Great racing around Coole, Multyfarnham, Castlepollard
This summer has probably been one of the best for cycling in recent years resulting in lots of activity on and off-road across all categories in the club.
Mullingar GP
The 2026 Mullingar GP was staged on July 5 in glorious sunshine and once again it was a great day of racing on the roads around Multyfarnham, Castlepollard and Coole. There was lots of local interest in the C2 and C3 races with several club members taking part.
The C1 race was again part of the Cycling Ireland National Grade series and attracted a packed field including most of the top domestic riders on the start line.
After a hectic 136km of racing peppered with attacks all day, the eventual winner was Luke Smith of Moynalty Cycling Club. Luke edged out Gareth O’Neill (Athlete Nutrition Coach Nordic Labs) in a two-up sprint and they were followed closely by Cian Keogh (Unattached Leinster), who claimed 3rd and rounded out a top class podium.
The C2 race included three Lakeside Wheelers riders, Stuart Cox, Richie Lenehan and John Boyne, among the starters. Kevin Derrig (Lucan Cycling Road Club) took top honours after a keenly fought 102km race and Stuart Cox took the prize for first unplaced Lakeside Wheelers rider.
The C3 race had eight club members participating, the largest contingent of local riders, and after 68km, the eventual winner was Bruno Coppola (Greenmount CA). Brendan Kiernan took the prize for first unplaced Lakeside Wheelers rider.
The final race on the road was the Ladies event, which Ellen Ni Cleirigh (Longcourt Hotel-NCW Wheelers) won.
Race organisers were delighted to close out another successful Mullingar GP without incident, and as usual, were thankful to all riders for taking part.
MC for the day Paul Gibney also thanked the many people who contributed to making the day happen, in particular, Westmeath County Council for providing an excellent racing surface and well trimmed grass verges, which make safe conditions for the riders, An Garda Siochana, Multyfarnham Community Centre, the first aid team, all residents on the circuit, the moto riders, Cycling Ireland, College of Commissaires and especially the huge support from Lakeside Wheelers members who volunteered to help out on the day.
The annual GP BBQ held in The Chambers Bar that evening was an enjoyable social occasion. Thanks to the staff of The Chambers for hosting and the fabulous food and drinks.
Midland League
The road racing scene continued over recent weeks on a more local level with the Midland League taking place every Thursday evening. July 2 saw Esker CC host on the fast Kilbeggan circuit and it was a very good evening for Lakeside Wheelers with Stuart Cox winning the A race and David Lally taking the honours in the B race.
Streamstown CC ran the July 9th edition and due to last minute road works, the race was moved to the Dalystown circuit, Stuart continued his fine run of form and once again came home in 1st place.
July 16 saw Lakeside Wheelers host the second of our two races for 2026 and in very hot conditions the A race was won by John Boyne making it three in a row in this event for the club. Several other members performed well over the summer including Richie Lenehan, Brendan Kiernan, Charlie Sheridan, Eddie Hynes, Paul Cronin, Ronan Bracken and special mention to Tess Martin who is our only female in this year’s MiL. Well done to all members and best of luck in the remaining rounds.
Congrats also to Richie Lenehan who took part in the National Cross Country M50 championships recently and came home in 6th position overall.
The Hills of Donegal
A group of 15 members made the long journey north to Buncrana on the Inishowen Peninsula last month for a weekend in the Donegal hills. The group enjoyed exceptional weather for the two days and made the most of it with a long spin on the Saturday followed by a shorter route on the Sunday.
A hardy few set off early on Saturday morning to complete a 165km route around the north of the peninsula taking in the torturous Mamore Gap with another short but sharp climb near Kinnagoe Bay. While the roads were lumpy with 2,200m of climbing, the group was rewarded with some stunning scenery along the way.
The remaining eight members of the group took a slightly less challenging 90km route cycling through Ballyliffin, Carndonagh and Moville, where they enjoyed a few nice coffee stops before arriving on the coast road, where they turned south to Muff and back to base.
On Sunday morning the entire group took the ferry to Rathmullan in blazing sunshine and completed a more sedate 50km circuit. The route took the riders around the scenic villages of Ramelton and Milford as well as a lovely stretch along the shore of Mulroy Bay before returning back to Rathmullan for a well earned coffee while waiting for the ferry back to Buncrana.
That wasn’t plain sailing as the road from Kerrykeel included a couple of sharp inclines topping out at gradients of 20%, so nobody was too worried about eating the lovely pastries!
A special mention to Ulrika Maher and Pete Faulkner, who planned everything for the weekend, making it a truly memorable trip. Other participants were; Darya Mattimoe, Claire Neary, Mary Taffe, Liz Hoctor, Cathy O’Toole, Carmel Buckley, Dearbhail Gibney, Padraic Murtagh, Martin Nally, Shay O’Toole, Andre Barbosa, Mick Butler and Philip Mortimer.
Sprocket Rockets
The Sprocket Rocket programme over the summer has had record numbers attending every Monday evening. Belvedere House and Gardens has been an amazing venue for this volunteer-led series, which aims to let kids have fun while learning the basic skills of cycling in a safe environment.
Congrats to the organisers once again and of course to the participants who make it enjoyable for everyone.
Sprocket Rocket will continue until Monday August 17 but there are plans to introduce a new follow-up event and there will be more details in the coming weeks.
Tour of the Lakes 2026
The rescheduled Tour of the Lakes sportive will take place on Sunday September 6 so members are encouraged to register ASAP. The Tour was rescheduled as the original date clashed with the Westmeath Vs Galway GAA game in June and it is hoped that the new date will attract a big crowd to ride the 85km and 130km routes on the roads of north Westmeath.