Stevie McKenna of Omagh Wheelers has held a lifelong passion for the sport and recalls his first time doing the Rás in great detail.
He’s not sure if he’ll ever do it again, what with work commitments, four kids and a hectic lifestyle - he’s the man tasked with running this year’s National Championships.
But he’d sure love to try…
“Let’s hear it for the Men of the Rás” - a phrase that meant nothing to me before May 2006, but one I will now never forget.
When I think of the Rás, some vivid memories spring to mind; schoolkids cheering us along the route, the leg test on the stairs each morning, line outs in the gutter, a couple of men getting dropped in the first few miles on the first day and thinking - that’s going to be a long week and the pride of standing in Skerries to receive my medal along with the other comrades.
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The Rás is a few races within a race. You’ve the serious contenders who are out to get up the road and make a difference.
And there were plenty of county men who were front and centre in 2006. Tommy Evans raised a few eyebrows when he took the yellow jersey.
We all paid for that the stage after the TTT when we were lined out from the gun along an exposed bog road in the west.
Then, you have the humble county rider who is out to make it to the finish in modest shape and get to claim the title - ‘man of the rás’.
That title is very special to those who have it. That eight days is a massive learning curve for a newbie Rás rider.
The length of stages, how to fuel and refuel, trying to recover, the muscle soreness.
Funny, by the Wednesday, my legs were that sore I never thought I’d get through it.
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However, either it was the Rás magic or the magic of my soigneur - a certain Geoff Liffey, now chief executive of Cycling Ireland - worked and I ended up feeling fresher and stronger as the race went on.
By the Sunday, I didn’t feel much pain in the legs at all. Then again, maybe the few pints of Arthur Guinness helped!
You pretty much compress two normal months racing into eight days, which is intense. But it’s also brilliant!
The race has a real sense of camaraderie, both between the riders, and also with the volunteers.
It’s a great example of people who love their sport and support their passion with their legs, and wheels.
Despite being almost 10 years since I rode it, I have very vivid memories of that week and it still inspires me.
One such example was a ride by county rider Matthew Ward. It was the shortest stage of the race, but definitely the hardest.
He got up the road that day and finished top county rider and in the top five.
Another memory was the ambition of a few of us to get our moment of fame and get up the road, with a simple aim of getting mentioned on the race radio and subsequently on the live updates.
That was a key objective for Drew McKinley and myself on one of those last days and I think we just about did it.
So, my Rás medal still hangs with pride on my wall. I’d love to have the experience again, but if I never get another chance, I’ll die happy knowing I was a ‘Man of the Rás’.
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