Day 8 and 9: Ride to the Finish Line

Day 4: Dash to the Ferry

Day 3: The Race Begins

Day 2

Sunshine to Begin the TransAtlanticWay Ride

The ride finishes in Kinsale, a town on the picturesque southern coast of Ireland. It’s overlooked by 2 17th-century fortresses that give a taste of Kinsale’s rich history. The finish line is at the top of the notorious Barrack hill with an incline of 16%. When riders arrive at the finish there is no medal ceremony, podium or a clapping crowds to greet them. This can often be a huge anticlimax. Riders have just ridden the toughest ride of their lives, continuously being battered by the wild Atlantic way, and so are forced to enter an animalistic state of mind. Eat sleep ride repeat. This becomes a deeper, spiritually freeing experience, as riders revert back to their Neolithic selves, locked away in each human being. They breathe the Atlantic-Irish air and live in its beauty. So by the time the finish line rolls around riders are to confront going back into a domestic state of mind, longing for their next bike packing trip. 
![Rugged Cliff-face](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/5ibvosWwYo9KOiA26NklW/dd09dcebae43b75c6576c8e7f793aab2/CDEA2603-E659-4998-A1C3-D42B32C3D522.jpeg)

The sharp end riders have packed up and gone home as the middle pack arrives in Kinsale. With this comes stories from the road. Stories of kindness, adventure and despair. More and more Irish riders are taking on the TransAtlanticWay, attracting more and more Irish dot watchers. Riders have reported seeing bottles of waters left out for them, flags and banners of encouragement and families clapping and cheering on the roadside. As any ultra rider will tell you, this can often be the difference between scratching or continuing to ride. A small act of kindness can go a long way. 

Rider Ben Walsh suffered a knee injury and may of been out of the ride if it wasn’t for a dot watcher who also just so happened to be a physiotherapist. He got taped up and was able to continue riding. Taiwanese rider Hsuan Chiu Lu suffered a mechanical 15km outside of Balina in county Mayo so turned round and proceeded to walk back to nearest bike shop. Hsuan experienced the Irish hospitality first hand when he was picked up by a friendly farmer who dropped him in Balina where he was able to get his bicycle repaired. Due to the relaxed ethos of the TransAtlanticWay and the rules of bike packing events this is allowed, as non of these acts of kindness were solicited. 
![Black Stone Tunnel ](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/5RVXFxVhQqcJIRLgDlpuhH/8c3bd2c673aa10df154d2e5fa7b2a2be/9A42C3A9-91B7-4F4D-B2C2-051D99BFEE9E.jpeg)

Temperatures as high as 27 degrees Celsius have been reported across Ireland which has had a huge affect on the riders as climbing in heat is doubly difficult. James Milne stopped at a pub in Donegal on the second day suffering from heat exhaustion. He ordered a pint of cider but the landlady thought this wasn’t a good idea and brought him in to the back parlour, lay him down on the floor and covered him in wet towels. He was very grateful for her sensible actions but when he eventually cooled down he still had a glass of cider. 
![Rider at work](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/6ttNtr4HqNF7DX17eAjWiY/f7112ad6dc61127fec2ddf21ee8e74c1/E99857FA-B4F7-478F-AC8E-27A6C4B59DFB.jpeg)
Tomorrow sees the finish line party, but this isn’t the end of the ride as there is no cut off point in the TransAtlanticWay, meaning riders can take days, weeks or even months to complete it. 

Third time’s a charm for three-time rider in the TransAtlanticWay Donnacha Cassidy who arrived in Kinsale on the Cu Culhain route first in five days. He was met by other riders and family, including his brother Brendon who was down to ride but didn’t make it to the start line due to injury. It was clear from the beginning of the ride that Donnacha had a methodical game plan. Although not the fastest rider, he proved he was the most relentless with the most consistent sleep schedule of all riders, keeping his stops to a minimum and sleeping under the stars every night. 
![First finisher](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/3HzQ1czCBxvl3meqEPfbOe/0fc8ba73fe92dcf2d55849658ca427aa/6EF1E5FC-F59B-48E0-8118-E14162A23CFE.jpeg)
He was followed in the early hours of the morning by Jamie Davidson, who after five hours of sleep set off to ride to the finish, a distance a of approximately 750km. This would’ve been possible inside the mandatory stop rule, however Jamie suffered problems with his tubeless rear wheel. This meant a two and a half hour delay in Tralee where he had to source a new tire. This delay meant that Jamie put himself under severe pressure to finish in the time allowed. He had two options; ride to the finish without stopping and risk incurring consequences or take a mandatory stop. It appears he rode to the finish without stopping. Ride organiser Adrian O’Sullivan always lets the dust settle and discusses in depth with riders concerned if any penalties or action will be taken. 
![Jamie Davidson](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/3IRqshTi90F0KHo7ZpX9Gy/592a5dfc74d9ded255fa63634c3f9d56/72043949-6289-4B6D-8856-ACB85745DEEA.jpeg)
Third rider home was Dulwich Paragon CC rider Henry Compton, who never gave up despite the struggles he faced on this ride, which included being severely bitten on face and arms by mosquitos and midges.
![Henry Compton](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/4I4TozBy2gGVQi33koNk2/548022d0a34dcde41fdad71e46d205d5/FF0B8B5B-C1EF-41FD-913C-11F6710BC7DC.jpeg)
The amazing weather is set to continue, making this the driest ever TransAtlanticWay ride. The scratch count stands at only 16. This could be because of the fine weather riders have been enjoying the last couple of days, making it easier on the mind, body and bikes of riders. 

Day 6 and 7: Third Time’s a Charm

Phillip Horton arrived at the finish after a gruelling 108 hours and 5 minutes from Derry to Kinsale. 79 hours were spent on his bike with his average moving speed at 21.4 kph. That’s 17 hours on his bike and 7 hours off his bike daily, on average. The 7 hours off his bike was spent mainly sleeping, with time left for eating and any maintenance issues that may of occurred. Generally, the riders that finish in the sharp end of any bike packing event are the riders that spend the most time in the saddle. 
![09AC19DC-C082-45A1-8E3F-1F3033BD7D6B](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/5TvpUs4FwXrBCZ8E8IxqZt/078a1c20e6615e590ccc88e433f64d2e/09AC19DC-C082-45A1-8E3F-1F3033BD7D6B.jpeg)
As night fell Paul Gannon arrived at the finish, who incredibly rode from checkpoint 2 in Galway to the finish in Kinsale non-stop. This incredible feat of endurance meant he rode 714km with over 900km already in the legs. This took him just over 40 hours, within the TransAtlanticWay’s rule on mandatory stops. He was closely followed by Jasmijn Muller, who was just 1 hour behind. Jasmijn picked up a severe leg injury only months before the ride and she was not sure if she was able to compete. Not only was she able to compete but she finished third overall on the sedenta course and was the first female in the sedenta course over the line. 
![B5F055A7-1199-4C62-AC51-B4F81D87D8CB](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/1L3F1D6GziLqUAozIBUVoZ/e32d9d232b4d5315632653d42e26c955/B5F055A7-1199-4C62-AC51-B4F81D87D8CB.jpeg)

![1ACAB5B8-2D7C-4F95-9DF0-91518A90373C](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/7pyTbuFTHAnjJLzDsDBiGI/9c2ae1f43fc0e90d86d3b0e577939607/1ACAB5B8-2D7C-4F95-9DF0-91518A90373C.jpeg)
The sharp end of the Cu Culhain route are due to arrive late tonight. Donnacha Cassidy has maintained his lead throughout the ride and is set to become our second Irish cyclist to finish the TransAtlanticWay first, behind Rachel Nolan, our first Irish athlete to finish the Cu Culhain first in 2020. 

Previous editions of the TransAtlanticWay have seen riders from Germany (4) Italy (1) United Kingdom (1) and Ireland (1) finish first across the line. 

The weather is set to remain fine for the rest of the week.

Day five: First Riders Home

Weather report: Light showers across the whole of Ireland with a low wind speed - surely this will be the driest TransAtlanticWay on record. After checkpoint 2 the riders have between 180km-200km to catch the ferry across the river Shanon. This runs from 7am-9pm which means riders must plan this next step of the ride carefully. On the Cu Culhainn, there was run-off between Donnacha Cassidy, Henry Compson and Jamie Davidson, where Donnacha comfortably caught the 6pm ferry, whereas Jamie and Henry had to time trail 200km from checkpoint 2 and only just got the last ferry at 9pm that evening, so for the next following days they will not let Donnacha out of their sight. 
![Donnacha in the lead](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/7IubMBoLNo7pp7HwfRObrc/e9163a1298c69ce6a72eb8f29091080f/D1FF846E-A1A4-4CE1-92CE-2C5D25A45AA0.jpeg)
Meanwhile, on the Setanta course, the front runners have been forging ahead and looks like they’ll finish on day 5. Leading rider Philip Horton has picked up a comfortable advantage since checkpoint 2 ahead of Jasmijn Muller and Paul Ganon, who only have 30km separating themselves. 

A few mechanicals have put riders out the ride, whether that being on the bike, mind or body. 3 riders have been out with shermer’s neck already and we are only at the half way stage. However, one of these riders, Julian Young, said “I am not sorry, I did amazingly, had one hell of a time and called the right shots. What a learning experience, in pain but happy.”. The TransAtlanticWay sees athletes from all walks of life ride, from world top athletes to commuters who cycle their bike to work. One of these athletes is Hillary Allen, who is ranked as one of the top ultra runners in the world. In 2017 she suffered a near-fatal accident while competing in the Hamperroken Skyrace in Tromso, Norway. She has now turned to cycling and recently competed in the 200 mile Unbound gravel race under the women’s elite category. She told ride organiser Adrian O’Sullivan her goal for this ride was to enjoy Ireland, and get to the finish safely as it is her first self supported bike-packing event and surely not her last. 
 ![Hillary Allen](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/6MaceOVu9hYt58zGRYTsJB/c7bfac3a18ac02d22f85e9803c6dd05d/EDFF3969-F482-4DC8-8E0A-0A648B86FEE0.jpeg)

The Lantern Rouge, currently the three amigos, are increasing their lead daily, on average 100km per day. Surely this is the best way to go about one of these events - if you can afford it. 

In the next couple of days riders have the kingdom of Kerry to look forward too, with 3 of the Mike Hall Challenge climbs and the magical Black Valley to cycle through, a cathedral of nature that will surely evoke an emotional response from riders. 

Weather report for today: the rain has mostly held off, however the tailwind riders enjoyed yesterday has now changed direction and is very much a headwind. 

On the mechanical front, there’s been a few broken spokes and Taiwan rider Hsuan Chiu Lu Suffered a broken crank in county Mayo. Fortunately a friendly farmer picked Hsuan and his bike up and brought them to bike shop Hopkins Cycles in Ballina where he received a temporary fix. Hopefully this will last until Kinsale.

Lots of riders have swapped from the 2400km Cu Culhainn route to the 1800km Setanta route. Five riders have scratched today. 

Checkpoint 2 has seen its first rider arrive, Philip Horton, on the Setanta route. This is Philips first long distance bike packing event and will definitely be a rider to follow in this years TransContinental. He’s been hotly pursued by Paul Gannon, Jasmijn Muller and Zubin Tucker. Zubin tucker, who was leading the Setanta course, suffered a broken gear cable last night that set him back 10 hours. 
![Anne and the Giant](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/4wJeihc6vHvFneZVSY6J59/97f2f31d71b2f3d91deb355b0f287929/6A199AEA-321E-42C0-BA5D-C639198489E2.jpeg)
The sharp end of the 2400km Cu Culhainn route has never been so hotly contested, with only 30km separating riders from 1st to 4th. Irishman Donnacha Cassidy has lead from the front since getting off the ferry in Donegal but has been relentlessly chased by three riders from the United Kingdom. Those are Jamie Davidson, Cara Dixon and Henry Compson. This front end is averaging 450km a day, which is incredible, made more so by the rough terrain of this race. Both the front riders of the Setanta and Cu Culhainn have opened up a huge gap on the mid pack riders.

Jason Woodhouse, who scratched this morning, was attempting his fifth TransAtlanticWay but will now be joining the volunteers to help out at the finish for a second time.

In the meantime, Anne Broderick, ride organisers cousin, will be busy making cups of tea. Anne made scones, apple and rhubarb tarts  to give riders a momentary boost of morale and collected plenty of turf to keep the open range fire fed, just as she’s doing with the cyclists.
![The Kettle](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/7hoc0Y1UOhLIMVNBC5PVfV/2b30310e3b6946ebe5898acfc78559f3/6E937095-F3BE-4990-930C-B7F49F783D88.jpeg)

Weather report for today was sunshine sunshine sunshine. And dare we say it a mild tailwind. Last nights strategy was sleep sleep sleep, with all the front runners choosing to stop. This seems to be a more efficient strategy than non-stop cycling. Having caught up with Craig Morrison earlier on today, he said last night was so mild he just lay down in a field and went straight to sleep. Another rider reported the peat bogs of Mayo felt like a matress to sleep on.
![Ice Cream and Sun](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/3vBplCMqI569m8irZ7MQOW/4e5eb5e019551716a7c60512597c8dd4/366D7B0F-93BD-4CC1-82FA-CD79F8580F5F.jpeg)

The only major mechanical reported was Italian couple Cristina and Giovanna who had a hydraulic leak in their rear brake. Kieran ‘the bike general’ and mechanic came all the way from Derry to Fanad Head to save the day and repair their bike. They are the first pair to attempt the TransAtlanticWay on a tandem.
![Tandem Pair](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/3BU5a655wW7UdZ5TEamOXA/ce1484b78c090f21afa122ce66054a50/1F15CCE7-A029-4BBA-9DF9-76D16E0CBEAB.jpeg)

A few riders are thinking about scratching but nothing is official until they’ve slept on it. If the sharp end of the ride keeps up this blistering pace they’ll arrive at checkpoint 2 tomorrow morning. After the gruelling hills of Donegal, this next section of road is relatively flat and gives the riders time to lick their wounds and get ready for the onslaught of the Cork and Kerry mountains. 

It looks like the race for the lantern rouge is well and truly over with Niel Grant, Wayne Summons and Andrew van der Vliet,referred to as the three amigos, building up a huge lead at the back of the field.

Rain and thunder is forecast for tomorrow, which may be a welcome break for the sunbaked cyclists. Stay tuned for further updates tomorrow. 

78 Riders readied themselves for an exciting adventure along the wild atlantic coast of Ireland. Riders arrived early in the morning, well before the 5am start, to make final preparations and tinker around with the wide array of gadgets on display. Riders this year came from all around the world, including far away lands like Australia, the USA and even Tawain, a first for the ride. ![Taiwan rider Hsuan Chiu Lu ](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/1Q8Mn2PLi43cJTRJvuDzjz/38a216bee3800609e28cd24ad16fe784/D501B344-C920-4E63-B0EB-663D7CD893C1.jpeg)

For an irish morning, it was warm, which helps lull the nerves of riders. This years' ride also sees a large amount of women riders, at 13, with some repeat offenders among the mix, like Gillian Power. Not only this but for the first time a tandem had also been entered into the ride, incredibly. Before the ride began rider Bent Skøjstrup provided a surreal momment that took the form of all 78 riders singing the first ever TranAtlanticWay bike-packing anthem that he composed to the melody of the famous irish ballad Molly Malone. After this the riders were off to a blistering start.
![TransAtlanticWay anthem](//videos.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/6kiUjKDObFAxyJk3Hu2IjE/c74a306b3404ecd9d491304ef45279b9/trim.070A40DD-F4C9-462F-B394-5F8394841F9F.MOV)

The sun continued throughout the day and coupled with the wind gave the riders a very easy first day. Riders could not wipe the smiles off their faces, much to the annoyance of ride organiser Adrian O'sullivan. Rider Cara Dixon sped off infront followed close behind by three time veteran Donnacha Cassidy who recently returned from a poduim finish in the Italy Divide, among others. Cara was first up Mamore gap, the first of the Mike Hall Challenge climbs. Needing a 27km/hour average moving speed to catch the first ferry, she only just missed it. This meant having to wait for another 28 riders to catch her up. In these long distance events, this is never time lost only time banked. As every long distance rider knows time spent eating, resting and rehydrating is never time wasted. 

![The Descent](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/7pw5P38fA6J3JMIP4znSnv/48f717e3ff0a926f56e299944afe042e/DA58101F-4587-4ACC-A4BE-383F991EE21B.jpeg)

At the time of this post, nearly all riders are safely through checkpoint one. If the good weather continues for the next couple of days we could easily see the reputation of the TransAtlanticWay as the windiest, wettest and toughest ultra smashed to smitherine. 


The Calm before the Storm

TransAtlantic Way TAW 2023 Tracking + Commentary: This race along the Wild Atlantic Way on the west coast of Ireland returns for 2023. An original of the UK's bikepacking scene, the TAW is well known for its ferry crossings, out-and-back peninsulas and Irish charm.

TransAtlantic Way TAW 2023 Tracking

This race along the Wild Atlantic Way on the west coast of Ireland returns for 2023. An original of the UK's bikepacking scene, the TAW is well known for its ferry crossings, out-and-back peninsulas and Irish charm.

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TransAtlantic Way 2023

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