Andrea's report from the Co-Operation Ireland Maracycle
June 2010


26-27 June 2010

Maracycle 2010 – Ding Dong Of A Weekend !

The Belles and their band of merry "Monthly" cyclists are back safe and sound from the Maracycle, many with very sore backsides, aching legs and a few bruises….but all with massive smiles on their faces! Well done everybody. A tough weekend of pedalling, way surpassing anything that any of the "Monthlies" have ever done before – but as expected they all did it in style! And not just because of the new jerseys!

The girls met at 6:45am on Saturday at the PEC in Belfast, apart from 3 of the 4 Belles who in true form held up the lastminute.com nature of the Belles! But hey, a 7:10am arrival wasn't too bad – giving us ample time before our planned 7:30am start to tear off the labels from 2 brand new tandems and try to get the bikes set-up right for the 107 miles to Dublin! Having made sure all the other girls had top tips about nutrition, and to use tried and tested kit (by no means anything new!) – the Belles blatantly ignored their own advice and sat on tandems, which had only been delivered, for the first time together just 5 minutes before they started.

All the girls were nervous pre-departure, about to embark on an endurance event that they had never come close to before. The Maracycle involves biking from Belfast to Dublin, 107 miles on Saturday, then either getting the train back up on Sunday or biking back the same route to Belfast. Despite the nerves there was also a clear level of excitement and everybody was up for the challenge.

We started at 8 am and soon set into our own rhythms, sporadically disrupted by dodgy gear changes on the tandem and high-pitched whooping and giggling. Being unaccustomed to tandems did not interfere with Belle Julie's photo taking on the move, just 100 metres into the cycle!, and Taryn soon found out that on the back of the tandem she could keep pushing hard with their legs but be hands-free…..which was fantastic for checking emails and updating Facebook! Not to mention flashing her Dromara C.C. cycle gloves!

All girls pedalled at a good pace for the first 27 miles to Banbridge, where there was a refreshment stop and everybody managed to hook up as the first of the pack were just starting off again when the last of the pack arrived. Everybody was having great fun and enjoying the experience. Being worried about having ample food, the girls filled up their pockets – Jenny looking like a pack horse and stretching her pockets to the limit! Elaine didn't want to carry too much however, because she was already rueing her heavy bike and wanting a road bike. Elaine, we know a very reputable bike shop!

The next refreshment stop was Camlough at 45 miles, where again everybody caught up with each other, before setting out at their own pace to the lunch stop in Castlebellingham at 69 miles. By this stage the Belles and the Monthlies were well known amongst all participants, with friendly comments being shouted as the girls passed other riders – and the words "Ding Dong" regularly being shouted at all the girls. One cyclist, on a long drag of a hill, even highlighted that "looking at your ding dong got me up that hill" and another said that "the high point was frantically pedalling to catch up with the Belles, then tucking in behind and getting the best view of the day".

What a lie! The views along the Maracycle route were stunning, and we hope more lumpy and bumpy than our rear ends! Maybe not as bumpy as Belle Cathy's tummy, who at 25 weeks pregnant was not finding the tandem the most comfortable. But given our attention to detail and Maracycle specific preparation (?!), we had our own personal Midwife Jen as part of the group, as well as Anaesthetist Catherine! We were hoping however that an epidural would not be necessary – for Cathy or for those that wanted to be free of leg pain because of the cycle!

By the lunch stop the girls had become well spread out, and only a few managed to catch up with each other over a limp sandwich and a few packets of biscuits! But we knew that everybody was safe and sound and knew that all the girls would reach their goal of arriving in Dublin.

After the lunch stop it was just less than 40 miles to the finish, but this was in fact the most challenging and slowest part of the day that included a 10 mile section of 4-5 tough climbs with a strong headwind and blazing sunshine. Not to mention two beasts of tandems which require excessive heaving and grunting! However we would not be beaten, brute force and ignorance (which we're clearly very good at!) prevented us from having to walk.

Having started at 8am, the leader of the girls' pack reached the finish line just after 5pm, with the last of the girls arriving at 730pm. The official finish was 2.5 miles from the actual event headquarters and accommodation – so a nice wee police escorted warm down to finish the day. Although some backsides begged to differ! All the girls were on a high, chuffed with what they had done, although those scheduled to bike back to Belfast on Sunday were a bit scared at the prospect.

Event headquarters was the impressive DCU (Dublin City University). Bikes ditched (tandems into a lorry because the Belles were cycling their road bikes home on Sunday!), bags picked up, rooms got….ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh showers! Even bigger ahhhhhhhhhhhhh delicious dinner in the canteen. A great variety of food, all extremely tasty…and lots of it!

All that remained for a good night's sleep was alcohol and a bit of pampering, which some took to much greater lengths than others!

Sunday morning, and only 107 miles until home! Half of the girls had opted to cycle back, with the other half catching the train up. Most of the returning cyclists met for breakfast at 7:45am, although some went for an early start convinced that they would need every hour of daylight to make it home and beat the sweeper vehicle. About 8 of us got underway at 8:30am, with one of the Monthlies taking a nasty spill at the first speed bump 20 metres after the start. Joan had cuts on her arms and legs, and was clearly shaken, but she defiantly said she was fine to start. This epitomises the group of girls, full of spirit and determination.

After 8 easy miles to get warmed up, in gorgeous sunny weather, the hills started, but by all accounts were easier than they had been the day before despite tired legs. The group was well split up for the return journey, with it being of the utmost importance to pedal at your own pace.

A few of the girls were happy to cycle alone and pick up new people and friends, Louise and Siobhan in particular given the ratio of men to women doing the cycle!, and the others cycled in pairs. . . .more than happy to chat for hours with old friends! There was of course always banter with others, particularly the guys in the bike maintenance van who progressed from Ding Dong innuendos on the Saturday to full-blown dirty talk on the Sunday, always managing to back out with chat that what they were saying to us was always just bike related inferences – especially with regard to lube! Andrea and Jen were more than able to put them in their place and counter-banter! Nothing to be proud of, but extremely funny!

On the 107 miles back to Belfast, for the slower girls, each of the 6 refreshment stops was a welcome relief. For the faster girls only a couple of stops were made, with Taryn and Julie using the interludes to hook up with accomplished male cyclists! as a means to an end!, and Andrea and Jen stopping briefly just once for lunch only. It was 61 miles to the lunch stop, and then 46 miles to the finish.

Over much more satisfying sandwiches than the previous day, the girls managed to get an update on where the other Monthlies were, then headed out for the homeward bound route. Crossing the border was a lovely feeling, added to by then hitting roads that some of us had biked before (we'd like to claim as Maracycle preparation, but in fact was just a fluke!). There were two refreshment stops north of the border, at Banbridge and Moira. The 8 mile ride from Moira to Lisburn was a complete blast, down on the bars basically time-trialling and feeling strong even with 200 miles in the legs! From Lisburn it was a lovely 5 miles to the finish line, but perversely we just didn't want to finish! Well, some of us anyway!

3 Belles and 1 Honorary Belle and a couple of Monthlies finished around 4 pm at Fleming Fulton, then had a 2 mile cycle back to the start/finish area at the PEC. The others came in at various times by 7 pm. The finish area was fantastic, lying in the sun with music blaring, medals around our necks and a feeling of self-satisfaction.

Co-operation Ireland pulled off an incredible event in an impressive fashion. The Maracycle was extremely well organised with route markings and marshalling, as well as general logistics, and the staff and marshals were so friendly. They also accommodated the Belles every request (not that we're demanding and awkward or anything!) with a smile! Thank you so much to Winnie and her team for ensuring an enjoyable experience for everybody. And even managing to organise a weekend of sunshine! Perhaps next year they can ensure there is no headwind!

Updates from the Monthlies on Sunday night / Monday morning have been that they are aching from head to toe – but particularly in the middlish region of their bodies! – but they are all chuffed to bits with what they achieved.

What an achievement, what a weekend. The Belles want to thank you all for your enthusiasm and participation in our drive to get more females into cycling. We can't tell you how proud we are of what you all did at the weekend, and what satisfaction we got from it.

This was a fantastic event, challenging the girls both physically and mentally, but the Belles knew there wouldn't be a problem on the latter front – you're all mental enough! The Maracycle has left everybody with many lifetime memories and plenty of reminders of why we do this sort of thing – aching muscles, a true cyclist's tan on the arms and legs, and sore bottoms for some days to come!

Ding Dong!

















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