Riders may still be recovering from the 2015 road season but the race calendar for 2016 has just been released. Above, Sean McKenna takes the Mick Lally Memorial during his impressive early season run of wins this year (Photo: Darragh McManamon)
With November now upon us, many road racers will be just beginning to think seriously about their winter training.
And the publication of the domestic race calendar for 2016 should prove all the motivation they need.
Cycling Ireland has released the provisional fixture list for next year’s campaign and you can access it by following this link.
As usual, the season gets off to a start in Leinster where the traditional curtain raised once again comes in the shape of the Ned Flanagan Memorial in Co Kildare.
This year that event falls on Saturday, February 13th, meaning there is racing on all weekends in February bar the first one.
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The Ned Flanagan is the sole event in the provisional calendar on that opening weekend but is followed by several fixtures one week later.
On Saturday 20th, riders can choose between the Trader’s Cup in Dundalk, Co Louth, and the West Coast Wheelers Open Race in Loughrea, Co Galway.
And the following day, Sunday, February 21st; those in search of early season competition can travel to Tralee, Co Kerry, for the always excellent Lacey Cup or the equally hard-fought Phoenix GP in Co Antrim.
Following on from that, the weekend of Saturday and Sunday, February 27th and 28th, sees plenty of action as the campaign – and riders’ fitness – really warms up.
The Dublin Wheelers Open Races for all categories offer the usual feast of racing on the Dorey’s Forge circuit in Co Meath on Saturday, while the John Moore Memorial is also down for decision in Co Down on the same day.
And the following day, Sunday, Newry Wheelers John Haldane Memorial will attract a really good field.
Like McKenna, Dave Watson excelled in the early months of last year and kept it going through the summer. Can he get the same fantastic start again in 2016? (Photo: David McVeigh – The Belgian Project)
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The following month, March, sees the usual packed schedule and one notable feature is how close the major Easter stage races are to St Patrick’s Day.
This year the national holiday falls on Thursday, March 17th, with racing in all four provinces on the day.
There is then a break for a day and a full schedule of racing on the weekend of March 19th and 20th.
That includes the Lucan GP, Markievicz Cup, Wallace Caldwell Memorial, Carn Classic and Seven Springs GP.
And then Easter falls the following weekend, with Kerry Group Rás Mumhan and the Tour of the North getting underway on Good Friday, March 25th.
The Gorey Three Day is not included in the provisional calendar but it will get underway on Easter Saturday.
The next major stage race is the Tour of Ulster, straddling the last weekend in April and first weekend in May, which roll into one.
In June, the U23, elite and masters’ National Road Championships are scheduled for Clonmel, Co Tipperary.
As usual, they get underway with the U23 and elite time trials on the Thursday of championship week and end with the elite men’s road race on Sunday, June 26th.
The calendar can be viewed by following this link.
To stress once again; this is a provisional fixture list released by Cycling Ireland and some very obvious races – including the An Post Rás, for example – are not yet listed.
So please don’t panic if you don’t see the event you or your club is promoting or indeed the events you already have your eye on to target as more racing will be added.
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