CYCLING

Daily Diary: Ambrose talks Turkey - Stage 1

By Aaron S Lee

New Zealand neo-pro Scott Ambrose shares his thoughts with NZ Bike Magazine on the 51st Presidential Cycling Tour of Turkey.

ALANYA, Turkey—A day after the nation commemorated the Anzacs in the centenary of the Gallipoli campaign, the 51st Presidential Cycling Tour of Turkey kicked off in the coastal Turkish resort town of Alanya for the 145-kilometre opening stage.

After the peloton, led by Lotto-Soudal, Etixx-QuickStep and Torku SekerSpor reeled in a five-man break that included Mario Costa (Lampre-Merida), Alessandro Tonelli (Bardiani CFS), Lluis Mas (Caja Rural), Adam Phelan (Drapac) and Federico Zurlo (UnitedHealthcare), British sprinter Mark Cavendish (Etixx-QuickStep) edged Australian neo-pro Caleb Ewan (Orica-GreenEdge) to take the first stage and claim the turquoise leader’s jersey.

Each day, 20-year-old New Zealand neo-pro Scott Ambrose (Team Novo Nordisk) sits down with NZ Bike Magazine to give his personal account of all the action in the eight-day stage race.

Scott’s diary entry: Stage 1 - Alanya - Alanya, 145km

This is the biggest race that I’ve done in my short career, so I was a bit nervous heading into it not knowing what to expect. The legs felt pretty good at the start, and the team goal was to get into the break and we all tried. I had a few attempts myself but it didn’t come off today.

I then looked after our sprinters Andrea Peron (ITA) and Martijn Verschoor (NED) throughout the stage and unfortunately got caught up in the hectic sprint, but I’m still finding confidence in the finishes and still learning.

Our plan was to be aggressive and try to get into the breakaway, but in cycling the plans don’t always happen, so we are ready again for tomorrow and will try again.

This level of racing is a lot more controlled and the big teams take charge, whereas a race like the Philippines the attacks are right, left and centre all day. Today, Lotto-Soudal and Etixx-QuickStep took control and you simply do not get that in the smaller races. So what I’m learning is that the race slows down before it speeds up.

For stage 2, we will try to get in the breakaway again as that’s always a goal of ours to show off the Team Novo Nordisk jersey up the road. It looks like it will be another sprint finish tomorrow, so if I don’t get into the breakaway my job will be to look after our sprinters to make sure  they have food and bottles, and make sure they are safe and up the front.

I prefer stages with a little bit more climbs, but so if I can help my teammates on stages that suit them, then they can hopefully return the favour, and that’s how our team works so I’m always happy to help our guys.

It was really nice racing out and back along the coast, so we had the opportunity to see the stunning Turkish coast twice, which was nice. This country amazing and the people are exceptionally friendly.

The tight finish on the bricks and around the circuits got pretty dangerous at times, but I’m gaining confidence every day to stay near the front when the sprint is about to happen and hopefully work my way toward the podium end of the bunch.

Overall, the team mood is good. We missed the sprint today due to a bit of bad luck, but we are all feeling great and the form is good with all the teammates so we look forward to fighting again tomorrow to see what we can do. Stay tuned…

-Scott Ambrose



Tomorrow’s entry: Stage 2 - Alanya – Antalya, 182km

Stage results / General Classification
1. Mark Cavendish (Etixx - Quick Step) 145 km in 
2. Caleb Ewan (Orica - GreenEdge)
3. Nicola Ruffoni (Lampre - Merida) 
4. Sacha Modolo (Lampre - Merida)
5. Theo Bos (MTN - Qhubeka) 

Aaron S. Lee is a cycling and triathlon columnist for Eurosport and a guest contributor to NZ Bike Magazine.  Image credit: Kei Tsuji | Tim de Waele. Video credit: Scott Ambrose