Etape Hibernia - Ireland

Westerberg

Anyone entered / considered? Just come across this. Looks like a good excuse for a break in ireland. Closed roads. Course doesn't look very challenging.

http://www.etapehibernia.com/index.html

pmannion9

Yip,

Know the area pretty well. Seems very flat route compared to what you could do around there !!!
The registration the day before seems a con - Trying to get you to stay in Ennis i think instead of a good night in Galway !!!

redjeepǃ

Looks interesting. That's a great area to hold a sportive I may seriously consider it.

The price is a bit dear though.

garrynolan

It's a pity it clashes with this (www.gaelforcewest.ie) as I'm sure some people (nutters?) would like to do both.

pneumatic

since this is clearly Etape Caledonia mkII, does anyone know:

a) whether there are any rivalries between Ennis and the towns around about
b) whether there are any irascible Church goers in the area
c) whether there is a hardware store where one can buy carpet tacks?

For me, whereas EC is just up the road, this one is a long way to go for an earful of abuse and a tyre full of holes!!

garrynolan

pneumatic wrote:

since this is clearly Etape Caledonia mkII, does anyone know:

a) whether there are any rivalries between Ennis and the towns around about
b) whether there are any irascible Church goers in the area
c) whether there is a hardware store where one can buy carpet tacks?

For me, whereas EC is just up the road, this one is a long way to go for an earful of abuse and a tyre full of holes!!

I tried to e-mail them for info but they're having some "issues" with their e-mail. So I phoned them (all the way from Ireland) and spoke to a really nice girl. They don't envisage any problems with the locals disrupting the ride and I would agree with that. The area is really beautiful and usually has lots of tourists so the locals are unlikely to bite the hands that feed. The whole area pulls together to keep visitors happy.
If you do the ride, it's a few hours nice drive from Belfast (ferry) and less than an hour from Shannon airport (bike on low-cost airline?).
Because the roads are small and quiet I would recommend staying within 20 miles of Ennis if overnighting - loads of really nice B&B's/Guesthouses/hotels nearby. Enjoy!

garrynolan

ps. The route travels in an anti-clockwise direction.

Eau Rouge

garrynolan wrote:

ps. The route travels in an anti-clockwise direction.

So lovely cross-to-head winds off the Atlantic all down the coast to Spanish Point. Who needs hills!

Westerberg

I thought it would be a good 'Craic' (to be sure, top o' the mornin etc..etc..etc...)It caught my eye as a possible cheap holiday / real etape substitue. It's not often you get the chance to ride on closed roads. Agreed the route looks a little tame but I too wondered what the winds would be like.

BigG67

The Etape Cale' is a pretty flat route as well, I'd guess it's to encourage entries.

IMG are a BIG company and do like to make money.....

meenaghman

Not just the wind. remember the Irish Weather Forecast. If you can see the cliffs of Moher from Galway bay, then it's going to rain. If you can't see the cliffs of Moher from Galway bay, then its raining.
Its a beautiful part of the country well worth a visit and if you've got family there's plenty of things they can do if you want to make a minibreak/holiday out of it.
Also if interested in an Irish event but this one's not for you .. go to www.cyclingireland.ie search for calendar in the search box, and scroll down to Documents section. The draft version 7 has a list of leisure/sportive rides on the leisure tab. Most have a contact name/email while some will have websites. The organising club is often given and you can get more info. You may need to check whether a one day cyclingireland licence is required.

capilinconnemara

The route may seem a bit tame but as said Wind will be your biggest enemy. The other thing is Road Surface. Even the pros (inTOI)go on about how heavy the roads are over here.

Dublin/ Dun Laoghaire is now not more than 4 hours on the Motor Way.
Shannon Airport 30 min
Galway Airport 1 Hour
Knock Airport 2 Hours

Ryan Air/Aer Lingus / Aer Arrann offer flight to all 3.

An Post Tour de Burren offers another route and a great day out in June, may not offer closed roads as such but it has a marshel at every junction possible and has the best feedstops imaginable.( County Sports Partnership and Cycling Clubs are involed in both)

Westerberg

how do I know when I've got to Ennis? Do I look out for the man in the "I shot JR" T-Shirt?

Setanta

You will know you are in Ennis cause there will be a sign saying 'Welcome to ennis

Route passes close to Fr Ted's house- worth a visit if you come over for a few days. It is a beautiful route and should be a great day. 'Des Lynam is from Ennis. As are Mohomad Ali's family (!!). Ce Guevara's mother was from the area as was the developer of the first submarine

redjeepǃ

pneumatic wrote:

since this is clearly Etape Caledonia mkII, does anyone know:

a) whether there are any rivalries between Ennis and the towns around about
b) whether there are any irascible Church goers in the area
c) whether there is a hardware store where one can buy carpet tacks?

For me, whereas EC is just up the road, this one is a long way to go for an earful of abuse and a tyre full of holes!!

I know Ennis quite well and can't see there being any problems. It's a really nice little town, and is actually a centre for traditional Irish music so every pub has 'sessions' every night. We've been down a few times for a weekend away and have always found it to be a really friendly place. They'd be good church goers, but not in the aggressive/ inflexible way you only seem to get in certain other places (mentioning no names).

It would actually be a nice place for a short holiday, which is why we've been down a few times.

Westerberg

this might be wide of the mark, but would I be right in saying Ireland is more of a 'cycling country' than Scotland? i.e. more welcoming of a closed roads event than their celtic cousins?

garrynolan

Don't know if they'll be any more 'welcoming', but I don't believe they'll be throwing tacks on the road. If people come and contribute much needed tourist money to the area they won't bite the hand that feeds.

Westerberg

fair point. BTW., wasn't meaning to tar all scottish with the same brush as I know it was a small minority that opposed the Etape Caledonia.

redjeepǃ

garrynolan wrote:

Don't know if they'll be any more 'welcoming', but I don't believe they'll be throwing tacks on the road. If people come and contribute much needed tourist money to the area they won't bite the hand that feeds.

Yes, come and spend a couple of nights in one of the many pubs. You'll be glad you did.

Don't expect too much of a welcome if everybody turns up on the day, does the cycle and then goes home.

blorg

I'm doing it, the closed roads are a big plus. I could not imagine something like the tack issue happening, I know that was one nut but in a climate with more broad disapproval... Clare would have quite a lot of tourists and seem to appreciate it. The event seems to be structured (e.g. requiring registration the previous evening) to mandate an overnight stay and bring money into the area. It is also starting very early (7am) so the road closures will not inconvenience so much.

Heading south down the coast is very much against the prevailing wind so getting in a good group doing up and overs would be advisable for that section.

I did the Burren coast (photos) as part of a quick tour around the south of Ireland, really well worth visiting. Road quality was pretty good to be honest.

As mentioned there are plenty of other (non-closed road) quality events on in Ireland for less money. Some of these do a rolling road closure with motorbike marshalls for the front group but to be honest it is impossible to know whether this is going to be the case... this event is a completely closed course for the duration.

kwhicher

I am doing it, really excited about glimpsing some Irish countryside. I don't think there will be any problems with the locals, I have visited Clare before and its a very friendly place. I'm going to go up a couple of nights earlier and stay for a couple after to see the place and sample the pubs, it would be a shame not to get a real feel for the place.

mickmc9

garrynolan wrote:

ps. The route travels in an anti-clockwise direction.

Are you sure? Alot of guys I spoke to said otherwise, meaning a breeze at your back
going up the costline.

capilinconnemara

mickmc9 wrote:

garrynolan wrote:

ps. The route travels in an anti-clockwise direction.

Are you sure? Alot of guys I spoke to said otherwise, meaning a breeze at your back
going up the costline.

I think it is anti-clockwise. The Clare Sports Partnership and Local Clubs are all involved and the coastal run is also alot of the An Post Tour de Burren, doubt they both running the same way but could be wrong

garrynolan

mickmc9 wrote:

garrynolan wrote:

ps. The route travels in an anti-clockwise direction.

Are you sure? Alot of guys I spoke to said otherwise, meaning a breeze at your back
going up the costline.

Yeah - I phoned the organisers - they said anti-clockwise.

Setanta

If it is anticlockwise it would mean cycling down the Corkscrew hill and not up it- can't imagine organisers losing out on such an iconic climb- likewise with climb from Liscannor to cliffs of Moher

I reckon it must be clockwise

capilinconnemara

Its definitely anti-clockwise and the Corkscrew is not part of it. Dolmen CC had a short version of this today and they are the club most involved with EH.

An Post Tour de Burren runs clockwise and climbs CChill

mickmc9

Is there any climbs that can be compared to Corkscrew and the climb from Liscannor to Cliffs of Moher, seen as it's going anti-clockwise?

bompington

BigG67 wrote:

The Etape Cale' is a pretty flat route as well, I'd guess it's to encourage entries.

IMG are a BIG company and do like to make money.....

Interestingly, the Etape C is a claimed 1960m of ascent, as opposed to 760m for the Etape H - if the same claim:reality ratio applies, it must be the flattest sportive this side of Holland.

mickmc9

Mapped out short sections of it on Map my Ride last night.
There's a 400m section about 1km after Doolin village where parts of it ramp up to 20%.
There's also supposed to be very steep sections (haven't found it yet) of road in Mt Callan between Spanish Point and Ennis if the route were to ramble off the main route slightly.

dexradio

I did the Etape Caledonia last weekend, and the locals couldn't have been more welcoming. Excellent organisation and a great atmosphere. If the Etape Hibernia is run to the same standards, I don't think anyone will have too much to complain about. I'm signed up for it. I'll be in Ireland visiting family (I'm from Sligo but been in the UK for over 20 years) at the time, and the chance to cycle on closed roads is great.

Could do with a GPX/Garmin GPS file of the route if anyone has one thought???

Dex.

mickmc9

Route on this report is completely different from Spanish Point back to Ennis.

www.clareherald.com

www.clareherald.com/sports/other-sports ... tymon.html