We hope that you all had a great week!
On Thursday we had road race No.9 in the series.
It was a tough route over rolling hills and into a stiff breeze for Thursday nights race and we had 12 members out on the evening to contest it. Eva Moynan took her first win in her first season racing so huge congratulations to her. She just pipped her dad Peter to the line with John Foote finishing third on the evening. You can read the full report here.
On Sunday we had the normal club spins that left from Moynans at 9am. We had another great turnout of over 20 cyclists in all. 9 intermediate riders took part in the Sun spin, great to see one take the plunge and go for it with the racing group for the full route and it was also nice to welcome a new member on their first spin – the consensus is with the natural ability shown it won’t be long until the racing group have yet another new face in their midst. Their 72km spin on the morning took them through Capparoe, Newport, Murroe where they had quite a stiff headwind until turning for home at Lisnagry. A beautiful return journey to Nenagh was enjoyed with the wind at their backs, the hills behind and all riders working well as a group. The senior group took on a tough route of over 110km with plenty of climbing and with the breeze on the morning it was made all the tougher! Their route was the same as the intermediates but at Daly’s cross instead of heading for home would go looking for more punishment in Clare and headed to O’Briens Bridge, on to Clonlara and then Broadford and back to Killaloe and finished off by going back to Nenagh via Charlie’s Hill and Portroe. All was going well and everyone got over the toughest part of the day, Shalee, fine but the rough road between there and Newport was to cause some headaches for the lads as one member, Owen Hynes (who’s trying to get rid of all his bad luck in the space of 2 weeks… 😉 ), hit a pothole and heard a loud bang but on inspection everything seemed ok… This would prove to come back to haunt said member later in the day as after about another 30km or so he suffered a massive blow out which took the tyre clean off his front wheel. Very luckily it happened on a flat stretch of road and not coming down a descent and he managed to keep a very cool head and brought the bike gently to a stop on the rim which took some skill with more than likely his mountain biking skills proving his saviour!! Lesson here people is that if this happens to you, shift your weight back as much as you can and only use your back brake to slow down and bring you to a stop! Most people unfortunately without thinking pull the front brake and it’s game over… Later in the day, the damage to the side wall of the tyre while bringing the bike to a stop would cause another puncture to the same wheel but thanks to other members in a great show of camaraderie, stayed and helped mend the wheel again and made sure everyone managed to finish the spin together, or at least they would have if the chasing group hadn’t been held at the lights in Killaloe for 5 mins while trying to chase down the rest of the pack! 🙂
For many this was the final training spin before next Saturday’s season highlight – the Ring of Kerry. We have a big number of about 20 or so club members who were lucky to get into this years RoK cycle and we’re sure they’re all well prepared for this fantastic day out on the bikes with about 12,000 cyclists tackling the scenic 180km route. We know that the hard work put in over the last few months will stand to them. It will be great to see so many NTW jerseys on the route on Saturday so the very best of luck to you all and we hope you all enjoy a fantastic event in the beautiful Co. Kerry. For those of you travelling to Killarney for the event we hope to get everyone to meet up and cycle together. At the time of writing this there is still some discussion on a start time so if you would like to join the group and cycle together let Selina know on 087 9177355 and she will text the group and keep everyone up to date with the time and place where we are meeting on Sat morning. It will be a very big achievement for you all so enjoy the experience and the very best of luck to you all….
Next weeks Club Training rides (22nd-28th June) are as follows:
Tuesday: Club training spin leaving from Moynans at 6.30pm. Avg speed on the evening between 28/30kph.
Wednesday: Club intermediate spin leaving from Moynans at 7pm. Avg speed between 25/27kph.
Thursday: We have Time Trial No.4, the last in the series, on our usual 16km route. You can sign on at 6.15pm at Moynans bike shop or at the start line. Group departs to the start at 6.30pm and race starts at 7 pm. Entry is €5
Sunday: Club spins on Sunday cater for all abilities leaving from Moynans at 9am.
For the racing group the route will be Nenagh – Borrisoleigh – Thurles – Cashel – Dundrum – Hollyford – Milestone – Dolla- Nenagh (118km). Strava link to route here
For our leisure/intermediate group the route is Nenagh – Borrisoleigh – The Ragg (Bouladuff) – Ballycahill – Upperchurch – Milestone – Dolla – Nenagh (72Km). Strava link to route here
We do stress that everyone is welcome to join us on the morning. It’s fantastic to see such big numbers out at the weekends. Keep up the good work everyone.
For further information on any club events or if interested in joining the club, please contact Pat Bergin 087 6744400
