Here's the first look at the kit of the new BikeWorx team which will be taking to the domestic peloton for the first time in 2014.
The squad is headed on the road by former Polygon Sweet Nice rider Stephen Halpin from Skerries in north Co Dublin. It has been put together over the winter by former Sean Kelly team rider Ciaran Kelly, whose BikeWorx shop in Celbridge, Co Kildare is one of the main sponsors.
Kelly resumed racing last year and having dipped his toe back into the sport with a couple of races, he's intending to have a full season this year, though has played down suggestions he will take the bike as seriously as he did when racing before.
He based himself in Belgium as a junior in 2005, winning enough races to gain a place in the newly created Irish house in Belgium; where riders who wanted a foreign stint racing could live in Belgium. He moved to the Sean Kelly squad the following year, a team that has since morphed into An Post-Chainreaction.
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However, he found the transition from junior to the ranks of the elite bunch too much; with that step up not helped by the fact he was often thrown into races as an 18-year-old with some of the best pro teams in the world.
Kelly decided to return home and promptly abandoned racing. He has since built up his business in Celbridge and now in his mid 20's he is back on the bike with the new team.
As well as BikeWorx, the outfit will also be backed this year by Axa Insurance, Casey Recruitment, the Irish paint brand Colortrend and the Peak Physical Therapy company. The latter is owned by former international rider Tim Cassidy and is based at the same premises as BikeWorx in Celbridge.
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“BikeWorx sponsored the Mondello Series last year so I got back into the bike there, rode a few races and really enjoyed it,” Kelly told us recently of his return to competition.
“I started having a laugh again, so we’re decided to have a team next year. I’m not too sure but I’ll probably take out an A2 licence. I’m just going to go back and see how it goes.
“If I’m not at a great level I don’t mind, I just want to enjoy it. I’ve been doing a bit of training since Mondello. I’ve kept going. I’m down 10 kilos since September. The lads want to ride the Rás but I’ll see how the form is.
“If I was getting dropped in the Rás I’d end up just packing the bike again so I’ll probably do a year and get back into it before I give it a go. It’s basically a pro race now. You need to be doing well over 20 hours a week just to be finishing it.”
Despite missing out on the possibility of delivering on his massive potential and earning a professional contract as a youngster, Kelly has no regrets.
“You’d miss the racing and the craic in Belgium but I got the shop out of coming home early so I’m probably better off than a lot of lads. Who knows, maybe I could have got a pro contract if I’d stayed but working in the shop, it’s not really a job. It doesn’t feel like working, it’s great.”
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