Race days: Weekly gatherings around the country between February and September where large groups of people on bicycles chase each other around the Irish countryside in order to be the first across the line.
The simplicity of this definition of a race day hides the complexities of what goes through the typical A2 riders mind on the day of the race, despite it being a somewhat accurate depiction of a bike race. What makes this complicated is that this definition relies on the fact that every rider is going to the race to win. This is where things get a little murky. Not every rider is going to the race to win. In fact most riders go into a race knowing that they won't win. They do know the riders who can win, and probably will win the race on that day. So why do we race knowing that the outcome for us probably won't involve us raising our arms in victory? Some of us use the excuse of training. "Oh I'm just using the first few races to get up to race speed and develop good form" is a line that's used among us. While this is true, what happens after those first few races? Do we suddenly transform into beating the best riders that Ireland has to offer? Most likely not (But we still remain hopeful of it- drawing on the more talented A2's who have done so in the past). The problem being is that while we are getting stronger race after race, so are they. Some of us harbour the hope that we will be strong enough to go with the breakaway; When those riders that we know will win the race take off and perhaps we are fit enough to hang onto their coattails. This is actually quite an effective plan and can work well on getting your name in the results on Stickybottle (that is of course you survive in the break long enough, that when they do drop you, you still manage to get in ahead of the bunch). It will nearly always guarantee the "A2" prize. However this plan is not without danger. The danger being that you blow up so badly and so early on in the race that when you're caught by the bunch you exit out the back door of that too. Sometimes the A2 hopes against hope that the weekly batterings dished out to them by the A1's will make them strong enough to demolish a field when the race is an A2/A3 race only. This does make sense. Surely an A2 who has been racing with the A1's would easily get into the breakaway, and then ride away from it with their fellow A2's and contest the win. There's just one slight problem. A3's are much better at hanging on to the coattails of A2's than A2's are at hanging onto the coattails of A1's. How dare they! So if winning isn't the motivating factor, what is? The pre and post race craic with the other riders. Hanging onto the main bunch while others drop away. Finishing a race spent. Surviving "an epic**". Being involved in the ebb and flow of the bunch. Speeding through towns and villages while a few spectators cheer you on (and maybe hearing your name if you're a local!). Being part of the sea of colour that catches kids and adults imagination alike. Looking at the race photos and posting the ones that make you look "pro". Being part of an event that might get 30 seconds of news coverage and spotting yourself in the bunch (Check out 2015 Rás Mumhan RTE highlights to spot yours truly hanging on for dear life). Uploading the race to Strava to show off the "insane" average speed or the seemingly unsustainable wattage. This is what keeps us coming back for more. And maybe, just maybe, we do sneak up the road, and we do contest for the win (or even a placing!), having pushed ourselves further than we could ever have imagined. (In which case the race will be added to the list of Coffee Shop Stories to be told forever more.) *A2: A second category rider. The middle ground. **An Epic: (a)Conditions in which sane people wouldn't dream to open the front door never mind ride bikes. (b)A notoriously difficult race where more than half the riders don't finish but somehow you manage to survive. An Epic will be added to the list of Coffee Shop Stories
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St.Finbarrs Cycling ClubEst. 1938 Archives
October 2017
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