The Athy Wheelers Cycling Club has been set up as a means to bring the sport of cycling back to the community of Athy. The intention of the club is to provide the opportunity to those who wish to participate in cycling as a leisure pursuit, to keep fit, or, for the more competitive, to compete in cycling races, such as the local provincial league, up to national open races and stage racing for those who wish. The Wheelers is a re-incarnation of the old cycling club which used to be in the town, but disbanded in the early 90’s. it was borne from an idea of two likeminded people, John Fox and Seán Power. Both noticed that there were a lot of people in the town who cycle as both a pastime, and competitively, and wanted to give those people a chance to do it locally, instead of having to travel to Naas, Kilcullen or Carlow to participate. The club has been set up with a racing focus, but is committed to developing a leisure aspect, where people can meet and socialise while enjoying the local heritage and the fresh air while out on their bikes. The racing element of the team is currently taking part in the Cahill Cycles Inter Club League this summer. The club will also be hosting two races as part of the league this year, on the 6th of June, beginning and ending at the Moat of Ardscull, and on the 4th of July, where the club will host the league’s 17km time trial stage, on the new link road. Already, the club has entered two races and have made a decent showing for themselves, though no significant results have been achieved. Membership starts from as little as €25 for leisure cyclists and €80 for competitive cyclists and includes a Cycling Ireland (CI) licence and insurance through CI.
