Ballymena club gears up for Tour of North

BALLYMENA Road Club – Northstone – will be represented at this Easter’s P&O Ferries Tour of the North stage race with both riders and organisers involved in the event.

Hall Booth is the team manager and he is currently assembling his line-up, which will include three times winner Ryan Connor, from Ahoghill, who won the race in 2004, 2006 and 2008.

Ryan Bankhead, Matthew Brennan, Simon Taggart and guest rider Kyle Cole, the Ulster junior champion, are also included.

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Some of the Ballymena Road Club racing committee members also play a pivotal role in the organisation of the Tour of the North and they will be involved again with this year’s event, which is scheduled to take place between Good Friday 6th April and Easter Monday 9th April.

The town itself will again host the event with the Monday stage taking place in the borough.

Official Entry Forms are available from Race Director Anthony Mitchell, and interested teams should register their interest and request an entry form early via email: [email protected].

Ballymena Road Club’s two major open race promotions are sandwiched either side of the Easter showpiece event.

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Their first of the season will be the Wallace Caldwell road race at Galgorm on Saturday 10th March 2012. This is a very early date for such a tough event but riders, with ambition to ride the Tour of the North, will use it as preparation.

The 2011 Caldwell race was held two weeks before Easter, and the winner, Adam Armstrong (Eurocycles) went on to win the Tour of the North last year.

The, Blair International Transport, Red Hand Trophy road race is scheduled for Broughshane for Saturday 14th April 2012. It comes just five days after the tour finishes and any rider who comes through the “Tour” with good form will be well placed to challenge for the “Red Hand” Martyn Irvine (Giant Asia) won the Red Hand Trophy in 2011.

For full cycling round-up, see this week’s Ballymena Times.