Myself and Alan Heary spent 3 days last week finishing our drive round the Race Around Ireland route. We both agreed that this year’s route is still extremely challenging as well as being absolutely beautiful. Although some sections have been altered from the 2009 route we feel that the route hasn’t lost any of its character and will still provide an unforgettable experience for everyone involved. Again we managed to travel around the country without any wrong turns or arguments. Although there were some fairly silent periods!

The remaining Time Stations for 2010 are: TS10 Kilkee, Co. Clare; TS11 Limerick City; TS12  Killarney, Co. Kerry; TS13 Sneem, Co. Kerry; TS14 Mizen Head, Co. Cork; TS15 Kinsale, Co. Cork; TS16 Youghal, Co. Cork; TS17 Waterford City; TS18 Drinagh, Co. Wexford and TS19 Laragh, Co. Wicklow.

On Thursday we kicked off at TS09 in Oranmore, Co. Galway. Luckily when we ran out of diesel earlier that morning it was only a 50 metre push into the service station! From Oranmore we journeyed south in predominantly beautiful sunshine. The road around Black Head in Co. Clare lived up to its reputation as one of the most beautiful in the country with the bare rock of The Burren sweeping down into the Atlantic of Galway Bay.

As we passed through Doolin we saw a lovely Irish Red Setter dog strolling along the road. Saw it just in the nick of time I might add! It can considerate itself a very lucky dog!

In Kilkee we spoke met with Gene who is the co-owner of the Kilkee Bay Hotel. They have agreed to act as a Time Station for the race and have offered discounted rates on accommodation and meals for everybody in the Race. Thanks for that Gene!
   
The Shannon estuary also looked fantastic in the early evening sunlight as we made our way towards Killarney, Co. Kerry. Killarney was buzzing, with the town full of people. They all seemed to be looking for leprechauns but all they could find were Aran Jumpers and horses with nappies!

On Friday we set out from Killarney on what should be the toughest section of the race again with 6 major climbs. The roads will be hard but hopefully the stunning scenery of the Kingdom of Kerry will ease the pain and prove why this part of the country is arguably one of the most popular with Irish people and visitors alike. We stopped at The Sneem Hotel (TS13) to chat with the owner Louis Moriarty. Louis is a huge supporter of all aspects of cycling in Ireland and once again he has offered everybody in the race the use of the sauna and showers in the hotels leisure centre. 

In Cork City we met with Donncha Cuttriss who has entered the race as a solo rider. He told of his preparation for the race and his eagerness to take part. Having acted as a crew member for Caroline van den Bulk last year he is well aware of the challenge he faces but the experience has only fuelled his appetite to compete in the race.

From here we made it to our new time station in Youghal which is The Walter Raleigh Hotel. We were very grateful for the hospitality shown to us by Paul and Michael of the hotel. They are very eager to be part of the race and have been very helpful to us. Whilst there we met with Ger Flanagan and some other members of Team Youghal, the 8-person team who are taking part again this year. They are very excited about this year’s race and have created a great deal of interest in the race in the local area. They also made a presentation to Alan Heary in recognition of his efforts in organizing the race.

On Saturday we started out on the last leg of our journey. We passed through our new Time Station in Waterford City and New Ross before heading onto quite a large new section of the route. A nice flat, straightforward drive brought us to another new Time Station in Drinagh just on the outskirts of Wexford Town. On the way we passed through the fishing village of Kilmore Quay which must be the thatched roof capital of the world!

Having passed over Mount Leinster we entered Wicklow which is known as the Garden of Ireland. In Laragh we stopped to chat with John Lynham of Lynhams Hotel. The hotel will act as our 19th and final Time Station. John is a huge cycling fan and we were very grateful for his hospitality.

On the homeward leg we crossed the Sally Gap before the 14 km descent through Kilbride. This was followed by the final climb on the route at Cupidstown. This short sharp sting in the tail tops off with absolutely fantastic views over north Leinster.

The final route will be available to view online in the next 2 weeks. If anybody has any queries about it they can contact me at emmet@racearoundireland.com

Emmet