FBD Rás welcomes first New Zealand team

NEW ZEALAND are to enter a team for the first time in the prestigious FBD Rás (May 23-30).

Though their final lineup has not been confirmed their squad includes Olympic medallists Marc Ryan and Wes Gough along with Endura Racing team professional Jack Bauer.

Race director Dermot Dignam welcomed the historic news. “The riders are all strong and experienced and, as we have seen many times before with the British competitors, a track background can translate really well into road racing. They will have the pure speed and the group discipline necessary to take some big results.”

This year’s FBD Rás will begin in Dunboyne and will be 1219 kilometres in length, crossing 24 tough categorised climbs, and featuring stage finishes in Dundalk, Carrick-on-Shannon, Oughterard, Tipperary, Seskin Hill/Carrick-on-Suir, Gorey, Kilcullen and Skerries.

Meanwhile Cork’s new cycling team, put together by former international Tim Barry, has been creating quite a stir since they hit the road at the start of the new season.

Sean Lacey, one of the side’s international riders, has dominated in Munster, winning the Lacey Cup in his native Tralee — a race dedicated to his grandfather — the Mick Cahill Memorial in Banteer and the Carrick Cup in Carrick-on-Suir.

Unfortunately the Tralee man will be riding in the classic race up in Donegal when The Edge Sports Shop Team promote their very first race in Minane Bridge on Sunday (1pm).

But they still have the talent to make a big impact. Included are Mick Fitzgerald from Cobh, Tim Barry, Joe Fenlon from Portlaoise, and Mickey Reilly from Turner’s Cross, all ex-Dan Morrissey riders with international experience. They are joined by Cathal McCarthy from Blackrock and Niall Brosnan from Tralee.

The President of Cycling Ireland, Rory Wyley from Dan Morrissey Carrick Wheelers, will also be in action.

“We are all pretty excited about the team,” said Barry. “Most of the lads are based in Cork and although they had been riding for different clubs, they trained together and were great friends on and off the bikes. A lot of us had been riding with Dan Morrissey’s and we decided to get together and form a Cork City team. We were very lucky to get very good main sponsors in The Edge Sports Shop in North Main Street and we also get generous support from Cork Coffee Roasters and Heinkel in Little Island.”