RVV U23

   
The Ronde van Vlaanderen voor Beloften. I've started three times, had a DNF in my first attempt, finished my second and came crashing down and ending up in hospital in my third.

It's given me a roller-coaster of emotions, and admittedly it's leaving a hole in my heart walking away from this race without reaching my full potential in it. However that's cycling, sport and life. For most riders - 99% of the time racing won't go the way you wanted it to, but we all chase that 1% chance of something special happening. It's what we all dream about and gives us motivation and inspiration to work hard every day. The thought of it all paying off, for one day, one result and one moment. It would all be worth it...

This year RVV ended up in a bad way - for both myself and the team. Three of us were forced to abandon the race due to our injuries. I ended up in Oudenaarde hospital getting my body sewn back together for the second time in a month. 5 stitches in my hip, 2 in my elbow, plenty of more road rash and another course of antibiotics - my third course in a month! This time it hit extra hard as I had just about recovered from my previous crash at Omloop het Waasland (links*),  which gave me lots of complication. I started Flanders with cuts and scars from then, still some work and not in the best shape, but optimistic I could be an influential part of the team and everything had been going to plan until 120km. 

It was on the Kattenberg just outside Oudenaarde, a downhill sector of cobblestones that comes just after the Holleweg sector. About five minutes before we hit Holleweg it started to piss down with rain, you could see most guys race was immediately over, and I knew that shit was going to hit the fan - and that it did! 
When cobbles get wet they are like ice, super slippery - so when the peleton of young exuberant U23's hit the off camber downhill Kattenberg at 65km/h+ in was the recipe for disaster. I was quite close to the front, just behind my two team mates Jack Wilson and Ryan Mullen who I was to try and protect and help in the final. 
It started with a few guys going down in front, just next to Jack losing their bikes from under them and before I knew it mine was gone and Ryan and I were amongst it. It was carnage, must have been at least 20-30 riders involved as well as motorbike marshals and camera crew. I stood up so fast I can't even remember pulling myself off the ground, I was in denial - trying to convince myself that this wasn't happening again! The first thing I did was check my ankle before I limped around in discomfort and pain trying to believe this wasn't happening...again! The race was over for us at that point. I was asked to ride on, but there was no hope of ever reaching the front again. I got back on the bike and rode to the finish with Ryan, a grim and painful 5 kilometres. 

It's not easy, but I am shining a positive light over the current situation and considering myself lucky. These have been the two worst accidents of my career and I came out of them with no broken bones. A mere few days on and one of my best friends and team mates, Jack Wilson, was involved in another accident at La Cote Picarde in France whilst in the sprint for the win. He broke his collarbone and wrist. "Luck of the Irish" certainly hasn't been on our side this last month or so. 

Big thanks to Kurt Bogaerts, Cycling Ireland and Brian Nugent for all your help over the Nations Cup period. It's a shame how things turned out for us all. There will be better days! 

- 

Now I am in the rebuild stage of my recovery. I have started training again, just. The wound in my hip was so deep that two stitches need to stay in extra long - just to be sure!  My plan is to take some weeks to train and regain some condition which was lost in this last month. I am motivated to turn my season around, this first few months has been rough for me and I haven't got any reward for the hard work I put in this winter which is the most frustrating thing, but I am remaining calm. It's a long season ahead! Comeback 2.0 is on! Wish me better luck this time... 

To wrap this blog up, check out this awesome picture Ryan Mullen posted on his Twitter last week. Never truer words...

   

I am back in business! It’s been around 3 weeks since I crashed at Omloop het Waasland, and I have been back in Belgium for a week or so already. It has been an eventful week as we had our team/press launch in Gent, and I have been back training on the road again. I was getting quite fond of the turbo however…. not! 

After my accident I flew home on St. Patrick’s day to firstly recover and then restart training. I spoke with the management and my coach and we decided it was better to be at home and get looked after properly so I could return to action as soon as possible. It turned out I needed just over a week completely off the bike - it really killed me inside! I guess not having so much time without exercise in the past 2-3 years made me crazy. However it’s what I needed to do in order for me to come back to full condition as fast as possible - in hindsight, it only made me more motivated! I was lucky I went home and got further medical attention though, as I started to get the first symptoms of a skin infection in my ankle which could have caused a lot of further complications. It was a deep wound right to the bone so it would have been very easily susceptible to getting infection. I knocked it on the head with a strong course of antibiotics and once the stitches got taken out I was immediately on the turbo again.

I spent around a week training indoors and I was and still am feeling better every day. I didn't lose too much condition thankfully, as I had a good winter backing me up. I was knocking out 2-3 hours a day on the turbo, and once I got back to Belgium I continued the same until the An Post-Chain Reaction team/press launch where I got back on the road for the first time and with success! Up until that point I was being extra careful not to reopen the wound but it’s been lasting even through some intense and longer sessions on the rough roads here. All positive signs! I can’t wait to start racing again. Through the past few weeks my motivation has remained high as when I touched down at OHW I was starting to feel really strong, so I was motivated and confident I can get back to that level. Just need some luck now I will be back in no time!

The An Post-Chain Reaction team/press launch for 2015 took place in Gent on the 2nd of April. It was the perfect opportunity for the team to meet the sponsors and press before we tackle our 2015 season. We arrived in Gent on the 1st of April to do some photos and meet the sponsors and press who came over from Ireland, then on the morning of the 2nd we rode the Ronde van Vlaanderen finale with the king, Sean Kelly. It was awesome for us to get to know the people who make it happen for An Post-Chain Reaction. Without the sponsors the team wouldn’t be able to function at a professional level. For me, I got on the road again for the first time since I crashed. I am happy to say I am back in full training and on the road to a good level again. The finale of the ride was made extra special with a feed stop 10km to go, where we rehydrated with Kwaremont 6.6% Belgian Beers - the perfect end to an awesome ride! 

After the ride and some lunch we then had to scrub up for some interviews before we changed into our team kit for the team presentation. I really enjoyed speaking to the Irish press about the upcoming season, it really made it sink in that I am now a part of this team - something, as an Irishman I am extremely proud of. The following morning some our technical sponsors gave the riders a briefing on their line of products. We had HIGH5 Nutrition, KASK Helmets and Continental Tyres talk us through the best way in which to use their equipment. Big thanks for the informative morning and I look forward to using some of your advice in upcoming races. 

Big respect to Kurt Bogaerts and the An Post-Chain Reaction staff for organising such a professional event. It was a great few days and I’m sure everybody had a lot of fun!

Now my plan is to ride the U23 UCI Coupe des Nations - Ronde van Vlaanderen, La Cote Picarde and ZLM Tour as part of the Irish U23 National team. I’m proud to have been selected again this year, I’ve ridden these events in the past few seasons and they have been the highlight of my season. Unfortunately this year I am entering them under different circumstances so wont have the condition I would have liked. Regardless I am going to give 100%, as I always do when I pull on the national jersey. 

Thanks for reading and stay tuned for more news over the next few weeks. Follow the team and I on twitter to keep up to date on our upcoming events: 

My Twitter: @Eoin_McCarthy

An Post-Chain Reaction Twitter: @AnPost_CRC

Last time I was writing about my adventures on a bicycle, I was in a hotel room in France at Etoille de Besseges UCI 2.1, trying desperately to concentrate whilst listening to my room mate Maessie’s music and recovering from a hectic first stage. Now I am sitting in Belgium, half of my body ripped to shreds and an ankle swollen like a balloon! This sure is an interesting lifestyle I am leading. However, it could be worse - it could be raining! 

I’m still trying to find words for Besseges… Even in just a few days, it was a big learning experience for me. My most important lesson being, you cant hide a bad day at this level! 

In my last blog I spoke of Stage 1, so here’s my recap on the rest of my race. One word for Stage 2 - bizarre! Something I will always have memories from, some funny and some scary! It was the day the peleton went on “strike”! On paper it was set out to be a horrible day. Very cold, and extremely windy. It had potential for another stage of absolute carnage! As we rolled out of Nimes in the neutral section I witnessed some scenes. It was so windy that I had difficulty controlling my bike and even some of the smaller guys got blown completely off there bikes as the gusts of wind were so strong! Once the flag dropped at kilometre 0 the peleton almost immediately blocked the road and there was a hell of a lot of shouting going on. Little did I know what was happening but apparently we were on strike!?! We came to a stop after about 5km and I had no idea what was happening. After chatting to some english speaking guys the plan was to ride to the finish line and stop the stage because it was deemed as too dangerous. Now, I was no one to question the world tour guys of Lotto-Soudal or FDJ - but the race was never going to be stopped! As we got further away from Nimes the wind started to ease off, and racing was now much safer. We got the finish line after around 60km and came to a halt for the second time. Then after about 5 to 10 minutes we got going yet again - full gas for 2 km before we now stopped for the third time!!! What in the name of god is going on!?!? This time it was Thomas Voeckler and Tony Gallopin who called the shot and got the race going again. We then raced to the finish as normal - fast and hard! It was coming down to a bunch sprint but a massive crash near the front end of the peleton at 1.5km to got blocked the road and all of our team were hindered in the process. Nobody got badly hurt thankfully, but it was disappointing for us. 

The third day of Besseges is not a day I would like to remember. It was quite possibly the worst day I’ve ever had on a bike. However I learnt some very valuable lessons from it! It was the hardest stage on paper, with a category 1 climb starting after 2km. Ouch! I was optimistic and hoped to have good legs as a day like this would usually suit my style. From the gun I was suffering badly, I never got going. Over the top I was hanging on for dear life, and when we got strung out on the descent I was way too far back and suffering too much starting the second climb just minutes later and I lost touch. I kept pushing through the pain but I was empty, I had nothing left. Once I reached the finish line I was too far behind the leaders and the organisers stopped me and some others. It was gutting! 

Honestly, I have never been so disillusioned and upset. I was so disappointed for weeks afterwards so it was a godsend that I was heading home for a few weeks instead of going straight to Belgium post race. 

After some easy days to recover and reflect on my French experience, I was ready to go again and started training solidly at home in Cork. In hindsight I went to France too tired and under recovered from Calpe and my weeks training post-Calpe/pre-Marseille. A big mistake on my part! Then my solo effort at GP Marseille and the hard first few days of Besseges seemed to knock me over the edge. You live and you learn!  

I am now in Buggenhout, Belgium. My new base for 2015! I trained really well at home and in my first few weeks in Belgium I continued to do the same. 

My first race here was at Wanzele Koers Pro Kermesse on the 11th March. I was really happy with how my race went, I was feeling 10 times better than I did in France and I proved to myself I have gotten better and made improvements. I had no result in the end - I just rolled in mid-peleton as it was a bunch sprint. I know it was a smaller race, but all positive signs for the upcoming weeks! 

Omloop van het Waasland was next up for me on Sunday the 15th. I was really motivated, optimistic and looking forward to having a good hard race and trying to show my worth. My goal was to represent An Post-Chain Reaction in the breakaway. Unfortunately it didn’t end up that way for me. It ended up at a hospital. At around 90km into the race I was involved in a heavy crash! I was about 20-30 guys from the front of the peleton and I was following my team mates Ali and Jack to the front. It was coming to the time of the race where there was a lot of attacks as the breakaway hadn’t been established, so I was very alert and watching what was going on - just waiting for a move to slip away. We were following the attacks and even making some ourselves. I know it’s so easy to say it now, but I was genuinely feeling great! I was starting to feel really strong again and I was well able to mix it. Then it all went wrong! The guy next to me hit a hole in the road and went over the handlebars - at 50km/h or so. I had nowhere to go and I hit the ground pretty hard. Race over in  a matter of seconds. I was quite dizzy for about 30 mins afterwards, but thankfully I was wearing my Kask Infinity helmet, it potentially saved my life! As usual when you crash I lost a lot of skin, in particular on my ankle, where I received stitches after a lengthy wait in the hospital with Greg. It is like a bullet hole, about the size of a euro coin - right to the bone! Horrible stuff, but a good story for the ladies as I am sure I will have a lovely scar to show for it! 

I now have to wait 10 days before I get my stitches taken out, but I hope to recover as soon as possible and start riding again within a week. My body may be hurt, but my heart hurts more. Although I know, with hard work and fast healing, I can come back and be at the same strength soon! It’s a long season ahead! I want to say a big thanks to Greg, I cant thank you enough for how much you helped me. Big shout out to Hans also who really looked after me and helped me yesterday and today. You guys are the best! I am motivated to come back stronger and show everyone what I can do - firstly though, I need time to make sure I am 100% healthy! Thanks everyone at home for your kind messages of concern. I will be better before I’m married as they would say in Ireland! 

Eoin

www.anpostchainreaction.com

Eoin McCarthy about his first races:

To say my first races with "An Post-Chain Reaction" have been "eventful" would be a huge understatement. They have been quite a shock to the system! Every year it has taken me the first few races to fine-tune my condition and this year is no different. I've had a good winter of training preparing for the season, but you can never compare training to racing!

GP Marseille kicked off my 2015 campaign. It was full gas right from the beginning with an 8km climb starting at kilometre 0. I was pretty quick to realise that I am no longer in the Elites and u23's - ouch! After about 30 or 40 minutes there was a stall in the peleton, and unsure that we had anyone representing us in the breakaway I just rolled off the front. At the beginning it was unintentional. I was just eating a HIGH5 gel at the front, I went around a corner and had a gap. I just rode steady and didn't make any crazy efforts. I hoped someone might join me and when I got the first time check and realised Conor had made the breakaway - I didn't know what to do! I never knew he was in front. I didn't really want to sit up and go back to the peloton, it would have been embarrassing so I kept riding and got over some of the harder climbs at my own pace. I spent about one to one and a half hours on my own. When I got caught we started another hard climb within a few kilometres and about halfway up I blew my lights. Maybe I had ridden harder than I thought. Lesson learned for the future, but hey - nothing ventured, nothing gained. I had nothing to lose. I got my name on the radio and some publicity for the team, if nothing else. I'll always have a story to tell about my first race at this level!

After GP Marseille we then had a few days to prepare for Etoille de Besseges which started today, Wednesday. For the first time in a long time I am sitting in my hotel room typing a blog, and finding it difficult. My brain is fried after a hectic first stage! The wind was the major decider in todays race, splitting the race to pieces from kilometre zero. Freezing temperatures, snow and crashes helped animate things equally! Immediately from the flag drop a front group had formed, from then on it was full gas and very nervous, everyone wanted to be in the front at all times. I am still amazed how I didn't crash today, I was agonisingly close on many occasions. Just before the second GPM (KOM) my race was decided. There was a crash right in front of me which caused a split in the peleton. I tried my hardest to come back but with the wind being so strong it was impossible, I went as hard as I could but couldn't close the gap! I finished in a big group roughly 13 minutes behind winner Kris Boeckmans from Lotto-Soudal. I have a lot to learn at this level, GP Marseille and today's stage show that, but I am optimistic that I can make improvements once I get the hang of the style of racing. It's funny because when I went to Belgium first, I found the local kermess races really hard and a year later I was contesting for wins. It's the same principle here, only harder. A lot harder! Tomorrow is another day. To try again and learn more...

Eoin

Interview from Calpe with anpostchainreaction.com

Here's an interview I recently did at our training camp in Calpe with the guys @ anpostchainreaction.com :

We are an Irish team, so talking with an Irish rider is always nice. Today we spoke with youngster Eoin McCarthy. A smart guy with an interesting opinion.

Eoin, why did you choose for An Post Chain Reaction Sean Kelly CT?

Last year I had the opportunity to meet Kurt Bogaerts and show myself and my skills to him. I really wanted to convince him to sign me. After I receive the chance of being a rider for his team I was elated. It means a lot to me!

What are you're expectations for this season?

Actually I need to see how things work. This is a whole new world for me. So I can say with pride that I like the idea of being a good helper. This way I can get to know the guys and how things work at this level.

How is the preparation going?

I'm happy with the training and the intensity. I must say that it's hard, but fun. We will be ready for the start of the season, of that I'm sure!

Which team-rider has made an impression on you yet?

Because I assume everybody is going to say Aidis and maybe I would to I rather go for Ryan Mullen. Not because he's Irish but because he is good and above all modest about his achievements. Happy to be on the same team!

Good luck and thank you Eoin!

A blog from Calpe, seen on anpostchainreaction.com

The first few days at the An Post-ChainReaction team camp have been awesome. It's great to be back out here with all the boys again after some family time at home in Ireland over Christmas/New Year. We are clocking up some quality kilometres to prepare the 2015 season. With the season only about 3 weeks away everyone is looking to out the finishing touches on their condition and this camp looks as if it will be the perfect block we need.

Right now I am really happy! Upon arrival, we received all of our new kit from Onda Sportswear and Nike, and it's fitting like a glove. Just perfect! It is super cool - and with our new team logo, and fluo green design on our casual clothes it definitely stands out from the rest of the teams here at the Diamante Beach! Now I really feel like a part of the team, and when everyone is riding in the same kit it's better for the team morale - as if it wasn't good enough already!

On the road it's great for a young guy to have such experienced guys around like our coach Niko Eeckhout who you can call upon for some advice and tips. I have a lot to learn about racing at this level, and I am very eager to pick at his brain and get as much advice possible to use in the early season. Aidis Kruopis is another experienced rider whom I am learning from, and I look forward to learning more. He rode for many years at WorldTour level and is good enough to win some of the worlds biggest races. He's a super nice guy, and we have a lot of laughs out training. I told him today he needs to teach me how to descend - because he's waiting for everyone at the bottom of every mountain. He's got skills!

Today I am getting a massage from our swanny Hans, and then I have some media work to do for our new video " #weshareourdream " which will be aired online after the camp. Tomorrow we have a nice ride in the mountains planned - and I hear that it's meant to be a hot sunny day. Maybe I'll get my arms out and get rid of this Irish milk bottle tan! Suns out, guns out and all that jazz...

Bye for now!

Eoin McCarthy

Although 2014 officially comes to an end in just over a weeks time, it ended for me back in October. After my well needed break at the end of a hectic race season my focus was fully on 2015, and 2014 was put behind me. Like almost all full time cyclists I know, I tend to go in seasons and not by the actual yearly calendar. When I started prepping my racing season, my new year started. Just another small thing that makes us bike riders stand out from the rest! 

I thoroughly enjoyed my off season this year. I spent most of my time chilling out while catching up with family and friends. I enjoying some down time whilst not thinking about the bike and fully replenished myself both physically and mentally. For my 21st birthday I got the best present imaginable from my mother, who I dearly love! A trip to New York City.  This was probably the highlight of my year, if not one of the highlights of my life to date. I won't go into detail because you'll be here all night reading but to sum it up in one word - Awesome! 

After my week in NYC I was fully motivated and ready to get back into my routine which I love so much. After a week or so of getting back into training I spent the weekend in Leeds to attend The Dave Rayner Fund dinner. It was huge success - plenty of money was raised (close to 50,000 pounds if I remember correctly) for such a worthy cause and I am honoured to have been a recipient this past race season. It was great to catch up with everyone away from the lycra and bikes. Plenty of laughs were had! Here's a quick video from the night:

I've just had an epiphany. I am over halfway through my 2015 season preparations already and if I'm selected for the teams first race I could be racing on Febraury 1st which is only about 6 weeks away. I'll soon find myself packing my bags to head back to my European base in Belgium and starting my third full season on the continent. It may be close, but there's still a lot of work to do. A day at a time, Eoin, a day at a time... 

My winter so far, touch wood, has been great. I just seem to be ticking the boxes and enjoying myself while doing it. This winter I have introduced more strength/core training into my schedule with the help from Dan Clifford at Goal Based Training . As Dan has been a high performance cyclist himself he works the gym/core work into my cycling programme perfectly so I get the best out of my bike sessions, which are still the most important.
 I would highly recommend him as a coach to any cyclist looking for an edge! I can't believe I have neglected this aspect for so long. Don't make the same mistake I did! Get onto it!
I have been getting my gym work done at the fantastic facilities at Rejuvenate Health & Fitness in Fermoy. I'd like to thank Paul for his generous help in allowing me to work in such a professional environment. This is going to make a big difference!

I'm not long back from the first "An Post - ChainReaction" team training camp which was in Calpe, Spain between the 7th-15th December. It was the first meeting of the 2015 team, and all bar our two southern-hemisphere riders were in attendance. I'm sure we'll forgive them! We spent the week getting to know one another and familiarising ourselves with the new set-up. Being Irish, and having friends on the team it was easy to fit into, what felt like, an already familiar set up. I really enjoyed getting the feel for my new Vitus Vitesse Evo bike. I'm delighted with how stiff, light and comfortable it is and can't wait to race it throughout 2015! Big thanks to Vitus Bikes as well as FSA Components , Continental Tyres , PROLOGO and Speedplay Pedals. 

The goal for the camp was to clock up some quality endurance kilometres in the sun before we all headed home to the less-fair weather. As well as training hard everyone got along really well and we had plenty of laughs throughout the week which built great team atmosphere going into the future. I've come away from the camp with extra motivation and I certainly can't wait for our next outing! 

I'm now in Ireland preparing myself for the Christmas/New Year period with my family. I took a few easy days after the team camp to recover and refresh a little and now its just about maintaining and increasing my condition while introducing some more specifics building up to our next team camp on the 11th of January. After our camp some of us will only have a week before we are pinning on our numbers again. Exciting times!

A merry christmas and happy new year to everyone! See you all in 2015!

Twitter: @Eoin_McCarthy

Instagram: @eoin_mccarthy

Press Release: An Post-Chain Reaction Sean Kelly 2015

I am extremely proud and happy to announce I have signed for the UCI continental team “An Post-Chain Reaction” (The Sean Kelly Team) for 2015. This is a fantastic opportunity. I will be based in Belgium for the 2015 season and look forward to making it a very successful year. 

I can't thank my family enough, without their love and support through the last few years I wouldn't be in this position to keep following my dreams! I'm making my way, small steps at a time and this is my biggest step so far.

To everyone who supported me over the past few years, my first club - Fermoy CC, all at ASFRA-Flanders Racing Team, and Terra Footwear-Bicycle Line/Terra Safety Shoes for giving me the opportunity to race on the continent and try reach my full potential. 

To my coach Luc Wante for all his help and guidance over the past few years.  

All at Cycling Ireland for putting the belief in me and giving me the chance to race at international level and represent my country. I’m very appreciative and grateful! 

To Rene van Dam, for putting up with me and looking after me so well in the Ras for 2013 & 2014. It was a huge honour! 

Thanks guys!

Thanks to the Dave Rayner Fund for their generous support in 2014. Things would have been very hard without them! I am honoured to be a part of such a fantastic organisation! 

My 2015 preparation is already in full flight. I am getting back into training steadily. I am very excited to be getting the help of Daniel Clifford at The GBT Studio (Goal Based Training) in Killorglin as my strength and conditioning coach through the winter of 2014 and into 2015. I will still be working primarily with my Belgian coach - Luc Wante for my training on the bike.
 I am very grateful to Paul Howard for his generous help at Rejuvenate Health&Fitness in Fermoy, looking forward to spending some quality hours in the gym this winter! 

Folllow Me on :

Twitter: @Eoin_McCarthy

Facebook: Eoin McCarthy's Facebook

Instagram: @eoin_mccarthy

Follow An Post-Chain Reaction on:

Twitter: @AnPost_CRC

Facebook: AN Post CRC's Facebook

Youtube: AN Post CRC's Youtube Channel

Press Releases:
An Post Website

Sticky Bottle
An Post-Chainreaction signs five Irish riders for 2015

Time flies when you're having fun!

I left off on my previous blog just at the end of July/beginning of August. I had just ridden the European Championships in Switzerland and done some nice 1.12B races building towards Ronde van Namen and Ronde van Oost Vlaanderen. Next I went to Bambrugge which was a two-day 1.12B  classement and I got myself 7th overall after two high placings! I had a string of nice results and performances but still nothing to be screaming and shouting about.

They were all good signs building up to the Ronde van Namen, a 5 day race in Belgium on some hilly terrain. One I was looking forward to all year! 

Namur was a perfect type of race for me! It was very hilly but not mountainous, and it was hard enough that it sorted out the men from the boys. My one complaint for this period of the season was that it never seemed to stop raining! Made me feel right at home! A crash filled first stage in Namur ended my chances of a good result in the race. I hit the deck hard after about 130km on the first stage! I was ok when it came to road rash, that was all normal (still sore) but I had really hurt my calf muscle. It was agonising, even to touch! So when I got up and got riding to the finish I could barely turn the pedals! I got to the finish on more or less 1 leg. When coming back through the cavalcade after just 1km of riding I came to another mass pile where my team mate Liam broke his leg. Conor also his ribs early in the stage so that put everything into perspective. At least I could make it to the finish! 

I was so disappointed to have hurt myself from day one, because now I knew I had to ride for another 11 days on a battered body as I was also entered to ride Ronde van Oost Vlaanderen, another 5 day race, just two days after Namur finished. 

I spent a few days limping around in Namur wondering if I’d be physically capable of continuing.There was no way I was going to give up! Mentally I was at the races and I showed my condition was good despite getting injured by making the front group splits on the final of a few of the hard stages, but I was nowhere near 100%. I was close to a top result on a few occasions but just didn’t have that last percentage that I needed. I was also fighting at the front solo, so I reckon with some better team support I could have scored a really nice result on some of the stages. Top experience in the bank however, it was time to look forward… 

Oost Vlaanderen was not a great race for me on paper, and it turned out to be the same on the road. I just couldn’t do much, there were very few opportunities for a rider of my style. I tried going on the attack but had no luck and had one bad day where I nearly pulled the plug. I helped the team as much as I could but unfortunately we didn’t come out of the race with much. Zeno was our big hitter at Oost Vlaanderen, getting into the early breakaway twice and putting us on the radar! Sterk Jongen!

I had 10 days of great racing in the space of 12 days. So a week easy was definitely on the cards before I raced again. I then jumped back into some kermesse action to hunt for some results, and to try and show myself! My next 2 races didn’t go as I would have liked, and I felt pretty average in both. I hadn’t fully recovered so I didn’t reap the benefits of my heavy block of racing just yet. It was time to be patient. 

A few easy days later I made the race winning move and got my best result of the season in Verrebroek 1.12B. I was 2nd place in a 2 man sprint behind kermesse king Guy Smet. I was gutted not to win! (Interesting fact: 42 year old Smet has 446 wins, and 260 2nd places in his career. He knows how to win a race, that’s for sure!). It all seemed to click from here on in. My next two races saw me make the race winning move again, but didn’t quite manage a top result. 

Next I had planned to go to Tour du Moselle. A 3 day race in France, but I was forced to withdraw as I came down with some sickness. I was gutted but it was the smartest thing to do as I was now a named reserve for the Irish National Team for the UCI u23 Road World Championships in Ponferrada, Spain. I took some days easy to recover and opted to do some more structured training as well as some races incase I needed to be called up. Turns out I wasn’t needed in Spain, but if I was to get the nod I would have been in great shape. My last 2 races I also made the race winning move, and managed to bag a nice 5th place. This showed my form and tactical decisions were working as I managed to make the race winning move in my last 5 races of the season. It’s a pity none of these races or finishes really suited me! 

I packed up and left Belgium late September. At this time I was still unsure whether or not I would be needed in Ponferrada so I kept training. I trained and enjoyed the bike right up until the 1st of October. I ended my season with a session of lab testing in the Mardyke done by Trevor Woods. Not the easiest of ways to draw the line under my 2014 campaign, but beneficial all the same! 

That’s a wrap - the 2014 season is over! Where the hell did it go!? I had a great season, and ticked off most of my goals. I would have liked some nicer results, but I think every bike racer on the planet thinks the same. To me progression is the most important and I feel I’ve made lot’s of it this year. I represented Ireland at the U23 Nations Cups and rode a hell of a lot better than 2013. I rode my first major championships at the European’s, and almost my second at the World’s. I made my mark at the An Post Ras. I rode my first, and hopefully not last, race in the Alps. I had numerous top 10’s and even a few podiums in Belgium. And above all I am progressing for 2015. All in all I am a happy camper, a stronger and more experienced happy camper!

Although the 2014 season has just come to an end, 2015 is just around the corner. The time will fly! I won’t be staying with Team Terra Safety Shoes for the 2015 season, but I would like to thank them for the last 2 years. They were crucial for my development as a bike rider and I am grateful for your support. It will be a time I will never forget! 

Get your Dave Rayner Fund Cap from Prendas!

I am proud and honoured to have had the support of the Dave Rayner Fund for 2014. Without such a fantastic organisation young riders, like myself, would find it very difficult to chase their dreams of racing abroad and reaching their full potential. It wouldn’t have been possible this year without your generous help. I can’t wait for the dinner! You can get information and buy your tickets for the Dave Rayner Fund Dinner, in Leeds on the 8th of November here - http://www.daveraynerfund.co.uk/dinner/

Now it's time to chill for a few weeks before I have to dig out the winter kit. I'm super excited for what lays ahead! Stay tuned for more news soon... Follow me on Twitter and Instagram for more frequent updates on my progress: 

Twitter: @Eoin_McCarthy

Instagram: @eoin_mccarthy

Now it's time for some more of this!  

Thanks for reading! 

Luck of the Irish

After Savoie and Oetingen I travelled home to Ireland to race my National Road Race Championships. I always love riding the Nationals and spending the weekend in Ireland, but the race itself hasn’t ever been too kind to me! This year I was ready to change my luck… 

I flew into Dublin on Friday the 27th of June and from the airport went straight to Mullingar. I was ready to race and contest the u23 national title. I really fancied my chances of getting a top result this year so I was more excited than ever!

I had great legs, and raced strongly but I misjudged my tactics. I wasn't the only one however! 

A move of 10 went on the first lap, but I didn’t panic. I was keeping my cool in the peleton and just following every move that went after that. Playing the waiting game! I was sure another group would bridge across as Dan Martin, Sam Bennett, Matt Brammeier and Martyn Irvine were all still with me. Only trouble was An Post had 3 riders in the breakaway and proved that strength in numbers and co-operation really pays off.

I didn’t miss anything else. Every other dangerous move that went I was present in. I fully committed to try and get across but it just didn’t happen for me. I rode the remainder of the race in the chase group of about 30 riders to get 20th place and 7th u23. Not the result I’d hoped for but I still showed I was in good shape and did enough to be selected to ride the U23 European Road Race Championships in Nyon, Switzerland on the 13th of July.

The day after Nationals I travelled back to Belgium to prepare for the Europeans. I raced again the next Saturday at Omloop Het Niuewsblad UCI 1.2. The elite version of the early spring classic! It was the perfect preparation race before Switzerland. The morning of Niuewsblad I opened the curtains to shit weather. Rain and wind - just lovely, wet cobbles! From then my mind was in the wrong place. I was more worried about staying safe ahead of Euro’s rather than getting a nice result at Niuewsblad - as Euros was a much bigger goal for me! That’s never a good way to race but on this particular day that was the way it was. Before the season started it was a major goal of mine to ride my first major championship race so I wasn’t going to miss it due to a crash - no way! 

I still raced Het Niuewsblad cleverly and stayed out of trouble until I needed to be in the very front. As the race started in Zottegem - my Belgian home town - I knew the roads like the back of my hand so my local knowledge payed dividends for most of the race. Not knowing the exact race route didn’t help though and my plan to move to the front before we hit Eikenberg didn’t work out as I would have liked. After Eikenberg the race was just relentless - just never ending bergs. Bergs, bergs, bergs! Hard, hard racing! I found myself too far back and missed the front split of 50 or so riders. I rode in the next chase group until we got to the local laps and we were pulled out with a lap to go. I love the classic style races so I'd love to give it another go as I feel I am capable of a good result in such races. I just needed a cement milkshake. My fault that day! 

The Europeans was next on the agenda. Like always, I was extremely happy and proud to be selected to represent my country - now at a major championship. My first major championship! I was super excited and motivated to give it all I had!

I flew into Geneva on Thursday the 10th of July. My trip didn't get off to the best start as easyJet left my bike in Belgium, but thankfully it arrived the following day. Phew! Being at a bike race without a bike - that could have been a disaster! It was great to arrive at the Irish camp in the town of Divonne-les-Bains and get settled in before our campaign kicked off!

The race itself was exactly how I'd imagined it would be. Crazy! The course as well as the weather was mixed. It was a lumpy circuit with some pretty technical sections - a real championship course! 

My race didn't go as planned. From the start it was full on racing and with all the crashes on the opening laps I found myself caught in trouble. 

On the 4th lap of the 12 lap race my rear mech got pulled off in a crash, I thought that was it - race over! Until Kurt came bombing around the corner in the car with a spare bike for me. Yes! I rode the spare bike, which was far too big, for the next 4 laps. It was fine in the beginning but after an hour or so it was really starting to hurt me and give me cramp. I needed my bike back! For the second time I thought my race was over until I saw Kurt was on the side of the road fixing my bike! What a legend!

 I got back on my bike for the last 4 laps but I wasn't the same after that. The cramp never left. So when the finale started to heat up I didn't have the legs or energy to make the front split of 50 or so riders! I finished in the second group on the road for 80th place. Not how I would have liked my first major championship race to go, but I did all I could do in the situation I was in. It was disappointing not to do more for myself or for the team, but I did learn a lot and will definitely take something from it.  

I can't thank the staff at Cycling Ireland enough for their flawless and professional support. Thanks Brian Nugent , Kurt Bogaerts, Neil Martin, Neill Delahaye and Stacey Kelly . It was a really enjoyable weekend!

I travelled back to my base in Belgium the day after Europeans to get settled in and start racing in some kermesses again. I had a big break away from the kermesse scene so it was time to tackle some again and try and pick up some nice results. I had a few days off in which I enjoyed watching my little brothers racing. I then raced in Ingelmunster, Lichtervelde and Sinaai where I was 26th, 21st and 11th respectively. Every one of these I feel I deserved a better end result but I am happy with how my condition is, and how I am involved in the action.

I am now building towards Ronde van Namen (Tour du Namur) from the 6th-10th of August. Until then I will be training and racing hard in hope of some top results! I feel some top results are just around the corner for me, just got to keep playing the lottery...

"Man.. I've never suffered like that before!"

My next big race after the An Post Ras was in France at Tour des Pays de Savoie. A beautifully unique and very hard UCI 2.2 ranked race through the Alps. We travelled as a team to Le Chambre a week before the race began to try and acclimatise and adapt ourselves to the efforts required to race up mountains - a whole lot different to what we are used to here in Belgium. We stayed halfway up Col du Glandon in a little ski lodge for the week before we travelled to the race hotel at Valmenier the day before the race began. 

Over the course of the week we did some epic exploring which ticked a lot of the world famous climbs off the bucket list. Col du Madeleine - check. Col du Glandon - check. Col de la Croix de Fer - Check. Col du Telegraph - check. Col du Galibier - check. Col du Chassy - check. It was nice to have a few days to find a climbing rhythm as well as chilling out together with the team. 

I was very nervous as well as excited building up to the start of the race. It was a whole new experience. Almost a whole different discipline within the sport! I was nervous. I didn’t know how to approach it. “Do I race like I normally do?” ; “Or do I conserve some energy and wait?” ; It even came down to wondering how much I should eat and drink beforehand incase I was carrying extra kilo’s up the mountains - because until now it never made a difference before! As it turns out none of this mattered that much. Everyone just went flat out and the race sorted itself out on the road. 

I have to say I was shitting myself the morning of Stage 1. The reality of what I was about to do really hit me! I knew it was going to be an epic race.
Finally it was time to pin the numbers on and get racing. For some reason I was under the impression that the race would be a little tamer on the flat and the real kick off would happen when we hit the mountains. I was wrong. Stage 1 was carnage!

 The first hour was flat out. Actually the whole of stage 1 was more or less flat out! The first hard climb wasn’t until roughly 60km, but down in Savoie every road is hard. To my surprise the whole race was split to bits before we even hit Aussois Category 3. Little groups kept clipping off the front eventually joining creating a big front group. This left me somewhere between the front and the grupetto - in no mans land! I rode with a group of 15 for most of the stage and at the foot of the final climb up Valmeinier we were swept up by the grupetto. We lost a lot of time to the Russian winner Ignatev. Admittedly, it was what I expected so I couldn’t be disappointed. 

Stage 2 started from Chambery and was arguably the hardest stage on paper with 4 Category 2’s to tackle over 150-odd kilometres. Safe to say it was one of the hardest days on the bike I’ve ever had. Just a complete suffer-fest. It was full-on racing to the first ascent of Col du Fort du Mont as guys were trying to form a break. I started the climb in a really good position which helped a lot over the top of the steep 5km ascent - as the race split to pieces. I just managed to stay in contact with the front of the race over the summit before we started the daredevil descent back to the valley. 

I’ve seen some dangerous descending in races before but never saw anything like this! It was a twisty descent through a forrest so the bad lighting wasn’t helping. Going around some of the blind corners there was bikes laying in the road with no riders to be seen. In front of me there was riders overcooking the corners and going over the barriers into the ravine. Scary, scary stuff! 

I got through it safely but when we hit the 14km climb of Cohennoz I had to start making the calculations and leave the front guys go - I was suffering too much! Again I found myself in a small group of 15 or so in between the front groups and grupetto for the remainder of the stage. We finished at Plateau d’Assy where we had 2 laps of a brutal 10km circuit. 5km of that being uphill and extremely steep! I lost almost 30 minutes to the Spanish winner from Team Ecuador. I was never so happy to cross the line after the longest race I've done (time-wise) 4 hours 45 minutes! I can’t even count on one hand the amount of times I’ve suffered like that before. However our race hotel had amazing food and views that night. It was a consolation - safe to say it was demolished! 

Plateau d'Assy. Beautiful backdrop of Mont Blanc

The third day, on paper, looked like it was going to be the easiest day of the race. We had a 90km road stage in the morning and a 10km TT in the evening. Rest day!? Yeah right! 

In the first hour I followed a few moves to try and get into the breakaway. There was only one climb to worry about and it came halfway through the stage. When we hit the climb there wasn’t any breakaway so the racing was still full on. Not ideal! I underestimated how hard this climb was going to be. I didn’t do my homework properly and suffered for it! I got dropped. From then on it was a very hard stage for me. I was now racing the time cut! With such a short stage you could easily miss the time limit. As the race went on the grupetto was no longer a nicely sized group as stage 2 had a sizeable amount of DNF’s - it was a serious clean out! I was happy to have one of my team mates with me, as well as some Belgians. I ended up making the time limit pretty comfortably. Now for the TT, another visit to suffer city! 

On bottle duty!

The time trial was horrible - as time trials always are! It was made especially horrid after the previous days of racing! After doing a recce of the TT course it was going to be a race against the time limit again. Most guys had their time trial bikes for the downhill-headwind section so I knew I had to ride more or less full gas to make the time limit. Scary thing was, the cut off point was only around 3 minutes. With roughly 6km downhill and 4km uphill it was possible that you could miss out. Luckily for me I made it pretty safely. It hurt more than I would have liked it to, but I made it! 

Going into the last stage I was in a 50/50 mindset as to whether I could make the finish or not. Usually I am very positive but I on this day I was being realistic. It all depended on how the big teams (Katusha & Lotto-Belisol) raced. We had 130km with two 20km Category 1 mountains to take on - the first ascent coming after 40km. The second mountain was to the finish line. Summit finish! All this, and only 70-80 riders left in the race. This only meant one thing - not much of a grupetto! My goal was to get to the finish, so I pushed like never before. 

The stage turned out as I’d hoped. Lotto and Katusha controlled the first 40km on the flat and the first 10km of the first mountain. When I made it over the gravel filled summit I knew I had made it, even with 90km to go. I found myself in a rather large group with a lot of strong riders in it - riders who also wanted to make it to the finish. We then rode together to the and lost roughly 25-30 minutes on the Belgian winner - Louis Vervaeke. Vervaeke is now signed with Lotto-Belisol for 2 and a half years. Absolute weapon! 

What a hard race. I reached a lot of new limits, and was happy to have a great experience of my first race in the mountains. It’s rare as an amateur rider to get the experience of a proper mountainous race. It turned out how I’d expected. I got hammered. I finished 61st on GC with only 66 riders making it to the finish. I’ve never done any bike race like that before. Definitely felt like the longest 4 day race I’ve ever done, and definitely the hardest. I took a lot from it. I learned so much about my body that I never knew before.A few easy days were very welcomed after a long journey back to Belgium on Sunday night. 

Pays de Savoie finished on the Sunday, I then had a few days easy before I raced IWT Jong Maar Moedig/Oetingen UCI 1.2 on Wednesday and the National Championships the following Sunday. It was a complete change of scenery at Oetingen. Going from a French race in the mountains to a one-day Belgian classic style race. Whether or not it was a welcomed change though is still a hard question as it was equally as brutal. On the parcour there were famous bergs such as the Muur van Geraardsbergen and the Bosberg - and with teams such as Topsport-Vlaanderen and Wanty Group-Gobaert the level of racing was high. Perfect preparation for the National Champs.

I recovered quite well between Savoie and Oetingen however, so my legs were pretty good. On all the cobbled sectors, and bergs I found myself in a good position. I always tried my best to follow Sven Nys and when the big splits happened over the Muur I was in the front end of the race. Even coming onto the finishing laps I had good sensations so I thought I was on for a nice result. Then that thought went flat. Literally. I punctured halfway through the longest cobble sector on the finishing circuits. My race was over. By the time my team car reached me and I got a wheel change I found myself minutes behind the front of the race. I was gutted!

At least now I knew that my condition was good leading up to the Nationals Championships. I was ready to go home to contest the u23 title and hope to gain selection for the European Championships... 

Stay tuned for my next blog covering the Nationals, Omloop Het Niuewsblad and the European Championships...

Thanks for reading! E