Siobhan Horgan on her way to winning gold in the elite women's national time-trial last Thursday night in Omagh. The Aquablue rider absolutely tore the field to shreds, winning by over two minutes from Eve McCrystal (Photo: Jerry Rafferty)
By Brian Canty
The national championships never fail to produce outstanding performances and some really against-all-odds results.
This year was no different with Omagh Wheelers producing three days of cracking racing; the 400+ riders who pinned on numbers all playing a part in making the event special.
Here's a few things we learnt from the weekend's action.
Damien Shaw is the best Irish amateur
The Mullingar man was the toast of Omagh when he won the elite men's road race, a feat many felt was extremely unlikely for an amateur rider who works full-time.
Though Shaw is no spring chicken his win should surprise nobody. Since he took to the sport around 2010 he's won practically every race and dare we say it, quite easily at times.
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It would have been fascinating to see how he'd have done had Dan Martin, Sam Bennett and Nicolas Roche been in the race.
But make no mistake, few could have lived with him on Sunday and his win confirms his status as the best Irish amateur rider right now, bar none. (Photo: Jerry Rafferty)
Siobhan Horgan still has what it takes
Her women's TT win is definitely a contender for performance of the championships.
The Cork woman, riding for Aquablue, put 2:40 into an established stalwart like Caroline Ryan.
It was a performance that would have put her close to the top of the leader board at the European Games in Baku the weekend before last using Ryan's 15th place there as a yardstick, albeit a crude one.
It really was an exceptional display from Horgan who is back on the bike this year after a couple of years doing duathlons.
She says he does not want to take the bike as seriously now as she did before, insisting she had only returned to bike racing before her running training for duathlon had been put on long-term hold due to a stress fracture.
But that doesn't mean she can't be competitive in an international field should she target international selection again.
Eddie Dunbar is already among our very best
The NFTO Pro Cycling man is still only 18-years-old but had a massive championships; his first out of the juniors.
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He was second to Ryan Mullen in the time-trial on Thursday night and was second to Shaw in Sunday's road race.
It meant he won silver in both the U23 and senior TT, silver in the senior road race and gold in the U23 road race.
That haul is incredible for a teenager but is made all the more impressive when one considers he broke his collar bone early last month and was off the bike for a spell.
His TT result was perhaps most impressive. Despite the fact he won the junior TT crown two years ago, he would not be regarded as a specialist at the event.
But his climbing ability coupled with his prowess against the watch is the key combination upon which big pro careers are based.
The circuit for the European Championships in Estonia in early August is perfect for Dunbar, with barely a flat metre in it.
And the course for the World Championships in Richmond, Virginia, also features a really testing route that suits guys who can go uphill quickly. His selection for both appears guaranteed. (Photo: Jerry Rafferty)
The home-based riders stepped up a level
The decisive break in the road race on Sunday was marked by the presence of so many home-based men.
In the 14-man group were nine riders who race regularly on the domestic front, four of whom came from Shaw's Team ASEA squad.
That's a staggering representation and just goes to show how well the amateur riders prepare themselves.
And aside from suggesting some excellent training methods, it also revealed the home riders, especially some of the U23s, have no fear when lined up against better competition than they normally face. (Photo: Jerry Rafferty)
A 'flat' course is never easy at a National Champs
Some bemoaned the course for the road race, saying it was too flat.
Rewind to last month at the An Post Rás where the absence of any category one climb for the entire week was also criticised, but did absolutely nothing to make riders' lives any easier.
The racing was just as hard at the weekend and unlike an event that splits naturally because of steep gradients, the course in Omagh was designed to promote fast, aggressive racing.
The event will go down as one of the best on record, and the job done by the promoters, Omagh Wheelers, has set a high bar for others to follow.
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