Week 5 - Des Hanlon & Dunsany
- Orwell Wheelers
- Mar 30
- 2 min read
Updated: Apr 1
Sun, March 30th: Des Hanlon Memorial
Promoted by Carlow Road Cycling Club
Des Hanlon Memorial 2025 – Race Report🏁
The sun was splitting the rocks as the Pinergy Orwell Wheelers headed south for the ever-popular Des Hanlon Memorial, hosted by Carlow Road Cycling Club. As a @cyclingireland National Grade race, the event attracted over 200 riders from across the island, all ready to battle it out on the challenging, lumpy course.
C1 Race
The C1 race had the largest field of the day, and it did not disappoint. Joe-Nathan Matar, just recovered from illness, put in a gritty performance, finishing 11th after 132km in the legs – a solid return!
C2 Race
C2 had the strongest Orwell representation, with Sean O’Kane delivering a savage ride to claim 6th place. Sean was relentless in his attacks and fought hard to bridge to the main group – a cracking performance from a rider well on his way to C1!
Meanwhile, Adam McConnell and Fionn Sheridan emptied the tank, coming home safely in the bunch, gaining more valuable race experience at this level.
C3 Race
In C3, Luke Keaney and young Matthew Lane put in monster rides, making the main break and going full gas to the finish. Luke powered his way to 4th place, while Matthew built on last week’s success with a strong 10th-place finish – plenty of points on the board!
With solid performances across all categories, attention now turns to Cork for the next National Road Race. 🔥🚴♂️💨
Photos Sean Rowe / JB ( cycle race photos )
IVCA league
At the first round of the IVCA league in Dunsany on Sunday, Orwell had riders placing in three races. Star of the show was Damien Long, who finished second in the Black race, just ahead of clubmate Ronan Simms. Orla Hendron paced seventh and Dave Murnane took tenth in what was a strong showing for the Orwell contingent. Meanwhile in the Orange race, Kilian Doyle had a lively start to the season, taking fifth place, while IVCA debutant Michael Hickey made a promising start, taking sixth. In the combined White/Red race, Dick O’Brien got into the break of the day and finished eighth.
Also racing were Harry Rochford (another man making his IVCA debut), Darragh Boyd, Jim Carey, Dan McIlroy and Johnny O’Brien.
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