TCRNo11 Day 9 // Loans, Downpayments, Defaults and Returns

Words by Jake Thorpe

Photos by Chiara Redaschi, Matt Grayson, Tom Gibbs, and Tomás Montes

‍

‍

The Creditor Comes Knocking

‍

Until 09:00 Tuesday, the race was at a rare point where three controls were operating concurrently. Most of those aiming for a GC Finish lay strung out across Italy; all but a final few Francophiles eking out their last bonne journées, and the odd speed demon backheeled into the Balkans by Italy’s boot.  

‍

At the stroke of 09:00, however, CP3 shut up shop – issuing its final stamp to British teacher, Mike Boddington (034). After 200 hours and 2300 kilometres on the road, Mike scratched shortly after, leaving pair Lora Patteeuw (394a) and Klaus Demeire (394b) each wearing a sleeve of the potential Maglia Nera.

‍

‍

There are, however, still plenty of riders determined to pursue a Race Finish who are forging ahead despite the CP cut-off. One of those is Mike Hall Bursary rider, Lis Gardner (375a), soldiering on alone after an early scratch from pairs partner, Loz. We admire her tenacity. Sadly, last night, the other Bursary rider left on the road, Joe Howe (012) was forced to scratch from the Riviera de Levante after a cracked tooth left him unable to fuel properly. 

‍

Following the CP closure, Wednesday recorded the most race scratches yet; in fact, Comms Manager Jon called it the largest scratch day of his 6 year tenure. The 11th edition of the TCR has seen fewer scratches early in the race than a typical year, perhaps, in part, due to an early control. Gaining two of the five intermediate stamps within 1,100 km undoubtedly lends riders some early confidence, but faced with a further ~3,500 km separating you from the Black Sea, that loan is quickly repaid, with interest.

‍

‍

The Keirin is Underway

‍

Elsewhere, full of many reaping the rewards of a different loan – that of a well-timed sprint – the Party Boat has now set sail, carrying 15 riders 9 hours and 217 nautical miles closer to Constanța’s finish line. Peter Kronberger (026) was first to the port, leaving himself exactly 5 hours to see the sights of Bari before departure – a comfortable margin considering those of the riders who’ve preceded him. Peter was followed closely by Nick Hulse (325), Justinas Leveika (023) and Jana Kesenheimer (001).

‍

‍

Jana, the fastest woman to each of the race’s controls so far, boarded the ferry facing a considerably more difficult challenge to retain this accolade than first anticipated. When Monday’s ferry had become a lost cause, she’d slowed her pace down to squeeze in some more active recovery in the run up to Wednesday morning’s Keirin, when the derny of the ferry’s prow will lift, and the sprint will begin.

‍

Hoping to combine her active rest with some of the more passive variety, Jana had plans to book herself in for a sports massage while she waited to board. At least someone had picked up on Martin Moritz’ (297) hot tip of checking out Bari’s most opulent spa. To further aid recovery, Jana gathered together a feast of champions: yoghurt, fruit, granola, and – incongruously enough – pickles. On the menu that evening? Parfait with a twist.

‍

‍

Lael Wilcox (112), on the other hand, seemed to be paying closer attention to the recovery of bike than of body. Despite having ridden 740 km since 7am on Monday – with only an hour’s nap in L’Aquila at the witching hour en route – prior to her arrival in Bari, she made a beeline for a bike shop to refresh brake pads and rubber ahead of her final stretch. The question is, what does this imply about her potential route choices through the Balkans? 

‍

Cynthia Carson (137), who we might’ve expected to have had similar priorities to Lael following her slew of punctures, was forced to place more scrutiny on her physical wellbeing than her bike’s mechanical function after suffering a crash in the coastal crosswinds. Patching herself up at a local pharmacy, she continued on towards Bari, arriving with 2 hours in hand for her Adriatic crossing. Plenty of time; or so she thought. Bouncing back and forth through Bari in search of something or other – a bike shop, perhaps, or maybe Martin’s spa – this buffer soon evaporated, forcing her to dash to reach the port on time, arriving with not a minute to spare. Coming in the wake of a disturbed night’s sleep in one of the less comfortable corners of Pacentro’s control, we imagine the ferry’s enforced bed rest will come as welcome respite for Cynthia.

‍

‍

‍

A Stench and a Squeeze

‍

Last but one to the terminal, Mark Kowalski (278), had planned a possible contingency should he find himself “in a panic” – a route that bypassed the city, and its resupplies, pressing on, instead, straight to the terminal. Unsurprisingly, after covering 775 km in 39.5 hours of continuous progress from Siena, and with only 2 hours until embarkation, “in a panic” was exactly where Mark found himself. Kicking his contingency into action, he scaled the city’s sea wall and hopped, like a terrestrially-bound crow, along the seafront. That was until, while fording a minor inlet, Mark found himself knee deep in putrid gunge – the effluent discharge of an entire city. Staunchly refusing to dissipate, no matter the ferocity of the scrub, the stench followed Mark into the port, towards the terminal, and up onto the boat. We can’t imagine he was particularly popular with his fellow passengers – nor the crew of Control Car 2, for that matter, who were forced to track him down on deck to hear the full story.

‍

Chasing Kowalski down through Italy and out onto the Adriatic coast was Jackson Long (078). Unfortunately, Jackson’s sprint down the coast fell short of its mark. Hoping to complete the line up of the third wave of sprinters taking to the Krujë mountains of Albania, Jackson had made swift progress down through the Apennines, neck and neck with Lael to the fourth control, arriving 7 mins ahead of the Alaskan. While Lael pushed on, however, Jackson slept for 4 hours – a decision that might’ve tipped the scales of his fortune. By 19:00 on Tuesday, Jackson was 30 minutes ahead of where Martin had been just 2 days earlier. Without the incentive of a podium finish to stoke his legs, however, the American decided the squeeze wasn’t worth the juice. Feeling, nevertheless, like an amorphous mass of pulp and pomace, in the wake of his unreserved effort, Jackson made the only sensible decision and went off in search of a Peroni.

‍

‍

Brief Encounter

‍

Tuesday saw the first riders taking a more direct approach from the floating fifth parcours to the race’s final control in Burrel. Several of Albania’s second wave, currently vying for a podium spot in Constanța, decided that their handling skills and bike choices would allow them to gain time by taking the direct, off-road approach to Villa Bruci, against those taking the longer, paved detour.

‍

Among them, Nicolas Chatelet (046) opted to bridge stretches of tarmac with an off-road flyover. Puncturing three times, however, the Frenchman – who had held the head of the race for much of its first week – arrived 6th to the control, last of those who’d taken the same route.

‍

‍

Thirty-two minutes later, Christoph Strasser (002) – who, unsurprisingly, had taken the paved detour – pedalled into the hotel driveway to claim his stamp. Two minutes after that, he left again. The Austrian wasn’t wasting a moment. In the Control Point WhatsApp group, volunteer Stef, warning control point photographer Tom of Christoph’s approach, messaged simply he’s here; followed, rather swiftly, by he’s gone. Brevity is the soul of wit.

‍

‍

‍

The Hunter Becomes the Hunted

‍

Making slightly less brisk progress, Control Team 1 caught Martin sauntering into the thick smog of one of North Macedonia’s all-male smoke sheds – known elsewhere as cafés – for his morning fix. Two cappuccini in hand, and already having made friends with the German-speaking barista, Martin emerged with ample fodder for a lengthy coffee morning. 

‍

Suffering with saddle sores and zone-2-limited-legs after pushing himself to breaking point during the frantic charge to Bari, Martin’s pace had slowed significantly since arriving in the Balkans. A spritely competitor and a reasonably safe position on the podium seemed to have knocked the stuffing out of his race. But this is the TCR, and those riders fresh from Monday’s sailing, stoked by the proximity of their competitors and the paucity of potential reward, had the fire burning hot in their bellies. It mightn’t be long before Martin will have to keep an eye on his 6, as well as his 12. Unfortunately, given the German’s characteristic good company, the team soon had to make their excuses; there was a Boy Wonder to catch.

‍

‍

‍

One Time to Rule Them All

‍

There had been a query raised from Victor’s post-match analysis of his dash to the ferry. It seemed unclear the nature and specificity of the support he was receiving from friends back home. Stopping for a chat in Niš, the last city before the Bulgarian border, Victor clarified that no assistance was sought or needed, but that he had received an average speed calculation from a friend in France. This calculation duplicated a process Victor himself had been doing every hour. He then demonstrated his process of continuous calculation with the Race Director who, satisfied with the information and Victor’s total self-sufficiency, took no further action. The race leader, throughout, showed impeccable sportsmanship and an unwavering commitment to the spirit of unsupported racing.

‍

By the end of the day, Victor was 9 hours up on Martin, an advantage gained over the course of just 36 hours. Plagued by punctures – his Tubolitos, now sorely missing the terrain of Western Europe – and having been thrown from the saddle thanks to a loose rack mount dropping his luggage onto his rear wheel, Martin was not off to the smoothest of starts. But it takes more than an imbalance of fortunes to explain what’s separating the front of this race. At this point, it seems Victor’s lead is powered more by spirit than by strength. The young Frenchman is fast, but Martin – arguably – has shown us in the first half of this race that he can be faster. When all is said and done, average moving speeds hold little water; there’s only ever one race time. 

‍

‍

Scratch Report

Joe Howe (012) – Rider scratched 22:15 5/8 via WhatsApp due to a broken tooth resulting in an emergency dentist visit.

Mike Boddington (034) – Rider scratched 22:07 5/8 via sms due to fatigue related issues.

Lili Delannoy (379a) – Rider appears to be on a train home - so scratched.

Clémence Vandergheynst (379b) – Rider appears to be on a flight home - so scratched.

André Ruhner (186) – Rider scratched 3:58 CEST 5/8 via email due to technological failure preventing rider from continuing safely.

Erika Jaand (021) – Rider scratched 3:58 CEST 5/8 via email due to technological failure preventing rider from continuing safely.

Jarna Verho (087) – Rider scratched 20:09 CEST 5/8 via email due to achilles injury.

Patrick Cassidy (336) – Rider scratched 19:26 CEST 5/8 via WhatsApp due to achilles injury.

Stephen Haines (061) – Rider scratched 18:02 CEST 5/8 via WhatsApp due to illness.

Edgar Haldimann (134) – Rider scratched 18:33 CEST 5/8 via WhatsApp due to fatigue.

Lucas Alvarez Canga (337) – Rider scratched 12:05 CEST 5/8 via WhatsApp due to knee pain.