IRVINE TARGETS BIG RACES

North Down Cycling Club’s Mark Irvine, in only his second season in competitive cycling, has made clear his objectives for the season and they show an ambition unusual in a rider still in the early stages of development. The local racing scene is competitive but early season races are relatively short and restricted in numbers. As a result, Irvine has travelled south of the border in search of the kind of races that will get him accustomed to the big bunches, longer distances and higher speeds associated with stage races such as the Tour of the North, the Tour of Ulster and, ultimately, the An Post Ras, an eight day international stage race which averages 100 miles a day all over Ireland.

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North Down Cyclists Dominant

The level of the enthusiasm and commitment amongst the racing men in North Down Cycling Club is at a level not seen for a long time. At the weekend not only was the minibus filled to capacity, but no fewer than three support cars were commandeered into action. Nor is this simply early season madness with little capacity to back it up. With the season only two weeks old, the pink and blacks have already notched up: one first, one second and two thirds – with several other top ten finishes as well!

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FIRST RACE FIRST WIN FOR FARREN

Cycle racing is a demanding sport at any level so anyone who decides to enter competitive road racing does so with a certain degree of trepidation. When training, a cyclist works at a level chosen by himself or herself but in a race the speed and tempo is invariably set by others. A rider’s first few races constitute a journey into unknown territory, the form and fitness of the opposition and anticipated speed of the races all a matter of guesswork. So North Down Cycling Club’s Shane Farren’s achievement last Saturday, when he entered and won the first open road race of the season, was a remarkable achievement considering this was only his second ever venture into competition. Mind you, his first race, the North Down GP race for A4 riders last May, hinted at the possibility of future successes when he rode to ninth place against more experienced riders..

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FULL RACE PROGRAMME FOR NORTH DOWN CYCLISTS

It has only been a few weeks since local cyclists were shivering in freezing temperatures and piling on the layers of thermal clothing and yet here we are, a few days from the start of a new racing season. There was a time when no racing took place before March but the expanding calendar of races has meant bringing the opening events forward into late February.

The first race is, as always , the Banbridge CC sponsored event at Annaclone on Saturday. The Travers Engineering GP will feature two races. The senior race, which will be handicapped, is for A1, A2 and A3 riders and will roll out at 12 noon and cover five laps of a testing 8 mile circuit. The supporting race is for A4 riders and is scheduled to start a few minutes later, the riders having to cover the same five laps.

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BROWNFIELD REGAINS FORM IN IRISH CHAMPIONSHIP RACE

After a disappointing fourth place in the Ulster cyclo-cross championship in early December, North Down Cycling Club’s Ray Brownfield returned to form at last Sunday’s Irish championship race at Lurgan Park. In a race that was dominated once again by Robin Seymour (Team WORC), who took his 17^th national title, Brownfield rode a strong and well calculated race to finish 6^th overall. More satisfying was the fact that he was the second Ulster rider over the line, a position that better reflects the kind of form that he had been showing in the cyclo-cross league races that led up to the Ulster championships a month ago.

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