South East Road Club

8 Riders took part in the Sean Kelly tour last Sunday….. some new members too took part in their first outing in the SERC colours.. veteran member Willy Murphy was out and sped around the 90km course. I meet him near the end on the road where I was on the mobile, and before ya think it Willy I was taking a call and not a ‘break’ ha… Ken Hall from Annagh, making his cycling come back after many years and big into the mountain bike was down with a few friends…I was talking to him at the food stop in Tramore. Myself, Scott with new members Michael Redmond, Mark Radford, Gerry Hanratty and his brother Manus also took on the 90km course. For Mark, Gerry and Michael this would be their first time doing this distance.

We all meet up at the start line after lenghty delays at sign on due too the sheer volume of crowds that were waiting to sign on… somewhere in the region of 4,000 people for the day The mass start was well controlled and everybody took off at a nice easy pace and with great stewarding they were all took through the town safely and let out onto the course. We headed south down the coast road to Tramore, although on the way down we were a bit inland for most of it it was the return journey home when we would be seeing the beautiful Waterford coast line in its finest. The weather was good and the wind blew us south. The bunch is a bit like natural selection in a way… the first 5km are spent jockeying for positions, the racers and fit cyclists all make bee lines up the outside of the bunch to get to the front, while on the inside those who are obviously on their first big cycle start to drop back are take it nice and easy and pace themselves for a long day.

On the way the legend that is Kelly rode by, he departed with with the 160k group at half 8 rode with them for a while then be back to depart with our group and so on… meet Rory Wiley on the road and we spoke for a bit.. he was was only doing the short distance as he had to be back early.. he was riding a very old cyclo cross bike with a Greg Lemond frame.. complete with centre pull brakes and tyres as wide as my arm!… I never seeing anything like it.. either did Lemond I’m sure!… a little while longer I meet Martin ‘the bouser’ Gill… we spoke for a while. it was quit funny, everybody knows the power of the big man, as we ‘crusied’ along we were talking about this and that.. I was doing my best to keep up with him while trying to hold a conversation with collapsing a lung in the effort.. eventually Martin turned to me asked me ‘do you usually travel at this pace’, of which i gasped ‘f***king never!’.. i applied the brakes and he rode on into the sunset… the route down was nice, littered with a few climbs nothing major, but then again we were fresh. I was climbing well, too well i think as the temptation to push yourself to try catch the next rider was great and was to cost me later. I soon got a puncture in the front wheel… I pulled over and started to fix the wheel when the support van pulled up, a lad got out grabbed the wheel went to the back of the van and changed the tube pumped up the wheel with a track pump gave it back and had me on my way quicker than the famous wheel change for Cadel Evans in this years Giro… a great service and its things like that along with stewards at every single junction that made this event so special.

To say crowds lined the route would be an accurate description as people of Waterford embraced the cyclists as to see maybe 1500 to 2000 cyclist pass there door would be a great spectacle. We descended down into Tramore, I had to confess my legs were a little tired and it was only the half way stage, I stopped at the race course for the feed station, by then the que was again long.. so I allowed by the time I got to the counter my body would have shut down!.. anyways I had a few bars etc with me so I was in good shape, anyways do I look like the sort of lad that will starve to death!?..The food was good… everybody got a juice drink, a bread roll and chicken pasta dinner.

I got back on my bike and headed on.. in the town of Tramore up the main street was a steep sharp climb.. as I approached it the steward could see me nod my head in dismay!, he waved his red flag and shouted encouragement as I approached of which I returned the gesture by looking at the climb and then at him and saying ‘ya heartless b******ds’.. said it a bit louder than I wanted but the whole street laughed and cheered my solo effort up this leg breaker…. it kinda felt climbing the Kopenberg in The tour of Flanders for a minute…

The road back was one I was weary off because I knew there would be a head wind, or most certainly a cross wind blowing from my left, however this wasn’t as bad as I thought, as the road was rolly the small dips in the road gave us some shelter… the road was a typical coast road up and down, but the views where spectacular.. small inlets and beaches littered the coast line and every so often Little towns like Annestown that where picture postcard perfect, apart from the steep hill it was built on!.. this was the first part of the day I really suffered, I struggled up this short climb to be passed by people with compact chainsets… the temptation to stop was great, but this old lady standing in her doorway shouted ‘your nearly there young man’.. so I took her word for it and made it at last to the top… I plodded on but was starting to tire now and legs were felling it a bit.. I think we were at the 60km mark at this stage. I had decided to stop in the little sea side village of Bunmahon at the water stop there. I reached it in due course and spent 15 mins there as I knew I would suffer the last 25Km. I went up to the table for my drink and asked the girl for a ‘gin and tonic’ all they had was water and flap jacks, so thought that’ll do.. I eat and drank while giving my legs a rest I got talking to a family who were holidaying there from Tipperary. They where amazed at the bikes and were full of questions and again enjoyed the spectacle… I eventually remounted and headed on, to be confronted with a monster climb straight out of the town. Again there was a large crowd at the bottom of the hill outside the local pub having a few drinks.. this climb was very steep and my legs were already burning, so I didn’t let the club down I made sure I went by the crowd with gusto and determination until I was out of sight, then I got off and walked!!!.. It was actually funny how cyclists think, there was a large group of us walking, all in pairs and all doing their turn at the front!.. we got to the top and we cycled on… the next major climb and I think the longest of the day was just up the road… I could see it in the distance and I could also see many walking it so I allowed I ‘ll be doing that.. I reached the bottom of the climb and did what I could but soon had to dismount and walk.. on the road the lads who marked the course had written 53×11 with a smiley face!!.. cruel or what. I eventually got to the top with a combination of cycling and walking… and by now all i could think off was crossing the line in Dungarvan. Not soon after I could smell somebody having a barbeque.. jesus I was so tempted to just barge in and eat the family out of house and home, it would have been a like a scene from Godzilla when he attacked New York, but I nibbled away on my melted snickers and soldiered on…

My brother in law Michael soon caught me and was determined to finish the course without stopping, not too bad for somebody who cycles once a week and started 3 months ago!…he really enjoyed the spin and is well up for more. There was one little town that the name escapes me, but we descended down the main street for a sharp turn to the left and there was a massive crowd out, so I put it into the big gear got up the head of speed and turned the corner like a pro, passing at least 4 riders in the process all this to great cheers and screams from the adoring crowd, again once out of sight I slowed down got my breath back and was passed out out by the same 4 riders.

I eventually reached the outskirts of Dungarvan and the long straight open road in was mentally tough, as it seemed never ending, but at last the town was insight and so was the finish line… I crossed the line and it was over… I cycled back to the car where not only had Scot and Mark finished but tucked away a subway sandwich in the process. Gerry and his brother were still 15km out, but riding strong… We packed up and went out the road and waited for Gerry and Manus with ice cold cans of coke and food… they stopped and we all chatted about the day and the 2 lads went on to the finish and we headed home…

A well run event, on a very tough course. I enjoyed the first 4km, after that everything was a blur.. ha … no, it was fantastic and the road was good.. the crowds also made it.. I will be back again next year, this time without the walking shoes!

Derek

GREAT RESULTS FROM THE ALL IRELAND YOUTH CHAMPIONHIPS – COALISLAND, CO TYRONE 28TH AND 29TH AUGUST 2010

REECE YOUNG – Under 12
Reece brought home the first ever All-Ireland medal for the club in taking second place in the under 12 time trial, which as won by Adam Thatcher, Slaney C.C. Reece when in fourth place in the criterium had a very nasty fall. He was chasing the leading trio with every chance of catching them when he unfortunately crashed, thus ruining his chances in the overall standings. The criterium was held on a very tight circuit of little over a kilometre with a lot of very tricky corners. Reece showed great courage and remounted his bike and finished the criterium despite having very nasty “road rash”. In the road race he took an excellent fourth place with only inches separating him and the bronze medal winner in a tight bunch finish. Reece comes home with a silver medal and a trophy

NIALL HEFFERNAN – Under 14
Niall had a very good All Ireland’s considering that he missed most of the road-racing season and concentrated on the track where he amassed a lot of wins and a provincial champion’s jersey. He was out of the country for more than two weeks at the height of the season but still must be satisfied with his results, which placed him around the halfway mark in all his competitions.

STEPHEN BRACKEN – Under 15
Stephen had an excellent time trial and finished in fifth place. He led the Criterium with another rider for almost its entirety until they were caught yet on the last lap Stephen managed to hold out for a fine eight place. He deserves the award for the most aggressive rider. In the road race he took 11th place. The bunch sprint was marred by an accident about a quarter of a mile from the finish which took down a lot of riders and seemed to have taken the impetus out of those who weren’t involved in the crash. Stephen comes away with a trophy for the time trial, as there was a trophy for the first six in each stage

CIAN KEOGH – Under 12
Cian is member of Bray Wheelers who lives near Redcross but is such personable young man that he is part of and fits in very well with the SERC family. Cian took was in sixth place in both the criterium and road ace and receives two trophies to reflect those great results.

Thanks to all who supported the under age members, those who sent good luck and congratulatory texts and kept in touch throughout the weekend. All of our riders go terrific support from their families over the weekend, especially as it was a long journey to the North, but it was also a very rewarding journey. It was a very well organised championship, which attracted almost 150 riders from all over Ireland. It’s very re-assuring to know that SERC can compete with the best. These were they crème de la crème of this cycling generation. Well done to all.

Roll on next year

Mick

Well done to all the youth in Roundwood. In the U12 race with Reece taking 1st place, Becky taking 2nd and Keith taking 6th. Gary taking part in his first open race took a fine 8th. Niall took a fine 3rd place in the U14.

Keep up the good work.

The Chain Gang CC, Tralee is happy to announce the 2010 edition of the Conor Pass Challenge, Kerry’s Premier challenge/sportive cycle, will be held on September 18th this year.

In addition to this classic 110km course the Club will also be hosting a 30km family friendly cycle – the Camp Cruise – and a 150km challenge cycle running the complete Dingle Peninsula called the Blasket Blast.

To ease entrants’ registration and to allow better planning, online entry for the cycles has been set up for this year’s events via the following link – https://regonline.activeeurope.com/chain_gang_sportives – and pricing is as follows:

· Camp Cruise 30km (U18) – €5

· Camp Cruise 30km (18+) – €10

· Conor Pass Challenge (16+) – €10 with Cycling Ireland Licence, €20 without

· Blasket Blast (16+) – €10 with Cycling Ireland Licence, €20 without

Registration will still be available on the morning of the event but with the addition of a €5 late registration fee.

The National Breast Cancer Research Institute and St Laurences Community Complex, Co. Kildare, in association with Cuisine de France are delighted to announce the LEINSTER LOOP cycle sportif with STEPHEN ROCHE on Sunday, 19th September 2010.

3 routes of 120 km, 57 km and 15 km will provide a challenge for all and the unique opportunity to ride with a true cycling legend.

Full details and registration are on www.leinsterloop.com.

The Betty D’Arcy Memorial race will be held on Sunday 5th of September starting 12.00 noon sharp sign on from 10am at the Christ Church Old School Gorey.

Combined A2 & A3 race and an A4 race will be held on the day over the Gorey – Crannford Hill – Camolin – Gorey circuit.

Further information is available from Sam D’Arcy on 053-9480713 or at www.slipstreamcyclingclub.com

See the Photos tab for pictures of the Falling Leaves Classic 2010 races, taken by James Forde.

If anyone wants the original high resolution file (free of charge) to produce a print, contact James on 086 1635605.

Reece Young took a fine silver medal in under 12 race, Becky Heaney was in fourth place.

Niall Heffernan took the bronze in the under 14 race while Stephen Bracken was sixth place in the under 16 race.

Congratulations to all.

Best of luck to all the under age squad in Coalisland, Co Tyrone next weekend for the All-Ireland Youth championships.

RACE REPORT FALLING LEAVES CLASSIC – SOUTH EAST ROAD CLUB WOODENBRIDGE ARKLOW – SUNDAY 22nd AUGUST 2010.

(Report by Mick Considine, South East Road Club.)

The inaugural Falling Leaves, which was organised by the South East Road Club, attracted over forty riders for the A2/A3 race and a field of twenty-three for the separate A4 race with a very good representation from the South East and Munster and some riders from the West of Ireland. The race was centred around the tiny and picturesque village of Woodenbridge and no doubt the mention of the word “Woodenbridge” will leave lingering memories for those riders who suffered on the now much in vogue “ New Line “ climb which was tackled four times by the A2/A3 race and three times by the A4 race. The threatened rain showers never materialised and we ended up with a race ran in very favourable sunny conditions

The results of the A2/A3 were determined on the first lap when the eventual first and second placed riders went clear very early and were joined the eventual third placed rider for this trio to fight out a tremendous sprint finish with the main bunch a bit back.

The A4 race splintered with a leading group of eight contesting the sprint

RESULTS – “FALLING LEAVES” CLASSIC, WOODENBRIDGE, ARKLOW A2/A3 RACE

1……Derek Cunningham – Bray Wheelers
2……Wes Murphy – Dublin Wheelers
3…….Brian Hallissey – Dungarvan CC
4…….Richard Hooton – Kanturk CC
5……..Anthony Doyle – unattached
6…….Thomas Lavery Comeragh CC.
First unplaced A3 – Maurice Dore – Bray Wheelers
First unplaced SERC….. Anthony Mills

RESULTS -A4 RACE- “FALLING LEAVES” CLASSIC

1……..John McCormack – unattached
2……..Brian Cullen – Barrow Wheelers
3…….Mark Gunning – Waterford Cycling Club
4…… Dave Allen- Wexford Wheelers
5……..Diarmuid Collins – Orwell Wheelers
6……..Denis O’Brien- Barrow Wheelers
First unplaced SERC – Stephen Furlong

Derek Cunningham winning the 2010 Falling Leaves Classic A2/A3 Race. (Photo courtesy of Liam Ruth)

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More race reports on boards.ie

Photos courtesy of Liam Ruth are on Irish Cycling

The undeage are showing the way again with excellent results from the Bray Wheelers organised Roundwood Grand Prix this morning.

Reece Young won the under 12 race with the large group strung out very early on. Becky Heaney was the only other rider to offer any competition to Reece when she took a fine second place. Keith Furlong and Gary Walshe rounded off another great day for SERC in taking sixth and eighth places respectively.

Niall Heffernan has to get the award for the most impropved rider this year with an excllent third place in the under 14 race against strong competition including a trio from Limerick C.C.. Niall’s excellence and ability on the track is really standing to him.

Best of luck to the under age squad tomorrow in Kilmessan, where they compete in the Leinster championships and in Coalisland next week for the All Ireland Youth Championships.

Can all marshalls be at the Woodenbridge Hotel for 10:30 on Sunday for a race briefing. Please bring your high-vis vests (or club jacket), and a red flag and whistle if you have one.

Thanks.
John

The South East Road Club announce details of the inaugural Falling Leaves Classic, which is to be held on Sunday 22nd August 2010 at 12:00pm. There are two races planned, a combined race for A2 and A3 riders, and a separate A4 race. Both will take place on an exciting new, but tough, course, which includes multiple ascents of the “New Line” hill, a climb which has featured recently in the Shay Elliot Memorial race, the toughest one-day race in the country.

The A2/A3 race will have 4 circuits, for a total distance of just under 80km. The A4’s will do 3 laps. The finish will be at the former IFI factory entrance on the Vale Road. The circuit details can be found here.

Race headquarters will be the Woodenbridge Hotel, who have kindly come on board for the event and opened the doors of Irelands oldest hotel to welcome cyclists from around the country. The hotel, which was first established in 1608, is set in the beautiful Vale of Avoca, just a few miles from Arklow. For more details see the Woodenbridge hotel website.

A feature of the races will be the inclusion of King of the Hills and Sprint primes worth EUR400, courtesy of our generous sponsors, The Woodenbridge Hotel, Sprint Design Inc., Health Matters and Bracken Autobody.

With over EUR1300 on offer in prize money and primes, and with the exciting new course featuring a challenging climb, fast technical descent, a town section through Arklow and a very fast run-in to a flat finish, here’s hoping for a day of high quality racing, perhaps some drama, followed by refreshments in the Woodenbridge afterwards.

Please check back later for additional details. For more information, contact John Maguire on 086 8582046 or Derek Webb on 087 0617615.