Paidi O'Brien has taken the first stage win at Rás Mumhan on a fast day when the field split to pieces. Seen above winning in Carrick last month (Photo: John Coleman)
By Brian Canty
Paidi O’Brien has won the opening stage of this year’s Kerry Group Rás Mumhan after an absolutely bruising day that saw the race shredded to pieces.
The Osbourne Meats-McCarthy Cycles man won from a hectic sprint from a bunch of around 100 riders and he holds the first yellow jersey of this year’s race.
The Banteer rider beat and Harry Tanfield of Condor-JLT and Dutchman Bram Imming on a day when large numbers of riders lost 10 minutes.
As expected, the race began at a ferocious pace, and despite a headwind back to Killarney, the riders regularly tipped 50kph on the flat.
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Several small groups tried to jump away off the front even before Killarney, but with the bunch travelling at such a pace everything was reabsorbed.
Turning left for Tralee at the roundabout in Killarney and it was Sean McKenna of the Irish National Team and Roger Aiken (Team ASEA) who had a brief period out front.
And even though they were joined by Eoin Morton (UCD CC), they too were hauled back.
Turning right off the main Tralee road en route to the first climbers’ prime at Kilcummin saw the race really ramp up, with many riders obviously keen to take that particular jersey on day one.
And it was on the approach to this climb where the biggest split of the day took place.
With the field lined out in pursuit of a new trio that had broken clear - in the shape of Luke Grivell Mellor (Condor-JLT), Daniel Stewart (Irish National Team) and Ruben Dorren (Combilift West Frisia) - the race split roughly in half.
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Doren was first over the top, followed by Grivell-Mellor and a flying Daniel Stewart next.
Once the climb was crested, the gap between the two bunches reached a minute, with Aiken jumping clear of the front group to join the three leaders.
Doren and Grivell-Mellor tailed off, to leave Stewart and Aiken out front alone.
Hitting the second climb of the day at Tooreencahill they had 40 seconds on the chasers, with Stewart going over the top first, Aiken next and Doren taking third place behind.
Meanwhile, the two bunches behind continued to become distanced from each other, with the time gap extending to over three minutes at the 70k mark.
Aiken and Stewart were back in the bunch by then, after which Sean Hahessy (Irish National Team) and Robin Kelly (Waterford Racing Team) took a gamble and went clear.
They battled gallantly but were never likely to get much leeway and were back in the bunch as the race headed back for Killorglin via Castleisland.
All the while, the second bunch were losing time and their deficit crept over the five-minute mark with 25 kilometres to go.
Up ahead, a few riders tried to go clear on the final KOH of the day at Milltown but again, were reeled in, and that teed up the sprint, with O’Brien taking it from the depleted peloton that settled stage honours.
Brief Results
1 Paidi O’Brien (Osbourne Meats-McCarthy Cycles)
2 Harry Tanfield (Condor-JLT Cycles)
3 Bram Imming (Combilift-West Frisia)
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