Down Triathlon Club

🖤💛 Sunday Cycles & Breakfast!💛🖤

A great morning of DTC group cycles, made even better with a well-earned breakfast afterwards! 🚴‍♀️☕️🍳

A huge thank you to Hillyard House, our Beyond The Wall title sponsor, for looking after us and for extending their voucher offer to all DTC members, friends and family!🙌

Always great to have the support of a brilliant local business. 🖤💛

#🖤💛

☀️ Summer Racing Round-Up

It’s been a busy summer for DTC, with members out racing near and far! 💛🖤

🏃 Portaferry Gala Week
A great evening of local racing at the 10 Miler & 5 Mile Relay, with plenty of DTC representation!

🏊‍♀️ Tri The Lough
A trip to Loughmacrory, Co. Tyrone for some swim-bike-run action — and a couple of prizes coming home too! 🏆

🌊 Rathmullan Inch Mile Swim
Taking racing into the open water with a one-mile swim at Rathmullan. Medals well earned! 🏅

🚴‍♂️ Westport Triathlon
DTC headed west for Westport Triathlon, with some great racing and another podium appearance! 🏆

A brilliant summer of racing from everyone! 👏💛🖤

☀️🚴 Sunny Sunday Cycles! 🚴☀️

What a busy summer we’ve had on our Sunday cycles! 🙌 From Group 1 right through to Group 4, there’s been something for every ability — plenty of miles, good company and, thankfully, plenty of sunshine! ☀️

We’re definitely not ready to give up the sunny Sundays just yet! 🤞🚴‍♀️🚴‍♂️

🌍 Eirin is heading to the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championships!🇫🇷

From taking on Beyond the Wall in 2024 to lining up on the world stage in Nice just two years later — what a journey! 🏊‍♀️🚴‍♀️🏃‍♀️

After a brilliant performance at IRONMAN 70.3 Bolton, Eirin secured her place at the World Championships taking place 12th–13th September 2026.

A huge achievement and one we’re incredibly proud to celebrate at Down Triathlon Club. 💪

Best of luck, Eirin — enjoy every second! 🇫🇷🌍

Read more about Eirin’s journey here 👇
[Meet Eirin: From Beyond the Wall to the World Championships](https://www.downtriathlonclub.com/blogs/meet-eirin-from-beyond-the-wall-to-the-world-championships?utm_source=chatgpt.com)

Meet Eirin: from Beyond the Wall to the World Championships — Down Triathlon Club From fearing open-water swimming to qualifying for the Ironman 70.3 World Championships in Nice, Eirin’s journey into triathlon has moved quickly. What started as a bucket-list challenge at Beyond the Wall has become a love of racing, training and discovering just how far the sport might take her.

🏃🚴 Weekend Round-Up 🌞

What a fantastic weekend for our club, with members flying the flag across running, triathlon and cycling!

🌅 Friday Night – Sea to Sky Race, Newcastle
Friday evening saw Elisha, Dessie and Eamon take on the iconic Sea to Sky Race in Newcastle. Set against the stunning backdrop of the Mourne Mountains, this challenging event takes runners from the seafront through scenic trails before climbing towards the mountains, rewarding every effort with spectacular views on a beautiful summer’s evening. Well done to all three on a great run!

🚴🏊 Saturday – Tri Tyrone Middle Distance
On Saturday, Mick and Paul tackled the Tri Tyrone Middle Distance. This demanding event features a 1.9km swim, 90km bike ride and 21.1km run, testing both endurance and determination. Congratulations to both for completing a tough race and representing the club so well!

🌊🚴🏃 Sligo Triathlon
Also on Saturday, Wendy, John, Tara Findlay and Nuala Hamil took on the Sligo Triathlon. Set along the stunning Wild Atlantic coastline, the event combines an open-water swim, a scenic but testing bike course and a fast run, making it one of the most enjoyable races on the Irish triathlon calendar. Congratulations to all four on fantastic performances!

🚴 Sunday Club Cycle – Strangford Lough Loop
Sunday saw several club groups enjoy one of Northern Ireland’s most scenic routes, completing a loop of Strangford Lough. With sunshine, great company and plenty of miles in the legs, it was the perfect way to round off another brilliant weekend of training.

Well done to everyone who raced, trained and represented the club this weekend! 👏💙

💪🏊🚴🏃 It wasn’t just race day this weekend—our DTC athletes were hard at work with some epic training sessions!

A huge thank you to Peter Pito, who led our athletes preparing for Ironman through a big training day, giving everyone the chance to test themselves over the long-distance challenge. There were plenty of highs and lows along the way, but that’s what Ironman training is all about. Months of hard work are now starting to come together, and the finish line is getting ever closer. Keep believing in the process—you’ve got this! 👏

Meanwhile, our 70.3 athletes took part in the inaugural Starkathon, expertly organised by none other than Mr Starkey! Athletes tackled the key distances in a brilliant day of training, before being rewarded with an incredible post-session feast courtesy of the star baker, Mrs Starkey. 🍰 Safe to say the cakes alone were worth the effort!

A massive thank you to everyone who organised, supported, and took part. It’s great to see the dedication, teamwork, and club spirit on display. The hard work is paying off! 💙💛

🏊🚴🏃 Despite it being holiday season, our DTC athletes have been keeping busy!

A huge congratulations to Owen Finnie, Garth Newberry, John Findlay, and Wendy Findlay who took on the Harbourman Triathlon. This fantastic event is renowned for its friendly atmosphere and challenging course, testing competitors across swim, bike, and run disciplines. Brilliant effort by all of you!

Congratulations also to Philip Cardy and Erin Corbett on completing the Two Provinces event. A special well done to Erin for an outstanding 2nd place in her age group! 🥈

Fantastic racing from everyone—it’s great to see DTC members flying the flag throughout the summer. Keep up the amazing work! 💙💛

🏁 DTC TT League Finale – What a Night! ☀️🚴‍♂️

The final round of the DTC TT League last Wednesday certainly lived up to the hype! We had another fantastic turnout in some seriously warm conditions to bring the league to a close.

With the added bonus of Cliff’s questionable playlist (I couldn’t just stand there in silence waiting for you all!), “Generator” by Justice got us rolling. Everyone powered off the line… well, everyone except Wendy, who had a slight disagreement with her cleats at the start! 😄

While the Road Bike League and Women’s TT League had already been wrapped up, the Men’s TT title went right down to the final race. Conor, Noel and Robin all lined up with a chance of taking the crown, and it couldn’t have been any closer.

🥇 Noel Doyle won Race 6 by just 1.1 seconds, which was enough to edge out Conor on a head-to-head countback. Incredible racing from both of you – that’s what competition is all about!

A special mention for Dessie, who was left wondering what might have been after only registering two scoring rides… and apparently his bank transfer wasn’t quite big enough to influence the adjudicator! 😂

The post-race celebrations were just as enjoyable, with plenty of banter, Erdinger Alcohol-Free beers (strictly for their isotonic benefits, of course!) and the now legendary “pharmacy” brownies. It was a proper end-of-term atmosphere and a brilliant way to finish the season.

Hopefully this is the first of many annual DTC TT Leagues. It’s been a fantastic mix of healthy competition, great craic and an inclusive format that everyone has enjoyed.

A huge thank you to everyone who took part and supported the league throughout the season. We’d also like to give a massive shout-out to Bishopscourt Race Circuit for once again hosting us and providing such a fantastic, safe venue for the series. Your support is hugely appreciated.

Congratulations to all our winners! 👏

🏆 2025 DTC TT League Champions
🚴 Men’s TT: Noel Doyle
🚴‍♀️ Women’s TT: Eirin Corbett
🚴 Men’s Road Bike: Gavin Hynds
🚴‍♀️ Women’s Road Bike: Gillian Newberry

See you all next year! 💙💛

What a day yesterday club members had out at the David Catherwood Sportive! 💨🚴

A huge well done to all our club members who took on the challenge. With a strong wind making every mile that bit tougher, everyone showed great determination, teamwork and plenty of grit.

It was especially fantastic to see some members taking part in their very first sportive. From the 34-mile route to the full 61-mile challenge, every rider should be incredibly proud of their achievement.

The David Catherwood Sportive, held on Saturday 27th June 2026, offered riders a choice of two scenic routes starting from Movilla Abbey Church, Newtownards, and taking in the beautiful roads of the Ards Peninsula.

A special congratulations also goes to our club members Maria, Jacqui and Linda, who were lucky enough to win spot prizes on the day—an added bonus to a fantastic event! 🎉

Congratulations to everyone who represented the club so well. Whether it was your first sportive or one of many, you conquered the wind, supported one another, and crossed the finish line with smiles (eventually! 😄).

Enjoy a well-earned recovery, and here’s to the next adventure! 👏🚴💙

Best of luck to Peter Pito and Mick Padgett in Ironman Frankfurt 💪🏻

The event had had to make changes to account for the very high temperatures 🌞 Which is the right decision to make if it keeps athletes safe.

Of course there’s nothing DTC athletes enjoy more than a challenge and no two better men to overcome that.

Best of luck & most importantly enjoy ❤️