Event Date: 11th November 2023

Start time: 08:00am

Closing Date for entries: 7th November 2023

Organising Club: Audax Ireland

Organiser: Mike Law

E-Mail: corkaudax@gmail.com

Mobile: 087 8228870

Difficulty/Climbing (from * to *****):

All entries must be made on Eventmaster only.  Cycling Ireland Licence is mandatory.  One-day Licence is available for €20 if required.  This will be charged automatically on Eventmaster if you do not provide a valid current Cycling Ireland Licence Number.

Eventmaster Entry Link: Link to follow later

Entry fee: €5 plus Eventmaster Fees

Optional ACP or Audax Ireland Medals €7 each

RidewithGPS Map: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/38291109

Start Location: Mitchelstown, Co. Cork

Parking/Facilities: Car parking is available on the streets to the West of the start point. Do not park in the main Square itself as it is short-term.

Route Description:

“Oldies & Irish” – that musical stalwart of local radio programming on a Sunday morning is also a recurring theme on this route.

There isn’t a significant amount of climbing on the route and the highest point is 166m.

Starting at the statue of Land Leaguer John Mandeville – the route heads South West to the village of Glanworth, passing the narrow 17^th century bridge which is probably the oldest unwidened bridge still in daily operation in the country. Continuing on through Castletownroche , riders will then start heading North to Doneraile and skirt around the Western edge of the Ballyhoura mountains.

Over the shoulder of the Ballyhoura mountains to Ballyhea, riders take to the backroads of Limerick, passing through the Effin, famous for it’s battle with Facebook to stop the village name being banned for being “offensive”.

Then, it’s on to deal with Kilmallock, Bruree (passing the cottage where Eamonn De Valera spent his formative years), Athlacca and Croom in relatively short order before swinging East and heading to Lough Gur, by way of the Grange Stone Circle, the largest in Ireland.  Lough Gur is one of the main archaeological sites in Ireland and is surrounded by evidence of human occupation for over 5,000 years. If riders wish, they can divert from the route for a few hundred meters to the visitors centre which features a small refreshment kiosk.

At Pallasgreen, riders will have reached the most Northerly point of the route and now head South-East through Tipperary, passing through the villages of Donohill and Golden. Riders should note that some of the roads between Pallasgreen and Cahir are less than perfect and can have mud and stones dragged out from adjacent farms.

Golden features a ruined medieval castle but is also the birthplace of the “Apostle of Temperance” Father Theobald Matthew (who can be seen looking disapprovingly from his pedestals in the centre of Cork and Dublin).

Crossing over the M8 motorway, riders will enter the town of Cahir via the main square, passing the “Galtee” Inn which was the old stopping point for the Bianconi coaches and leave past Cahir Castle, which dates back to the 13^th century (though most of what can be seen externally is 15^th & 17^th century).

The final leg takes riders along the old N8, now the R639. While not offering the quietness of the back roads, it is the most direct way back to the start. For the majority of this section, there is a large hard shoulder, though this disappears briefly at two points.

Shortly before reaching Mitchelstown, the route make a final small detour into the town via Kingston College square. This 18th century square was never actually an educational establishment, but rather housing “for decayed gentle men and gentle women of the Church of Ireland” and is still is use as a residential community.

“Decayed gentle randonneurs” can then finally roll into the finish in the main square.

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