Eamonn Byrne - Black Line sprint coach

As we get closer to Christmas, we would like to remind you of our early bird discount if booked before the end of the year! We would love to have you and guarantee a great week at The Track Camp

Week 1: 5th - 12th May - Sprint and endurance groups
Week 2: 12th - 19th May - Sprint only

We will be joined by the amazing Monica Greenwood once again as head endurance coach

Link is in bio or DM me for more details

The Para-Cycling Commission for Cycling Ireland are holding our AGM on Wednesday 27th September 2023. We need volunteers to help us build our community, offer support, expertise, ideas, and some of your time! You have the opportunity to make a positive impact at a performance level and at a participation level. We want to get bums on bikes and enrich the lives of those who ordinarily wouldn't have the opportunity to cycle a bike and get the same buzz as any fully able bodied cyclist

Send me a DM or email at [email protected] if you wish to attend, want to join the commission as a volunteer or you just want to get involved in any way you can. Your help is welcome in any capacity!

Reflection post!

I am so grateful to have been a part of the para cycling support staff for the World championships in Glasgow last week. I know first hand how important it is to get the right support at the right time at the big events and it didn't get bigger than Glasgow. There was lots to celebrate in the week, there were good results, plenty of learning to take away and so much to be proud of as a coach, friend and teammate of the riders and staff.

As the saying goes "it takes a village to raise a cyclist". It really was a privilege to work alongside and to facilitate the riders to perform at their best. It takes sleepless nights to make sure everyone else sleeps well!

What a week/ day it has been for Paracycling in Ireland! One of my main goals in my current role as chairperson of the Paracycling commission is to increase numbers in Paracycling in Ireland at both the participation level as well as the competitive level via our development squad.

This week had it ALL. Along with the other members of the commission, we ran the road and track national champs last weekend and witnessed some top racing.

This weekend I attended the last of the and Next Gen events on Dublin and witnessed some incredible potential try out and do testing on our stationary bikes. I then made my way to to join the very first Paracycling team to enter the event. I was blown away by the efforts of the team and inspired and motivated to ride my bike throughout the night.

A huge thanks to all involved and to for the amazing idea to showcase the abilities of our paracyclists! Time for a sleep ....

We still have spaces available for both endurance and sprint groups for next month!

Don't miss your chance to train like a pro. Our track cycling training camp offers the same professional coaching and facilities as elite athletes. In a no pressure learning environment

You will find .clancy and .cycling.coach to coach, guide and advise you on how to get faster.

You will stay and eat and relax in the great facilities of .group

The original dates have been changed from May to:
Week 1: April 16th - 23rd
Week 2: April 23rd - 30th

There will be a Sprint group each week coached by Pete Mitchell and I and an Endurance group in week 2 coached by none other than .clancy and

It is an insanely talented coaching line up and we still have space in both Sprint and Endurance groups. DM us or go to anadiatrackcamps.com to register

Accomodation, meals, airport transfers to and from Porto airport by .group are all included along with 16 hours of coached track time with video analysis, feedback, technical and tactical sessions and race simulation

What a week!! The Paracycling World Track Championships 2022 did not disappoint on any level. I had the privilege to be able to represent Ireland once again except this time in a supportive role.

I shouted until I lost my voice, I ran around until my feet hurt, I bit my nails to nothing, I sweated, I winced, and I did everything in my power to help my former team mates get the most out of themselves. I can say honestly that they all performed out of their skins, PBs all around, some of the best placings ever and the icing on the cake was a Silver medal for Ronan Grimes in the Individual Pursuit.

Everyone should watch and support Para Cycling events, it will blow your mind and open your eyes to some amazing feats of physical performance by athletes that most people would consider to be disabled. There was so many exciting races and super fast times, well done to all

Lots of dates coming up to do our sprint lessons and ride your bike fast

Sprinting at Sundrive! .cycling.coach will be coaching structured sprint sessions on these dates at Sundrive, Dublin. Booking is via the events link in our bio. Very excited to further support the sprinters of Sundrive. Open to all ages and abilities!

We have spaces available for our Black Line Coaching sprint tactics and standing start weekend at Sundrive velodrome on the 11th and 12th June

After a hugely popular race last weekend, it would a great opportunity for riders to build on their skills and tactical awareness
To register click here: https://blacklinecoaching.com/events/sundrive-standing-starts-and-sprint-tactics-june-11-12/

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Eamonn Byrne - Black Line sprint coach updated their website address.

I am running a skills and drills session this Saturday at 2pm at Sundrive Velodrome. This session will be focused on how to overtake riders in a sprint and how to rush the gap. To enquire or register send me a DM

Captured in the wild this weekend at the sprinters league at sundrive velodrome. We had an exciting mix of different sprint events and lots of fast riders showing the result of a good off season of training

Photos by
On the day

Why should you follow a structured sprint plan

There are many different approaches athletes can take when it comes to training and these can vary depending on the athlete, the individual goals, the level of commitment and the availability of time to train. One of the pitfalls that many athletes fall into, is training without any form of structure or general plan. It can be very easy to go to the gym 2 or 3 times per week and do the same thing, go to every structured session at the local velodrome and turn up to every race, and, depending on the athletes training age, this can lead to improvements for a while. What will likely happen when continuing to train with this approach for a long period of time, is athletes may find themselves plateauing and wondering why they are no longer making the improvements they had been making previously. Without guidance, athletes may not add low volume weeks into their training or any periodisation for that matter. Variation in training stimuli is vital for increasing maximal strength, and longer periods of higher training frequency may be preferred.

There are many reasons to follow a structured plan, tailored for you the athlete. It can take the guess work out of your training and take away uncertainty as to whether you are doing the right things in training. Following a structured plan can mean consistency in the quality and quantity of training, as opposed to having random heavy weeks or random easy weeks with no reason as to why they are the volume they are. Focused and purposeful recovery is just as important as focused training and it is hugely impactful to have this element of a training plan monitored and planned. Ensuring that adequate rest and recovery is taken, will make the quality training that is carried out on the bike and in the gym, translate into improvements. It can be difficult to know what drills to do on the bike in any given phase of training, when should you be doing maximum power efforts, when should you do sustained power or maximum speed? Once again, the guesswork is taken out of it with a planned structured programme. The same applies to the strength and conditioning work that runs alongside any good sprint training programme, when should you be doing hypertrophy? When do do strength work and power or should you be doing any gym work at all depending on the phase of training or competition you are in? A progressive, periodised approach with a planned taper for your event or events is optimal for the best results and is a safe way to carry out your season of training and racing, this approach is less likely to lead to plateaus and physical and mental burnout. Last of all, one of the most obvious reasons to follow a structured plan with a coach, is the motivation and support that it can bring. Both by following the plan, seeing the improvements it can bring and discussing with someone what elements you are enjoying and gaining the most from.

Today is international Women's Day, a day to remember to celebrate all of the positive female role models in our lives, both on the bike and off! I know so many strong women who have a positive influence on my life, many through cycling and all facets of life

Here's to strong women,
May we know them,
May we be them,
May we raise them
-Michelle Obama

The Sprint School and Black line are teaming up to deliver a week long track camp at the world class facility that is the Anadia velodrome in Portugal. In partnership with SunLive, this will be a fully catered 7 night training camp with 3 hours track time every day. We will be facilitating both a coached and open training group, to give you the guidance or freedom that you need to get the most out of your time on the boards.

Get in touch through messenger or email us at [email protected]
www.anadiatrackcamps.com

Why do you ride your bike? We all have different reasons, and likely have many reasons, but what is yours? I personally am a very competitive person and I love that side of it, but with that can come a great social aspect and I cant deny that as well as enjoying a scenic route, I love riding my bike as fast as possible around in circles!
Regardless of why you ride your bike, whether that is to get fit, get fast or win races, you can get a tailored programme from me at The Sprint School, don't hesitate to make contact and ask any questions you have

I have had lots of enquiries from people and one of the most common is what do I offer? What I offer is a personal and tailored programme which I will write following a consultation and a general chat about what your goals are. The aim is to offer an elite coaching service to all abilities, ages and genders. I wont tell you what to do, I will guide you and help you get to where you want to be on the bike and in the gym! Get in touch for more information!

And its official, I have made the leap from athlete to coach and I could not be more excited to coach some of you! I have had a steep learning curve over the last few years and I have learned so much working within the high performance environment in Sport Ireland and through my strength and conditioning studies with Setanta College. I will be coaching remotely online as well as locally in person and I will be attending as many events as I can to coach, guide and learn from you guys. If you are interested in discussing how we can work together or want to ask any questions, don't hesitate to contact me through messenger or fill in a contact form through www.thesprintschool.ie