O’Donnell on Ardee podium
AS we move towards the second half of the racing season, local races become a much rarer sight and that was quite visible with the travelling encountered by many clubs to race last weekend.
It was a different story in midweek, though, and both the Ardee and Cuchulainn cycling clubs held their regular evening leagues, both of which seem to be growing as the weeks continue.
First up was the Ferdia Ardee Summer League, which is now in its second week and tested the riders on a previously unused course around Dromin.
The race runs on a split time basis, with set times being allocated between the groups at the start and the later groups attempting to bridge the gap.
However, the opening groups seemed simply too strong on Tuesday evening, with the leading group never being caught and forced into sprinting among themselves for the victory.
Aidan Leonard from Carrickmacross was just too strong in the sprint, claiming top honours, with Drogheda Wheelers man Paul O’Donnell two places futher afield, claiming his place on the podium.
On Thursday, on an extremely warm evening in Dundalk, huge numbers entered the Bike Station League yet again and it was the return of the visitor from Newry who was first over the line, with Alan Bingham winning. Tomas McCabe upheld his recent success by taking the next spot across the line, with Cuchulainn men Alan Gray and Ruaidhrí Stewart in fourth and sixth and Drogheda Wheelers powerhouse Gavin Byrne splitting them in fifth.
With the mid-week racing over, many local cyclists weighed up their options to race at the weekend and it seemed quite clear there was no way to do so without travel.
First up were the juvenile events at the Galway Bay Criterium and it was here that Drogheda schoolboy Ciaran Connor took a strong third in the U-14 event. The race consisted of eight laps, and after completing just a quarter of these Connor attempted to make a break for victory, being joined by strong company in the form of the current Irish champion and two others.
The four battled for a further two laps, until at the mid-way point the group split and the young man from Drogheda Wheelers was left battling against the National champ for the final podium spot.
As they came around the final corner, it was clear to see the stronger of the two as Connor claimed a strong third-place finish.
The following day saw even more travel, with the main race being held in Roscommon. In the Donamon GP, Richie Becton continued the success of the Wheelers, finishing inside the top 10 in the A3 event. The 80km event finished in a group sprint, with Becton rolling across, just metres away from the winner.
The Drogheda Wheelers-promoted Mark Mullen League will commence next Monday. Registration opens at 6.45pm at Donore NS, with racing kicking off at 7.30 for six consecutive Monday nights. Any additional information can be got by contacting the club on Facebook, Twitter or droghedawheelers@gmail.com.