Apollo Cycling Team
2015 was the best year in the history of the Club
The off road section leading the way with the Rockets entries the highest they have ever been.
Apollo was the most represented club in all of Ulster.
Stats speak louder than words as they say, so you can see the numbers below. You can click or hover on the different sections of the report for a closer look.
2015 was a great year for Apollo and as the club goes from strength to strength we have more and more information being posted to the Facebook pages, which is very easily missed, so we thought it would be a good idea to consolidate this information in a monthly newsletter.
Membership renewal is now live on Cycling Ireland. Any members who have not renewed their club membership by 31st January will be removed from the Apollo CT Training Facebook Group
We had our first Maintenance session in Chain Reaction Cycles on Saturday past. All five of the members that attended found it very useful. We have four more sessions scheduled, Sat 23rd and Sat 30th January (both have limited availability, and Sat 6th and 13th February. Please contact Dylan if you are interested. If there is enough interest, further sessions could be scheduled.
With winter already well upon us we’re a bit late. But here are some useful links from around the web to keep you moving:
1. 16 tips to keep you moving
2. Do you need a winter bike?
3. Best Winter Clothing
4. Nutrition for winter cycling
5. Winter-proof your road bike
Monday
Congratulations to Gavin Hanna and Robbie Smyth on completing the Trail Centre Leader Award. Gavin and Robbie are now fully qualified to take groups of up to 8 people on trails throughout Ireland up to 600m. The pre-requisites for this course included an extensive first aid course to enable the leaders to take care of the whole group should an accident happen. Thank you to Gavin and Robbie for the commitment shown to gain the awards, this is an excellent asset to the club.
The Club Shop is now open at Powerhouse Sports. A fitting session has been arranged for Tuesday 26th January at the Club from 7-9pm. The store will remain open until Tuesday 2nd February and deliveries will be expected mid March.
Good friend of the Club, and VC Glendale member, Paul (Toby) Watson turns 50 on Saturday 6th February and thought it would be a good idea to have a charity cycle on the same day to raise some funds for the Cancer fund for Children. They have organised an easy 50km route for everyone to enjoy. The ride leaves at 9.15am from Chain Reaction Cycles. Registration is via a donation, minimum of £10, on just giving.
Apollo are delighted to announce their sponsorship of The Belgian Project. At a recent committee meeting it was proposed and passed that Apollo would become a ‘medium’ sponsor with the Belgian Project.
The Belgian Project is at the forefront of promoting Irish youth and giving them the opportunity to race in major races both in Belgium and Ireland.
The project has helped place countless young Irish riders in Belgium, giving them exposure to some quality racing and training in the sport’s European heartland.
Dany has been engrossed in the sport all his life and his passion has remained undiminished since he moved to Newtownards after he got married 25 years ago.
He feels just about as Irish as any of the riders he places in his home country every year.
Awarded volunteer of the year 2015 at the recent Cycling Ireland Awards just shows his commitment to the sport.
Apollo CT recently started the very successful Apollo Rockets, which now boosts over 50 children in the club. They have recently been awarded the Lidl Community Works award, seeing £2000 of equipment and clothing supplied to them.
The committee all agree in this current climate, cycling has a shortage of youth in the sport, hence the Rockets were initially formed.
Club Vice Chairman Sean Bingham spoke passionately of the need to promote youth not only in our own club but in the sport in general. Robbie Smyth one of the Rockets coaches commented on the coverage the Belgian Project gives across social media with Rockets featuring heavily in their photos. All of the committee agreed that the youth were the future of the club.
Therefore a partnership with the Belgian Project was a natural step. You can see their coverage of all the cyclocross races here https://www.facebook.com/thebelgianproject
Look out for the Belgian Project team car in 2016 with Apollo CT on the side and go and say hi to Dany, all of us at Apollo CT wish him every continued success for the 2016 season, and you never know one day we might have a youth member on the Belgian Project.
Hi Everyone,
As you may or may not know we have been working on a 20th Anniversary Jersey. This is a one off jersey to celebrate our 20 years of the club’s heritage. Some of you older members will remember the original design of the jersey. We had a vote at the AGM to reduce 8 designs down to 3. We have created a survey to see which of the 3 is the most popular. If you want to vote please do, but we expect people who voted are going to purchase the design. We need a minimum of 20 pieces to make it worthwhile producing with Powerhouse. The winner will be available to buy at the next round of club clothing which is at the end of January. So this will enable it to be with you for the start of the season. Please remember this is a one off, and will not be replacing the current kit.
I hope that this is the start of a special year in the club, and we look forward to planning other events to mark our 20 years.
 
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Apollo Rockets have been awarded the Lidl Community Works Funding Award. Thanks to the parents of Rockets especially Debbie Boyd. The Rockets made it through from hundreds of entries, down to the final eight in the Lurgan area. After careful consideration by the judges, the Rockets were selected to receive the “big” award of £2000. Rockets are one of only 32 groups in Northern Ireland to be awarded this money.
This is fantastic news for all the leaders and volunteers who give up their time week in and week out. The money will be used to help Rockets buy team kit that they can issue to any Rocket who represents the club at events. Any money left over will go towards buying more equipment to help build the skills and competency of the kids at all levels.
Club Chairman Paul McCormac replied “Wow! That’s amazing!” on hearing the news, while Rockets leader Robbie Smyth commented “That’s awesome, kudos must go to Debbie and all parents”. Paul McAlinden, a Rocket’s parent agreed “That’s great news! Great to see the Rockets moving forward!”
And…..if this award wasn’t enough: the Lidl top cats sent their film crew out to see where Rockets take place in Lurgan Park. They were so impressed at the scenic location of the park and the fun the Rockets have on a Saturday they have selected the Rockets to star in their upcoming TV advertisement. Needless to say there will be a few excited Rockets eager for a starring role.
Round 1 of the Ulster Cyclocross 2014 Season is being held at Lurgan Park this Sunday the 5th October, and pre-entry has just gone live, please follow the link to enter:
Ulster Cyclocross Round 1 – Lurgan Park, Pre- Entry
If you would like more information on the Event please go to the Ulster Cyclocross Events Page where you can see entry fees, prizes, start times, and lots more.
If you fancy getting out on your bike this weekend, then Apollo CT is the place to be;
Apollo Chairty Bun Run
We have a spin to Newry hospice to deliver a check for monies raised from Paul McCormac’s charity ride earlier this year. The route will be from Apollo Club rooms, passed Pointzpass on to Newry, stop to present the check and get a much needed bun and coffee, then return home the same route. There will be an option to turn early at Pointzpass if the route is too long or time is short. Group leaves at 9am.
Lap the Lough – Saturday
Also on Saturday Gary Jackson is running a social group around the lough covering approximately 85 miles at a relaxed pace aimed at all abilities. This will leave the Club house at 8am.
Apollo Rockets
This Saturday is a special day for the rockets, with film maker Sean Duncan from Red Cap productions coming down to get some footage of the kids being put through their paces. We’re making a short promo film in conjunction with Bike Pure to show off the kids and to promote the Bike Pure message of anti doping in sport , we’ll be teaching the kids about the ethos of not cheating as a part of the Rockets project. The Apollo Rockets is aimed at teaching children the skills required to enjoy biking safely, with a focus on FUN. The group meets at 10am in Lurgan Park, so come on over and see what were about.
Lap the Lough – Sunday
On Sunday Enda McDaid is running a social group around the lough covering approximately 85 miles at a relaxed pace aimed at all abilities. This will leave the Club house at 9am.
So if you have a bike, a helmet, and fancy getting out for a spin this weekend were sure there’s something to suit you.
Great to see the Apollo Rockets at it today. They’ve all come on so much in such a short space of time.
10 AM Lurgan Park every Saturday morning for a bit of MTB coaching and racing.
If the parents want to email or PM me their email address and phone numbers so I can add them to the list , should we have to cancel anything last minute they’ll be handy to have. secretary@apolloct.com
Check out these pretty damn cool Apollo Rocket T-Shirts. We’ll be giving these to all the kids who attend the Rockets MTB coaching at Lurgan Park on Saturday mornings 10am and Wednesday evenings Craigavon Lakes 7pm. All kids of any age or ability welcome. Just bring your kids, a bike and a helmet. UP APOLLO .
Today we started our inaugural Apollo Rockets Mountain Bike coaching. Every Saturday mornings, 10 am at Lurgan Park.
We had a lot of fun and the kids loved it. We started with a little coaching and finished with some races. We also ride around the trails at Craigavon lakes every Wednesday evening at 7pm. Again all welcome and its free. If you want to get the kids into cycling this is the best way bar none.
Apollo Rockets
