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LIAM ROSSITER PREDICT YOUR TIME STARTS TONIGHT Tonight (Wednesday) sees the start of the club's competitive season with the Liam Rossiter Predict Your Time competition. Sign on is at John Foley's, Kilrush from 6:15 with the first rider off at 6:30. Timekeepers for tonight are Liam and Emma. Remember, it's not the fastest cyclist that wins but whoever finishes closest to their predicted time. Many thanks to Liam for his generous sponsorship. Please note that anyone wishing to participate in this season's club competitions will need to hold at least a club competition license. You can try an event for one night but a license is necessary for subsequent nights. Please contact Enda Donnelly with any queries.
WEEKEND SPINS Another fine weather spell at the weekend brought plenty of cyclists onto the roads. Saturday saw 2 groups heading towards Cappoquin. One group then went onto Villierstown, Clashmore and home via Ardmore and Old Parish. The other group went to Ballyduff, Tallow and home. On Sunday a large group went to Lismore, Deerpark, Knockanore and Youghal, returning home via Ardmore and Old Parish. Weekend spins will continue to meet at John Foley’s, Kilrush on Saturday and The Square on Sunday, both at 9.30am. There will also be a spin on Easter Monday, meeting at John Foley's at 9:30.
BEGINNERS WELCOME We had 2 groups this morning, one going to Lismore and back via Deerpark and the other covering the Whitechurch circuit. We will welcome any newcomers to cycling to join with us on Sunday mornings. First time newcomers will complete a 6 mile circuit for a number of weeks until such time as they feel comfortable completing 2 laps of a six mile circuit. This circuit is: from Kilrush roundabout to Powersfield House. Turn left here and continue on to Carriglea School. Turn left again and arrive at t-junction on the Kilmurray Road. From there return directly to the town bypass at the old Glass Factory. As soon as you are comfortable completing 2 laps of this circuit, (12 miles) it is another short jump to complete the regular Whitechurch route (15 miles). We are committed to ensuring that the pace of the spin will be suited to your ability. We also feel sure that if you commit to these spins for 10 weeks, your level of fitness will improve dramatically. We meet every Sunday in the Square at 9.30 and depart shortly after the main group of regular cyclists. All newcomers welcome, provided you are over 16, and have a helmet. Because this group is built around 3 different distances (6 miles, 15 miles and 30+ miles), we need one or two other club members to help out with one of the distances. If you are willing to help out with any of these distances, we will be delighted to have you on board.
RACING REPORTS Ras Luimni – Caherconlish, March 28th 7 club members made the trip to county Limerick last Sunday for this race. The course was generally flat but with a lumpy couple of kms at the start of each lap. Enda Donnelly was our sole rider in the A1/A2 race, over 5 laps. In a race that was won by Dan Morrissey's Andrew Ahearne over The Edge's Sean Lacey, Enda finished in the bunch. He was unlucky not to make a break and was involved in a few moves but unfortunately, and by his own admission, not the right ones. He was happy with his race though, as part of his preparation for next weekend's Ras Mumhan. Brian Hallissey was our representative in the A3 race which was 3 laps of the circuit. When what turned out to be the winning break got away the bunch couldn't get organised to chase it down. Brian tried to get across to the break but couldn't make it and the breakaway managed to finish just ahead of the main bunch with the win going to Blarney's Brendan McLoughlin. We had 5 riders in the 2 lap A4 race; Emma Walsh, Keith Walsh, Rory Moloney, Anthony Dwyer and Sean Dwyer. Sean punctured in the first 5 miles and despite (or maybe because of) a wheel change couldn't get back on. Rather than making a beeline for the cakes and sandwiches as many might have predicted he rode around to complete the race, working up an appetite and getting in some training for Whitechurch. There was more drama a couple of miles up the road as Emma came down in a crash. Thankfully she was ok. The bunch stayed together for the duration of the race, shutting down any attacks, despite efforts from Keith, Rory and Anthony to escape. With the race showing no sign of breaking up on the fast downhill to the finish there was little room for manoeuvre and the 3 lads rolled in with the bunch.The best of luck to Enda and Damian who are taking part in Ras Mumhan and the Gorey 3 day respectively this weekend.
CYCLING QUOTE “It's just a hill. Get over it."
WEEKEND SPINS Club spins continue to increase in popularity each week and the fine spring weather ensured another large turnout last weekend. On Saturday one group went to Ballymacarbry, Clogheen, over The Vee and home by Cappoquin while a smaller group went around the Millstreet circuit. Sunday saw over 40 riders assembled in The Square. A large bunch went to Youghal Bridge, Tallow and home by Lismore and Cappoquin and another group travelled in the opposite direction going back via Clashmore and Mount Stuart. It's great to see the numbers growing each week and hopefully this trend will continue as the weather begins to improve. Weekend spins will continue to meet at John Foley’s, Kilrush on Saturday and The Square on Sunday, both at 9.30am.
BEGINNERS WELCOME On a wonderful spring morning it was very heartening to see a group of 12 with our Option C regular Sunday spin. The entire group stayed together until we reached the Welcome Inn at Cappagh, where one group turned left and completed the Whitechurch circuit while the other went on to Lismore and Tourin. We will welcome any newcomers to cycling to join with us on Sunday mornings. First time newcomers will complete a 6 mile circuit for a number of weeks until such time as they feel comfortable completing 2 laps of a six mile circuit. This circuit is: from Kilrush roundabout to Powersfield House. Turn left here and continue on to Carriglea School. Turn left again and arrive at t-junction on the Kilmurray Road. From there return directly to the town bypass at the old Glass Factory. As soon as you are comfortable completing 2 laps of this circuit, (12 miles) it is another short jump to complete the regular Whitechurch route (15 miles). We are committed to ensuring that the pace of the spin will be suited to your ability. We also feel sure that if you commit to these spins for 10 weeks, your level of fitness will improve dramatically. We meet every Sunday in the Square at 9.30 and depart shortly after the main group of regular cyclists. All newcomers welcome, provided you are over 16, and have a helmet. Because this group is built around 3 different distances (6 miles, 15 miles and 30+ miles), we need one or two other club members to help out with one of the distances. If you are willing to help out with any of these distances, we will be delighted to have you on board.
RACING – Carrick & Carrigaline - Large numbers of DCC riders take to the road!!!
9 DCC riders made the short trip to Carrick on Suir for the annual St. Patrick's day race last week.Enda Donnelly and Damian Travers lined out in the A1/A2 race. Again the winning move formed at the start of the race. A break of 6 riders went away. The break included Banteer winner and man of the moment Sean Lacey. Enda tried to get across to the break with two others, but they couldn't quite bridge the gap and went back into the bunch. Despite attempts to form a chasing group, the race remained as a main bunch and a leading break. The break shelled riders until there were two remaining and Sean Lacey beat Robin Kelly of Comeragh CC to the finish. Damian had the bad luck to puncture on the second lap, but completed the race as training for Easter stage racing. Enda didn't have much left in the legs for the finish up St. John's hill, but finished safely in the bunch and feels his form is improving as the races go by. Maurice Hickey, Brian Hallissey, Keith Walsh, Anthony Dwyer, Rory Moloney and Sean Dwyer started the A3/A4 race. Again there was a very large field in this race, almost 120 riders. The race blew apart at the start of the second lap and some harsh lessons in positioning were learnt by our newer racers. After this a group of 10 riders broke away. Brian, Maurice and Keith were in the main bunch but weren't able to bring back the break. Brian and Keith finished strongly and both were in the top 15. Sean and Anthony found themselves in a group just off the main bunch, but this group was unwilling to work together and never regained contact. The lads put in a good shift though, doing most of the work for the group and hopefully this will stand to them. Debutant Rory was also caught out when the field split but worked hard and showed plenty of determination completing the race.
Damian Travers, Maurice Hickey, Brian Hallissey and Rory Moloney made the trip to Cork last Sunday for The Edge Sports race in Carrigaline. Run over a circuit officially described as undulating, but for which the terms vicious and savage were also heard, Brian was among the fewer than 20 finishers from over 100 starters. The race was won by race organiser, The Edge's Timmy Barry. I hope to have a full report of the carnage next week.
LIAM ROSSITER PREDICT YOUR TIME STARTS MARCH 31st The club's competitive season starts next Wednesday, March 31st with the Liam Rossiter Predict Your Time competition. This will run for 5 nights over the Whitechurch circuit with the first rider off at 6:30 on the first Wednesday and 6:45 on the 4 following Wednesdays. Sign on is at John Foley's, Kilrush from 6:15. Many thanks to Liam for his generous sponsorship once again. Please note that anyone wishing to participate in this season's club competitions will need to hold at least a club competition license. You can try an event for one night but a license is necessary for subsequent nights. Please contact Enda Donnelly with any queries.
SMARTER TRAVEL DUNGARVAN The Department of Transport is running a Smarter Travel Area competition for Local Authorities throughout Ireland. Through the national smarter travel initiative, €50million will be put in place over 5 years to help make the change from cars to healthier and more sustainable ways of commuting. This is a national competition, and it is envisaged that only 4 towns will be selected from all over Ireland. Smarter Travel Dungarvan are looking for submissions from the public about how to get more people cycling (or walking) to work and school. As cyclists you might have some good ideas and suggestions and they would be very interested in hearing from members. Please email smartertravel@waterfordcoco.ie with your thoughts.
CYCLING QUOTE “Ride it like you stole it."
15th March WEEKEND SPINS With the fine spell of weather continuing, club spins once again attracted large numbers at the weekend. Saturday saw 2 groups going over the Vee; from different directions. One group went via Ballymacarbry, Newcastle, Clogheen and Lismore, passing the other group descending the Vee in the opposite direction. There was another huge crowd in The Square on Sunday morning. A large group went to Cappoquin, Camphire, Knockanore and Youghal with another bunch going to Cappoquin, Villierstown, Clashmore, Ardmore and Old Parish. Weekend spins will continue to meet at John Foley’s, Kilrush on Saturday and The Square on Sunday, both at 9.30am.
BEGINNERS WELCOME We are always pleased to welcome more beginner cyclists. We are committed to making sure that we provide the most suitable distance for anyone who comes with us for the first time. The beginner’s route is around the 6 mile Kilmurray circuit. This is a quiet road and suitable for those who join with us for the first time. Advice for those just beginning with us: as the days get longer during March get in a short spin midweek. This will increase your fitness quicker, and will also ensure that if you have to miss our Sunday group spin for any reason, you will be able to keep up when you return the following week. Below is a rough guide to what we aim to provide for beginner cyclists: 4 weeks of Kilmurray circuit. This is just over 6 miles. As the weeks go by, you may be able to do 2 laps of this circuit. Then you will move on to our regular Whitechurch Route. This is a 15 mile route, so if you are able to complete 2 laps of Kilmurray, then this route is the next logical step. If you do this route for 4 weeks, the next step is to cycle to Affane for 2 weeks. You are then ready to complete the process of cycling 30 mile (50km) to Lismore and back. Of course, if you want to stay with a particular shorter route for a longer number of weeks, then do that.
RACING – BANTEER BANDITS 6 DCC riders went to Banteer, Co. Cork for the Mick Cahill memorial race on Sunday last. First away were Damian Travers and Enda Donnelly in the A1/A2 race, 7 laps of a 15km circuit. The race was totally dominated by The Edge CC who took the first 3 places and 5 of the top 10. After a group of 5 broke away on the first lap the lads tried to get away a few times but every move was chased and closed down by the rest of The Edge team and they finished in the bunch. The A3/A4 race was over 5 laps of the same circuit. There was a huge field in this, including Maurice Hickey, Brian Hallissey, Anthony Dwyer and Sean Dwyer among the 140 or so riders. The A4s had a 30 second start but the whole field was together by the end of the first lap, making for pretty chaotic racing. Maurice escaped in what turned out to be the winning breakaway and secured a top 10 finish. Good work Maurice. Brian and Sean finished well up in the main bunch and Anthony led in the next bunch on his debut outing having been unlucky to get caught on the wrong side of a split on the third lap.
CLUB COMPETITION LICENSES Please note that anyone wishing to participate in this season's club competitions will need to hold at least a club competition license. You can try an event for one night but a license is necessary for subsequent nights. Please contact Enda Donnelly with any queries. The club's competitive season starts on March 31st with the Liam Rossiter Predict Your Time competition. This will run for 5 nights over the Whitechurch circuit with the first rider off at 6:30 on the first Wednesday and 6:45 on the 4 following Wednesdays. Sign on is at John Foley's, Kilrush. Many thanks to Liam for his generous sponsorship once again.
CYCLING QUOTE “The best rides are the ones where you bite off much more than you can chew, and live through it."
RACING - Broadford 7 DCC riders headed to Broadford, Co. Limerick for the Cycling Pursuits cup last Sunday. Emma Walsh and Sean Dwyer lined up in the A4 race, a pretty flat 55km over 4 laps. The over-40s were given a 2 minute start and proved better organised than the main bunch, staying away for the duration. The strong wind was making attacking difficult but Emma and Sean were active near the head of the bunch throughout and both finished well up in the group, very happy with their performances. The A4 category should attract a lot more members over the season looking to find an outlet for their hard training. Seeing as the A3 bunch was not cooperating well Maurice Hickey took matters into his own hands and attacked with another rider to forge ahead for almost 3 laps. A powerful performance on a windy day. The A2/A1 group worked better together and caught the others half way through the race. Shortly after this catch was made Damian had the bad luck to get caught behind a crash and damage to his front wheel meant the end of Damian’s race. After a couple of laps without anybody succeeding in escaping from the bunch, Brian Hallisey and 5 others formed the break of the day. They had to work hard in the wind to get away and first and second place eventually came from this break. Unfortunately Brian, and his 3 other breakaway companions (including Abbeyside man Pat Kenneally) were overhauled by the bunch just before the finish. It was a great performance from Brian to get into a break with some very strong senior riders on a course that would not suit him. Enda and Dzintars were happy with their race and Maurice punctured near the end of the race, but got a great workout with his early move. Club spins were well supported again last weekend as large numbers took to the roads to make the most of the spring sunshine. The easterly wind meant that the coast road featured prominently in route planning and on both Saturday and Sunday groups headed for Bonmahon and Kill with riders going on to Kilmeaden, Portlaw and Carrick on Suir. Weekend spins will continue to meet at John Foley’s, Kilrush on Saturday and The Square on Sunday, both at 9.30am.
BEGINNERS WELCOME Again this week we were pleased to welcome more beginner cyclists. We are committed to making sure that we provide the most suitable distance for anyone who comes with us for the first time. The beginners route decided upon last week is around the 6 mile Kilmurray circuit. This is a quiet road and suitable for those who join with us for the first time. The group today decided that they wanted to do a little bit more, so they cycled it all over again! A total of 12 miles! Well done! Our more regular cyclists completed the usual Lismore route, getting there in record time with a strong wind behind them. Of course, the journey home was tough, but the group worked very well together keeping turns at the front very short. Advice for those just beginning with us: as the days get longer during March get in a short spin midweek. This will increase your fitness quicker, and will also ensure that if you have to miss our Sunday group spin for any reason, you will be able to keep up when you return the following week. Below is a rough guide to what we aim to provide for beginner cyclists: 4 weeks of Kilmurray circuit. This is just over 6 miles. As the weeks go by, you may be able to do 2 laps of this circuit. Then you will move on to our regular Whitechurch Route. This is a 15 mile route, so if you are able to complete 2 laps of Kilmurray, then this route is the next logical step. If you do this route for 4 weeks, the next step is to cycle to Affane for 2 weeks. You are then ready to complete the process of cycling 30 mile (50km) to Lismore and back. Of course, if you want to stay with a particular shorter route for a longer number of weeks, then do that.
CLUB COMPETITIONS STARTING SOON – LIAM ROSSITER PYT The club's competitive season starts on March 31st with the Liam Rossiter Predict Your Time competition. This will run for 5 nights over the Whitechurch circuit with the first rider off at 6:30 on the first Wednesday and 6:45 on the 4 following Wednesdays. Sign on is at John Foley's, Kilrush. Many thanks to Liam for his generous sponsorship once again. The club runs various events to suit all abilities and that we need volunteers outside of committee members to help run these events to make them a success. If anyone is prepared to do timekeeper for a night please let us know.
NEW DATE FOR SPECSAVERS OPEN RACE Please note that the club's Open Race, kindly sponsored by Specsavers, will now take place on the later date of August 15th.
TRAMORE DUATHLON 3 club members took part in the Spokes Duathlon in Tramore last Saturday. Michael Moloney, Siobhan Dunphy and Sean Dwyer took on the 3k-16k-3k run-cycle-run event and all 3 posted impressive times. It was a new experience for yours truly and my legs still haven't forgiven me.
WOMENS CYCLING WEEKEND 27-28 MARCH A training weekend will take place in Mullingar at the Annebrook House Hotel. This event is about getting women of all ages and fitness levels together for a coached cycling weekend; to build social links between female cyclists and to encourage participation in cycling be it in sportifs; leisure events; commuting or at competition level. For full information go online www.womenscycling.ie
CYCLING QUOTE “This too shall pass” - Old hebrew saying to be repeated to oneself when climbing.
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