Christmas Newsletter

The Irish Pilgrimage Trust Cycle 2010 Cycle 2010 Newsletter Christmas 2009 Next Meeting Update on Cycle 2010 preparations. All participants We are still getting emails and phone- Getting adequate accommodation for are invited to calls from people wishing to take part such a large group has been difficult, Sean Kelly Cycle in Cycle 2010, however we have had but we are confident that this is now to put a cap on numbers. secured. We have moved to some new in hotels where they were able to take the There are now 180 people registered Carrick on Suir complete touring group. We will stay to participate and unfortunately we on Saturday in Rennes, Nantes, La Rochelle, La can not accept any further applications Feb.13th. Palmyre/Royan, Bordeaux, Mont-de- for 2010. About 20 people have signed Marsan and finally Lourdes. up to work in backup, and 160 to cy- See Page 2 . [ We will write to the hotels again af- cle. ter Christmas to stress that they need The flight to Dinard has now been to have extra stocks in the bar!!!] Final meeting booked. Provisionally, we will depart Saturday, from Shannon at 07.00hrs, 27thMarch The return flights are not yet con- Mar.21st.2010 on a 167 seat Boeing 737. We should firmed, but will probably return to arrive in Dinard at about 10 am. Shannon on Easter Sunday in the early (These times may still change—last afternoon. We will confirm this as year the airport would not open until early as possible in the New Year. A very midday.) It may be an early start, but Happy it will give some extra time to organ- ize the big group for the first leg. Christmas to IHCPT Pilgrimage to Lourdes 2010 You Over the past few months, young peo- people with disability, illness or so- Your family ple from all corners of the country cial or emotional deprivation. In mid have been applying to travel to December, approximately 500 lucky all your Lourdes next Easter. The local re- applicants will receive an early Friends and gional committees try to select the Christmas present of an invitation to most deserving applicants—a difficult join the IHCPT pilgrimage on Easter Supporters process, but priority is given to young Sunday, 2010. Page Irish 2The Pilgrimage Trust Cycle 2010 Cycle 2010 Newsletter Sean Kelly—Cyclist extraordinaire Sean Kelly, born in 1956, comes from Carraghduff, Co.Waterford. He left school when 13 to work the family farm because his father was ill, and at 16 he started to work as a bricklayer. He won his first junior championship when aged 16 and went on to be one of the worlds greatest classic cyclists. Sean turned professional in 1974, and until his retirement in 1994, he won nine cycling classic races and 193 professional races. Only the leg- endary Eddy Merckx was more successful. He won Paris-Nice for seven years in a row, and has also won the Vuelta a Espana, Giro di Lombardia, Milan-Sanremo, Paris-Roubaix and Liege-Bastogne, Criterium Interna- tional, Grand Prix de Nations, and many more. Sean never won the world championship, but was ranked world No.1 for sex years in a row from 1984-1990. In the 1982 Tour de France, Sean won the 249km. 12th stage into Pau. The tour overall winner was Bernard Hinault in this year and Sean won the green jersey as the leading points winner. In fact he repeated this feat on three further occasions. In 1985 he had his best overall result when he came fourth. Since his retirement from competitive cycling, Sean has not been idle. He is a regular commentator on cycling for Eurosport. He started the Sean Kelly Cycling Academy in Belgium and is still involved in running it. Sean has been involved in a number of charity initiatives both here and in the UK. He has donw a lot of work with Blazing Saddles, a cycle group which raises funds for those with visual impairment. Over the past 10 years, Sean has generously assisted us in our preparations for our cycle to Lourdes. Once again this year, Sean hopes to host a cycle from his home town of Carrick-on-Suir. Unless tied up with Euro- sport, Sean will cycle with the group and give the benefit of his experi- ence and expertise. SEAN KELLY CYCLE Carrick on Suir—Saturday, February 13th. 2010 Assemble at 10.00 a.m at the Sean Kelly Sports Centre. Strongly recommended to all cyclists, essential for new cyclists. *The attendance of Sean Kelly is to be confirmed Page Irish 4The Pilgrimage Trust Cycle 2010 Cycle Safety He found: A bike coming up on the passenger side of the I am sure that we stress safety to the extent that we lorry disappeared from view in the side- become boring, but the one thing that keeps the mirrors once it was half way along the side of organisers of the IHCPT Cycle awake at night is the vehicle the thought that one of our members might be seri- Because of the position of the side-mirrors in ously injured. a HGV, it is necessary for the driver to turn his head a full 90° to look in the mirrors. At the last meeting, we heard about one lady who Since drivers are trained to look ahead, there came off her bike and was knocked out by the im- is no guarantee that they will see a cyclist. pact. But for her helmet, she would have sustained The more frightening thing was that a cyclist a serious head-injury. in front of a HGV—as it might be at traffic lights of in slow moving traffic—is com- The mother of a friend of IHCPT was killed re- pletely invisible to the driver. cently by a truck. She had started to cross the street in front of the stopped truck. The driver, sitting So, the message is; high up in his cab, did not see her and moved off. Don’t try to pass a HGV (lorry or bus) on the inside Last week at a petrol station in Oranmore, a truck If you have a HGV behind you in slow traffic, and taxi exited side by side. The truck turned left get out of the way. and drove over the bonnet of the taxi. The driver reported that he could not see the taxi low down on Think Safety his left side. Wear your helmet always. A cyclist recently took the opportunity to check what the road and a cyclist looks like from the Keep alert to the dangers of other traffic. drivers seat in the cab of a HGV. And finally—fundraising. impressed and moved by your dedication. We wish to make two appeals to you. It is exciting and gratifying to hear of the energy Please forward your funds as you raise them. We and innovation of our cyclists in their fundraising have started paying bills—flights and hotels—so we activities. I was recently at the Ireland v. France need cash flow. international in Croke Park and I was accosted by a group of cyclists doing a bucket collection. And secondly, please continue your fundraising. This is the major fundraiser for IHCPT and all funds Another group are hosting a film night. There raised with be used for the benefit of many special have been quiz nights, walks, golf competitions, young people all over the country. raffles and dances. Congratulations to each one of you for what you Thank you sincerely, for what you have done so far, have done to date. As it gets closer to the cycle, it and every success in future fundraising ventures. is actually easier to fundraise. People are genuinely IHCPT - The Irish Pilgrimage Trust IHCPT Cycle 2010 Kilcuan Clarenbridge Co.Galway Web: www.irishpilgrimagetrust.com Pat Jordan Tel: 091-796900 Fax: 091-796916 E-mail: [email protected] Dr. Michael McGloin Tel: 087-2423800 E-mail: [email protected] Don’t forget — We’re on the web IHCPT have had a web presence for many years, but just some months ago the Irish Pilgrimage Trust website got a facelift. The new site is visually pleasing and easy to navigate. Have a look at: www.irishpilgrimagetrust.com And especially the section about the cycle. Screenshot of IHCPT website This year we have a Facebook page dedi- www.ihcpt.com cated to the cycle. You can access this page from the IHCPT website or directly by going to : www.facebook.com You will be asked to log on—but this is Screenshot of “IHCPT Cycle to Lourdes” page on Facebook www.facebook.com easy to do—type in your email address and compose a password you can remember. When you get into the Facebook site, search for “IHCPT Cycle to Lourdes” Here you will find updates regarding the cycle, a whole section of advice and hints, a library of photographs of our practice cycles to date, and of previous cycles Feel free to add your own observations or advice , or chat with other IHCPT cyclists..

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