2007 Index
Newport with the Track Paralympic Team by Bernie McNally January 2007
Ecocabs - riders wanted! by Andrew Casey March 07
Tour of Flanders - a fans perspective by Hugh Byrne April 07
Lally's Flying by Hugh Byrne May 07
Season so far ......by Hugh Byrne May 07
Batterstown - a win at last! by Hugh Byrne May 07
Vets Omnium National Track C/ship by Hugh Byrne June 07
Magic Number Twelve by Hugh Byrne July 07
Sonny Cullen Memorial by Hugh Byrne Sept 07
Ras na mBan - Kilcullen by Bernie McNally Sept 07
Ulster MTB Cross Country C/ship by Hugh Byrne Sept 07
MTB National Marathon C/ship by David O'Neill Sept 07

2007 MTB National Marathon C/ships - Sept 29th 2007
'The Race That Wasn't.'
Report by David O'Neill
They often say football is a game of 2 halves, but I think the same could be said of Marathon MTB racing. This was a seriously savage day out, and was my first attempt at a National Championship Marathon event. The race started at 10am going up a road climb through Carlingford villiage, turning right into a narrow lane, and then immediately into the forest singletrack. I got a good start, which was important as there was 153 riders to get round the first tight corner. It was a wet & greasy morning, and there was a crash involving about 7 riders (thankfully behind me).Then it was all out war on the fireroad climb, and up along the Tain way, then down through the woods, across a waterfall, and onto the Omeath road, turning left and heading for the top of the Windy Gap. Conditions got dreadfully worse the higher we climbed, with visibility down to a couple of metres at some points. The route was a mix of sheep tracks, narrow laneways, and rocky descents.

Up until this point, I was having a good day, the bike was running well, and legs felt good. The inclusion some road sections in the route was really working to my advantage. I managed to stay in the lead group of 20 or so riders up until the halfway point, however I made a wrong turn on the rocky descent and ended up way off course.I had to ride an extra 20 km around the base of mountain to try and get back on to the race. As it was comparatively flat, my Swords league experience really paid off and a I made good progress in my efforts, and made contact with the race again, in around 20th position, just in front of the 3rd group. I rode strongly enough and held the gap, however I made another wrong turn again, and had to do an extra climb up the side of a bog track, to rejoin, this time behind the 3rd group. The descent was ultra slippery, buttery, and fast, down through the heather, and into Carlingford to the finish line.

All in all it was a tough event, made much more difficult by the bad weather, and the lack of signage/markings. As it turned out, so many of the competitors got lost, that the commissaire decided to withdraw the National Champs status from the event. Our league visitor Mark Allen rode an excellent race to claim 7th overall, and 2nd in his Category (Master).I managed not to throw the toys out of the pram (Happy Gilmore Style), and came home in 27th overall, and 5th in my Category (Expert), which wasn't too bad considering.

Race Stats: Starters: 153 - Finshers: 129 Distance: 60km XC (following the signs!) Fastest Time: 3:00:12 - My Time: 3.58.10 Weather: Wet - Signage: Absent Frustration Level: High Full Results & Times Below "Don't get lost on the way down" >

XC MARATHON MTB RACE, CARLINGFORD, SAT 29TH SEPT 2007

Better report and pics here on <Cycling Ulster website>
Many Thanks to Cuchullain CC for hosting the event.
Looking forward to next year already.
Now to wash the bike!!
David

Ulster MTB Cross Country C/ship Sept 15th 2007
Report by Hugh Byrne

Just received news that Swords CC rider David O'Neill placed 2nd in the Experts Category of the Ulster Cross Country Mountain Bike Championships at Dunmore Mountain. The second half of the MTB season is just underway and this was his best result of the season thus far. He even felt that elusive win was within his grasp but for his chain coming off on the final lap. Obviously the conky nature of the circuits on our Club League had prepared him well and we wish him well for his next few races. This week he is up in Craigavon riding the final round of the Ulster League, and then competing in the MTB Marathon Nationals in Carlingford, the week after that. "One of the biggest shocks of the day was in the Experts race with well known road rider James McMaster (Dave Kane/Northern) performing as if he had been a seasoned mtb campaigner. In fact, many of Ulsters top Experts found the going too tough and retired as McMaster dominated proceedings throughout the five laps. Southern visitor Dave O’Neill (Swords CC) produced a strong ride to take second with Ross Blaney (Ards CC) taking the final podium slot." - CyclingUlster.com Update 24th Sept: The win finally came at last Saturday's round of the Ulster MTB series in Craigavon

Ladies Ras na mBan 2007, Kilcullen Sept 7th/8th/9th
Report by Bernie McNally
All Swords CC ladies arrived in Kilcullen on a sunny Friday evening for the first stage of the three day race. All the ladies, Louise, Kama, Nikki, Norah and myself were rearing to go, full of carbs and sugar. Coleen, who was wearing the Irish colours, was to be missed on the team. Quick chat, sign on, warm up and we were ready to go. The pace was neutralised through the town of Kilcullen (really had no choice as the place was chokka full of cars!!) for the start of a 48k criterium. A fast pace from the start with lots of attacks from the front. All Swords Ladies finished in the bunch.

Up early on Saturday morning for a quick warm up before the 64k stage with a hill finish. A nice steady pace, with lots of attacking, mainly from Irish ladies. We all felt very comfortable in the group. The route has a few hills in it, but nothing too harsh. The race took a sharp left and finished at the top of a sprint hill. Unfortunately there was gravel in the middle of the road at the junction, two ladies hit the ground, narrowly avoided by others. All Swords ladies crossed the line with the bunch. I got stuck behind the crash and arrived in 40 seconds behind them. Lots of help and cheering on from Louise's mum and Norah's fiance9, Aubrey. \par \par We all scrubbed up well (removed all chain oil and flies from face, arms and legs!) for the team dinner on the Saturday night. This was a great night with different stories about the stages and the route, as we ate even more pasta. We were about to find out that suffering would take on a new level on the Sunday morning.

The final stage was a 92k slightly more hilly route. We had three laps of a 24k lap with 2 big (massive!!) hills on each lap, so that was 6 hills to get over. The adrenalin was pumping by the time we got to the first hill, I lost contact towards the top, with a few others, we caught the main bunch by the time we had reached the main road. Lost contact again over the hills on the second lap, finished the stage with Kama. Louise stuck with the bunch and finished just behind the leaders. Nikki and Norah finished just behind Kama and I.

A huge thank you for our manager Pat Halpin, who provided us with sound advice, a smile and a welcome protein shake at the end of every finish line. He who shall not be named, helping out another team, offered us cans of coke after the race, making up for the fact that the Swords ladies had been abandoned (yet again) in their time of need. This year, he had an assistant, to cope with the pressure. The overall winner of the ladies three day was Marit Huismann, of the Noord Holland team. The best of the Irish was Kate Rudd in 6th place.

<Photos of Stage 1 on IrishCycling.com> - <Stage 2> - <Stage 3>

Swords CC Ladies Ras na mBan Team 2007
Riders: Louise Harliwich, Norah Daly, Nikki Veale, Kama Rowse (not in above photo) , Bernie Mc Nally
Manager: Pat Halpin
Mechanic: David Molloy
Thanks to everyone for all their help and support during this years Ras. It was much appreciated. The team had a very good Ras this year, and hope to do even better next year!
PS, I did not actually come last (for once!!), as posted on irishcycling.com. I actually finished just behind Kama on stage 3, approx 15 mins behind the leaders, not an hour and 15 mins as posted.

Bernie McNally

Sonny Cullen Memorial Sept 2nd 2007
Report by Hugh Byrne
In what is traditionally the last road race of the IVCA season, Sean Lally took his season tally to 15 wins. He took victory by the narrowest of narrow margins from Anto Moran (Ravens CRT) in a bunch gallop that was a who's who of vets racing. Victory was by the width of a tyre. Luckily we had a camera on the line as it was near impossible to judge by the naked. eye. This was race that meant a lot to Sean, as he learned much from the master when he began to win races in the earlier stages of his career. As Sean accepted the trophy from Sonny's widow and sons he told all assembled that he would have swapped all his wins this year for this one. This was a race that has eluded him for many years and one he wanted to win in honour to a rider to which he respected so much.

1. Sean Lally (Swords CC), 2. Anto Moran (Ravens CRT), 3. Sean Bracken (Usher)
4. John O'Brien (Ushers,) 5. Ger Madden (Obelisk), 6. Eddie Lynch (Orwell)
1st Lady Orla Hendron (Orwell)
(Photo courtesy of Brendan Culleton)

Magic Number Twelve July 2007
Report by Hugh Byrne
Magic number twelve. Today Aussie sprinter , Robbie McEwan notched up his 12th career Tour De France stage win in a manner that rekindled the magic of the Tour that has been tarnished by last years drugs scandal and subsequent scandals todate. Robbie crashed at 23km, injuring his wrist and at a time when the race is at its fastest was paced back to the peleton by 4 teamates. He then had the difficult task of making his way through a tightly packed field on narrow roads to reappear at the crucial moment as Friere, Zabel & Boonen launched into battle. They must have thoughy that Robbie was well out of it but as Boonen started his sprint , McEwan exploded out of the bunch other with a burst of acceleration that sealed the most remarkable victory.
On the home front our own supervet Sean Lally too reached that magic number with twelve wins todate in the IVCA.. Sean has 9 Sunday road wins, one tuesday road win and Gold medals in the IVCA 25 & 50 mile TT Championship. He has also a sliver in the 10 and only once has finished outside the top 6. He has the ability and intelleigence to know how to get into the moves and then works hard to ensure they succeed and most important of all his super sprint ensures he converts these moves into wins. His 50 mile TT is 30 minutes better than his age standard! I know that Tour time usually means 'drug' taunts from workmates but today we saw a bit of magic from two pocket rockets and achieve things that those who taunt us would have no comprehension of!
This weekend also saw Colm Cassidy win both the Sorrento Open 10 (21'03")and The Ulster 50 Mile Time Trials (1:50'39"). Well done all!

Vets Omnium National Track C/ship June 2007
Report by Hugh Byrne
After last years the success of the Vets Omnium Demonstration event which was run last year as part of the National Track C/ships, our event was elevated to full National C/ship status this year. This years Championship was run as a 4 event Omnium with Sprint, 2k pursuit, 500m TT and a 20 lap scratch race. We started with the 200m flying TT which acts to seed the qualifying sprint rounds. Next was the 2k pursuit, definitely more difficult that it sounds!! This event is a fine line between gear selection & pace judgement and was more like an 'unknown distance' event for some of us. After lunch it was the qualifying rounds of the sprint which was run on three up sprints with the seeding decided by the 200m TT. Once again gear selection was crucial for this event and those who selected on the low side payed the price. We were treated to some quite exciting sprints with a myriad of tactics being deployed. First round losers were put into a repercharge to bring it to the last eight. After that it was 2 ups all the way to a 3 leg final, First leg of the final went to Aidan Ryan (Sorrento) who had earlier won the 2k pursuit. Ger Ivory (Bray Wheelers) leveled it and the ride offs for all other places took place before the deciding sprint which Ger took to level the Omnium with 1 event apiece. We just managed to squeeze in the 500m Standing Start TT before the rain came. This event saw Terry Cromer split Aidan & Ger, closely followed by Alan Neenan.  Then as has been the case all year thus far.............the rain came!!! It was agreed to run the 4th and what will be the deciding event on the following Wednesday during the Track League.   Coming into, the 20 lap scratch race. Aidan Ryan (Sorrento) was on 4 points accumulated with a win in the 2k pursuit and the 500m TT and second place in the Sprint. Ger Ivory (Bray Wheelers) was on 6 points after scoring a win in the sprint to add to a 2nd & 3rd place and would have some work to do to overcome Aidan. Two points also separated Terry Cromer and Alan Neenan (Usher) in what would most likely be the battle for bronze a further three points back. Alan knew to get into the medals he would have to ride aggressively as he would have to beat his rival and hope that Terry would lose at least a further place in the shake up. Alan took the initiative and went on the attack early on Brian Hammond's wheel but this was closed down quickly, but as soon as Alan saw Terry in a position where he couldn't immediately respond he was off again quickly building up a lead to nearly half a lap before Terry extracted himself while Aidan ignored this move and intelligently marked Ger Ivory. Terry quickly did the maths and realised that if Alan gained a lap, then he would have to win the sprint for 2nd to ensure his medal position and this was leaving too much to chance so he set off in pursuit. Alan worked hard to gain a lap while Terry became stranded between Alan and the rest, not able to catch Alan and not daring drifting back to the bunch while Aidan defended his position by marking any moves by Ger Ivory. It resulted in a very tough and hard fought win for Alan Neenan and an equally tough race by Terry Cromer defending bronze. Over the last few laps Ger gambled everything in dropping back to try to try to regroup a splintered field as he needed more than himself to beat Aidan to overcome the points differential while Aidan Ryan rode a cool and tactical race taking third which was more than enough to secure Gold with 7 points while the Silver had to be decided on countback as both Terry Cromer and Ger Ivory both on 11 finished one point clear of the hard working Neenan. In the case of a draw in an Omnium the winner is decided by adding the cumulative time from the time trial events. Aidan Ryan was duly crowned a popular and worthy champion. Also last week  two of Aidans sons and Ger's three daughters took part in the National U/age C/ships while Alan Neenan's daughter Jenny (aged 9) had her first try on a track bike the previous week. So let's not think of them as Vets, but more as the the fathers of our future track stars!!!

Result after 4 events 1. Aidan Ryan (Sorrento) 7pts 2. Ger Ivory (Bray Wh) 11pts 3. Terry Cromer (IVCA) 11pts 4. Alan Neenan (Usher) 12pts 5. Paddy Davis (Usher) 29pts 6. Brian Hammond  (Usher) 30pts Left to Right Ger Ivory, Aidan Ryan & Terry Cromer

Batterstown: a win at last! May 2007
Report by Hugh Byrne
A win at last. Got stuck in the traffic heading for the evening race meeting at Fairyhouse and expected journey of 30 min from Blanchardstown by car turned into 75 minutes. Arrived just in time to run from the car and sign on the line and literally start the race seconds later. no warm up - no need !!! Nothing like being stuck in traffic to get the adrenalin flowing. Wound up to the last so attacked early which was brought back. Had quite a few digs on the two lap race, the last of which nearly suceeded when Susan O'Mara got accross on Warrenstown but this too was pegged back. All these jumps ensured that I was well warmed up (despite the rain) for any sprint that was coming. I covered some early sprint efforts and ended up on the front. No panic, slow it down and ensure you are not in too big a gear. Basically a gear that you make make a sudden acceleration in. Everyone watching each other so I threw a shape as if going to launch which triggered Martin Farrelly to go. I got straight onto his wheel and used this a launch pad. Time enought to celebrate, and for Brendan Culleton to quite by chance get a photo which captured the moment.

We all dream of winning and we all dream of someone capturing the moment on film. One to cherish. Thanks Brendan!

Season so far........ May 2007
Report by Hugh Byrne
This season has been marked with the rise of a new star in the Swords colours and very special start to the season for one of it’s eternal ones. Firstly Colm Cassidy made a meteoric rise through the C rankings with 2 wins before using his TT ability to set uo a great placing in the Gorey and taking the TT stage in the Corkman. Most remakable of his achievements to date in my opinion though, was taking his Club C/ship TT in what turned out to be a course record for previous league events that has stood since 2000 and which was set by Time Trial ‘supremo’ Aidan Hammond. An achievement made all the more remarkable considering the pouring rain.
Supervet Sean Lally has notched up 6 road victories and a 25 Mile C/ship in the IVCA is superb displays of tactics, hard riding and powerful sprinting while the clubs star climber, and most improved rider last year, rode an excellent Shay Elliot, taking the 1st B prize. Meanwhile Sean Rock & Stephen Halpin are gaining invaluable experience in their progression to the next level, riding with the Sean Kelly team in Belgium and most recently rode the tour of Turkey with the men from Stamullen. Most recently we are seeing a new direction for Swords with new member David O’Neill notching up top 5 results in Mountainbike racing, while the track season has had a slightly weather induced delay, and where we will soon see powerful track sprinter Colm Sevastopulo do his thing!!!
We as a club are very pleased to welcome so many new members in all categories and we hope that our club league improves you all and helps you all achieve what you are cabable of. It was also quite pleasing to see so many father & son combinations at the TT last week and its no coincidence that our potential & current superstars take the lead from the dads –afterall first step is beating the dad --- next step world domination!!!!!!!

Lally's Flying! May 2007
Report by Hugh Byrne
See below Brendan Culletons tribute to Sean Lally who is indeed 'flying' this year. Last Sunday saw him take his 5th win from six starts in the IVCA Sunday League. You can check out the photos on Brendans site which will show tight this one was just holding off Sean Bracken and brother Jimmy (not forgetting the entire bunch breathing down their necks). He had an earlier dig on Soldiers Hill which was brough back and 5 riders broke clear from a bumch that was motoring on the run in to Dunshaughlin. Sean Lally bridged the gap to the break who only had a slight advantage on the bunch, just in time to contest the sprint. He told me later that the tank was quite empty as he approched the line and this turned out to be his tightest finish yet. No point in finishing with energy to spare!!!
Check out Brendans site for finish line photos and more www.cripsphotos.com

IVCA Display Team - The Flying Lallys
(Photo by Brendan Culleton)

Tour of Flanders - a fans perspective! April 8th 2007 Report by Hugh Byrne This Easter I travelled to Belgium to sample the course for what is my favourite race and what many people consider to be the greatest of the Classics. I have watched this race many times on TV and it is always won by great riders. Museeuw, Tafi, Van Petegam, and for the past two years Tom Boonen. This race is always fiercely contested by the Belgian teams and this is the one that all Belgian riders want the most. Elsewhere on the site you will see photographs and links to race reports which will tell the story of the race far better than I. We had entered the Ronde de Vlaanderen pre race Tour which had an option of 3 distances. A short one that took in some of the hills, one with a distance of 145k which takes in all of the climbs and cobbled sections that appear in the last 80k of the race and if were entirely mad you could do the full race distance of 260k. We opted for the 145k as we wanted to be able to get up the next day to watch the race!! The first wow factor regarding the pre race tour was the number of riders. Our race numbers we in the 22,000s and there were still people signing on on the day! The organisation was just fantastic - everything operated as a one way system through the set off point and all morning long rders set off with little or no fuss. I had been pre-warned regarding the suddenness of the first cobbled climb which came after about 40k. You are riding along a flat road and next thing a marshal turns you a sharp right and shouts 'change down'. A sharp shock - this was what we in Ireland would call a lane - very narrow and immediately onto a sharp cobbled climb. You just couldn't imagine how rough these cobbles were and your front wheel bouncing from cobble to cobble with the fear that your wheel was going to get stuck between the gaps - nothing smaller than a 23 tyre here or that might just happen. This had to be climbed in the saddle to give your bike some kind of stability - but a mixture of adrenalin and fear of causing a pile up drives you on. A fantastic experience to sample these roads that the Pros whould be doing battle on the next day. The roads are much narrower than they appear on TV and the climbs are quite steep and nothing prepares you for just how rough the cobbles are. <Photos on this site & links to race reports etc>

There is a great buzz in powering accross the flatter cobbled sections but obviously if they were wet it would be an entirely different matter. I did have to stop on one climb as riders came to halt in front of me, but with so many riders on the climbs this is likely to happen at some stage during the day. < I might have had to stop anyway!!> You have to watch about 3 riders in front to steer a course up the hills, trying to judge the speed of slower riders and best guess on who is likely to s top. Thankfully though I got a clear run on the Muur <Photo> which is climb on which many a winning break is launched and would be where it would all unfold on the next day as things turned out. The hill was barriered off and there were hordes of spectators here to cheer you on and it was nearly a religous feeling when you turned and the famous chapel loomed into view at the top. This chapel looks quite large on TV but is quite small in reality. Tomorrow people would be in their spot on this hill from 7am!

Next day we were at the start in Bruges and managed to intercept the race at about 6 other loactions are we chased helicopters around Belgium. All the hill sections are quite close to each other and it would be a bit like a race zig-zaging around the Naul, Ballyboughal and Stamullen to take in a many climbs as one could find. Highlight of the day was when we got a spot on one of the cobbled climbs and awaiting the race with thousands of Belgian fans. A small break was clear and we were rewarded with sight of the World Champion setting a powerful pace up the climb with teammate and pre race favourite Boonen in his wheel. Unfortunately we just failed to get back in time for the finish but as we made our way through the crowd you could sense that Boonen hadn't made it three in a row. We paused to watch the presentation on the big screen and saw the Lampre colours. I knew from the body laguage that it had been a 2-up sprint and that the 2nd placed rider had messed it up. This proved to be correct as Hoste had maneouved Ballan to the front from about 2k out and and then launched his sprint too early. His disappointment was compounded by the fact that he had been runner up on two previous occasions. Sean Kelly would know how this feels as this was the only classic that eluded him and he too had been pipped three times

Ecocabs - riders wanted! March 2007
Advertisement Feature by Andrew Casey
Hi Hugh
I was looking to give you a call but I couldnt find a contact number. I found your website and must say I was very impressed by the size and activity of your club. I may have something which may be of interest to some of your Dublin-based members and was hoping to discuss it with you first to
get your thoughts on it.

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We have recieved extensive support from sponsors and the government for bringing to Ireland Dublins city's first emission free and free of charge public transport option. In Cardiff we were hugely popular with cycle enthusiasts as it is a great training, super fun and we pay competitive wages! I would be delighted to fill you in further if you had any questions. We are currently recruiting and training suitable riders for start on April 1st.
I have attached riders advertisements for you to look at. If you felt it was something useful for your Dublin based members, feel free to forward it to them or let me know and I could send you application forms. Otherwise I would be delighted to answer any questions you may have
Happy cycling and hope to hear from yourself or any interested members soon. Let us know your thoughts.

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Newport with the Track Paralympic Team January 2007
Report by Bernie McNally
Met gang at the airport, including ladies Ailish Dunne, Nadine Lattimore and Catherine Walsh. Familiar faces Joanna Hickey and Aideen Collard joined myself as pilots of ladies tandems for the weekend, to give new riders the opportunity to join the squad. Boarded a "bus with wheels" sized airplane to take us to Cardiff. Packed all of us and our gear into a hired mini bus to take us to Newport. Niall Jenkins proved that he can read maps and drive at the same time.

Checked into the hotel and headed to Newport track. The stokers headed for an intense spinning class while the pilots had a spin on the track with some solo bikes. I was amazed at the sight of the track and could not wait to get on it. I was told no, I had to wait, I pleaded my Sundrive Rd. accreditation, but no good. I finally got out for a spin after the gang were finished, the track was cleared just in case I hit anyone. Off I went on the solo bike, building up the speed until I reached the blue line. A silent panic attack as I was not sure that I would make it around the first corner. Opened my eyes on the other side and realised that I was still on the track. An amazing feeling, flying around the track. An even better feeling was to be getting of a bike in January, not chewing muck or having to clean the bike. A much needed trip to Tesco, for rice cakes and lots of water. The check-out girls were very surprised to see a bus load of Paddies and not a bottle of beer in sight. Gerry Beggs and the bikes made it over that evening, after a stormy crossing.

Over the next two days, we were on the tandems. The lads had a lot of trials to do as there were three different races. The ladies had a few spins to get used to the tandems. I nearly chickened out of the first spin. Once I got going with Catherine it was great, until I wondered how we were going to stop! Next were the ladies pursuits, Catherine and I against Joanna and Aideen. Aideen and I against Catherine and Joanna. Sat waiting at the start while the lady who kindly kept the times informed us of tandem crashes with limbs being broken. Not what I really wanted to hear before our first race. Thankfully we got around the first bend, having built up enough speed. Got our asses kicked both times, but it was still an amazing feeling!

Lots of slagging from solo bikers Cathal Miller and Enda Smyth. David Peelo, John Lynch, Niall Jenkins, Frank O’Leary and Ciaran Steed were pilots for Mark Kehoe, Michael Delaney, Andrew Fitzgerald and Gavin Allman.

Bernies 'pozes' in front of the 42 degree banking!

All in all, a great weekend with the lads and ladies. A lots of effort and organisation and a big thank you to Gerry Beggs and Denis Toomey for all their efforts. Best of luck to the team in 2007, who have the World Championships to look forward to in August. The team needs sufficient funds in order to reach their goals of competing on a very high level abroad.

Bernie McNally

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