Lakeland Cycle Club

The Monte Challenge , Mountcharles, Co. Donegal

Two of our racers took part in this years
Half Monte, which schedules a 5.2K run + 23K bike rider and a 500m run

Nigel Foster and Micheal Pickles thrive on these challenges !

Whilst Nigel was ahead of Micheal on the first run Micheal was flying on the bike and caught Nigel 5 miles into the cycle ! They both worked excellently on the cycle but with all Micheal's power he broke the chain with 3/4 mile to go 😂😳 and sadly did not finish, Nigel finished a superb 2nd place overall !!!

Well done to both men for an excellent effort 💪👍

LCC RR4 - Enniskillen- Belcoo- Florencecourt- Letterbreen

The roads dried up and the sun shone down on our final club race of the season

A strong field of local and visitor riders turned out , group 1 had 4 minutes and group 2 had 2 minutes over scratch

The pace was high throughout from each group, Scratch caught first sight of group 2 around Gortatole, Conor Kelly and Jay McCauley kicked strongly out of Cladagh Glen to chase group 2 aggressively. They managed to catch them and pushed on towards the finish. McFarland and McElwee continued their chase and were joined by Michael McCaffrey to group 2 but could not close the gap on the larger group now joined by Kelly and McAuley.

Kelly and McCauley finally caught the 3 group 1 riders just before 3 Ways Inn, 2km from the finish. Then the 2 leaders started to play cat and mouse on the final 2km to prepare for the sprint finish, this nearly backfired as group 2 pressed hard and almost caught them!

The sprint was won by Conor Kelly over Jay McCauley with LCC rider Ian Veitch just behind them in a strong 3rd place and Michael Pickles grabbing 4th place💪

Fortunately 3 men blew up their tyres for the night, 2 came out of long term racing retirement and one tried it for the first time, definitely adding a lot of spice to the race and well worth watching out for Lloyd Seaman, James Gormley and Cormac McLaughlin 🐎 🐎 🐎

Thanks as always to all the riders and an excellent group of Marshalls and drivers

This Wednesday is the final event of this seasons schedule- The Hill Climb Champs on Lough Navar Climb ⛰️

Now that the Gravel dust has settled on 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐂𝐲𝐜𝐥𝐞 2026, we would like to thank all those who attended the event. ⁣⁣⁣
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We would also like to thank those who helped make this event possible including our main sponsor ⁣⁣⁣
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⭐⭐⭐𝐁𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐲 𝐃𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐑𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐥 𝐃𝐨𝐨𝐝𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐍𝐮𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟏𝟔 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐝𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬⭐️⭐️⭐️
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𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘭𝘴𝘰, 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘱𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘰𝘳𝘴 ⁣⁣⁣
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⭐𝐓𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐲’𝐬 𝐒𝐮𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐕𝐚𝐥𝐮 𝐂𝐡𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐭𝐨𝐰𝐧 ⁣⁣⁣
⭐𝐌𝐜𝐂𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐜𝐤'𝐬 𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐫𝐡𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐭𝐨𝐧 𝐌𝐚𝐜𝐞 ⁣⁣⁣
⭐𝐆𝐨 𝐨𝐍 ⁣⁣⁣
⭐𝐁𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐌𝐜𝐍𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐲 - 𝐈𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐏𝐫𝐢𝐝𝐞 ⁣⁣⁣
⭐𝐋𝐮𝐜𝐨𝐳𝐚𝐝𝐞 𝐒𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭 𝐈𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐝 ⁣⁣⁣
⭐𝐁𝐖𝐆 𝐟𝐨𝐨𝐝𝐬 ⁣⁣⁣
⭐𝐓𝐚𝐲𝐭𝐨 ⁣⁣⁣
⭐𝐖𝐚𝐥𝐤𝐞𝐫𝐬 ⁣⁣⁣
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We want to acknowledge and thank all those who helped us prepare and run our event including. ⁣⁣⁣
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⭐Lakeland Cycle Club including Marmi, Les, Marius, Niall, Raymond, Roger. ⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣⁣⭐DJ Cyclone ⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣⁣⭐Belcoo Sports committee ⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣⁣⭐Cashel Community Centre ⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣⁣⭐Marshalls, First aid attendants and food attendants ⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣⁣⭐BBQ - Joe Agnew and Billy ⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣⁣⭐Brian Leonard mechanic ⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣⁣⭐Sandwich and scone makers ⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣⁣⭐Photographers ⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣⁣⭐Cuilcagh Lakelands Geopark ⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣⁣⭐Red Cross ambulance ⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣⁣⭐Coillte ⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣⁣⭐Cycling Ireland ⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣⁣⭐Forestry Service NI ⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣⁣⭐FODC ⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣⁣⭐Leitrim Co. Council ⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣⁣⭐Cavan Co. Council ⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣⁣⭐Erne insulation

🌞 What would the Incans have thought? 👹

As our riders lined up, the daylight faded. Then, right as they rolled off the start line, a solar eclipse swallowed the sun, and they were literally racing through the dark! 🌑🚴

But did that stop them? Not a chance.
On a stunning warm, dry evening, 10 riders from multiple clubs took on the 10-mile Gardiner’s Cross Road course, and delivered some seriously impressive times despite the celestial chaos.

🏁 Top finishers:
1️⃣ Jonathan Costello – 23:36 - TT bike
2️⃣ Lenny Gillick – 24:45 - TT Bike
3️⃣ Nigel Foster – 25:00 - TT bike

Huge thanks to all the organisers, marshals, and riders from LCC and beyond for making it such a memorable night.

You’re now part of a very exclusive club, the Solar Eclipse Racing Club. ☀️🌘 Who else can say they’ve raced under a disappearing star?

LCC members have been really active this weekend, taking part in some fantastic events around the country!

The CavanKayakarun
Firstly, a big well done to Yvonne Foster, who took part in her first Cavan Kayak Run, a mixed adventure race featuring cycling, running and kayaking.

With great conditions on the day, Yvonne put in a super solid performance and is already looking forward to getting back on the start line for her next race!

Big congratulations also to Nigel Foster, who picked up 1st place in the M60 category, and Michael Pickles, who took an excellent 2nd place in the M50 category!

Despite Michael's trademark agony race face, he assures us that he does actually enjoy doing these events...

The Borderlands Cycle
The Borderlands Cycle is a fantastic community cycling event organised by LCC member Tom White, showcasing the stunning roads, forests, lakes and hills around Belcoo while raising funds to improve Belcoo GAA Club's facilities for the wider cross-border community.

Unfortunately, Tom has been quite unwell and in hospital for several weeks, meaning he wasn't able to make it to the event this year. Nevertheless, that didn't stop him. Tom continued doing everything he could from hospital to make sure the event went ahead and ran like clockwork.

Alongside the brilliant support from the Belcoo community, Tom recruited plenty of help from LCC, including Les, Marius, Niall, Raymond, Roger and Ryan.

A special mention also goes to Marmi, who gave the riders a great welcome speech and led a rousing cheer for Tom!

The 2026 event was an absolutely fantastic day. Entries were up on 2025, the weather delivered mild and dry conditions, and this year's event also saw the addition of a new 100km route.

Great riding, great company and a great event that is an absolute credit to the Belcoo community and Lakeland Cycle Club.

Well done to LCC members Marmi, Galen, Adam, Chris and Aidy for tackling the excellent Borderlands Cycle 2026, and of course to everyone else who got out and enjoyed the brilliant routes.

Finally, a massive thank you to all the organisers, marshals, medics, media crew, drivers, volunteers and everyone else who played a part in making this year's event such a huge success.

Roll on Borderlands Cycle 2027!

HE DID IT! 🏁

What an absolutely monumental effort from Daniel Maguire! After an epic journey down the full length of Ireland's Wild Atlantic Way, Daniel has successfully rolled into Mizen Head, completing his incredible Malin Head to Mizen Head cycle.

He covered a huge 83 miles on the final leg from Kerry to Cork to finish this grueling challenge. 💪

Daniel took on this ride in memory of our former chairman, Seamus McGovern, and was joined for parts of the route by Seamy’s brother, Niall. Together, they have shown unbelievable endurance, heart, and determination.

Through this incredible feat, they have raised vital funds for The Aisling Centre in Enniskillen, a service that provides free, life-saving counselling to so many in our community.

Let’s give Daniel and Niall a massive round of applause for their efforts! 👏👏
If you haven't had a chance to donate yet, it's not too late! Please show your support for this amazing cause.

Donate here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/malin-head-to-mizen-head-cycle

Thank you to everyone who followed, shared, and cheered them on along the way. Your support made all the difference.