NORTHERN IRELAND CYCLISTS BEST OF BRITISH
As the inquest continues into Northern Ireland's poorest performance in decades at the Commonwealth Games, the cycling team, while winning no medals, can take heart from the fact that in the two major road events, the time trial and the road race, they outperformed riders from the other Home Nations.
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CYCLISTS JUST OUTSIDE THE MEDALS
It has often been said that the worst finishing position in a major championship is fourth place, the reasoning being that the records will only show the medal winners and, as for the rest, finishing fourth is not much better than finishing twentieth.  This is rather an ungracious attitude and , in the case of Northern Ireland's cyclists at the Commonwealth Games, it denies credit for top class performances from riders who have had to prepare during the dark winter months for the big events, coming as they have at a time when riders are normally still in the process of getting race fit for a season that doesn't start until March.
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NORTH DOWN CYCLISTS STARTING TO SHOW FORM
After a quiet and unadventurous start to the season, North Down riders are beginning to show a bit of form both on the road and cross country.  At last weekend’s Surgenor Cup at Randalstown Paul Ferguson, one of the club’s most consistent riders of recent seasons, took ninth place in a race won by former Irish Junior international Adam Petrie-Armstrong.  Ferguson was part of a 14 strong group that managed to get away after the second lap but by the final lap this group had split with eight riders going clear to fight it out for the finish.  Ferguson missed this final break but led in the remainder of the field to take ninth place.  Ferguson was pleased with his early form and is hoping to improve over the next few weeks in readinesss for the annual P&O Ferries Tour of the North, run over the Easter holidays.
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NORTH DOWN RIDERS ACTIVE ON TWO FRONTS
Mention the word March and you could be excused for assuming that we have, at last, reached springtime. However, North Down’s cyclists have learned that the calendar is an unreliable guide to the actual conditions they are likely to face on the roads. Last weekend was the second of the new racing season but many riders’ normal enthusiasm for the start of competition has been cooled somewhat by wintry weather and the forecasts prior to last weekend gave little cause for optimism. Nevertheless, the promotions at Annaclone on Saturday and the Phoenix GP at Nutt’s Corner on Sunday went ahead and both events drew large fields. Six of North Down’s regular racing men entered the fray and all of them reported satisfaction with their early season form, the main objective being to use these races to get in some race training and avoid the early season crashes that are fairly common, with riders, anxious to demonstrate their form, jostling through narrow roads in large bunches. The only rider to get caught in a crash was Norman Wilson who came down during the Phoenix GP but managed to avoid serious injury.
Next weekend riders once again have a choice of events.  On saturday Old Bleach CC stage the Surgenor Cup over 100Km at Randalstown, the race getting under way at 11am. Sunday’s competition is the McCann Cup sponsored by Omagh Wheelers at Seskinore, the race starting at 1pm.
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CYCLISTS GEAR UP FOR NEW SEASON
The biting, cold wind and flurries of snow this week can only mean one thing ; the start of the cycle racing season has arrived.  Photographs of last weekend’s John Haldane Memorial road race at Hilltown showed the riders dressed more for a polar expedition than a bike race but at least the weather was dry and it was enough to tempt riders to the south Down venue for the opening race of the 2006 season, a 45 mile handicapped race that attracted a field of 120 competitors. Races so early in the year are rarely indicators of peak season form and many riders use them as hard training rides and preparation for races later in the season.
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Training and Nutrition Talk

Wed. March 8th at 7.30 Darren McWilliams Will be giving a talk on training and nutrition in the Club Rooms all welcome.