It’s amazing who you meet on Ring of Beara Cycle
ON May 27 the annual Ring of Beara cycling event took place, encompassing a route of immense natural and rugged beauty which commenced and finished in the town of Kenmare.
Beara, with a route of 140km – with also a shorter one of 110km – is shorter than the Ring of Kerry route but is acknowledged among participating cyclists as being tougher, due to the number of climbs, mainly in the vicinity of Allihies and from Glengarriff to the tunnel on the road to Kenmare.
Valentia Islanders who participated were Pat O’Connor, Seamus Lynch, Eoin O’Connor, P. J. and Mary B O’Sullivan, Tony Curran and this writer in company with Joe Thompson (Dublin and Over-The-Water), Mike Greaney (Knocknagoshel and Cahirsiveen) and Dermot Keating and Mike JP O’Sullivan of Portmagee.
The tone for the weekend was set on Friday night in a Kenmare hostelry by the guitar playing and accompanied singing of Bobby and Lucy Greenfield, noted visitors to Valentia Island, with the Kenmare Cultural and Historical group. Bobby and Lucy are lovers of the Irish language and all things Gaelic, and are never slow to impart the cúpla focal, if encouraged.
The cycle commenced from the square in the scenic Roughty side of town at 8. 30am with foreboding dark skies giving rise to the worry of a miserable day of rain ahead. However, all fears were soon allayed as the dark clouds disappeared to allow for an ideal day of pleasant, sunny conditions.
Having negotiated the steep hills in the vicinity of Allihies on the tip of the Beara Pensinula and the climb from Glengarriff, it was indeed a pleasant experience for cyclists to enter a sun drenched Kenmare and a céad mile fáilte welcome at the finish from the former Kerry footballer Micky Ned O’Sullivan.
How beautiful the town of Kenmare looked on that evening as cyclists relaxed in the streets, eating, drinking and mingling with the tourists in resplendant sunshine.
The locals were out in force on that night in the restaurants and taverns. We met Pete Hanley, the Kenmare barber and former Kerry goalkeeper, who is as Kenmare as the Roughty River itself. Pete recalled his days as a team mate of Valentia’s late Pat Joe Cooper in 1964 when they played with the Kerry juniors. He enquired of his friend Mick O’Connell.
Not far away in the company was Mary O’Brien. Mary is the mother of the current Kerry footballer Stephen O’Brien and the sister of Michael Murphy, who captained Kenmare to county championship victory in 1974.
Lydia and Sean O’Shea, the parents of current Kerry panellist Sean O’Shea, were there, too, and also the brothers Tommy and Danny O’Sullivan. Tommy was the Kenmare district goalkeeper and Danny the mid-fielder as the Kenmare District won the county campionship of 1987, defeating Dr Crokes (Danny was the man of the match). They have strong associations with the Atlantic Bar in the town.
That passionate man of hurling and rowing, Johnny Tuohy, was extolling the virtues of Tipperary’s all-Ireland camogie winners, who were on a visit to the area.
Donal McCarthy played as a defender with Kerry in a league campaign of the early ‘90s. He was in the company of his wife, Sheila (nee Lynch of Glenflesk).
James McCarthy (originally of Tuosist) was enjoying the night with his son-in-law, Cormac. A Valentia cycling trio would like to extend sincere thanks to James for weekend hospitality rendered.
We met Paudie Moriarty in the street. His nephew, Eugene Moriarty of Listowel, made his 20th Rás Tailteann appearance this year.
Another former Kenmare footballer, Jackie Tuohy, was in ebullient mood. He had coached his wife, Mary, sister Rita and the aforementioned Sheila McCarthy to each achieving a personal best around Beara. Jackie was observed at one water stop urging them on with gusto to better effort.
Enjoying the occasion among them all was the king of the ball, Michael Healy-Rae in company with his wife, Eileen.