200 km lead ahead of the next pair, brothers Louison Muller (313a) and Augustin Muller (313b).

‍

Current first woman Jana Kesenheimer (010) is making her way through Greece towards Türkiye and still holds a commanding lead over second placed woman Jaimi Wilson (004). 

Further back, CP2 closes tonight at 23:59CEST so riders will be hoping to navigate the tough Bjelašnica gravel parcours in good time. 

‍

The entrance to Asia 

To cross into the Asian side of Türkiye, riders have three choices of ferry to reach Çanakkale. Working from west to east along the peninsula, riders can choose between the Kilitbahir–Çanakkale ferry, the Eceabat–Çanakkale ferry or the Gelibolu–Lapseki ferry. 

All three front riders chose to take the latter 30 minute ferry. On his arrival at CP4, Robin Gemperle (002) was feeling the heat, and showing some signs of slowing. The ligament in his left knee was still giving him grief, albeit only when walking rather than cycling. The Swiss rider is now focussed on the final push to Istanbul and avoiding any hike-a-bike sections. 

‍

Abdullah Zeinab (021) was visibly fatigued, wanting to have a 20 minute nap, but he was unable to sleep, leaving CP4 in search of a buffet before taking on the Parcours overnight. However, all was not smooth sailing as Abdullah suffered multiple punctures, his pump no longer working and water supplies running dry. Come morning, he was taking a break resting in a roadside café. 

‍

Behind him, Christoph Strasser (001) arrived at CP4 a few hours later, amongst the hustle and bustle of a Sunday night in Çanakkale and relieved to have made the ferry five minutes before it departed. Christoph finally managed to replace his pump in Türkiye and checked into the CP4 hotel for a few hours rest. “The guys at the front are going so fast, I don’t know how they are doing it. It is a great Race,” he said. 

Cutting it fine

Riders have been cycling for over a week, employing every ounce of their physical and mental endurance, and now over 150 riders have reached CP2 in Bosnia. Mike Hall Bursary rider Joschka Völkel (291) reached CP2 at 12:44CEST and is about to reach Serbia, while behind him Fran Scott (290) arrived at CP2 at 17:55CEST, her wheels now turned towards Montenegro. Further behind, Mike Hall Bursary rider Mersedeh Chegini (292) continues to press on despite missing the CP1 cut-off and has crossed into Bosnia and is closing in on Banja Luka. 

‍

‍

Laura Tovar (011) also reached CP2 last night, while Regan Arendse (014) appeared to miss the turning to the CP this morning, instead continuing on upwards, but has turned back towards Umoljani. 

‍

Some riders have upturned their own expectations. Pairs riders Stef Jacobs (297a) and Stein Van der Eycken (297b) thought the cut-off for CP2 was midnight on Sunday, taking on the Slovenian Parcours in the dark and desperately trying to arrive in time. They were in stitches when they realised their mistake, although no doubt pleased to have arrived a day ahead of the time cut. 

For those at the back, they will dig deep, aiming to reach CP2 in Bosnia before the cut-off at 23:59CEST this evening, the gravel road up to Bjelašnica standing between them and their hopes of remaining in General Classification. 

Grinding gravel 

Some riders are enjoying the gravel while others are now trying to actively avoid it. 

The Accursed Race runner up Adrien Liechti (007) has intentionally chosen to include more gravel where possible and Chas Christiansen (169) thoroughly enjoyed the hike-a-bike section at CP2, while Auri Teniliä (022) wrote on social media that she had spontaneously completely changed her route “as my head cannot deal with the gravel no more.” 

‍

Since having struggled with the off-road third parcours on TCRNo9 in Albania, leading Pairs rider Sherry Cardona (295b) focused on improving her bike handling in anticipation of this year’s TCR and, in doing so, has a newfound love for the rough stuff. 

“After Peshkopi last year I said that’s not going to happen again. I went on gravel races, and now I really enjoy doing it,” said Sherry. 

‍

Sherry and her partner Gereon have also taken to sleeping during the hottest part of the day and riding through the night, in a bid to limit the effects of the heat. 

As riders weave their way towards the Bosporus strait, the race to the Finish is on. Can Abdullah rally? Will Christoph have enough in reserve to catch Robin? Or will the front rider continue to extend his lead all the way to Istanbul? It’s the TCR, anything could happen. 

‍

‍

Scratch Report

‍

015 Sonny Rasmussen

041 Aaron Beard 

150 Conor O Sullivan 

173 Barry van Hilten 

180 Daniel Huxley 

198 Anthony White 

222 Aureli Bisbe Cerveto 

251 Louis Nootenboom

259 Michael Ganz 

263 Andrew Swain 

264 Geert Bonnema

281 Pierre Picard

296a Dulce Pedroso 

296b Telbert James

304a Ruby Beardsall

304b Santiago Roig Dinares

‍

‍