Rás Tailteann experience an enduring one for LCRC trio

LUCAN Cycling Road Club saw three of their members contest this year’s Rás Tailteann International Cycle Race with all three harnessing an enduring experience they hope will stand to them over the course of their careers and beyond.

While Ronan Killeen returned to the line-up in this iconic race for the fourth time, his LCRC clubmates James Delaney and Adriaan Pretorius were making their debut in this gruelling five-day event.

Last month’s contest marked the first time the Rás had been run in four years and riders were chomping at the bit to pitch themselves against such a monstrous challenge, particularly Killeen who was guesting for the Castlebar Unit 7 Team.

South African competitor, Pretorius, meanwhile, lined out for St Tiernan’s CC while Under 23 rider, Delaney took his place among the Cycling Leinster Team for, this, the 67th instalment of the Rás.

Starting out from Jobstown this year, the race saw Killeen make a superb start, completing Stage One in ninth place.

“I managed to make the breakaway group of four riders and we attacked hard off the 2km in Castlecomer, 75kph down the twisty descent” he recalled.

“We opened a gap of almost 52 seconds on the chasing Peloton.

“The Irish National team and some of the British teams had no riders in it, so the chase to bring us back was on.

“Unfortunately, we got caught in the last few kilometres, but we managed to pick up some Sprint points along the way.

“I finished the day ninth in the overall standings that day.

“I think every Irish rider, if asked what their goal would be, they would say ‘to make the breakaway.’

I went into the Ras not to contest the overall, but to be very aggressive in my racing throughout it.

So looking back on it, I can be happy, I succeeded on Stage One.”

Lucan Cycling Road Club riders, Ronan Killeen and Adriaan Pretorius during the 2022 Rás Tailteann International Cycle Race

Killeen, only last weekend, followed up on that fine Rás performance with victory on the final stage of the Newry Three-Day that saw him finish second overall behind Britain’s Charlie Genner.

For Delaney, his Rás debut was a huge learning experience as he recorded some decent stage performances and very nearly got caught up in a couple of crashes.

“After five days of racing, I finished somewhere in the middle of the table which was slightly disappointing as there were many things I could’ve done differently to significantly cut down my time.

Stage One, Two and Four went reasonably well for me” he told The Echo.

“Although a strong result was never really my goal doing the Rás, my goal was to figure out where I stand in the bunch and figure out my strengths and weaknesses.

“The Rás was still just one of my first highercategory races which I have only recently gotten used to.

“Being spit out the back and not finishing the Rás was one of my biggest concerns, but I was very grateful to find the legs to ride at the higher category level and not just be hanging in for dear life” he smiled.

For Pretorius, completing the Rás was the culmination of near to a year’s effort and an achievement that will forever stay with him.

“Every cyclist in Ireland and England know that to be ‘A man of the Rás’ is the ultimate achievement for any cyclist.

And, so, for me to have achieved this now is something I’m deeply proud of” he said.

“It’s a five-day race, but the journey for me and others to accomplish this very demanding race had started a year prior, and especially over the last eight months.

“A lot of sacrifices and hours of training, in the dark cold winter morning and evenings to be sure that I was fully prepared for this massive challenge.

“It’s hard, physically and mentally, but the sense of achievement is so worth it” he stressed.