Lakeside Wheelers

My reputation as the finest talent spotter in Westmeath cycling is growing. A few short weeks after I tipped Damien Shaw as the rising star of the club, he duly headed off to Ballinrobe for the two-day event this weekend and just cleaned up! Robbed of a good showing in our own GP last month by a broken chain, Damien took the overall yellow jersey, the green points jersey and the best climber award.Bear in mind that Ballinrobe is a well-regarded event in the cycling calendar and usually attracts a strong and experienced entry.Our Damien only started cycling this year! I only hope he has a sturdy mantelpiece at home because at this rate of trophy accumulation, he’s going to need it. With Damien’s help the Wheelers were best overall team, Paul Crowley took 9th place overall and John Murray claimed the 1st unplaced A3 rider prize. All in all, a fantastic showing by the club!Back down on planet earth meanwhile, the rest of us have been plodding along the highways and byways for the sheer enjoyment of it. There are so many new cyclists joining the club of late that half of the time, I find myself cycling alongside strangers.This is by no means a bad thing and it demonstrates that the club is continuing to grow as more and more people discover the joys of cycling. Last Wednesday, about a dozen of us headed out from ORS with Tom Shaw in charge, and for the first time cycled home along the canal - an absolute treat with no traffic to worry about.At least five of the group were complete newcomers but all of them covered the 40Km or so without any bother. Well done, all of you.The growth in numbers has also created the need for new group leaders and Arthur Dempsey has just been promoted to the dizzy heights of deputy-assistant group leader. Congratulations on your new post, Arthur!He celebrated his new appointment by taking us on a couple of fairly demanding outings over the past couple of Sundays, 110Km and 95Km respectively, and all at a lively pace.Tom Shaw and Liam Whelan were also leading their troops this weekend and Tom sent in a few notes on their spin:“As you know C group was divided in 3 today! Fast C’s - a group of 12 led by Arthur Dempsey!! Middle C’s - group of 8 led by Liam Whelan did 75K, to Mother Hubbards via Ballivor and home via Hill of Down! Newcomers to C - a group of 4 led by myself did 65K, again going to Mother Hubbards via Longwood and straight home via Kinnegad.A word of welcome to Yvonne Muldoon and Muirna Walsh who joined me today!! Only cycling two weeks and clocked a total of 200K last week alone!Well done ladies!! Also with me today was Erin Byrne who clocked over 250K last week!! You are setting a very high standard ladies!! Another newcomer to C group today was Martina O’Toole, a well known surname with Lakeside Wheelers!!All in training for some, if not all, for the spin to Galway in early September.A very enjoyable spin today in ideal weather conditions!”A quick note to remind everyone that the annual trip to Galway is fast approaching. Please make sure that you send your entry forms to Joe Duffy without further delay.The summer league finishes this Wednesday, August 11 and we’re promised an evening of celebration. Shay O’Toole has asked that as many club members as possible turn up to join in the fun.There will be prizegiving on the night for the winners of the team time trial that took place before the criterium race back in June.The winning teams on that occasion were those led by out esteemed secretary, Carmel Buckley and by David Tone from Rochfortbridge - so Carmel and David, please round up your troops and drag them out to Dysart on Wednesday!And Adrian Murphy has threatened to turn up on the evening and hold a barbeque.He has very generously offered to provide a barbecue at the finishing line and all are welcome to come along and tuck in.Thanks Adrian!