Latest blog posts

cycling ireland

  • Let’s get more kids cycling

    Cycling is a fantastic sport for any child to become involved in. It keeps you fit and healthy, it teaches you independence and discipline, it gives you a sense of identity and you make friends that you keep for the rest of your life. At the height of the Kelly/Roche era Cycling Ireland had a…

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  • Is there safety in numbers ?

      It is often thought that there is an added degree of safety in numbers. When walking down a dark side street it certainly makes sense but how true is it out on a bike ? Roads nowadays are busier than ever before. Not just with more cars but also with more people out on…

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  • The Roar of the Big Ring !

    Yesterday began like many of my Sundays. Porridge, tea and wholemeal toast for breakfast, get dressed up in bright lycra and at 8.54 I head out to the shed lift my bike down from the rack, pop in the water bottle and fit the Garmin, check the tyre pressure and have a quick look at…

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  • Cycling – The real family sport !

    When you are out on the bike you always get plenty of time to think . That is , when you're not hurtling down a steep descent at almost 100 kph when you enter what Eckhart Tolle might call ' The now ' . Yesterday as I rode up over the climb of ' The…

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  • A real life soundtrack !

    Have you ever heard a song on the radio and immediately been reminded of being in another place at another time . It happened to me yesterday in the shop . As I was fitting a new rear gear cable into a Pinarello prince Alanis Morrisette came on the radio proclaiming that she had one…

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  • Back to school !

    Today is the first of September . I'm looking out the window at a clear blue sky and the shadow of a beech tree being cast upon the ground by some glorious sunshine . Someone once said that the first two weeks in September is the best time to book your holidays as it is…

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  • Behind the scenes – The stage race mechanic !

    Last week as I watched 'the tour' on Eurosport I found myself nodding in agreement at the television as Kelly described the job of a cycling mechanic as the toughest on the race . The riders have it tough for the duration of the stage , but as soon as they cross the line they…

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  • Hair cuts !

    Back in the late eighties a bike race was a good indicator of what the latest trend in haircuts was . Former National champion and current surgeon in St James' hospital Dublin , Julian Dalby was the first to sport the dyed blond look complete with a diamond pattern shaved into the back of his head .…

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  • The phone zone !

    Back in the days of the telephone box the only time a cyclist wearing proper cycling gear was seen on the phone was if they 'bananafied' a rear wheel and had to call out the 24 hour breakdown service (ie : the wife ) to come and pick them up . Nowadays , however that's…

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  • The first spin back !

    When you haven't trained for a while the one thing that hangs over you is the first spin back with the group . It's a lot like the leaving cert , you know you have to do it but you just don't want to face it . Throughout the winter I've been busy with family…

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  • Ballyhoura ATB trail

    Last Sunday in a prelude to Ray's stag night we decided to check out the new mountain biking centre in Ballyhoura . We have been hearing about it for the past twelve months now , so we were all curious to see just what it is like . It was first due to open back…

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  • Where are they now ?

    Yesterday afternoon whilst recovering from another fantastic spin off road we were having lunch  when a blast from the past appeared before us . Both Ray and myself had to do a double take when Shane O'Meara formerly of The Shannon Transport club in Limerick appeared before us . We had all raced together up…

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  • Mountain Mayhem !

    The racing season is over and the 'good bikes ' have been washed and hung up for the winter . The quest for an adrenaline rush and some fitness still remains so where else would we look than the adrenaline junkies paradise of off road riding , or mountain biking as we like to call…

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  • League 12-7-07

    Brian Alton the youngest rider in the race takes victory on the mountain top finish of Powers the Pot [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W7Prv7Q7B1g]

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  • Cycling for life !

    My boss from my first job after leaving school was in the shop recently and whilst we were chatting I was reminded of something he told me shortly after I began working with him . One day I was in his office and he asked me if I knew why I got the job over…

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  • League 5-7-07

    [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pzxVw_XmWfQ] Joe Hahessy shows a clean pair of heels to the rest of the bunch !

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  • Bike path to Holland

    A number of years ago former Murphy and Gunne team mechanic Seamie English and myself went to work in a meat factory in Holland . The factory was located in Enschede near the German border . Seamie was an experienced boner but I was an unexperienced Aer lingus trimmer . ie : Seamie would cut all…

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