Meet the Rider - Kenneth McGibney
Where do you work?
I work in Human Resources, leading teams in the Middle East, some European countries and the Nordic region. My company has a contract with Google and we carry out many of the HR processes which support their employees across the whole life cycle of employment.
How/When did you start your adventure with cycling?
Cycling has alway been a discussion in my house since I was a kid. My mother was into cycling in the 60s and maybe early 70s and always spoke of cycling and going off around Ireland in huge groups and how she could easily keep up with the men . She was not a member of any club from what I can remember but mentioned they would meet up around Dublin. We always had bikes in the house when I was younger (mostly bangers) and from a young age myself and friends would always be up in Marlay Park,St Enda's Park or cycling out to the beach in the Summer. I still can't believe they got rid of that BMX track in Marlay Park, can you imagine that nowadays? I also loved the Tour De France when I was younger. I remember watching it on Eurosport, Network 2 and the legendary highlights on Channel 4. I used to record the TDF Channel 4 highlights and watch it over and over.I loved David Duffield's commentary on Eurosport and he would talk for hours on his own. The footage then made it look like the mountains were on fire from the heat. The cameras back then could not handle the bright yellow light from the sun and it made the Alps look like another world or on fire. I have always wanted to cycle there since I was a kid. I loved Claudio Chiappucci and I can remember him going on some crazy breakaways similar to what Pogacar does these days.
I continued to watch cycling throughout my teens and 20s even though I had stopped cycling bikes. So back in 2014, my legs started to give up after all the injuries i had got from football when i was a kid i had to stop running. I was never a great runner but I did it regularly but I doubt I've ever done over 12 km in one run. I bought my first route bike in April of that year which was a Giant Defy. A few weeks later I met a chap cycling in Enniskerry and we did the Luggala loop back to Rathfarnham together. He told me about the Wicklow 200 and I was amazed that Ireland had events like that. When I got home I told the wife about this and she replied, “I know I'll end up hating that guy for telling you about this event.”
She knew I would be hooked on cycling from that day on. So less than 2 months after taking up cycling, I did the Wicklow 200 in 9 hours of solid rain. I had run out of water for a long time that day and even had to do the walk of shame going for a bit going up Slieve Mann but at least I wasn't wearing a king of mountains jersey like the other guy who was walking up.When i got to the top of the climb, the guy gave me water and i swear it was was like the scene out of Ben Hur when Jesus gave Judah water. I nearly kissed him. Of Course it was sunny when we got back to the finish in Greystones. After that day I never looked back and I love climbing up hills out of the saddle. There is nothing like it when you are on form and your legs feel like you can just keep going.
When and why did you join ST. Tiernan's?
June of 2016 would have been my first interaction with anyone from Tiernans. It was on the Evil and only 2 of us turned up to do it, myself and Daragh. Not surprising only 2 turned up as it was 286 km and 5500 meters of climbing so many got scared off that year.
For the next several hours it was like a Father Ted episode. “Ah go on Ted, join Tiernans” Ah go on, you should race the ICL”. “I am not joining the club or racing Ms Doyle”. Slightly exaggerated but I'll let you guess who was who in that convo. I then left Daragh to head home to record a “measly” 208 KM for the day whilst Daragh entered legendary Eviler status. Daragh’s ended up recording about 290 km and 5500 meters that day for one of the best spins I have ever seen. I got to know more of the lads over the following years on the Evil, Robbie, Alex and more club members would come along each year and then just after Covid I ran into the Saturday group and tagged along for a while.
By the end of the spin I was discussing joining the club and after a few referrals I was in. The email of acceptance from the then club secretary was from my only interaction I had with Asjid, so for that I am grateful.
Since then, it's been a blast and the trips to Mallorca have been amazing and very memorable and I always look forward to a club spin. Obviously St Tiernans is the best club in Ireland and I am super happy that I never joined the other lot down the road as I did a couple of midweek spins with them previously.
Me and Daragh on the 2016 Evil.
What would you say is the best thing about being in a cycling club?
That's a hard one and I am sure there would be 100 reasons if you asked 10 different people. For me it's forgetting about normal life for a few hours while being out on the road talking crap to your club mates. It's a great sense of freedom from the day to day routine.
Is there anything you would like to see more or less of in the club?
As I haven't been out often this year, I don't think I am in a position to ask for change but since you are asking, maybe some subsidised trips to Mallorca . But honestly I have no complaints and from my perspective and what I want from a cycling club, Tiernans offers me that.
How often do you cycle? What is your typical weekly mileage?
The last few years have been poor in terms of mileage. The first 5 years I cycled I had 50000 km recorded on Strava. The last 5 i have done less than 20000 km. Working from home has seriously affected the mileage I do which is one of the reasons I joined a club. Along with being ill more regularly than usual of late, in 2022 I broke my wrist and tore my rotator cuff from a fall down the stairs. After hard work to get back to fitness, I did the 312 event in April 23 and in June 23 I did 2 Evil routes. I was in great form but then had another fall whilst gardening. Ffs, you would think I'm about 80 with all these falls but i can assure you that both were accidents and not from old age. Anyway I broke my wrist again and dislocated my shoulder in that second fall. It took a long time to get over that and I still think to this day that it was a “bad one” which set me back and I still haven't really recovered from it.
Tell us about your bikes, yes please to pictures
I have a Caad 12 as my good bike and a Trek as my winter bike. I also have an old Giant which I use for gravel roads around the Dublin mountains. For anyone who doesn't know, The Caad 12 has a bit of a cult following. It's often been referred to as the best mass manufactured aluminum bike ever made. On days that it works well, it's amazing. I run it on Hunt Wheels which are a fairly decent wheel.
Favourite place to cycle:
I have only cycled outside Ireland twice. Those have been Mallorca and Tenerife. Both of those places are amazing but as we saw over the last few weeks, Wicklow in the sun is unreal. It's unfortunate about the rubbish roads though. Living in Churchtown, I am lucky enough to have the hills less than 10 minutes away from my house and that really helped during Covid as my 5 km lockdown radius got me to the top of most of the local climbs.
Favourite coffee shop:
The green in Laragh. And I prefer soup to coffee on a stop. The coffee most of these places sell is awful and overpriced. Did you hear about the 9 euro sausage roll?.
Favourite event:
The Evil of course . This will be my 11th year in a row doing it and my 9th putting a route up on the internet and some crazy people turn up for some reason. Disclaimer - it's nothing to do with me. I only post the ride and it's up to you if you turn up. I have met so many new people on those Evil days and it's amazing that I can honestly say they have all been really cool people. 2 or 3 years ago, a Spanish lad turned up at the start outside Joe Daly’s asking us if we were the spin that leaves from this area and people can just turn up for. Of course, we said “yeah” and he tagged along. By the time we got to Laragh he did a runner and said we were crazy . Honestly I think he was meant to join an Orwell spin or something.
Favourite bit of kit: (clothes, gadgets, tools etc…)
I am not really a gadget guy TBH. The last time I really got excited about any equipment was when I got my Campagnolo Zonda. They were really good wheels and they looked the business. I suppose if it can be classified as cycling equipment, then my Apple iWatch would be up there. I do like good cycling shorts and I have a Gabba and Perfetto.
Do you have any big cycling plans for the year?
This year has been a disaster due to illness. I have just over 1200 km this year but thankfully the last month has been promising. The Evil is my main goal for the year at the moment (21st of June in case anyone missed it) but let's see after that. If you can complete the Evil, everything opens up for you in terms of fitness and what events you can do. If i can finish the year with 3500 - 4000 km i’d be happy.
What international events have you competed in?
The only event I have done outside of Ireland is the Mallorca 312. Mallorca is a gem of a place to cycle.
Where’s the most interesting place you have cycled?
I would say Masca in Tenerife. That climb is unreal and would be similar to Sa Calobra but greener. It's half the length of Sa Calobra but way steeper. People liken it to Jurassic park and when you get there you can see why.
Me in Masca, Tenerife Nov 2024
