notice-board

At a Special General Meeting held in the Templeton Hotel on Thursday 14^th December 2006, NICF member clubs voted overwhelmingly in support of a major change in direction that will see them amalgamate with Cycling Ulster and thus affiliate to the world governing body via Cycling Ireland for 2007.

This joining of forces will bring together cyclists in a sport that has been divided for three decades, and will see NICF member clubs switch affiliation from British Cycling to Cycling Ireland.

The proposal was brought about after the Federations AGM last month where permission was sought from the members to enter in to formal discussions with Cycling Ulster following a proposal from them to join forces. This is the culmination of the past few years work, where relations between the two bodies have been nurtured and have flourished in to a willingness to come together.

Longstanding NICF Chairman Alan Mark chaired the meeting, which saw a landslide vote of 29 in favour and 2 against the proposals set out by the negotiating team that had been in discussions with Cycling Ulster in recent weeks.

Ballymena Road Club, one of the biggest clubs in

Ireland

, led the vote with their 11 delegates, and were supported by North Down CC, Team Madigan, Old Bleach CC and West Down Wheelers.

A Mitchell

Date 4th December 2006.

Re the proposed NICF & CU amalgamation. Team Madigan have held a meeting on the matter and will be sending the same 7 delegates who attended the NICF AGM to the NICF Special meeting in the Templeton Hotel Templepatrick (7.30PM) on 14th December 2006. This is to put forward the club vote. Depending on how voting goes at the special meeting it may be necessary to hold a club meeting after the 14th December 06. This would be a meeting to decide the best way forward for the club. Members will be contacted to attend should this be required. A further update on the matter after 14th Dec! (DR).

2006 John Lindsay Torr Head Cycle Challenge - Entry Form.

Date 14th August 2006.
Ronnie now has the entry forms for the Phoenix 3-day. If wanting to ride in it call with him A.S.A.P.

Date 7th August 2006.
Report / photos of Madigan Grand Prix are now in the photo album! Kieran McKenna (Ards CC) wins the race! Chris Roper wins the Tony Parnell Cup for being first Madigan rider home!

Date 7th July 2006.
Congratulations to Gary McKeegan and Wendy, the happy couple tied the knot today in Dungannon, Co. Tyrone close to Wendy's home. All club members wish you every success and a long life together!

Back on her feet!
I was in the Shop last night and it was great to see Averil on her feet again after her operation a few weeks ago! Best wishes for a full recovery soon Averil. From all the members.

NOTE: The 50T.T. listed in the club calendar for Sunday 16 July is wrong! it is now moved to the end of the month Sunday 30th July 06. Start time 9.00am at Ballymena! NICF league event! No youths!

Note also: the Orangefield Track, Tuesday 18th July 2006 is cancelled, also the 11th July. The track will be back on Tuesday 25th July 7pm. This came in a mail shot from NICF PRO Anthony Mitchell 7/7/06.

In order to keep things going in July we will fit in a couple of club training runs around Islandmagee - Wednesday 12th July and Wednesday 19th July, both runs will leave Ballycarry Crossroads at 7.00pm. Pass the word!!!

Club members to Tour Inishowen in Donegal:
Anyone in the club wishing to ride the Inishowen 100 (100 miles Tour!) around North Donegal on Sunday 20th August 06 will need to submit their entry form to Foyle C.C. before 8th August as the numbers are restricted to 300 maximum! There does seem to be a number of members keen to go! Davy Ross, John Neill, Albert Shaw, Jimmy and Conor Clarke, Paul Agnew have all shown an interest with more to come on board! The entry fee is £20 and this will get you Tea stops and Lunch plus T-shirt and certificate. Sign On / Start / Finish is the Templemore Sports Complex in Derry City. The start time is 8.30am on the Sunday morning! You can travel up on the Saturday night or leave at 6.00am on the Sunday morning. Some may want to stay over Saturday and Sunday nights, some just Saturday night and some Sunday night and return home on the Monday. Some may not stay over at all.
Davy Ross should be contacted A.S.A.P. if you want to join in on the trip, in order that he can arrange accommodation!
Entry form is available on Foyle C.C. web site http://www.foylecycling.net/

Date 26th June 2006.
I'm sure you will all join me in wishing Averil a speedy recovery. Ronnie hopes Averil will be home from Hospital soon!!

MBE Celebration for Mo!
Ronnie asked me to let the club know that he has tickets for Morris Foster's (MBE) Celebration / Buffit in the Chimney Corner Hotel 7.30pm on Wednesday 5th July. Anyone wishing to go along and pat the big man on the back should contact Ronnie A.S.A.P. Who knows he they may want to carry him around the streets! (only kidding!). Why not go along and wish big Mo all the best (that Queen is a tough owl bird), after all he is one of very few who has put more back into the sport than he took out of it! and he took a lot out with a multidude of wins in top races when racing back in the 60s and 70s! We don't have a race on that night so hopefully we can have a good show of support from the club for a man who has given a lifetime to Cycling in Northern Ireland! Ticket's are £5 and one thing is for sure you will get a good laugh!!

Date 12th March 2006.

Club Events calendar now ready! just click on the Club Races link in the index page.

P&O Irish Sea Tour of the North, just click this link for entry form or updates on the race.
http://tourofthenorth.homestead.com/home.html

Re the John Lindsay memorial TORR HEAD challenge. This event will take place from Ballygalley on the Antrim Coast on Sunday 24th September 2006. Sign On will be from 9.30am and riders will be flagged away at 10.30am. The 2006 entry form will be available later in the year from Madigan Cycles and on this web site, Click here for entry form.

Date 7th August 2005.
Mel McCann lifts silver and Albert Douglas the bronze medals, and along with Paul Agnew they took the Team Medals in the Open Northern Ireland 50-mile Time Trial championship at Glenshane Road, Maghera today. Jim McConnell (East Antrim) took the gold medal.
Result: 1 J McConnell (East Antrim-Audi) 1.54.05; 2 Mel McCann (Team Madigan) 2.01.10; 3 Albert Douglas (Team Madigan) 2.02.23; 4 Mark Greer (Maryland Whs) 2.02.42; 5 Tommy Wilson (Ballymena RC) 2.02.54; 6 Paul Swinarton (Toyota North Down) 2.05.34; 7 Paul Agnew (Team Madigan) 2.06.24; 8 S Giles (Team Clean) 2.07.14; 9 Davy Clarke (Team Madigan) 2.07.51; 10 Jackie McClean (Ballymena RC). Well done one and all!

Date 6th August 2005.
Gary McKeegan wins the Tony Purnell Cup as first Madigan rider in the Madigan GP, well done Gary!. Big cheer for Geoff Swann who keep riding and took the first 4th cat prize! Full race report to follow!

Date 2nd August 2005.
Madigan Grand Prix this Saturday.

Team Madigan Cycling Club will host their 17th Madigan Cycles Grand Prix this Saturday at Kilroot starting at 11.00AM. As always the event is kindly sponsored by Mr Ronnie & Averil McKeegan of Madigan Cycles in Carrickfergus, and carries a generous £400 prize fund.

All the top riders are expected to take part in the popular 55.5-mile cycle race with it's 2 hilltop primes, which takes in two tough climbs at Rectory Road (Lizard) from Glynn to Gleno and the famous Seven Sisters at Beltoy between Gleno and Kilroot. Each of the climbs will be tackled three times to produce the strongest riders to contest the overall win.

Last year Ballymena's Ryan Connor won the race by taking over 5-minutes out of Roger Aiken (Banbridge CC) 2nd; Matt Ward (Phoenix CC) 3rd; Don Travers (Banbridge CC) 4th, Mark Greer (Maryland Whs) 5th and James McMaster (Unattached) 6th who all finished together at 5.14 down. This time however it could be 2003 winner Roger Aiken who triumphs as he is very much the rider in form this season. Also in with a chance is Matt Ward who narrowly missed out to Aiken in 2003 by a bike length. Denis Easton (Maryland Whs) was a close third that day and could be the man to beat on Saturday along with Tommy Evans (totalcycling.com). The local challenge should come from Madigan's Gary McKeegan and Chris Roper and East Antrim's Ben Morrow and Gary Cranston.

The race is also a counting round of the joint Ulster/Northern Ireland Ladies series. It will be good to see a big turnout of Ladies back at Kilroot. Last year it was Ann McFarland (Omagh Whs) who won the 2-lap (37-mile) race by 1-minute 24-seconds over Cathering Hack (Bann Whs) and club mate Julie Mulligan (Omagh Whs). There will be no juvenile racing at this years Madigan G.P. due a Youth Race promotion at Hamiltonsbawn in Co. Armagh. Sign-on for the Madigan G.P. is at Eden Playing Fields, Beltoy Road, Kilroot starting at 10.15AM to 10.45AM.

Northern Ireland Road Championships, Report and pictures, just click this link. More to follow later.

30th June 2004.
Check out the 'NEW' Madigan Pro Bike Centre site and the Special Offers page. Go to the Home page on this site and click on Madigan Pro Bike Centre.

21st June 2004.
Check out Sean McMurtry's new web site (only a few days old, fast worker!)
Sean's site

Presentation Photo's of the John Lindsay charity Torr Head Challenge can be seen if you click on Photo Album in the home page.

30th Jan 2004.
Good news for all those aged 8 to 15. Free membership of Team Madigan Cycling Club is now on offer for 2004. Also included 'free' is the all important British Cycling Insurance Package giving you the rider 'Third Party Cover' at all times when with your bike - be it cycling in the streets, on training runs, or racing - you are covered any place, any where. Call at Madigan Cycles for further details or phone 028 9335 1844 or 028 9336 7703.
No child or adult should be without Insurance Cover in today's 'lets claim' society. Don't be caught out like I was - my young lad damaged the side of a car with his bike last year costing me £475. (The only year he was not a member of the club. Had he been a member the insurance would have paid it in full). Davy Ross.

Click on the following link to see the new John Lindsay trophy kindly donated by Helen.
John Lindsay memorial trophy

It is with the deepest regret that we have lost our good friend and colleague John Lindsay at the age of thirty seven. John sadly passed away this morning after bravely fighting cancer for the past few months. Our thoughts are with John's family and girlfriend Helen at this sad time.

John Lindsay was always very pleasant, and had a permanent big smile. He was one of those people who had only good things to say about others. Becoming a club member back in the mid nineties through his good friend Jim Falls, John enjoyed his cycling and was soon keeping pace with the strong club men. His best year of racing came in 2000 when he finished 2nd in the Club Road Race BAR, 6th in the Club Time Trial BAR and 4th overall in the Club BAR. John also enjoyed the challenging long distance events, and successfully completed the Ireland End to End with the club in 1999 - taking the tougher mountainous route via Killarney. Great memories come flooding back from this trip, as we all had great laughs around the dinner table at night with Jimmy Johnston and John Elder. I can still see the laughs of John when I think back. John will always be remembered by his friends in Team Madigan.

16 December 2006

NICF Members vote for change