SLOWLY BUT SURELY the mindset towards exercise and healthy living in Ireland is changing and next weekend will provide more irrefutable evidence of a new-found enthusiasm for exercise.
As many as 5,000 participants – with some coming from as far as Malaysia – will take to the streets of the capital for the inaugural Great Dublin City Bike Ride on Sunday 13 September, which is being staged to coincide with the European Week of Sport.
Unlike the recent Ironman 70.3 Dublin or any of the various marathons that take place each year, this is an event designed to bring people of all fitness levels together with the aim of inspiring the current and future generations to keep active.
The Irish Sports Council are behind the event but have worked closely with Cycling Ireland, the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport, Dublin City Council and Healthy Ireland to bring a year’s worth of planning to fruition.
“The idea actually came from a trip myself and John Treacy were on a couple of years ago,” Dr Una May, Director of Participation and Ethics at the Irish Sports Council, tells The42.
“We were in South Africa for a conference and at the same time, there was a cycling event in Johannbesurg. The whole city shut down and cyclists took over. I said we needed to bring something like this to Dublin.
“It took a while but last year we approached Dublin City Council and the response has been great.”
The event format is based on the successful model used internationally to promote cycling, activity and mass participation and falls in line with the European Week of Sport’s aim of ‘informing, inspiring and facilitating.’
Two routes of 60km and 100km – both starting and finishing in Smithfield – have been designed to accommodate all participants while the Garda Siochana, Irish Rail and Dublin Bus have been involved in the planning process.
“The event provides a tremendous opportunity for the people of Dublin to participate in a unique event based on physical activity and community engagement,” Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Paschal Donohoe said.
Not only is the Great Dublin Bike Ride unique in the fact it is a completely non-commercial event but it also underlines the cross departmental and unified government approach to mass participation and physical activity.
Registration fees have been subsided to a minimum in order to ensure there are no barriers to participation while a limited number of second-hand bikes are available for those without their own.
But it’s not just about the ride itself.
An exercise exhibition will take place in Smithfield over the course of the weekend with free talks and seminars available to members of the public.
Dublin City Council sports staff will be on hand to provide fitness tests while a range of local shops and restaurants are offering discounts throughout the weekend for participants and spectators.
“I have participated in similar events internationally and saw firsthand how successful they can be in increasing participation across all ages and all abilities,” John Treacy, CEO of the Irish Sports Council, said.
“I really believe this is a great event to keep everyone active over the summer months and would encourage everyone, whether you are beginner or advanced cyclist to sign up and get involved.”
The success of the Dublin bikes scheme, as well as similar initiatives around the country, has demonstrated how cycling can be used as the springboard to promote healthy living.
The Great Dublin Bike Ride is certainly the first step to creating an environment where every sector of society can play a part in improving the health of a nation.
Registration for The Great Dublin Bike Ride is still open but closes on Sunday 6 September. All the event information can be found here.
Sorry to hear of the family’s loss, I’m sure the systems he has setup can work well without him when it needs to
Best wishes joe, we’re all thinking about you and your family
@John: we’re not
@Pat Andrews:
If you commented you are thinking about him and his family
(Good Or Bad ??)
@Pat Andrews: d1ckhead
Ive a really mixed feeling on how will we do at the WRC. In one way i feel some of the pressure is off after a poor six nations. After NZ we needed to be brought back down to earth
@Donnacha Bhoicaire: Unpopular opinion but I think this Irish side peaked somewhere between late 2016 and late 2018. Two year cycles are about what you get in rugby these days, New Zealand being an exception. Don’t think they’ll ever drop back to the perennial ‘valiant in defeat’ team they once were, the structures in place are too good and there’s an excellent talent pool there. But it’s incredibly difficult to maintain performance levels the likes of which we’ve seen from them over the last 4-5 years. You’ve also had serious leaders retire and there are some ageing and injury prone legs in the preferred starting line-up these days. Can’t see Ireland getting past the QF’s again at this WC although I’d be happy to be proven incorrect.
@Quoka: spot on
@Quoka: I don’t think that’s unpopular at all, it’s more like consensus. Once again we’ve peaked between cycles and we’re arrived with a gameplan and a group of players a little bit past their best.
Whatever about the quarter finals I hope we’re fully awake to the threat of Scotland and the hosts since everyone seems to be talking about South Africa on presumptions of an easy group.
@Rochelle: it was nice of Joe to share the game plan for the World Cup with you.
Your not an Irish fan because it hurts that joe as an ex Leinster man is our coach. Your a bitter thing who’d rather see Ireland lose so you can blame joe sexton Healy etc
@Quoka: yea no yea, would be shocked to hit a semi.
@Donnacha Bhoicaire: It’ll be the same as it was before, we’ll come through the group really well, the media will lose the run of themselves and say how we should go all the way now that we beat the host nation and the best Scotland side in years, then we’ll lose to SA in the QF.
@Rochelle:
“the threat of Scotland”
What is different is that S A has made a great jump in standard:: When all these teams were selected (the pools set up ) S A were having a nightmare with poor coaches and the SA government sticking their noses in sport ::But they woke up and got a very good coach and the government stepped aside and SA was back up to where they always were :: So Ireland were placed in pools with teams below them at THAT TIME (we were 2 or 3 in the world) but things changed inside S A to bring us to this point ::To get passed into the SF we have to beat either now a very strong SA or NZ ( but first we have to win our pool::) So this year has become a very hard year !!
@Martin Quinn: With SA hitting form at the right time, I actually don’t think it matters whether we come 1st or 2nd in our group now
Okioki i runga i te rangimarie
@Paul: He is not Maori…
@Chris Thorne: How do you know he’s not?
@Eddie Hekenui: Just a guess which is probably right. Either way, it’s ridiculous saying it in Te Reo just because he is from New Zealand.
@Chris Thorne: He could be part Maori, have Maori family or the person who passed away might be Maori or part Maori. And regardless it’s just a nice thing to say and something that is said in New Zealand by many when there is a death. Nothing ridiculous about someone being decent and paying their respects.
@Eddie Hekenui: I’ve been to both pakeha funerals and Maori Tangi, and the only place I heard it was at the Tangi. So no, it is not said by many in New Zealand…
@Chris Thorne: And Maori’s make up what 15-20% of the population plus whatever percentage have Maori heritage or family. That’d be many people in my books. Plus I’ll say again you’ve no idea the heritage of the person who died. They might very well be Maori and regardless it’s just a nice thing to say. You’re just being needlessly obtuse.
@Quoka: I also feel we put too much stock in world rankings and November internationals. The world cup is really the best, arguably only, way to assess comparative strength between NH and SH, as the last world cup clearly shower.
@Alistair Fyffe: *clearly showed….
@Alistair Fyffe: i just hope Ireland has a November international this year .
Condolences to Joe and his family.