The “noughties” are now gone and Irish DH enters a new decade in good health and much hope and anticipation of more DH specific trails………..hopefully within this decade. If it doesn’t happen it won’t be for the lack of effort put in by the likes of Sean (the Happy Fairy) Herlihy, Michael Cowan and all the others who have a vision and aspiration for this non Olympic sport that trashes all other bike events for pure excitement, adrenaline pump and craic.

That’s purely a personal opinion of course so the roadies and XCrs can vent their disagreement elsewhere…..this is however a DH site…soooooo……there! Before the toys come out of the pram…Happy New Year to everyone and I assume the shiny bling and new bikes that Mum/Dad/Husbands/Wives got you for Christmas (and probably paying off to next Christmas) are now not so shiny and new looking after their introduction to the charms of the Mournes, Wicklow and Cork and Kerry Mountains and wherever else you chose to close out the old year and bring in the new.

 

Conor Mulcahy - Elites

The traditional legendary DH Winter League roars into action again on the weekend of 16/17 January with a welcome return to the Bree track in County Wexford. Round 2 will be staged by Epic MTB at Cloon, under the illustrious leadership of his highness, the one and only, Richard Byrne. Let’s hope the weather is a bit kinder to them this year! Rounds 3 and 4 will be hosted by the CRC Club at the “home” of the Winter League – Moneyscalp. Much maligned it still attracts big big entries. Details on the dates and locations are on the Irish DH website and please keep em peeled for any changes to the programme, particularly with the weather that we’re currently experiencing.

 

2 day event

 

Please note that the Winter series is now a 2 day event – training on Saturday and training/racing on Sunday. There will be no uplifts, but race organisers, although faced with additional costs, have minimised the increase in the entry fees. It does however represent extremely good value for two days racing with the all important medical cover! Overnight parking is however an issue and Bree Racing Club has clearly indicated that there is no field available for parking nor will you be permitted to park overnight n the Forestry roads. With no local campsites open, those who normally camp or sleep in the variety of vehicles that appear will have to look elsewhere unless they only come down for the Sunday run. Motorhomes and the like will no doubt find somewhere to park, probably close to a local watering hole in Enniscorthy, New Ross or Clonroche. Either way, please don’t park overnight in the forest as you will jeopardise any future events at Bree and no doubt embarrass the race organisers unnecessarily. Parking arrangements for the EpicMTB and CRC Club events will follow in due course and off the top of my head the Camac Valley Campsite in Dublin and Tollymore Park Forest site close to Moneyscalp are both open all year round.

 

Doing the business

 

OK – it’s the Winter series and nobody will win big prizes for the individual events and overall league titles but those who say it’s just a bit of fun…well…I don’t know…..you all look serious enough to me. It is a good indicator of form and who has been training during the short off season and it’s also the first opportunity for those riders stepping up from different age groups and categories to test themselves against new opposition and in some cases renew rivalries. Some of the most successful riders from last year including Colin Ross, Gareth McKee, Ewan Doherty and the Wolverines will be looking over their shoulder at (or maybe looking forward at ) the likes of Irish Junior Champion Greg Callaghan and David Graham, both of whom will be moving up to the Elite cat this year. It promises to be a very tight battle this year. Irish DH is however just not about the Elite and top junior riders and battle will recommence in all of the cats with the Masters, Ladies, Vets and U16 cats all being a close call. Assuming last years unbeaten U14 Champ, Cam Cornforth, moves up to the U16 class this year, his wee bro Luke looks good for the U14 title, but….you never know what comes along….. and Jacob Dickson could push him all the way if he races…….amongst others of course.

 

Event Support

 

One of the biggest pluses that riders have indicated on the various websites was the race site support offered by a number of bike shops with OC Tuning being the one most lauded by riders in every class. Big James and his boss Nat have indicated that they will be back out supporting riders in as many events as they possibly can and subject to other business commitments they hope to be at all the Winter series races offering their usual prompt and reliable service along with the banter that only they can offer.

 

ONLINE REGISTRATION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Big print, in bold…that makes it important…so read, digest and follow the instructions! If they don’t work, don’t panic…someone will sort it out.

 

All entries for the Winter League are by pre-registration that will give the race organisers some indication of the number of riders likely to turn up. Not fool proof but it’s a help so long as those registering genuinely intend to race.

 http://fs17.formsite.com/offroadeventsreg/DHevent/index.html

 The above link will take you to the registration page. It is currently only set up for the Winter League round 1. Any difficulties with registering should be posted on the Irish DH forum ….in a positive way please. Any gremlins will be ironed out in due course.

 

A little guidance – again in bold and underlined…..so please read.

 

  1. If riders have a full/race 2009 licence then they'll enter their licence number in the Cycling Ireland licence No. field and do not need a 1-day licence.
    2. If riders have a standard (non-race) 2009 licence then they'll enter their licence number in the Cycling Ireland licence No. field and will need a 1-day licence (cost €10)
    3. If riders do not have a race licence and do not intend to purchase one for 2010, then they leave the Cycling Ireland licence No. field as it's default value (DAY LCNC) and will need a 1-day licence (cost €20)
    4. If riders do not have a race licence but intend to purchase one for 2010, then they leave the Cycling Ireland licence No. field as it's default value (DAY LCNC), they will check the "Yes" option in the Race licence needed? field and do not need a 1-day licence.

 

Please note there is no up front entry fee payment required for this event!

 

2009 Licences are valid for the first two events in Bree and Cloon respectively! See detail on Irish DH website

 

Entry fees and age to category guidelines

 

Elite/Senior/Ladies/Masters/Vets/Super Vets/Sport - €30 or £25

Elite/Senior/Sports (aged 18+) Masters (30+ in current year) Vets (40+) Super Vets (50+)

Junior/U16/U14 - €25 or £20

Junior (born in 1992/1993) U16 (born in 1994/1995) U14 (born in 1996/1997)

(exchange rates may vary)

2010 One-day Licence Fees

Non-Cycling Ireland Members 

Senior and veteran €20.00/£18.00 

Junior €10.00/£9.00 

Youth (born after 31st December 1993) €5.00/£4.00

 

*Day race licence for those with non-racing licence - €10/£9.00 

 

Etiquette and good manners

 

DH venues are difficult to come by and the organisers are often at the mercy of the venue owners. Please don’t leave your rubbish behind you thinking someone else will pick it up. It is a problem which doesn’t seem to be getting any better. It will really be a serious problem if venue owners refuse to let us use the forests because of the litter.

 

Riders pushing their bikes up the course, and I mean up the course and not behind the tape – you shouldn’t do it and there were some very close calls last season. In a Scottish or British race you’d be disqualified.

 

Race directions and accommodation

 

Race directions and some detail on possible accommodation will be posted on the Irish DH website.

 

 


Add this page to your facebook
| More...