Lap of Lough Ree charity cycle announced

by afloat.ie on 11 Mar 2015 Lough Ree RNLI held a press launch on Saturday (7 March) to announce their upcoming Lap of Lough Ree charity cycle, which will take place on Sunday 29 March.

The cycle will start and finish at The Bounty, Buccaneers Rugby Club in Athlone, and will travel north through Ballymahon, cross the Shannon at Lanesboro Bridge and complete the 85km lap of Lough Ree, travelling south on the Roscommon side, via Kilteevan, to cross again at Athlone Bridge.

??Lough Ree RNLI relies on public donations to fund its operation, and the Lap of Lough Ree is an important fundraising event for the charity organisation.

Lough Ree's lifeboat station was the busiest in Ireland in 2014, so maintaining a high standard of service in the area is vital.??

Brendan Finnegan, Lough Ree RNLI fundraising committee chairman, said: 'We run a variety of events throughout the year to raise funds and we are privileged to have a huge level of support in the community.

The cycle was very popular when we first organised it last year and it is a pleasure to run events that participants can get actively involved in. We are hoping for a big turnout again this year.'

??Registration for the event will take place at 9am on Sunday 29 March at The Bounty, with the cycle starting at 10am.

Snack packs will be provided to all entrants, and refreshments will be provided midway at Lanesboro and also at The Bounty afterwards on return. Subject to numbers interested, an extended route may be arranged for cyclists who enjoy a more challenging ride.

The entry fee is €25, and entry forms available at Facebook.com/LoughReeRNLILifeboat

In other fundraising news, Paddy McCrossan and Seamus Fuery of the Organisation of National Ex-Servicemen (ONE) in Athlone presented a cheque for €500 to Lough Ree RNLI on 3 March last.

The ONE are stalwart supporters of Lough Ree RNLI, volunteering each year to help with collections on RNLI’s national Flag Day and maintaining RNLI collection boxes in their mess.?

Lifeboat operations manager Damien Delaney said: 'It’s good supporters like ONE that enable the lifeboat crews to respond to calls when they are needed, and we are grateful for their continual support since the Lough Ree lifeboat station opened.'