Carrick-on-Suir, Ireland’s home of cycling, was again the venue for a cycling event as Carrick Wheelers promoted their second day of races for 2011 on Sunday last, held in honour of the one of the clubs founding members and former chairman and president, Tommy Sheehan. The day’s events consisted of five separate races for all grades and with the financial support of local fruit and vegetable company Iverk, Tommy certainly would have been impressed with both the day’s racing and the perfect summer like weather conditions.
All the top cyclists from Munster and south Leinster came to town to race over the renowned Kearney’s Road circuit, which has built up a reputation as one of the toughest in the country, and first up was the under age races who raced a reduced distance from Kilsheelan to Carrickbeg. In the under 14 event, Michael O’Loughlin of the promoting club was talked up as hot favourite to win this event after his impressive win last weekend in Rás na nÓg and he duly delivered, soloing to victory, crossing a finish line viewable from his own front garden! This win was certainly a great start to day’s racing for the Carrickmen!
Next up were the under 12 year olds, and again we had a lone leader come into the finishing straight, Dillion Corkery of Kanturk CC took the victory to give Cork it’s first of 3 wins at the Carrickbeg based event. In second place in this event and getting one up on the rest of the boys was the Limerick lady Laura Cooke who just pipped Sean Hayes of Ballymore CC to the line.
Now it was onto the full undulating Kearney’s Road circuit for the senior riders. The first of these to finish was the 2 lap event for Category 4 riders. This race ended with a leading group of about 20 riders coming to the line together sprinting for the win. Fastest of the group was Brian Cullen who showed the people on Suirside that the Barrow Wheelers man was quickest on the run in, with Stephen McGrath of Fermoy in second and local man, Waterford’s Comeragh CC Keith Barnes in third.
The second win of the day for Ireland’s largest county came in the Category 3 race as John Murphy of Fermoy CC took the victory. This 3 lap event followed much the same format as the previous one with the undulating circuit turning the race in the a war of attrition and a process of elimination, and again a leading group of about 25 riders came into the finishing straight looking for the victory. But it was Murphy who led home the fast finishing group just ahead of Mick O’Mahony of Blarney CC, with local riders Declan Hanrahan of Clonmel’s Worldwide Cycles Team and Waterford’s Shane O’Donoghue of Comeragh CC placing 4th and 5th respectively.
Finally it was down to the main event for the Tommy Sheehan Memorial Cup, and with four laps of this notoriously difficult Kearney’s Road Circuit to be covered, the main bunch was never going to stay intact for long, and so it proved again this year. The race had exploded with pace from the drop of the flag and by the time the lead car had the Comeragh Mountains in sight for the first time, a leading group of 9 riders had established a significant lead over a blitzed peleton. This leading group shrunk in numbers lap after lap and heading out on the last lap, a leading foursome had developed. This was made up of two of the Cork based Edge Racing Team, Sean Lacey and Mick Fitzgerald, together with Blarney CC rider Owen Cummings and local Carrick Wheelers’ rider Martin O’Loughlin. On the climb of Sky Hill on the Mountain Road this group split again with the in form O’Loughlin and Sean Lacey going clear. As the pair came into the finishing straight the local crowd gasped as O’Loughlin appeared to be going to take it, but Lacey dug deep to come around him to claim victory for the Cork team for the second year in row and claim the Tommy Sheehan Memorial Cup.
Brian and Frances Sheehan, son and daughter of the late Tommy Sheehan, together with sponsor’s representative Conor O’Shea presented the prizes to all the winners afterwards, and Carrick Wheelers Chairmen Bobby Sheehan, a nephew of Tommy, thanked all who helped make the day such a great success, with a special word of thanks to the local Gardaí and Civil Defence who together with the club’s own stewards ensured that the all the cyclists had a safe and accident free day’s racing. He also thanked the race sponsors, local fruit and vegetable company Iverk as well as St. Mollerans GAA Club for the use of their premises, and finally club secretary Paul Lonergan for the huge amount of work in the overall organising of the event and ensuring that everyone enjoyed yet another great day’s cycle racing in Carrick!
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