Season 2012 has begun!

The season of 2012 has finally started and to be honest, it feels great to finally have my legwarmers off and getting stuck into racing again! All the ever-so dreaded preparing for racing is now over and all the common chat within the last 6 months or so about racing is also over and it's finally time to do what I love doing the most and that is racing my bicycle, and to be honest it's a great feeling! 

I began my 2012 season on St.Patrick’s Day this year at the Carrick Cabs Cup in Carrick-On-Suir, 3 weeks after the season began at the Lacey Cup in Tralee. Of course I was nervous. There are a lot of questions to ask yourself when you are coming into your first race, but at that point it is too late so you just have to trust that all your training would have paid off!

No. 57, give me luck!

The race began rapidly felt like a kermesse to be honest, so wasn't a whole new experience, but after a big time away from racing it certainly did feel that way at the beginning. Attacks were going left, right and centre and it took a full lap and a half, roughly 50km, for a move to finally get and stay away and of course I wasn't lucky enough to get into it which was disappointing as I had been very active and had high ambitions and expectations of myself going into the race, but I guess that is racing eh? There was always tomorrow! 

Following eventual winner Stephen Halpin (Metaltek-SCOTT)

The rest of the race was still pretty quick averaging 41.5km/h for the 100km race, but I was concerned about the race I had the next day so tried to save my legs to a certain extent so I could get the best out of Sunday, so I didn't contest the finish and rolled in around 19th place I'm guessing (going on photographic evidence). Stephen Halpin of Metaltek-SCOTT was the eventual winner from the breakaway group. 

After being a bit disappointed about the race the day before in Carrick-on-Suir I was determined to go out at the Newbridge GP and do a good performance so I would be a bit happier. Although I had a bit of a scare before the start. While adjusting my headset one of the nuts on the stem had broken leaving a piece stuck in the stem! So me even riding the race was put into question, but I continued to get geared up incase someone could help and thankfully Will Curtin helped me out and I was up and running again (kind of). Cheers Will! It was still a bit dodgy, but I wasn't after travelling all the way for nothing, I had to race!

Start of the race, A2 handicap

Hopefully some of the pictures (courtesy of Peter Purfield at Irish Cycling) will help to tell the story of the race. The race was 6 laps of a 17.5km circuit around the Curragh race track, more famously known for horse racing rather than bike racing! The 6 laps adds up to roughly 105km's, so some good racing was to be in store as the course consisted of good roads and 2 drags that would make the race selective in the latter stages. I started in the A2 group which had a few minute handicap over the A1 and A+ group and I was very active right from the start.

About halfway through lap 1, Javan Nulty (D.I.D Electrical) a rider from Orwell Wheelers and myself got a small advantage on the A2 group and rode for a full lap before being caught by the peleton which now contained the scratch riders.

At this point I knew it was then that a possibility of a break going away and succeeding would be high so I kept my position at the front of the peleton well and luckily enough managed to get in a move of 9 riders early on the 3rd lap. 

We continued to ride very well together until around the end of the 4th lap when 3 more riders came across then the group got a bit too big and a lot of people were thinking the same thing and started to take advantage of the group size and sit on the back, which in turn slower the pace of the group and enabled an elite group including eventual winner Peter Hawkins (IG-Sigma Sport Specialized), Stephen Halpin (Metaltek-SCOTT), Ryan Sherlock (Cycleways) and last years winner Eddy Barry (Blarney CC) to ride across and join up with us.

When the two groups then joined up about 25km to go, there were attacks, attacks and more attacks. The racing was really positive which was great to be a part of! 

When we were caught by this group, cracks began to show and the group narrowed down further to only 11 or so riders in which I was part of. It was a fantastic feeling to still be in contention right until the final kilometres. 

The group split in two on the last drag leaving 5 riders up front and 5 in pursuit. After suffering like a dog on the last climb, the final kilometre proved a little too much for me after a very long active day and  I began to cramp. I rode in and finished up in 10th place (2nd A2) roughly 10 seconds behind. 

I was very happy to see that I could race with the full-timers and some of the top riders in the country it certainly gave me a boost of confidence.

Next on the calendar for me was the Des Hanlon Memorial Classic, which is probably one of the most, if not the most prestigious one-day race on the Irish calendar.  It's always a fantastic race with a very selective course around the Carlow Mountains. The line-up was pretty impressive this year. 130 riders lined up for the 1/2 race including "An Post - Sean Kellys" Sam Bennett and Connor McConvey, "IG - Sigma Sport"'s Peter Hawkins, "Metaltek SCOTT"'s Stephen Halpin along with a full team of Dan Morrissey - Speedy Spokes, Eurocycles etc.. All the big names in Ireland were in attendance, and with "hands down" the best day (weather wise) of 2012 so far, it was going to make it that little bit more difficult! 

In some very good company here!

Ryan Sherlock, Sam Bennett, Me and eventual winner Pete Hawkins on the attack! 

I was in the front group for the majority of the race (100 odd kilometres) and to my amazement was able to make a few moves myself but when crunch came to crumble I started to suffer with cramp and admittedly didn't have the legs to follow some of the big names on the last lap. I rode to the finish in a group of 11, in which my Dad reckon's I finished somewhere in the 20's.

Ouch!

In the centre, half of my body showing....

Suffer time... not long to go now!

The race was described by Connor McConvey to be more like a Belgian continental style race in which he is more accustomed to. Him saying that and that the race was hard gives us all great hope and shows just how good the standard of racing in Ireland is this year! I was disappointed at first to be dropped from the lead group but I have to be pretty happy with my performance considering it was the longest race I have ever done, and that I am trying to compete against full-timers being the youngest rider in the race...  

Congrats Pete on another fantastic win...

Here we are, next group in according to pictures...

Rolling in at the finish...

More on the Connor McConvey interview:

Sticky Bottle: "An Post's McConvey surprised at standard in Des Hanlon"

Here I have for the first time ever one of my Garmin files. I started my Garmin 15 minutes late so stats aren't fully accurate but ye will get the gist of it... Have a gander! : 

Garmin Connect: Des Hanlon Memorial Classic (Eoin_McCarthy)

Next up is the Silver Pail GP in my home town of Fermoy.. Thanks for reading!

Stay tuned!

E

Quick News Update

Hi All,

Hope all is well with everyone. Today is just a quick update on some recent news and I am going to do a quick run over of the equipment I will be using in 2012.

In 2012 I will be using a new frame and groupset, kindly sponsored by my Dad - John McCarthy. It will be the 2012 Cervelo S2 Frameset. I will be running Ultegra 6700 groupset with Rotor AERO 3D+ Cranks and Rotor AERO rings (53\39 Round). The rest of my finishing kit consists of 3T Rotundo Bars and Stem (42cm, 110mm), Fizik Arione Saddle and Elite bottle cages. I will be using 2 sets of wheels for racing on this bike. One being FFWD F6R's and the other being the 2011 Mavic Ksyrium SL both running on Continental GP4000 tyres. So far, I am really enjoying riding the bike and it will be interesting to see how it will perform in a race. Guess I'll find out at the weekend!

In the past week or so I have also received some good news involving the team I have ridden for in 2011 and will be riding for in 2012 - ASFRA Racing Team. ASFRA are now in a partnership with the UCI Continental Registered Team - "GEOFCO Ville d'Alger". The new Continental team has some of the past ASFRA riders including Thomas Vernaeckt and Henryk Cardoen. This is great news for all of the ASFRA riders as it gives us all something to work towards. In the picture below of the new team's jersey, you can see the "ASFRA Racing Team" logo in the middle pocket on the back and the "FLANDERS" logo on the front.

http://geofcovilledalger.com/

So that is it, I'll leave it at that as I am racing twice this weekend. In the Carrick Cabs Cup Saturday in Carrick-on-Suir and in Newbridge on Sunday. Therefore I will update again after the races. 

Thanks for reading,

Eoin

Ready To Rock.. But Not Quite Ready To Roll!

It's that time of year again. Spring. A time of rebirth, renewal and regrowth, but it's also the time of year  in which the cycling season starts isn't it? Well, for the pro's it kicks off "Down Under" in early January but here in Ireland it's February and in Munster preferably the Lacey Cup in Tralee. It's a very interesting time of year though, all the training has been done, everyone is nervous to see how they will be going, and more importantly how the others will be going! For me, I didn't get the full effect of this nervousness. I was in Tralee last Sunday but as a spectator. I did however have my notepad out!

Now let's take a few steps back. After a successful camp on the 5th & 6th of December, Cycling Ireland held another u23 development training weekend in Avon Ri, Blessington, Co.Wicklow on the 11th & 12th of February. Its safe to say that this was the most beneficial and best run camp we've had to date. This time what made it so good was we had the very experienced and recent winner of "Lacey Cup" Sean Lacey as our captain on the road. It was really great to have a rider like Sean to pick his brain on certain subjects and to get advice from him, I am grateful to Sean for coming along. Doubt you'll be reading this Sean but thank you if you are!

The Saturday session at the camp was effort based and the Sunday was more endurance based. On the Sunday we clocked up nearly 5.5 hours. Which was 175km (ish) at 33.5-34km/h average speed. We weren't getting cold! I found it pretty tough in the last hour as it was one of the longest, if not the longest ride I have ever done. Imagine! 

Top agent Andrew McQuaid (Son of UCI President Pat McQuaid) also came along to give us a talk about how to make it as a professional cyclist on the Saturday evening. It was really interesting to hear some stories from someone so deeply involved in the professional cycling world. I seem to be going in the right direction, but now its time to get some wins! All in all, a fantastic weekend... 

The wait is over... (Doubt that anyone was waiting.. but anyway) my new ride has arrived. It's a "Cervelo" S2, the 2012 Model. When it is fully built I will psot up the full specs. For now I'll leave ye imagine - some brand names in the finishing kit include Shimano, 3T, FFWD F6R's, Rotor, Fizik, Elite, Lizard Skins, FSA and SwissStop... Now leave your imagination put the bike together.. for now! Not to forget, thanks Dad.

In the past few weeks I have been getting myself organised for my trip to the continent from July-October. 4 boats and 2 flights later - all systems are now go and I have everything booked and ready to go! This year I will be taking my car to make the most of my racing instead of getting the raisin effect of riding to races. i.e. Leaving the house like a grape and by the time you arrive you have been sun-dried into a raisin. Not a good time! So the car will allow me to arrive at the races in comfort and get the best out of myself, as well as being able to bring a lot more stuff with me easily! It's a massive weight off my shoulders to finally have almost everything organised and now I can kick back and relax (a little) and wait...

Out with Fermoy CC's Underage last Saturday to hopefully teach them a lesson or two...

For anyone interested in my racing calendar for 2012 here is a rough outline of the races I will ride (yet to confirm one big classic race in April that I may be riding, will keep ye posted) :

- Carrick Wheelers Cup 

- Silver Pail GP

- Ras Mumhan International Stage Race

- N7 Visit Nenagh Classic

- National Championships

- Belgium......

My first race therefore is on the 17th of March in Carrick-on-Suir, the home of Sean Kelly. Sean usually is at home to watch the race, so I am hoping to put in a convinvcing performance there. Bring on 2012, I have never been so anxious and excited! 

Thanks for reading,

Eoin

P.S. I have now reached a milestone and now have 200 followers on Twitter. Yeah Buddy! Follow me @Eoin_McCarthy
Also, VeloBeats. Yes, of course, VeloBeats! How could I forget. I have recently stumbled upon a website called VeloBeats who make very long cycling based remix's specifically for riding your bike. They are epic, check them out! 

Addicted to Progress...

Hello everybody,

Another month or so has passed and I'm pleased with how it has gone for me. My training has been going well although I did have a bit of sickness which left me off the bike for 10 days or so. I didn't exactly rush back into things but rather built back slowly which, I think, gave me a good rest and once I started to get back into the swing of things it wasn't long until I was feeling good again.

I've had my fair few adventures while training in January. I've been down with my coach, Martin O'Loughlin, in Carrick-on-Suir and have also met with some of my team-mates on the u23 Irish Development Team, Simon Ryan and Brian Hallissey, in Charleville for some training rides which definitely helped and gave me an indicator of where I am at the moment. It's great to get good company especially in the rough weather conditions we have had. At one point for the guts of about 2 weeks I got wet on every ride I did, and the winds were ridiculous! It was frustrating, especially as all the pro teams are currently on their training camps in Spain etc.. it made me really jealous!

But I had to get on with it and remember that next year that will be me in the warm conditions. Below I have a picture of my training bike on the descent of "The Vee", and that day was an adventure. At the start of the climb I must have picked up a piece of glass or something and punctured. Thankfully for me it was a super slow puncture and took me about 10km before I had to stop and "fix it". When I say "fix" I meant pump it with the hand pump and pedal on for as long as I could, saved me a lot of time! I was about 50km from home and had to stop about 3 times to give it a top up, preferably every time I felt the rim I stopped. Was fun!

Some more ergo efforts have also been introduced into my programme recently, which I really enjoy! I even got the TT bike onto the turbo once or twice for a bit more entertainment or fun if you like.. I am sick of looking at my Lapierre at this stage. Can't wait until my new ride arrives, should be sometime in February! Stay tuned for more news on that...

As for the 2012 season, things are starting to become more set in stone. But not fully! Races I am looking towards in Ireland include: Ras Mumhan, The Des Hanlon Memorial, The Silver Pail GP and the National Champs, which will be my last race before I leave for Belgium. In between I will probably ride some more races, but will be restricted as I am in an exam year in school. I'll see where the roads take me..

Here are some links from the new home of Irish cycling - Sticky Bottle, including a piece which I am featured in, and some details about this years edition of Ras Mumhan.

Kerry Group Ras Mumhan - Sticky Bottle

New & Updated Irish Rider Transfers and Team Situations for 2012

So that is all my news for now. When the season comes around there should be a lot more to write about. Hope you enjoyed the read and thanks. Can't wait for the fun to begin.. not long now!

Stay Tuned,

Eoin

A Merry Christmas And A Happy New Year.. Hopefully!

After a long year of racing at home and abroad its finally time to leave 2011 behind and move into 2012 with positivity and good legs...I hope. Looking back on 2011, its safe to say it was one of the best years of my life. So many new friends made, so much learnt and experiences gained and most of all a big step forward in my cycling "career" if you like.

Since my last update not a lot has been going on really. It is winter after all! I have been to another Cycling Ireland u23 Development Camp in Blessington, Co Wicklow on the 5th & 6th of December. The camp was run by Paddy Doran and Frank O'Leary and I did find it very beneficial. It consisted of a short run and gym session in Winning Solutions on the Saturday morning followed up by some nutrition talks and a short bike ride to the Avon Ri, in Blessington where we were staying, in the afternoon. That night after some very nicely prepared food from Mick Lawless we sat infront of Paddy Moriarty (Ex-Irish International) and Neil Martin (Father of Dan Martin) for some presentations and talks about their experiences in cycling which was interesting to hear. On the Sunday we hit the road early in harsh conditions for 3 hours. All in all, a great weekend! Thanks to all involved.

In the past few weeks I've also had a feature in the local newspaper in which I am happy about: not much to say about this but here's a picture!

As for 2012 I can now say, I will continue riding for ASFRA Racing Team (Flanders). I'll be definitely going back to Belgium sometime in the months of June\July after I finish my exams to torture myself some more and chase after my dream. Super excited! I am under no illusions for next year and I am sure there will be plenty of blood, sweat and tears shed. So, now its time to go looking for sponsorship to help fund me while I am in Belgium. All help is appreciated and if anyone is interested in helping me out all you gotta do I give me a shout. You will find my contact details on this blog.

                                             ASFRA Flanders Racing Team: Leden 2012

That is it, I'll stop typing. Really wish I had more to talk about but unfortunately I don't for now. But 2012 is going to be big, so stay tuned for more news and fun!

A nice memory from 2011

Have a great Christmas and a Happy New Year! See you all on the other
 side!


Eoin