The 2014 Interclub Underage League wrapped up recently, with Orwell Youths still showing up for their first taste of racing. Late joiners included Alicia and Liam Coulcher, Evan and Luke Caddow, Max Latham, and Kevin Lahiff. They took part in one or both of the last two rounds, taking place on the tracks of Corkagh Park and Sundrive Road.

The Corkagh Park round opened with age-categorised TTs, with Evan Caddow blasting home first in 2:30, and Alicia Coulcher topping the girls' with a time of 3:10. Killian O'Brien made it two for Orwell, winning the U10 TT with 2:20, while Max Latham made his début with a fantastic time of 2:50. Alice O'Brien and Luke Caddow both set brilliant times, stopping the clock just after the three minute mark.

In the older groups, Andrew Ryan completed an Orwell hat-trick in the U12, blazing across the line to clock up 2:10. In the U14 section, Kevin Lahiff was faster by ten seconds, quick enough to earn him the silver spot, while Saul Wyse came home in a great time of 2:25.

The clubmates were split amongst several teams for the TTTs, with Alicia Coulcher and Alice O'Brien setting the pace on Team 2 to earn 4:09. Max Latham was the only Orwell on Team 3, contributing to a solid 3:20, while Evan and Luke Caddow and Killian O'Brien were together on Team 4 - tying with Team 5 with 2:40.

The final team had the strongest Orwell contingent, with Saul Wyse, Andrew Ryan and Kevin Lahiff working well together to set the fastest time of the night, a blistering 2:30. Well done to all the teams on great group efforts all round!

In the handicapped races, Alice O'Brien recorded her best result yet - a silver second place! Alicia Coulcher wasn't far behind in 5th, with Killian O'Brien hot on her heels in 6th. Max Latham took a terrific 10th, with Evan Caddow breathing down his neck in 11th. Luke Caddow suffered with the handicap, but held on for a fine 14th!

In the the second race, Saul Wyse made up for his disappointing TT to blaze home in first place, while regular racer Andrew Ryan did enough to take a superb 5th.

It was a great evening of racing overall, with the Youth riders having the chance to sample three different types of racing - TT, TTT and circuit race. In particular, some racers go their whole careers without participating in a Team Time Trial event, so it's a great opportunity for the youngsters.


Also on the youth front, Uisneach Sheridan and Sean Murnane were riding for the Leinster squad
in the inter-provincial champs on August 16th, and came a super 2nd! (photo thanks to Jen Sheridan)

The fifth and final round was held on the track at Sundrive Road, where Killian O'Brien again topped the first rankings - the U8/U10 100m time trial. Max Latham showed his power with a super fourth in 15:54, while Alice O'Brien took 17:28 and Alicia and Liam Coulcher both recorded fast times around the 20" mark.

The next brace of events in each category were a normal race, and a slow bike race. The winner was the last one over the line, meaning track-standing and good bike handling skills were a huge advantage. Alicia and Liam Coulcher each both had the measure of the other in the U8 races, while Killian O'Brien and Max Latham traded places for top spot in the U10s. Kilian took the win in the regular race, with Latham a fine 4th with Alice O'Brien a super 6th. The slow bike race podium was all Orwell, with Latham on the top step, Killian 2nd, and Alice in the bronze position.

A 500m TT following for the U12/U14/U16, where again the podium was smothered by Orwell. A triumphant Uisneach Sheridan, no stranger to the track, clocked up the winning 43:09, with Luke Keating in 2nd less than 1.5 seconds behind. Jamal Ahmed rounded out the podium, with an amazing time of 46:47. Kevin Lahiff and Andrew Ryan finished neck and neck, Lahiff's 49:03 narrowly beating Ryan's 49:70. The young Sulayman Ahmed was at a disadvantage with the age groupings, but managed a very decent 58:33

Some regular racing for the older categories followed - the first set on road bikes, where Kevin Lahiff won the U12/U14 affair, with Sulayman Ahmed winning bronze. Jamal Ahmed beat Luke Keating in the U16 event in a close-fought round.

The final set of races were on track bikes, which are fixed gear with no brakes. It's an achievement just completing a lap or two on them, given how different they are to regular road bikes. For safety reasons, there was no mixing of the types - the road bikes were raced separately due to the huge differences between riding a free-wheeling multi-geared bike with brakes and a single-speed fixed-gear bike without!

When the riders moved to the track bikes, it was no surprise to see regular track racer Uisneach Sheridan come out on top, just holding off clubmate Andrew Ryan to take the win. Ryan won the silver ahead of several competitors from other clubs. For the slow bike race, it was Sulayman Ahmed's time to shine, winning out over Kevin Lahiff. In the second slow race, Jamal Ahmed completed the double, with Luke Keating again playing second fiddle, and Andrew Ryan in the bronze slot.

It was another successful night's racing, with the Youth riders being introduced to the outdoor velodrome and all the excitement that it entails. We hope to see them back on the boards again soon!

The final event of the league was a prize-giving night in the Bray Wheelers clubhouse. The club have been instrumental in the organising and the running of the league, and all at Orwell extend their thanks, especially the Youth riders and families!

Bray in turn thanked all those who brought tasty home baked treats to the prize-giving, and all those who helped make the league such a success in 2014. Well done to all the Youth riders who took part this year, the league was very well supported. A special thanks to all the parents who bring their children along, and create such a welcoming atmosphere - especially Jen Sheridan, who is heavily involved in both the youth and track element at Orwell.

We hope to see all the racers still of the correct age racing again next summer! Enjoy the off-season!

Thanks to Ivan O'Brien for the photos, who adds: "as a first-time parent of the underage league; it is something I would recommend to all Unintimidating, warm and friendly, and no more competitive than any child is comfortable with. The kids were really sad when it ended and we will certainly be doing it again next year".


The assembled youth riders at the prize-giving

 

Underage Interclub League - R4 Circuit Racing, Corkagh Park (18/8/2014)

U8 1 lap TT
Evan Caddow 2.30
Noah Harris 2.31
Alicia Coulcher 3.10
Faith Robinson 3.10
Eanna Buck 3.30
Finn Lundy 4.00
Molly Sheehy 5.10

U10 1 lap TT
Killian O'Brien 2.20
Finn Harris 2.20
Finn Buck 2.40
Max Latham 2.50
Daniel Donohue 2.50
Deasun Byrne 3.00
Lily Sheehy 3.00
Alice O'Brien 3.10
Luke Caddow 3.20

U12 1 lap TT
Andrew Ryan 2.10
Garret Keogh 2.20
Seán Lundy 2.20
Lauren Haverty 2.55

U14 1 lap TT
Adam Doherty 1.55
Kevin Lahiff 2.00
Orla Conroy 2.10
Jamie Lappin 2.20
Soul Wyse 2.25
Hannah Tilley 2.25

1 lap Team TT · Team 1
Finn Lundy, Molly Sheehy 4.27

1 lap Team TT · Team 2
Alicia Coulcher, Eanna Buck, Faith Robinson, Alice O'Brien 4.09

1 lap Team TT · Team 3
Max Latham, Deasun Byrne, Lily Sheehy, Daniel Donohue 3.20

1 lap Team TT · Team 4
Evan Caddow, Noah Harris, Killian O'Brien, Luke Caddow, Finn Buck, Finn Harris 2.40

1 lap Team TT · Team 5
Garret Keogh, Sean Lundy, Jamie Lappin, Hannah Tilley 2.40

1 lap Team TT · Team 6
Lauren Haverty, Saul Wyse, Andrew Ryan, Orla Conroy, Kevin Lahiff, Adam Doherty 2.30

Handicapped Races

Race 1
1 Faith Robinson
2 Alice O'Brien
3 Finn Harris
4 Finn Lundy
5 Alicia Coulcher
6 Killian O'Brien
7 Lily Sheehy
8 Noah Harris
9 Eanna Buck
10 Max Latham
11 Evan Caddow
12 Finn Buck
13 Daniel Donohue
14 Luke Caddow
15 Molly Sheehy

Race 2
1 Saul Wyse
2 Lauren Haverty
3 Adam Doherty
4 Sean Lundy
5 Andrew Ryan
6 Garret Keogh
7 Orla Conroy
8 Hannah Tilley
9 Jamie Lappin

Underage Interclub League - R5 Track Racing, Sundrive Road (25/8/2014)

100TT · U8/U10
Killian O'Brien 14.78
Rachel Dore 15.59
Finn Buck 15.83
Max Latham 15.64
Lily Sheehy 16.60
Maurice Dore plus 2 16.87
Finn Lundy 17.19
Alice O'Brien 17.28
Deasun Byrne 17.63
Eanna Buck 17.67
Alicia Coulcher 19.11
Liam Coulcher 21.80
Molly Sheehy 22.37

U8 Race 2 laps
1 Rachel Dore
2 Alicia Coulcher
3 Eanna Buck
4 Finn Lundy
5 Liam Coulcher
6 Molly Sheehy

U8 Slow bike race
1 Liam Coulcher
2 Rachel Dore
3 Alicia Coulcher
4 Finn Lundy

U10 Race 3 laps
1 Killian O'Brien
2 Finn Buck
3 Lily Sheehy
4 Max Latham
5 Deasun Byrne
6 Alice O'Brien

U10 slow bike race
1 Max Latham
2 Killian O'Brien
3 Alice O'Brien
4 Deasan Byrne
5 Finn Buck
6 Lily Sheehy

500TT U12/U14/U16
Uisneach Sheridan 43.09
Luke Keating 44.63
Jamal Ahmed 46.47
Amy Martin 47.06
Kevin Lahiff 49.03
Andrew Ryan 49.70
Sean Lundy 50.15
Sam Massey 51.99
Orla Conroy 52.57
Garett Keogh 53.59
Sulayman Ahmed 58.33

U12/U14 4 lap race, road bikes
1 Kevin Lahiff
2 Garett Keogh
3 Sulayman Ahmed

U16 4 lap race
1 Jamal Ahmed
2 Luke Keating

Track bike race 5 laps
1 Uisneach Sheridan
2 Andrew Ryan
3 Orla Conroy
4 Sean Lundy
5 Sam Massey
6 Amy Martin

Slow bike race
1 Sulayman Ahmed
2 Kevin Lahiff

Slow bike race
1 Jamal Ahmed
2 Luke Keating
3 Andrew Ryan