085 – Irish Race Review – Part 1

by Gareth Beckett April 25, 2023

Todays Guest

Robert Lynn from Freewheelin’

For episode Eighty Five we are joined once again by a great friend of the podcast, Robert from Freewheelin’ We caught up to chat about and review the last couple of months of the Irish racing calendar.

Robert is a wealth of information when it comes to the Irish and Northern Irish race scene. He attends all but a couple of the race events, he knows the players and is always hassling them for an interview in one form or another. This time he was sticking a microphone in their faces and ask them a few questions about their season so far, their state of mind and goals for the rest of the season. Robert was very kind to come on the podcast and share his interviews with the show. We hear form Greg Callaghan, Kelan Grant, Killian Callaghan, Leah Maunsell and Ronan Dunne.

We also have a chat about the rest of the up and coming season, riders to keep an eye on and how our Irish crew will do in the EWS and UCI Downhill. Robert also got a chat with Niall Davis about the future development of Coillte Trail Centres and funding available to develop these areas into world class mountain bike destinations. And not to finish on a low note, we touch on the situation with the closure of Northern Irish trails, what has been happening and what we can gather is going on for this to be happening. Hopefully I will have more on this in up coming episodes.

So tune in and have a listen to the movers and shakers of the Irish race calendar thus far. Enjoy the show!

Find Out:

What has been happening in the Irish race calendar
Who has been on top form
What the trail conditions have been like
What kind of attendance number are the meeting seeing
Why we have seen so many hard hitters at the races and why this is a good thing
Is the youth staring to shine
Who is on top form and who isn’t
How our Irish riders have been doing in the EWS
What to expect from our Irish riders at the UCI Downhill
A quick preview of the rest of the season
Names to look out for
The future development of Coillte Trail Centres and funding available
The closure of Northern Irish Trails and why this may be happening

It has been a very exciting start to the Irish race scene. There has been loads happening and the calendar has been jam packed with events with not a weekend free. It has been awesome to see the number of riders attending the races, may it be to compete for the win or simply support the event and have a couple of days out with mates. Overall it makes all the difference, gives the event more of a presence, helps fund the ever increasing costs of running such a race and makes all the hard work of the organisers and volunteers worth while. There was also a good number of spectators who attended. They showed their presence felt by shouting on their family and friends as they made their way down the trails. This created a great atmosphere and was great to see and hear the encouragement for all the riders.

So the season has got off to a great start with the help of some great weather, a great turnout and no real major issues. Things are due to change a little for some of the upcoming races with the cancelation of some events and others having to be moved to different locations. That being said, I don’t think it will put of the riders and we will still see a great turnout form both riders and spectators for the rest of the racing season. There is still plenty happening and still some awesome events to come. I know we are all excited to see what will happen in the upcoming events.

So stick on the kettle, put your feet up and get up to speed on what has been happening in the Irish race scene over the last couple of months. And hear form the hard hitters on how their season has been going so far and what their goals are for the rest of the season. Thanks for tuning in!

To Connect with Robert and Freewheelin’:

Website: freewheelin.ie

Facebook: freewheelin.ie

Instagram: freewheelin_mtb

Twitter: FreewheelinMag

Resources in this Episode:

Instagram: Greg Callaghan

Instagram: Leah Maunsell

Instagram: Kelan Grant

Instagram: Killian Callaghan

Instagram: Ronan Dunne

For Online Northern Ireland Trail Petition (click here)