The Queen Stage is a grand title for a piece of road. Corrabut Gap may yet justify it.
The 20th edition of Rás na mBan will bring one of its defining tests to County Carlow this September, with riders taking on an 88.5km fourth stage that finishes on Mount Leinster after two ascents of Corrabut Gap.
Ireland’s premier international women’s cycling stage race will mark its anniversary edition with a route entirely within Carlow on September 5. Riders will start from Carlow County Council offices at 10am, facing 1,074 metres of elevation across the day.
The opening 55km is largely flat, with intermediate sprint opportunities at Bagenalstown and Garyhill. Then the stage changes character. The first ascent of Corrabut Gap comes after 60km, with an average gradient of 11.5% over 1.5km. After descending towards Bunclody, the riders will turn east at Kildavin towards Myshall before returning for a second climb and summit finish.
That is where the race may begin to narrow. A five-day stage race can be shaped by many things: positioning, weather, fatigue, small errors, the quiet arithmetic of time gaps. A steep summit finish late in the week has a habit of making the hierarchy visible.
Rás na mBan Race Director Valerie Considine said the race’s memories of Mount Leinster from 2016, 2017 and 2018 helped draw organisers back to Carlow.
“For our return we wanted to do something special,” she said, “so a route entirely in Carlow, showcasing the particular beauty and unique charms of the county while providing a memorable sporting challenge for the racers was the objective.”
Cllr Thomas Kinsella, Cathaoirleach of Carlow County Council, said the event would showcase the county while supporting local communities, tourism and business.
For Carlow, this is a chance to host an international women’s race in a milestone year. For the riders, it is simpler and harsher: two climbs, a summit, and nowhere left for the legs to hide.
