By Shane Stokes
Daire Feeley may have been up against four WorldTour professionals plus a host of other strong internationals in the Elite men’s road race championships on Sunday, but he has said that he travelled to the event determined to take home the national champion’s jersey.
“I was travelling up in the car, and I said to my dad, ‘I want to win it,’ he told stickybottle shortly after taking the silver medal on Sunday. "I said to him I wouldn’t be happy if I didn’t win it. But to be beaten by a calibre of rider like Ryan [Mullen]…I certainly can’t complain. To be runner-up to one of the best riders in the world is something to write home about. So yeah, I’m very happy with it.”
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Feeley has been racing well in Ireland this season and recently won the National Road Series overall. He said that he knew he was on a good ride heading into Sunday’s road race based on his sensations beforehand. “I was expecting it after I went for an easy spin there (on Saturday) for two hours. I said to myself, ‘wow, the legs are there. So if I play my cards, right, we can get a result, so we can'.”
However early on there was quite a bit of concern when two of the top riders, Eddie Dunbar (Ineos Grenadiers) and Nicolas Roche (Team DSM) went on the attack and pulled out a strong lead. Both were fully committed and their attributes meant they had the horsepower to potentially stay out until the end.
“To be honest with you, once Dunbar and Roche were up the road I thought it was over,” Feeley said. “I thought we were racing for third. But then Eddie crashed on the corner in the wet. Roche had 80 kilometres solo to do and he just sat up. So yeah, that played into our favour. But he was tired as well after riding up the road.
“Once Roche came back, we came around just before the finish. With three kilometres to go [on that lap] I attacked and Ryan came across to me. And the result came from that.
“I was doing all the turns on the climb. And I says to him, once we got over that last steep climb, I says, ‘look Ryan, we need you to just drill it on the decent. And I tucked in behind him. And that’s what pulled out the gap, that’s what kept us away for the win in the end, so it was. I’m very happy. And to actually animate the race in a way as well, it’s very good.”
Focusing on aerodynamics
Feeley was prominent in the day’s big select group, both in terms of positioning but also how he looked on the bike. He was noticeably more aerodynamic than many of the other riders in the move, standing out in just how low and how compact he was on the bike.
As for Mullen, he is well known as a rider who is also very aero, particularly on the time trial bike. It may have been a coincidence that the two of them ended off up the road together, or perhaps it was related to the strong winds on the course.
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Feeley said that he has made a conscious effort in this area. “It’s something I have worked on over the past while, just trying to keep the head down,” he said. “I’m a small guy as well, so it’s very hard to get shelter on my wheel.
“I am just trying to be a bit more aero and save the energy where I can. And look, it translated into a result today.”
While Feeley would have loved to have won, he was visibly delighted with his silver at the finish. His teammates and those from the wider cycling community congratulated him and, in the quieter moments, he had a look of contentment and satisfaction about him.
It wasn’t just about the result, but also about the quality of the field. He can take additional encouragement from the fact that he beat all bar one of the WorldTour riders in the race.
“The thing is, with the WorldTour riders that we have in Ireland, they’re not on their teams just to make up numbers,” he said. “They’re the cream of the crop, really. And to get a scalp on them is a big achievement for a man from Roscommon!”
Feeley laughed as he delivered the final line, not taking himself too seriously while also being clearly elated by his performance on the day. But, given the big gap in their levels of experience and the big gulf between the races they have been doing, did he believe that it was possible to beat Mullen in the finish?
“Yeah,” he answered. “I thought I had him in the sprint. But he has races over 200k in his legs, and I just didn’t have that strength in depth after 160k which he did. But look, he’s a very worthy winner. He’s very, very strong, and he played his cards right. So he deserved the result.”
Given the result and the fact that Feeley is still just 24 years of age, it would be understandable had he decided to step up his ambitions after taking the silver medal and decide to do more racing internationally. He has raced abroad in the past, but did previously say that he had had enough of that. One of the issues he has mentioned before is trying to lose weight and suffering from a drop in power and performance as a result.
Sunday’s result didn’t appear to bring about any second thoughts about racing overseas. Asked what was next for him, he said things would continue as before.
“I’m back to work tomorrow morning,” he said. “To be honest with you, I know where my level is at. If I were to go abroad, I’d want to be on a team like Ryan and Eddie, and I just don’t have that capacity to do it.
“I gave it a go, made a few mistakes in the past. I’ve corrected them, which got me the results the past two years. But look, I’m enjoying what I’m doing. I’m on a great team. We all get along and we have a bit of fun. That’s what it’s about for me at the end of the day, so it is.”
