Richard Maes reeled in the years today with a fabulous bunch-sprint victory in the A3 national championships in Cong, Co. Mayo. The Killarney CC man was a really class act as an underage rider and after a 10-year hiatus from the sport is back - and hungry for more success.
By Brian Canty
Richard Maes took his first win since he was a junior today when he won the A3 national championships road race in Cong, Co. Mayo.
A talented underage rider who rode for Ireland, Maes raced abroad for a spell before packing in the sport for a decade but returned this year with the intention of winning his first national title.
He admitted he specifically targeted the A3 nationals and resisted the urge to move up the ranks all year so he could give himself the best chance of finally getting a national jersey.
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It was a plan that paid him a rich dividend this afternoon.
Maes said he was “bouncing out of his skin today” and knew it was just a matter of timing his kick in the sprint that would decide the race.
“Six riders went away in the first kilometre and got 45 seconds and that went out to two minutes so it was time to act,” he recalled.
Four would drop out of that six but two remained.
“On the second lap on the long, steep climb, eight more got away and I missed that but I went across with another guy and we caught the two leaders,” he continued.
That bunch which now numbered 12 was too big, however, and the cohesion stopped.
“The bunch caught us with seven kilometres to go but I didn’t mind, I was fairly confident if it came to a sprint.
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“There were two or three lads jumping around but I just followed every move, the legs felt really good all day.
“Coming in towards the line I just sat in the top six, I knew I had to be there, a guy from Emyvale went but I just sat in second place.
“We were doing 60 kilometres an hour coming in so I knew if I stayed where I was, no one was coming up my inside.
“It was just about waiting and timing it right and thankfully it worked out.”
Maes said he wants to push on as an A2 now and is targeting his debut An Post Rás next year.
“I never won a national title when I was younger so this is very much that box ticked.
“I was always unlucky, I’ve been in the top 10 too many times.
“I stopped racing as a first year senior but last winter I pulled the bike out and have put in a good year so this is a nice way to end it.
“I’m A2 now and we’ll give that a good crack next year; I want to try and do the Rás, that's the big goal now.”
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