Junior Tour of Ireland, 2000 |
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Michael Dennehy was an automatic choice for the Irish team for the 2000 Junior Tour and Kanturk decided to enter two, four-man teams. A sponsorship consortium joined Kanturk Credit Union to make this possible and it involved Senator Windows, Global Life and Finance, Keary's of Mallow, and Munster Business Systems. Kanturk Team A consists of Barry Meade who is last year's under 16 National Champion: David Geary who came third in a Junior Tour stage last year: Sean Lacey who held the yellow jersey and was a stage winner in the three-day Ras Dun na nGall, and Conor Murphy who has had a number of domestic race wins during the year. Kanturk Team B consists of Stephen O'Sullivan who is coming back into form after his Leaving Cert: John O'Shea who was third in a stage of the Dunboyne three-day: Edward Kelly who has had five domestic wins this year and Tim Ahern who was on Irish Team panel last year. The 2000 event had 90 riders in 29 teams from Ireland, England, Scotland, Wales, Belgium and France. Tuesday’s first prologue stage took place on August 8th and was a 2.4 mile Hillclimb on the Hill of Howth. It left both Kanturk teams nicely positioned mid-way in team-classification and the leading Irish club teams. The stage was won by Kieran Page from the English team and he was to hold the Yellow Jersey until the finish. Racing began in earnest on Wednesday and so also did a run of bad luck that was to plague both Kanturk teams for the remainder of the Tour. Normally, the decisive events occur later in the race but this 52 mile stage, centred on Newbridge, was to be dramatic and controversial. The event was riddled with crashes and punctures, a third of the field was distanced and both Kanturk teams were to have heavy losses. Tim Aherne punctured after three miles, just as the initial attacks were taking place. He failed to regain contact and lost 21 minutes. David Geary punctured next, lost contact, and spent the rest of the stage desperately trying to reduce his loss. A crash in the bunch then brought down Conor Murphy. He initially appeared to be out of the race but re-mounted after receiving medical attention and did extremely well to reduce his loss to sixteen minutes. As the Kanturk service was dealing with Murphy’s injuries John O’Shea got caught up in another crash in the main bunch and damaged his bike. The delay in getting a spare bike to him was costly and he lost twenty-one minutes on an ill-fitting bike. However, the good news on the stage was that Michael Dennehy had taken over the King-of-the-Mountains (KOM) category. Murphy and O'Shea had to go to hospital but were discharged after their cuts had been cleaned and dressed. Thursday’s stage covered 45 miles over a ten-lap circuit in Balbriggan that included a sharp climb. Michael Dennehy lost his KOM jersey by one point and Sean Lacey punctured and lost a lot of time. Barry Meade was especially prominent on the climbs. Kanturk’s bad luck continued on Friday’s 47 mile stage was, based in Clonlee. Dennehy made an early attach and a group of three gained fifty seconds by the first KOM prime. Dennehy won the maximum points and regained the KOM jersey. The exceptional bad luck was to continue however. Conor Murphy fell again, and Lacey and Kelly and punctured, all within minutes of which made service difficult. They all regained the bunch which came together each other for the final sprint in which Dennehy came second to an English rider. Saturday’s sixty-mile stage in the Wicklow mountains included the climbs of the Wicklow Gap and Sally Gaps. Conor Murphy started, even after his second crash and he now had bruises and cuts on his forehead, both knees and elbows, both sides of his back and on one buttock! Over thirty riders were distanced on the first climb but the main contenders remained together and Michael Dennehy was first over the top to consolidate his lead in the KOM category. The Kanturk jinx returned again on the descent of the Sally Gap when David Geary ran into the back of the French team-car, shattering the window. He was taken to hospital with cuts to his jaw and received seventeen stitches. Barry Meade took a wrong turn, rode almost twenty extra miles on his own and didn’t start the following morning. Sean Lacey, Conor Murphy, John O’Shea, Michael Dennehy and Edward Kelly remained in a lead bunch of twenty riders and the sprint was won by a member of the English team. Michael Dennehy extended his KOM lead by winning the first prime on Sunday’s 50 mile stage, followed by Sean Lacey. To further confirm his form, Dennehy came third in the final sprint. On the one hand, the 2000 Junior Tour of Ireland will be remembered as one of frustration by Kanturk Cycling Club. However, Michael Dennehy retained the King-of-the-Mountains jersey that had been won by Willie Curtin the previous year, and the eight riders can be justifiably proud participating in what must be one of the most gruelling events for Junior athletes in the country. |
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