Shaw had ridden for Lakeside Wheelers in Mullingar but has moved to new team Aquablue for 2013
By Brian Canty
The Aquablue racing team – formerly Dan Morrissey/Speedy Spokes - held their official team launch in Kenmare last weekend, and didn’t waste the opportunity to test out their new recruits.
Among those is Mullingar strong-man and paralympic tandem pilot Damien Shaw, who joined from Lakeside Wheelers in his hometown at the latter end of last year.
For Shaw, who turns 29 this year, it was his first time meeting up with the team and he said they're gelling well and looking forward to the new season.
“I’ve met some of the lads before but the weekend was as much about getting to know the other lads as anything else, and the same for Robin (Kelly) and Keith (Gater) who haven’t been out too often with the team over Christmas,” explained Shaw.
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The team rode the Easter Saturday stage of Rás Mumhan twice over the weekend and Shaw said he now knows why the stage is being billed as one of the toughest ever.
“We rode the stage Saturday and Sunday. It’s just flat out climbing and the conditions that make it so tough. You’re riding right beside the coast as soon as you come off the first climb. The wind could go any way. You come off that climb and you go onto narrow country roads so you’ve just got bits of everything thrown at you.”
“We took a good look at the descents as well,” he continued.
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“Those descents could be very important on the stage. Especially coming off the Healy Pass, there are a lot of hairpins. I found it very beneficial, just to get it into your head what’s coming up. I think it’ll pay off, you’ll see results from our team in that stage.”
As for the team and how they’re shaping up, Shaw said confidently: “The lads are in good shape. Robin really surprised me; himself and Keith are training hard and are in great condition. Timmy and Sean are strong as always, they know when they have to be ready, and they’ll be ready.”
“I feel good myself, I’ve some good blocks put in over Christmas and I was able to judge that off the lads at the weekend, as opposed to a computer screen which is what I’d usually have to do.”
Shaw faces an anxious few weeks now as the funding of athletes is due in early February. Though he satisfied the criteria, he knows it’s a “touchy subject” among some people.
There will be no paralympic track programme this year – which is the norm the year after an Olympic cycle he says.
“As far as I know I’m getting funding. I’ve filled out all the forms but more importantly I’ve done what I needed to do to get it. It’s a given that after a paralympic year that funding is stopped because no one wants to run it. We’re a big squad and to send 10 or 15 of us away every year is a big drain so I’m sure they can justify it that way.”
“I’ll believe I get it when I see it though, because it’s a touchy subject. All I know is the last two competitions I’ve achieved the podium funding and I’d be very disappointed if we didn’t get it. Targets are there to be met and we met them,” he reasoned.
As regards his targets for the year, he’s more certain.
"The Rás and Rás Mumhan are the big goals and that suits me, they’re a realistic level for me. If I can test myself in the Rás and see where I stand against some of the lads coming from abroad, and see if I belong there, I might make an effort to ride with a team like that but I haven’t even done a Rás. I can’t talk about results or anything. It’s not realistic so I just want to see where I stand more than anything. The Des Hanlon and Shay Elliott are races I’d love to win as well.”
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