Club, 20-mile Handicap Road Race, Glenoe, 13 th April 2011 .

Well done Danny, it was a close sprint with Nigel edged out to second place in the closing 20 feet in the 12 up sprint. It was a good nights racing, well done to all. Many thanks to Ronnie and Ian on the line and to the Marshals too!

Club, Hill Climb, Cairncastle, 06.04.2011.

Well done to Stephen, he showed he has lost very little climbing power from last season! The head wind the whole way up the 2-mile course was like a brick wall in places hence the times being down on other years. Well done to everyone for taking part and many thanks to Ian and Ronnie our Time Lords!

Davy Ross.

Vets amended! Club, 10-mile Time Trial, Ballygalley, 20 th April 2011 .

Well done Simon, a great time for that course! Also well done to Roger on his bronze medal / well over a minute inside the qualifying time on his standard road bike no less! Young Kyle was the quickest around the Glenarm Roundabout, great style! The Tandem guys had a good time too so early in the season.Many thanks to Ronnie and Ian our time lords on the night.

Club, 25-mile Handicap Road Race, Bellahill, 4 th May 2011 .

Well done Stephen a fine solo effort! The time gaps were: Group 1 (at 0). Group 2 (at 2 minutes). Group 3 (at 5 minutes) and Group 4 (at 8 minutes). 5 Laps. Dry but windy.

Bad luck Jack and Peter it was a gallant effort to stay clear with almost 4 laps covered, both riders working well together until Stephen caught them on the Bellahill with a lap and a bit remaining. Stephen stormed up the climb and around the last lap and continued to open the gap on the hard chasing Groups 3 and 4 which had merged. He crossed the line alone with his arms aloft as Ian Johnston captured his fine win on camera. Big Nigel was the first of the chasing pack home in 2 nd place followed by the improving Stephen Farr and power house Danny Hylands. Well done to all the riders, it was a good nights racing! Many thanks to Ronnie and Ian on the line and to the all the Marshals too on such a cold night!

Vets amended! Club, 10-mile Time Trial, Oldwood Road / A26, 11 th May 2011 .

Big Nigel is getting the form back, it looks like he and Simon are going to have another ding dong season, great stuff chaps! Well done to all those who gave it a bash. It was a windy night and I was thinking about you all when out working.

Many thanks to Ronnie and Ian our time lords on the night. Thanks to Albert too re the Vets Age Standard result.

Club, 20-mile Handicap Road Race, Brown's Bay, 18 May 2011 .

Well done Stephen, a man on top form! Superb Hill climbing! The handicap time gaps were: Group (1) at 0. Group (2) at 2.30. Group (3) at 4.45 and Group (4 / scratch) at 6.30. The race was reduced to 4 Laps due to the heavy rain and strong winds / bitter cold conditions that kicked in on lap 2. Having worked hard on the tough climbs and then hoping for some rest on the downhill section into Brown's Bay the early leading groups struggled into a very strong wind with driving rain on this section causing these groups to lose large chunks of time to the impressive scratch men Stephen Harkens, Nigel Laffin and Chris Roper.

This was indeed a hard nights racing but at the same time a good nights training for all the riders. Well done to one and all. Many thanks to Ronnie and Ian on the finish line, and too the Marshals who stood out in the wet conditions.

Club, 24-mile Handicap Road Race, Moss Road , 25 th May 2011 .

High spirits in Islandmagee tonight after Colin McCluskey held off the challenge of two chasing groups in tonight's 24-mile wind swept Moss Road course at Ballyfore. Congratulations to Colin on what was a very gallant performance! He just made it over the finish line with only a couple of seconds to spare before ace scratch duo Stephen Harkens and Nigel Laffin had Colin caught. Stephen and Nigel were inspired just as they were last week at Brown's Bay and powered their way around the hilly course passing everyone bar Colin. The handicapping from group 1 to group 3 scratch was spot on. All 3 groups were represented in the sprint for the line as Roger, Gary and Mark were just passed by Stephen and Nigel in the closing 200 meters. The night belongs to Colin who will be delighted with his solo effort to take the win.

Well done to all the riders, it was another good nights racing! Many thanks to Ronnie and Ian on the line and to the all the Marshals on another bitter cold night! Lets hope the heat comes back soon!

Club, 30-mile Handicap Road Race (5 Laps), Ballyvallagh Road , 1 st June 2011 .

Well done to Gary on a hard earned solo effort to take the win. Jason also rode strongly too holding off Jack, Geoff and Ken who were close behind and the 3 rd Group who were also closing in fast lead in by big Danny. Misfortune in the form of punctures hit race favourite Stephen Harkens (scratch / G4), and Glenn Cobain. Damien McGrane had a broken spoke. It was great to have some fine sunny weather for a change! Well done to all the riders, a good nights racing / training!

Many thanks to Ronnie and Ian on the line and to the all the Marshals too.

Vets amended! Club, 10-mile Time Trial, Brown's Bay, 8 th June 2011 .

Another fine win by Stephen Harkens, this makes up for the disappointing time he had in Donegall over the weekend when anything that could go wrong did go wrong, bike trouble and very wet weather all weekend.

The weather at Brown's bay held for a change and big Nigel was also blasting his way around this tough course followed by the ever improving Gary McKeegan, Roger Wilson and Colin McCluskey. Colin Porter looks to be improving too. The vets all had a good night and it is good to see big Ken progressing so well. Steven and Graham had their work cut out on the Tandem on this hilly course but managed a respectable time all the same! Well done to everyone who had a bash.

Many thanks to Ronnie and Ian our time lords on the night. Thanks to Brian and Billy for Marshalling.

Club, 28-mile Handicap Road Race, Ballycarry, 15 June 2011 .

Well done to Nigel on the win, by the looks of it Stephen pushed Nigel all the way. I was away on holiday so I'm not up to speed with how the race panned out. Well doe to everyone, good owl crack! Many thanks indeed to Ronnie and Ian on the line and to the all the Marshals also.

Vets amended! Club, 17-mile Hilly Circuit Time Trial, Kilroot-Bellahill, 22 June 2011 .

Stephen wins the race of truth in fine style. This is a true tester and shows the riders their current level of fitness. Indicators from the times show riders how much ground they have to make up to reach the higher levels and at this stage of the season it is not too late to build on these indicators to finish the season on a real high. So well done to everyone for giving it a lash! Many thanks to Ronnie and Ian for timing the event. Thanks also to Billy Heslip for kindly Marshalling.

Club, 25-mile Handicap Road Race, Bellahill, 29 th June 2011 .

Congratulations Nigel, a fine win on a hilly 25-mile course, his time 1.04.40.

A lot of guys would be happy with that time on a flat Time Trial course! Stephen's still going strong and could be a little tired from his fine ride in the Irish Veterans Road Race Championship where he finished 20 th out of almost 100 riders and was the 5 th Ulster Vet home. Geoff had a good race tonight too taking 3 rd place. Gary 's starting to show good form and Chris is never too far away either. It was a good nights racing for everyone, well done to all those who had a bash. Many thanks to Ronnie and Ian, and to all the Marshals on a cool wet night.

Club, 25-mile Time Trial / DK league, Woodgreen Ballymena, Thursday 7 th July 2011 .

Club, 50-mile Time Trial / Ulster C'Ships, Moria Road , Sunday10 th July 2011.

Club, 10-mile Handicap Trophy, Oldwood Road Antrim (A26), 20 th July 2011 .

Congratulations to Simon on his fine win / could hardly catch him in the car on the way back! Also congratulations to Colin Porter, his Personal Best time winning him the Handicap Trophy by a few seconds from Stephen and Roger. Well done to big Nigel too! Poor Jack went off course at the turn which cost him 3 minutes! And young Kyle had a good test on what was a windy night / always tougher for the young riders. Kyle is showing progress every week which is good work! Many thanks to Ian Johnston for kindly timing the event.

Club, 24-mile Handicap Road Race, Moss Road , 3 rd August 2011 .

Colin's course! This time it was Colin Porter who soloed to a well deserved victory on the hilly Moss road circuit over a distance of 24-miles. (It was Colin McCluskey's race a few months ago). The tactic paid off for Colin Porter when the Newtownabbey man broke clear on his own on the final lap of six and managed to keep a gap on the fast closing scratch men Nigel Laffin and Steven Harkens and fresh from the Alps Steven Stewart. So congratulations are in order Colin well done, the hard training is paying off! Well done young Kyle too! He's starting to climb up the results rightly, good stuff. Well done to everyone, it was great to have a warmish dry night for a change. Thanks to Ronnie on the line and to the Marshals.

Club, 28-mile Handicap Road Trophy, Watch-Hill Road , 10 th August 2011 .

Firstly we hope Jack and Steven will not be too sore after their spills tonight in very wet conditions / yet another Wednesday night wash-out. Tough men!

Congratulations to Stephen on a fine win, the Greenisland man was in sparkling form tonight on the tricky hilly Watch-Hill course, big Nigel and Steven were giving it all they could to match Stevie H but had to settle for 2 nd and 3 rd places respectfully. Not bad at all considering Stephen S crashed and got back on to make 3 rd place his. Big Roger rode very well indeed to claim 4 th place and young Kyle rode a blinder tonight on his home circuit, and is really starting to show now that he has potential if he keeps up the hard training. Well done to everyone! It was a hard nights racing for sure. Many thanks to Ian and Ronnie and to all the Marshals too. Thanks to Glenda and Steven for their kind hospitality, the Lemon cake was very nice indeed Glenda and the tea was very welcome / warmed us up great!

G1 @ 0, G2 @ 5min, G3 @ 8min, G4 @ 9min.

Pos       Name                Time            Actual Category Pts Club Pts

1              S Harkens   G4         1.21.00        1.12.00 Veteran 25 25

2              N Laffin   G4 1.21.40          1.12.40 Veteran 23 23

3              S Stewart  G3          1.24.40         1.16.40 Senior 25 21

4              R Wilson   G3          1.24.50         1.16.50 Veteran 21 19

5              K Portis    G1          1.25.00        1.25.00 Under 16 - 25 18

6              J Kyle        G2          1.25.10         1.20.10 Senior 23 17

7              M Forrester G2          1.26.08        1.21.08 Veteran 19 16

8              M Gillespie G3          1.27.20        1.22.20 Senior 21 15

9              G Swann     G3          1.27.21         1.19.21 Veteran 18 14

10           I Lockyer      G3          1.27.22        1.19.22 Veteran 17 13

11           J Coulter       G3          1.27.23        1.19.23 Senior 19 12

12           J Regan         G2          1.35.10        1.30.10 Veteran 16 11

13           B McCammon G1          1.36.13     1.36.13 Veteran 15 10

14           G McCrory      G3          DNF x x

Marshal K Brewster x x x Veteran 25 25

Club, 25-mile H'Cap Time Trial Trophy, A26 Antrim, 10 th August 2011 .

Congratulations to Simon on his win and hard luck to Stephen who is getting closer to a TT win every month and who set himself a new PB. Well done to Nigel too, they are all super times guys! The Handicap Trophy is always hotly contested and again it came down to a handful of seconds. Congratulations to Colin who adds this 25 Trophy to the 10 Trophy he won in July. Well done to young Kyle who only just missed the Trophy by 21 seconds, his time will come next season for sure! Well done to Colin who obtained his Sub Hour medal and Ian who obtained his Silver medal. It looks to have been a good night for testing as Ian Johnston said. Thanks to Ian and Ronnie for timing the race. Sorry for the delay in getting results out to you, I was in England and had a lot of work to catch up on when I got home. See you all tomorrow night at Ballygalley for the John Lindsay Handicap 10 T.T. Trophy. DR.

Club, 10-mile John Lindsay Handicap Trophy, Ballygalley, 24 th August 2011 .

Congratulations to Simon on another fine win. Once again Stephen and Nigel hot his heels. But the night belongs to young Kyle who set himself a new PB and in doing so won the John Lindsay Trophy. Congratulations Kyle from everyone at Team Madigan Cycling Club, all your hard work has paid off, well done! And well done to everyone who had a bash, it was a rough night cold rain and a fair old wind blowing too. Thanks again to Ian and Ronnie for Time Keeping. I will update the vets age standard when Albert send the result to me. DR.

Club, Hill Climb 2 of 2, Bryantang Upper Woodburn Road , 7 th Sept 2011 .

Congratulations to Stephen Harkens on his fine display of Hill climbing and what about Simon, he rode a blinder into the very strong headwind to take second place on the night. Big Nigel who gives the others a few years was also in great form too taking 3 rd place, while Steven Stewart also recorded a fine time into the wind and took 4th. Creeping up the tables all season is Kyle Portis, the 16 year old taking a well deserved 5 th on the night. Well done to all those who had a bash you all did very well on such a cold night.

The overall standings after two rounds: Stephen Harkens wins with Nigel taking 2 nd and Simon taking 3 rd . Steven 4 th and young Kyle 5 th .