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An important EGM has been called by the committee to decide the future of Orwell’s participation in the Inter-Club League. It will take place at 7.30pm on Monday 14th January in our regular spot at the Milltown Institute. With numbers causing safety concerns last year, the league cannot continue in its current format. Suffice to […]

Although we may never fully accept her until she gives up the triathlon lark, Rachel truly made her mark on cycling in the 2012 season, entering five events and taking first in each. Not only can she boast a 100% win record, between training she still found time to support the Orwell men's Rás team, get a top five placing at the Irish half distance Triathlon Championships, and bake delicious brownies for her fellow riders! Age : 32 Years with Orwell : 2 What made you choose O

Next in line to be interviewed for our series of rider profiles was one of the stars of Orwell's last golden age in the 1980s, and now spends his time helping the next generation of stars to come through by helping to organise the club league, and this year's very successful Corkagh park youth league. Fresh from narrowly missing out on winning Cycling Ireland's volunteer of the year award, read on for five minutes with Damien Long... Age: 52            Years with Orwell?:  38

Many of the previous pieces on orwellwheelers.org were written by the talented Mr Quigley, whose day job sees him rub shoulders with high calibre sportstars, from Olympic sailor Annalise Murphy to Scottish legend Graeme Obree. In his spare time, he can be found dishing out helpful tips to novice racers, usually after the finish line. In the following interview, we enjoyed turning the tables, and asking him the questions for once. Declan, for his part, was only too happy to g

FIVE+ DECADES WITH... Noel O'Neill In interview with Aideen Collard Our long running series of rider profiles makes a return this week after a lengthy break, starting off this week with an interview with our longest serving member, Noel O'Neill. A former National Champion at Road, Track and Time Trial, and having spent almost 60 years with the club through both the good years and the bad, Noel most definitely fits the description of club legend.   Age: 75 (and very proud of i

The Gerry Brannigan Memorial Cycle will take place this Sunday the 11th of November starting at the Grasshopper Inn, Clonee, Co. Meath. (Please note that because of this event, there will be no organised cycle from Joe Daly’s on this date. We hope to see you all there instead.)

With the Winter spins ticking along and Sportive and Racing seasons both about to kick off, now is an ideal time to rekindle our series of rider profiles before the front page is filled with news of results, and there could be no-one more apposite to be the next interviewee than the man who has been  the friendly face of Orwell Wheelers to a significant majority of newcomers over the past few years. Read on to find out more about our current "Clubman of the year", the man kn

Orwell Wheelers ran its hugely successful annual Randonnée on the 5th May, 2012 over a challenging route through the Wicklow Mountains. This event was again in support of the Irish Hospice Foundation and was the perfect warm-up for those taking part in the Wicklow 200 or indeed greater challenges such as the Marmotte/Etape! Gert Conradie put together this excellent video for us of the day!

Next in line to be interviewed for our rider profiles is "Most Consistent rider of 2010", John Twomey. 2010 was a busy year for John with a return to racing after nearly two decades of an absence, sportives in every corner of the Country, not to mention completing the gruelling Race Around Ireland with the County Cork team. Age: 35    Years with Orwell?: 3 years How did you get into cycling?   I was quite involved with athletics at an early age, but after watching Stephen Ro

The latest in our increasingly inaccurately titled series of 5 minute profiles is Brian Ahern, for whom brevity isn't a strongpoint! For answers to every question that we thought to ask him, and a handful more that we didn't, read on...     Age: 30            Years with Orwell:  I was a member from 1993 – 2000; then returned in 2004 so about 13 years altogether. How did you get into cycling? It’s my brothe r Colm’s f ault.  As a kid I played every sport going but my main spor

The man of the moment this week is Patrick O'Brien, who spent his debut season last year working his way up through the Club league groups, and has now started his ascent of the Open rankings in an even more impressive style. Since making his breakthrough victory on Sallygap  last August he has made a point of only winning the hard races, and his latest victory in the Ben McKenna Memorial earns him his upgrade to A3, and the next spot on our list of rider profiles... Age: 27

The latest rider to be profiled is co-organiser of last week's highly successful table quiz, Anne Dalton. Known almost as well for her prodigious cycling talent as she is for her caustic assessments of her fellow clubmates, it really is hard to believe it's been less than a year since Anne blew in and started to turn the place upside down. Read on to hear what makes her tick...     Age: 29 Years with Orwell:  10 months How did you get into cycling?   A Dare!I was at a work f

The Gerry Brannigan Memorial Cycle will take place this Sunday the 23rd of October starting at the Grasshopper Inn, Clonee, Co. Meath. (Please note that because of this event, there will be no organised cycle from Joe Daly’s on this date. We hope to see you all there instead.)

Orwell’s trip to Tour of Flanders 2011 was an epic, including a chance encounter with ‘Tommeke’ himself. John Marron takes up the story

Orwell's national track sprint championship medalist Donal Bailey was selected as the Irish domestic male cyclist of the year in the Cycling Ireland Membership awards. In the latest instalment of her regular series, Aideen Collard catches up with the man who is anything but a short distance only cyclist.   FIVE MINUTES WITH…  Donal Bailey  by Aideen Collard Age: 25           Years with Orwell?: One   How did you get into cycling? I always loved cycling for fun but when I was

Colm Ahern's recent second place in the Bikepure GP Cyclocross earns him the latest spot in our series of rider profiles. We caught him while he was still recovering to hear about the Rás, fatherhood, and racing in the good old days. Colm Ahern Age: 33           Years with Orwell?:  17 (on and off…) How did you get into cycling? I was always into hacking around on the BMX from the age of 7, but as I kid played Gaelic football and Hurling.  I enjoyed it but I was useless on

In the latest club profile we get the lowdown on Orwell’s new world champion Orla Hendron and her path to the maillot arc-en-ciel. Age: Somewhere between 44-49 Years with Orwell: 8 years now… Holy S…!! How did you get into cycling? After my hockey career came to an end I took up triathlon, so that got me on a bike, then I did a charity cycle for Crumlin Hospital where I met Arthur Ebbs (also currently a member of Orwell).  He told me I should join the vets as I’d be good at

By Aideen Collard As Orwell's star female rider, Michelle Geoghegan makes the move over to Holland to join her new cycling team, Moving Ladies and prepares for her first big race of the season, theOmloop Het Nieuwsblad next week, we catch up with her and ask her a few probing questions about her cycling career to date. Last year, Michelle won the National Ladies League and narrowly missed out on a medal at the National Road Championships. She moves on to greater challenges in

In the first of a new series of profiles of Orwell club members, Ronnie Brannigan steps forward to be grilled by Aideen Collard. Ronnie Brannigan Age: 48     Years with Orwell:   Over 15 How did you get into cycling? I worked with Damien Long (also in the Club), he cycled in and out of work and told stories of cycling which got me interested and he invited me out on the bike.  At the same time, my late brother Gerry was getting into cycling and between the two of them, I qu

Riders intending to ride tomorrow morning’s Gerry Brannigan Memorial should note that groups will be assembling in the Phoenix Park at 9.15am and riding out to Clonee for the start.