Sean Kelly like you've never (ever) seen him before

Cycling fans will have seen Sean Kelly in many situations on his bike, but nothing like this one.

Sean Kelly is known around the world for being a hard man; lapping it up on the muddy wet cobbles of Paris-Roubaix for many years is his pomp.

But while his ability to handle very inclement weather, and to excel in it as others wilted, brought him huge wins; he’s taken things a little further in recent days.

Unless you’ve jetted off to sunnier climes for winter training, you’ll know that Ireland and Britain are being lashed by high winds and heavy rain at present, with many areas under flood waters.

So when Kelly was getting in a few sneaky miles the other day with friend and business partner Barry Meehan, he wasn’t perturbed by the wet or wind chill.

The guys teamed up last year to launch the Sean Kelly ONDA range of cycling clothing.

So when they passed rough seas at Bonmahon Village in Co Waterford where the winds and sea waters had deposited foam all along the beach, Kelly couldn’t resist jumping in to test just how durable his ONDA kit was.

There’s nothing like a bit of confidence in your own product! And by all accounts the great man was very happy with the results.

The rest of the shots below were taken by Meehan yesterday, Tuesday, on his training roads around Waterford and south Tipperary.

The ruins in the first shot below are in Twomile Bridge in Waterford while the flooded stadium further down is the greyhound track in Clonmel, Co Tipperary.

Meehan also produces the very stylish Cycling Blog; check it out if you get a chance.