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| The cyclists enter the Doolough Valley |
This year to
mark the 10th anniversary of the VIVA Wheelers, the 47 cyclists and
hikers returned to one of our iconic locations, Westport. Blessed by the
weather, with a mercifully dry day following downpours on the Friday, the
participants raised almost €12,000 for VIVA’s overseas projects bringing the
10-year total to a magnificent €247,000.
The cyclists
enjoyed some of the finest scenery the west of Ireland has to offer with the
Doolough Valley near Leenane the highlight of the route. The hikers climbed the
445m high Diamond Hill in the Connemara National Park which offers panoramic
views of the islands of Inishturk, Inishbofin and Inishshark along with the Twelve
Bens mountains and Connaught’s highest mountain, Mweelrea.
At the
celebratory meal in the Castlecourt hotel in Westport that night, presentations
were made to the following participants who have taken part in every one of our
events:
Syd Nagle, Donagh McDonnell and
James Madden
In addition,
6 participants that have taken part in all six of our Irish “Bike ‘n Hikes”
were honoured:
Roy Gallie, The Fabby Family, Jim
Higgins, Cathy Waddell, Ascinta Kilroy and Mary Sadlier.
Lastly, a
presentation was made to Pat Murphy, who was the inspiration behind the concept
of the VIVA Wheelers.
The icing on
the cake was the meeting with An Taoiseach, Enda Kenny, who was in the hotel
for another function but who took time out to chat with some VIVA Wheelers.
Finally, a
special word of thanks to our long-term sponsors, Zoetis (who sponsored our
dinner) and Veterinary Instruments Ltd (who sponsored the food breaks). In
addition, the support of XLVets, Veterinary Ireland, Prime Health Vets,
Interchem and Duggan Veterinary over the years is also appreciated.
An Taoiseach, Enda Kenny, meets with (L to R) Mary Rafferty, Mike Burke, Eddie Downey (IFA),
Brendan Mimnagh, Perpetua McNamee, Gearóid Connolly, Margo Harty (kneeling)
