Des Hanlon Memorial Classic 2015

bikenut74

This years Des Hanlon takes place on Sunday 22nd March 2015. There were will be seven races up for decision on the day. A1+A2 150km, A3+Jnr 110km, A4 75km and separate Woman's race 75km. The A1+A2 race will be the third race in the new National Series. All will be held on the usual tough circuit around the ridge above Carlow town. There is a generous €2000 prize fund plus in race Prime's in all races. New for this year we will be adding youth races to the program. U16, U14 and U12 will be catered for with prizes for the first six in each race. Riders can pre register for their event at Cycling Ireland Events Calender. Sign on will open on the day from 9.30am to 11.30am in Graiguecullen GAA clubhouse with the senior races starting at 12.00 and youth races starting at 12.30

bonzie1

bikenut74 wrote: »

This years Des Hanlon takes place on Sunday 22nd March 2015. There were will be seven races up for decision on the day. A1+A2 150km, A3+Jnr 110km, A4 75km and separate Woman's race 75km. The A1+A2 race will be the third race in the new National Series. All will be held on the usual tough circuit around the ridge above Carlow town. There is a generous €2000 prize fund plus in race Prime's in all races. New for this year we will be adding youth races to the program. U16, U14 and U12 will be catered for with prizes for the first six in each race. Riders can pre register for their event at Cycling Ireland Events Calender. Sign on will open on the day from 9.30am to 11.30am in Graiguecullen GAA clubhouse with the senior races starting at 12.00 and youth races starting at 12.30[/quote


Really looking forward to this. Bring it on.

royrogers

bikenut74 wrote: »

This years Des Hanlon takes place on Sunday 22nd March 2015. There were will be seven races up for decision on the day. A1+A2 150km, A3+Jnr 110km, A4 75km and separate Woman's race 75km. The A1+A2 race will be the third race in the new National Series. All will be held on the usual tough circuit around the ridge above Carlow town. There is a generous €2000 prize fund plus in race Prime's in all races. New for this year we will be adding youth races to the program. U16, U14 and U12 will be catered for with prizes for the first six in each race. Riders can pre register for their event at Cycling Ireland Events Calender. Sign on will open on the day from 9.30am to 11.30am in Graiguecullen GAA clubhouse with the senior races starting at 12.00 and youth races starting at 12.30

Whats the A4 race like, surely not a mass bunch sprint??

Hmmzis

The only time I did the A4 there the bunch got torn to bits on the Castlecomer climb and further damage to the grupettos was done by the subsequent climbs. Maybe 10-15 people were in the final leading group that contested the prizes. Certainly not a sprinters race.

royrogers

Hmmzis wrote: »

The only time I did the A4 there the bunch got torn to bits on the Castlecomer climb and further damage to the grupettos was done by the subsequent climbs. Maybe 10-15 people were in the final leading group that contested the prizes. Certainly not a sprinters race.

Is that climb in Castlecomer the same one in the Deenside race last season??

wirelessdude01

royrogers wrote: »

Is that climb in Castlecomer the same one in the Deenside race last season??

That hill tore the A4 group to bits in the Deenside race last year.

bikenut74

The course for those who haven't been with us before is available on Carlowcycling.ie in the events section. There's no doubting it's a tough race and probably the toughest A4 race of the year but the women cover the same course. It's a strong man's/woman's course rather than a pure climber. The climbs are short but steep but the last 15km is downhill. A surprisingly large group contested the sprint in the A4 race but the other three races were won by solo attacks, little known riders Brian McCrystal, Eddie Dunbarr and Fran Meehan. We request anyone competing to register online. It's not common place yet but does help out the host club massively. It doesn't cost the rider anymore than the normal €15 but is more secure and less time consuming at sign on. Looking forward to seeing everyone that day.

daragh_

wirelessdude01 wrote: »

That hill tore the A4 group to bits in the Deenside race last year.

Yes indeed. Was a brilliant climb. I was destroyed on it!

Thinking of having a go at the Des Hanlon A4 if I can get a pass. Will see how this weekend goes.

colm_gti

Wish I was fit enough to do this....next year....

wirelessdude01

daragh_ wrote: »

Yes indeed. Was a brilliant climb. I was destroyed on it!

Thinking of having a go at the Des Hanlon A4 if I can get a pass. Will see how this weekend goes.

You doing Slane and Summerhill?

daragh_

wirelessdude01 wrote: »

You doing Slane and Summerhill?

Westport on Sunday.

Buzwaldo

royrogers wrote: »

Is that climb in Castlecomer the same one in the Deenside race last season??

Not a racer myself, but fairly sure it's a different hill.

wirelessdude01

daragh_ wrote: »

Westport on Sunday.

I'm still hmming and hawwing about where to go on Sunday.

JK.BMC

bikenut74 wrote: »

The course for those who haven't been with us before is available on Carlowcycling.ie in the events section. There's no doubting it's a tough race and probably the toughest A4 race of the year but the women cover the same course. It's a strong man's/woman's course rather than a pure climber. The climbs are short but steep but the last 15km is downhill. A surprisingly large group contested the sprint in the A4 race but the other three races were won by solo attacks, little known riders Brian McCrystal, Eddie Dunbarr and Fran Meehan. We request anyone competing to register online. It's not common place yet but does help out the host club massively. It doesn't cost the rider anymore than the normal €15 but is more secure and less time consuming at sign on. Looking forward to seeing everyone that day.

The best - and probably hardest - one day race of the year; not many of these great races left in the calendar. I will be there once again to get a total hiding; looking forward to it.

bikenut74

Due to the improving Junior racing scene Carlow RCC propose to offer equal prize money for both A3 and Junior riders in this year's Des Hanlon race. While both categories will still race against each other and the first man home will be the champion there will be prizes for the first 6 A3 riders and the first 6 Junior riders. Maybe soon again the Junior category will be a stand alone race.

ryan_sherlock

One of my favorite races of the year. Tough course and there is never an easy winner. A few years ago it was my first road race (I was racing internationally on the MTB so was straight away into S1/S2 category (A1/A2 equivalent)). It was so hard (weather was crap), I think 20 of the 150 starters finished (and I was 12th or so). Loved it and thought all Irish road races were like this one (my n=1 experience at the time told me this was the norm).

doozerie

I rode this for the first time last year in A4. I seem to recall spending much of the race praying for a puncture to give me a valid reason to pull out so I could just lie in the ditch and cry. The puncture finally did arrive, at the top of the last major climb of the day just as I’d adjusted to the very real prospect of getting to the finish line with the front group. So I lay in the ditch and cried.

Me and my fickleness hope to race it again in A4 this year. I’m simultaneously dreading it and really looking forward to it, arguably a good indicator of a great race.

markusz

doozerie wrote: »

I rode this for the first time last year in A4. I seem to recall spending much of the race praying for a puncture to give me a valid reason to pull out so I could just lie in the ditch and cry. The puncture finally did arrive, at the top of the last major climb of the day just as I’d adjusted to the very real prospect of getting to the finish line with the front group. So I lay in the ditch and cried.

Me and my fickleness hope to race it again in A4 this year. I’m simultaneously dreading it and really looking forward to it, arguably a good indicator of a great race.

these are the kind of races we need... I seen grown men cry at the Fitscience race 2 weeks ago and the Westport race this week will be all over the road as well. bring on the pain! would love to do the Des but its too far away when there are races closer to home.

bikenut74

doozerie wrote: »

I rode this for the first time last year in A4. I seem to recall spending much of the race praying for a puncture to give me a valid reason to pull out so I could just lie in the ditch and cry. The puncture finally did arrive, at the top of the last major climb of the day just as I’d adjusted to the very real prospect of getting to the finish line with the front group. So I lay in the ditch and cried.

Me and my fickleness hope to race it again in A4 this year. I’m simultaneously dreading it and really looking forward to it, arguably a good indicator of a great race.

Sure isn't that why we all do it, sado masochists the lot of us.

Amprodude

JK.BMC wrote: »

The best - and probably hardest - one day race of the year; not many of these great races left in the calendar. I will be there once again to get a total hiding; looking forward to it.

All races are hard. Sure if they were easy you would be winning them all I guess.

foxer3640

A3 fields becoming really huge this year. Ive done 4 a3 races this season and I think there's been a crash in all of them. Race organisers are doing their best but at the end of the day crap roads and big groups will lead to crashes.

buffalo

Amprodude wrote: »

All races are hard. Sure if they were easy you would be winning them all I guess.

An easy race is hard to win, because there's so many people still in contention at the end.

Chips Lovell

I've moved some off-topic posts to our newly created Discussion on Vets and Juniors in the A3 category megathread.

Lumen

Amprodude wrote: »

All races are hard. Sure if they were easy you would be winning them all I guess.

Many races are hard to win but the Des Hanlon is particularly so because it's prestigious and so attracts a quality field, particularly in A1/A2. It's also significantly hilly so there's no hiding.

Winning aside, it's hard even to avoid the experience turning into the "Des Hanlon Sportive".

doozerie

I’m doomed! Due to recent unexpected events I have to update my previous post to:

“Me and my fickleness hope to race it again in A4 will ride it in A3 this year. I’m simultaneously dreading it and really looking forward to it *really* dreading it, arguably a good indicator of a great race reason to take early retirement from open racing. May god have mercy on my soul, etc.“

Phrases like “baptism of fire” are coming to mind, which fall short of being comforting.

In a twist of fate though, I printed off my A3 license just now in case the real one doesn’t arrive in time, and it prints in A4 format. Size is everything, as tall people have been telling me for years, so its A4 size trumps its A3 contents which means I can sign on in A4 …right?!

maloner

doozerie wrote: »

I’m doomed!

Course suits ya, you're in form, new to the field, so they'll never see you coming. I'm expecting points at least.

Due to back issues I'll probably not be racing it, so feel confident in my position of imposing high standards on my club mates that I certainly wouldn't achieve myself

smurphy29

Odd that this clashes with the Aqua Blue Classic this year. I wonder will that impact the numbers a little bit. Which race will Michael O'Loughlin do (and win!) I wonder...

mathie

If you signup online do you need to sign in on the day?

Chips Lovell

I think so. The confirmation email I got said:

You have successfully signed onto the event Des Hanlon Memorial Race

bwalsh1983

smurphy29 wrote: »

Odd that this clashes with the Aqua Blue Classic this year. I wonder will that impact the numbers a little bit. Which race will Michael O'Loughlin do (and win!) I wonder...

Aquablue is cancelled as a result of this clash, dissapointing as the AB is one of the toughest races also. A different weekend and there would be space for 2 great races rather then one and a trip around another flat rectangle some other week.

mathie

mathie wrote: »

If you signup online do you need to sign in on the day?

Jep Gambardella wrote: »

I think so. The confirmation email I got said:You have successfully signed onto the event Des Hanlon Memorial Race

I'm even more confused now!

jinkypolly

mathie wrote: »

I'm even more confused now!

You have to sign on at the race no matter what, the online registration is just a convenient method of payment that speeds things up on the day of the race and gives the organizers some idea of interest/numbers to expect. As far as I'm aware even if the race was free you'd still need to sign on.

Chips Lovell

If that's the case, the wording of the email may lead people to think they've already signed on.

Hmmzis

Got the pass to go to this one.

Won't be racing it though. It will be my first time as a race mechanic for our ladies team (or any team ever). Will have to do some wheelswapping practice on Saturday, have never had to do that in anger. I understand that punctures are the most common 'mechanical'. What else is reasonably common that could be fixed quickly enough in a race situation?

Amprodude

bwalsh1983 wrote: »

Aquablue is cancelled as a result of this clash, dissapointing as the AB is one of the toughest races also. A different weekend and there would be space for 2 great races rather then one and a trip around another flat rectangle some other week.

Is the Des Hanlon much harder than Aquablue? I'm thinking of going.

lennymc

Hmmzis wrote: »

Got the pass to go to this one.

Won't be racing it though. It will be my first time as a race mechanic for our ladies team (or any team ever). Will have to do some wheelswapping practice on Saturday, have never had to do that in anger. I understand that punctures are the most common 'mechanical'. What else is reasonably common that could be fixed quickly enough in a race situation?

I would guess that anything else would probably require swapping bikes. A wheel can be changed pretty quickly, but a cable, or a chain takes a lot longer.

doozerie

Hmmzis wrote: »

Got the pass to go to this one.

Won't be racing it though. It will be my first time as a race mechanic for our ladies team (or any team ever). Will have to do some wheelswapping practice on Saturday, have never had to do that in anger. I understand that punctures are the most common 'mechanical'. What else is reasonably common that could be fixed quickly enough in a race situation?

I’ve never acted as a team mechanic either, so take these suggestions with a pinch of salt as my musings may be very far from the reality of the task:

* With spare wheels, set up the skewers ahead of time. You’ll want to have them opened enough so that the wheel will slot in with no, or minimum, unscrewing of the locking nut needed in the heat of the moment. And, of course you don’t want them opened so much that you lose lots of time tightening them up once the wheel is in place. Front wheel is obviously trickier here because of the lawyers tabs, and the spacing needed might vary a little from bike to bike.

* If you have to deal with a dropped chain your hands are likely to get filthy, obviously. Might be worth carrying several pairs of disposable gloves with you. Personally I like nitrile gloves, they are thin but strong and are better at resisting chemicals than latex - they can be expensive, but they are available from medical supplies for a reasonable price (though the ones I’ve seen from medical supplies are finer and therefore less robust than some).

* Crashes can lead to all sorts of parts being knocked out of position - hoods, handlebars, stem, seatpost - and you might need tools (allen keys, torx keys, screwdrivers) to make the bike usable again in a hurry. Multitools are probably the most convenient option here rather than individual tools.

* And if you are uncomfortable about safely tightening to/around carbon parts by feel alone then a torque wrench(es) may be necessary. You can buy pre-set/non-adjustable torque wrenches so you could carry, for example, a 4Nm one and a 6Nm one. Some of them take interchangeable bits, and these would be the handiest I’d imagine, if you could get hold of some in time.

* Things that might be worth keeping close to hand: electrical tape (for handlebar tape that wants to unwind after crash or “just ‘cos!”, anything non-structural that wants to fall off the bike, etc.), zip ties (for restraining the opposition, and many many other more legal things), light spray lube for just about anything that needs freeing up in a hurry (can I say WD40? ), baby wipes (‘cos as any parent knows, life is never the same again once you’ve discovered baby wipes!).

Hmmzis

Thanks guys, I'll pack in some extra tape and some of the gloves I use when working on my bikes. For some reason a dropped chain didn't cross my mind at all.

12 sprocket

Hmmzis wrote: »

Thanks guys, I'll pack in some extra tape and some of the gloves I use when working on my bikes. For some reason a dropped chain didn't cross my mind at all.

Instruct the riders that they can only stop on the left hand side of the road for service to avoid accidents. If a rider stops on the right hand side of the road and either the mechanic or rider is crossing a road to change a wheel with race cars and bikes flying by its EXTREMELY dangerous. That's the race rule anyway! but in the heat of the race inexperienced riders will sometimes stop on the right hand side.
Enjoy the race

Amprodude

How many hills have we in this ring of torture.

mathie

Amprodude wrote: »

How many hills have we in this ring of torture.

Google Des Hanlon Strava.
A4 seems to have six climbs.
But then there look to be climbs within climbs.
The Inception of races by the looks of things.

wav1

mathie wrote: »

Google Des Hanlon Strava.
A4 seems to have six climbs.
But then there look to be climbs within climbs.
The Inception of races by the looks of things.

The hardest ''hill'' on this circuit is the one that doesn't appear to be a hill at all..The drag up by the grotto after the descent from the ''hills'' is the one that catches everyone.Guess ye are really confused now.

Amprodude

Difficult race today. Finished in the bunch but outside the placings.

Hmmzis

Was in the support car as mechanic today for our team in the womens race. Only mechanical was even before the race started and got resolved promptly by changing the rear wheel.

The ladies raced their hearts and souls out today, massive kudos to all of them!

Amprodude

How many A4's were there today? Was there over 100?

mathie

Amprodude wrote: »

How many A4's were there today? Was there over 100?

There were about 30 left after the Castlecomer climb.
It shot the field to bits.

Amprodude

mathie wrote: »

There were about 30 left after the Castlecomer climb.
It shot the field to bits.

There was about 20 for the sprint in the end I'm guessing.

wirelessdude01

Amprodude wrote: »

How many A4's were there today? Was there over 100?

Surely having been there for the start you could have a good guess as to the numbers?

mathie

wirelessdude01 wrote: »

Surely having been there for the start you could have a good guess as to the numbers?

I think he wanted an exact number rather than a guess.

manwithaplan

Such a brilliant race. Outclassed by the 5 juniors who escaped the A3 bunch on the first lap but happy to have been at the front of what was left of the bunch over the last climb of the day. All the jousting had come to nothing (other than shelling lots of riders). Unfortunately, there were more at the finish than I would have liked and I was fairly anonymous in the sprint for 6th (and first A3!). I would happily line up and do it again tomorrow.

smurphy29

Such a hard race. Was fine over the first two climbs, in the front group but the hammer went down over a flattish section and then the crash happened on that narrow bridge chicane and it I lost a lot of momentum and just couldn't accelerate back on to the wheels. When the lights went out they really went out, and I rode around the lap. Kind of disppointed in myself today that I didn't get in a chase group and see out the race, but the willingness to suffer just drained from me. Maybe I'm too much of a wimp for bike racing. Also found my nerve was not there after crashing too weeks ago. Found the run to Castlecomer to be very nervewracking in that mega-bunch and with the riders ditch to ditch.

I'm not really in favour of points for unplaced A3s on point of principle but I do wonder if we are reaching a tipping point in terms of safety. Out of sheer practicality of reducing the sizes of A3 bunches, which are simply enormous this year and will only get bigger as A4s are promoted, it probably has to be looked at very closely.