Another Successful Inishowen 100 by Foyle CC

Foyle Cycling Club held their blue ribbon event, the Inishowen 100, last Sunday and the feedback from the many cyclists who took part has been very positive. The main route followed the coastline of the Inishowen peninsula passing beaches, seaside towns and the hills of Mamore before returning via Greencastle and Moville to Derry. This year a 50-mile course was also introduced to attract cyclists who felt they were not experienced or fit enough to tackle the full 100 miles.

The event started at the Templemore Sports Complex in Derry at 08.30 am with dark skies surrounding the 150 riders who were lined up and ready to go. Thankfully the rain was not much in evidence during the day although strong winds did make the cyclists’ job more difficult.

Both groups started off together towards Buncrana and the split happened when they reached the first bridge leading to Dunree. At this point the cyclists who had opted for the 50 mile route took the road to Dumfries and over the mountain to Carndonagh. From there they went to Moville for a well earned break and then back to the Sports Complex.

Meanwhile the bulk of the riders had opted for the full Inishowen 100 and were heading towards the steep climbs at Mamore and Malin Head, before they would have lunch. They had to contend with some heavy cross winds in these narrow roads but thankfully the first aid teams of the Irish Red Cross were in attendance but not needed throughout the day.

After lunch there was still another 50 miles to do, including a series of hills at Culdaff and Kinnego before arriving at Greencastle for another short pause. The final 20 miles were against a head-on wind which tested every rider, but there was no giving up at this stage.

When finally back at the Sports Complex the high spirits and sense of achievement among the cyclists was very obvious as they sat drinking the hot soup, watching the slideshow of the day’s photos. They swapped stories of how they managed to stay on the bikes, despite the wind and argued about which hill was the toughest!


Many riders commented on the superb organisation of registration, support vehicles, marshals, signage, food stops, photo show, certificates and of course the must-have T-shirts!. This was the result of the hard work done by the event organiser Terry Donnelly and his faithful band of helpers. Terry paid tribute to all the cyclists who took part in the event, helping the club to raise money for another local charity. The proceeds of this year’s event will be donated to MacMillan Cancer Trust.

The club would like to thank to all the many people who contributed to the success of the event especially those who provided halls for rest and food stops - Jeff Ashe and the staff of Templemore Sports Complex, the staff of the Moville and Greencastle Resource Centres and those at the Crossroads Hotel at Malin Head. A special word of thanks is also extended to Des Farrell from Foyleside, who sponsored the event with the provision of drinks and fruit.

Cycling Ulster would like to add its congratulations to Foyle CC. The reports we have received have commented particularly on the level of marshall cover which ensured that everyone stayed on the correct route. The feed stops were also very much appreciated.

There was a good turn-out of women cyclists at the event and Foyle CC is very keen to promote cycling for women. They would welcome any women from the area who would like to get involved in the sport.