Retiring Tour Down Under race director Mike Turtur prepares for handover to Stuart O’Grady
Retiring Tour Down Under race director Mike Turtur already has his sights set on some other cycling projects following this year’s race.
Tour Down Under
Don't miss out on the headlines from Tour Down Under. Followed categories will be added to My News.
- Ewan wants revenge in Cadel race
- Neylan is no accidental cyclist
- How to get the most out of your Advertiser digital subscription
Mike Turtur is entering his 22nd and final Santos Tour Down Under as race director this week, but don’t expect too many smiles or waves as he peers out of the sunroof of his official car.
There is too much to do ensuring the race goes smoothly to worry about goodbyes or even reflecting on how a little-known bike race he started 20 years ago has become the state’s biggest tourism event. That can all come later.
Watch over 50 sports LIVE on Kayo! Stream to your TV, mobile, tablet or computer. Just $25/month, cancel anytime. New to Kayo? Get your 14-day free trial & start streaming instantly >
“Obviously because of the demands of the race, being on the road each day and everything to do with making it happen, it will be like normal, because the number one objective like every year is to have a safe race,” Turtur said.
“I guess at the conclusion of it all, maybe I’ll have time to reflect, but I think that will come in the days, weeks and months afterwards.”
This month marks the start of an official handover to Stuart O’Grady, who will shadow Turtur before running the event in his own right next year.
But in no way is Turtur, 61, limping to the finish line after overseeing every edition of the race since its inception in 1999.
“I’m as good as gold in terms of the way I’m feeling about it,” he said.
“I’ve continued on as if I’m going to do another 20, so working with all the people I usually would to get ready for the race.
“We are full steam ahead.”
Turtur is just as proud of the Tour Down Under’s success as he is of winning an Olympic gold medal on the track in the team pursuit in 1984.
The event started from such humble beginnings that the words “international bike race” had to be included on the poster so people would know what the Tour Down Under was.
“As an organiser and from a pure business point of view, to be involved in the event is the pinnacle of my career, because it was something that started from nothing,” he said.
“In the early years, and especially the inaugural year, no one knew what the hell we were on about with this Tour Down Under.
“To say I’m proud is an understatement. The race has given me so much pleasure and satisfaction over the years that it’s hard to put into words.
“Meeting great people, working with great people, seeing great efforts on the road, magic stages where the endeavour of riders has never ceased to surprise me.
“Those things will never leave my mind and it’s been a dream come true.”
Asked to list the moments that stand out in his mind, Turtur goes back to 1999.
“I often think about going to the East End on the Tuesday evening for the circuit race on the very first night of the very first race, hoping that 5000 people might turn up to get this thing off on a reasonable note ... and to have 40,000 odd people arrive was just overwhelming,” he said.
“It was an unbelievable start to the race and it didn’t stop after that.
“Over the years we’ve had such special guests to the race, with Miguel Indurain, Greg Lemond and Bernard Hinault, but for me the crowning glory was in 2012, when we had the greatest of all time, Eddy Merckx, sit in a car with me. He was my idol as a kid.
“Everything he did I read about and to have him as our guest, go to dinner with him and know he is a great person completed the full deal for me, I’ll never forget it.”
The TDU might have started as a bike race, but has grown into a two-week festival and tourism bonanza for the state.
“That was something we wanted to develop right from the early years. We knew as a tourism event it offered a lot of opportunities, but to offer a festival of activities and street parties and the introduction of a women’s race, it complimented the whole deal,” Turtur said.
“The Track Down Under last year, going back to my roots where it all started for me, at the track in January, was something I got a big buzz out of, and I thought ‘how bloody good is this? They’re going around the track and I don’t have to worry about roads or motorists’.
“I’m looking forward to developing that (track event) event into the future.”
Turtur believes the race is in good hands with O’Grady taking over, but says he will put his own unique stamp on it.
“Stuart comes into the role surrounded by a very good group of people who have had many years’ experience, particularly in logistics operation, which is so important.
“He has to develop his own style in terms of what type of race director he will be.
“I’ve got my style, which maybe isn’t the same as Stuart. I’m a bit of a ‘call a spade a spade and a head-kicker’, and whether he goes down that track is something he’ll have to develop.”
So what next for Turtur, who admits that he isn’t very good at sitting still?
“It’s an interesting question when people come to this time of their life and I do hear often that they’re busier in retirement than they’ve ever been,” he said.
“I’ll be open to any suggestions.
“Our bike company has a track refurbishing business and we have just won a contract to do a refurbishment in New Zealand, so that will be an aspect we want to expand.
“I definitely want to do more with The Advertiser Track Down Under and grow it into a nice corporate event.
“We’ve got a place on Yorke Peninsula and I want to enjoy my passion as far as going out in the boat and going fishing, and spending some time in the little bike shop in Moonta.
“Believe it or not I love it – I enjoy working on bikes, I enjoy the interaction with the customers, the smell of the tyres and a bit of grease under the fingernails, so anyone who wants a bike, you better come and see us.”