The National Cycling Championships take place in Carlingford this weekend and as a result a number of roads in the area will be closed to public transport from 10.30am to 4pm on Saturday and Sunday.
On Saturday, Old Quay Lane from its junction with the R176 and Old Church Lane from its junction with Dundalk Street will be closed as well as the R173 Northbound from its junction with the R173/R175 at The Bush to its junction with Dundalk Street/Old Church Lane.
Meanwhile, on Sunday there will be other road closures in place including from the junction with the R176 at the Tourist Office to the junction with Newry Street and from Newry Street to Market Square and Dundalk Street, R173. The R173 Northbound will also be closed from its junction with the R173/R175 at The Bush to its junction with Dundalk Street.
On both days an alternative Northbound route will be in operation from the R175 from Bush to Millgrange and the R176 to Carlingford while an alternative Southbound route will be in operation from The Grove Road, L7072 to R175 at Crossalaney and the R175 to Millgrange and R176 to Carlingford.
It is anticipated that the streets closed in the village centre will be open to through traffic approximately every 10 minutes at the discretion of race marshals.
The Elite race will attract Ireland’s top cyclists including Tour de France stars Nicholas Roche and Dan Martin and Olympic stars Martin Irvine and David McCann. The riders will do battle for the right to wear the prestigious National Champions Green Jersey for the next year and more importantly in the Tour De France which will be starting the following weekend.
Meanwhile, the ladies race will see World Championship medallist Caroline Ryan in the thick of the action, battling with the defending champion Melanie Spath from Dublin.
The action will kick off with a time trial on Thursday. This event, also known as the race of truth, sees each rider cover 40km alone with the fastest time winning. Former World Champion Michael Hutchinson won the Elite event last year. In the women’s event all eyes will be on local rider Eve McCrystal, (European Medal winner at the police games in 2012) to claim a podium finish.
The time trial will take place along the R176 and R173 on a rolling course with a total of 65m of climbing and with such little climbing the fast course may see a new national record set, which is currently held by David McCann. McCann in 2008 covered a 40km course in a staggering time of 47mins and 6 seconds, an average speed of 51kph.
On Saturday, the action switches to road racing with the National Ladies and Veterans races. The circuit for the road race will cover laps of a 14.4km route with 61m of climbing per lap, on a mixture of both main and rural roads. The route will incorporate some stunning scenery including views of Carlingford Lough, The Cooley and Mourne Mountains as well as passing through the streets of the medieval village.
Sunday will see the main event, when Ireland’s top stars line up to see who will be crowned Irish Cycling Champion for 2013. The event is Ireland’s biggest one-day race and the only single day event in the country with valuable UCI points up for grabs. The race will be contested over a gruelling 172km with riders passing through Carlingford village 14 times.
The relatively flat circuit should make for an attacking, fast paced race. 2012 winner and Pro-Tour rider Matt Brammeier will be hoping to retain his title and have the honour of wearing the National Champions Jersey for a further 12 months. Also up for grabs, as part of the Elite race, will be the Under 23 Jersey, last year won by Philip Lavery riding with UK pro team Node 4-Giordana Racing.
