Stephen Clancy, front right, leads the escape on his way to the overall Charleville win last year
By Brian Canty
It has produced some good winners in the past including Richard Hooton (Visit Nenagh) and Stephen Clancy (Dan Morrissey-Speedy Spokes) and this year promises to be no different at the Charleville Two-Day.
Race organiser Brian Jordan is anticipating another hotly contested event with an entry of 200 riders.
“It should be another great race and I’m delighted to say the turnout is set to be one of our biggest ever,” enthused Jordan.
Indeed, with such a shortage of stage races since the Suir Valley Three Day, aside from Ballinrobe, this weekend’s race is set to be a hard fought end of season contest.
Saturday’s opening stage of 76 kilometres climbs for a total of 387 metres and works its way around a figure of eight circuit taking in Charleville, Dromina, Milford, Freemount, Newmarket and Kanturk.
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An extra 10 kilometre loop had been mooted but because it featured such a steep and technical descent it has been decided to abolish plans for that on safety grounds, especially in light of the big field set to take to the start.
The time trial is the same as usual, with a 6.4 kilometre test on Sunday morning from Kilmallock Cross back to Charleville and that too has proven decisive in the past with Charlie Prendergast (2009), Hooton (2010) and Clancy (2011) all sowing the seeds for their respective successes there.
A time of between 8:40 and 9:00 will probably win it and definitely form a clearer picture of what riders are the ones to watch in the afternoon stage.
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The time trial course itself is far from easy, with one 90 degree right hand bend early on before it heads down a long lumpy route to the finish.
The final stage is the toughest, with the race heading back through Buttevant and turning left at Newtwopothouse onto Doneraile, Kildorrery and back through some of the opening stage’s circuit.
There is an 8 kilometre climb where Clancy blew most of the field away before cementing his win last year and anyone with designs on the overall will need to be at the front there.
The descent off that is safe and gradual before it shoots down a sharp right hand bend at the bottom and down into Ballyorgan before rising up again.
From there, the finish is less than 20 kilometres away but if a breakaway has gone away by then, it’s very likely it will stay away to the finish.
The A4 race covers the same routes and distances as the combined A2-A3 event.
A favourite is difficult to pick but there are a couple of promising juniors that will certainly be there or thereabouts. Thomas Fallon (Seven Springs) and Dylan Foley (St Finbarr’s) have ridden with distinction in the national colours this year in Europe and both are very strong men against the clock.
Foley’s team-mate Maurice Lawlor is the reigning A3 champion and he’ll fancy his chances while national junior champion Liam Corcoran from Castlebar CC is a definite contender for the opening stage, especially if it comes down to a sprint.
There are a number of much more experienced riders taking part and amongst them are John Dempsey (Iverk Produce Carrick Wheelers) and Vinnie Gleeson (West Clare CC).
Gleeson, now a vet, was one of the top riders in the country for many years while Dempsey is a former winner of Rás Mumhan and cannot be discounted. Brian Hart (Limerick CC) and Brian Martin (Seven Springs) as well as Dermot Radford (Tipperary Wheelers) have all won races this year and should definitely be in contention.
The full programme of events is as follows;
- Saturday 1st : september. Sign-on charleville park hotel between 1pm-2.30pm.
- Saturday 1st : stage 1 - 81km road race 3pm.
- Sunday 2nd : stage 2 - 6.4km time trial 8am.
- Sunday 2nd : stage 3 - 80km road race 12noon.
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