Track and bikes fine-tuned ahead of Race of the South

The build-up to the 2026 Walderstown road races continues this week as club members work on the track and the riders fine-tune their bikes.

Paul Fallon from Glasson is one of those riders, and he’s looking forward to racing on his home track after an absence of four years.

His last competitive outing was at Armoy last year, but Walderstown is the big one for him: “I’m very happy that we have racing back in the south – we have Walderstown, Kells, Skerries, Athea,” said Paul.

He has fond memories of his home event, and in particular his sixth place finish in the 2019 Superbike race, a solid achievement for a privateer who prepares his own machines racing against well funded professionals such as Michael Dunlop and Derek Sheils.

Asked about his team, Paul said: “My son and my wife help me, that’s all really.” They are Katrina and Liam and they’ll be out at Walderstown at the weekend with Paul as he races his Superbike (a new to him Fireblade), and his Yamaha R6 in the Supersport class. Competing as Fallon Racing #99, Paul and family have support from Egan’s Motorcycle Clothing and Accessories, Derek Reynolds Roundtower Stonework, and the Fallon and Killian families.

Another local man racing this weekend is Jack Meares from Clara, who is in his third year of racing, and who took a Junior Support race second at the Cookstown 100 in April. Jack raced at Mondello and some of the northern tracks for a year before he moved to road racing at Cookstown, Armoy and Tandragee, so he tackles Walderstown for the first time this year.

He knows the races well from going with family and friends as a spectator. “It’s going to be a great experience to go and do it, enjoy it, take it all in,” he said.

Jack will run his two bikes in the Super Twin, Junior Sport and Senior Sport categories.

He expressed gratitude to those who help him “keeping the wheels turning”: Ballymahon Autoparts, Elite Blacktop and Civil, Marcus Dunne, Brian Egan, Tolan Designs, Andy Browne, Jack Caldwell at Dunshaughlin Crash Repair.

Helping out on the day in the pits will be Owen Tolan, Patricia Kinsella and Jack Caldwell. Jack also thanked his parents for their support.

Derek McGee is also racing this weekend, and enjoyed a successful shakedown with the Burrows Engineering / RK Racing BMW M1000RR Superbike and Ducati Panigale V2 at Kirkstown on Friday. Derek said: “We had a productive test and it was good to start working with the team. We ended the day happy, and we have a good base set-up for Walderstown.”

Information for spectators

The entrance fee for the 2026 Walderstown Road Races, Race of the South, is €30. The organisers have asked that people bring cash as internet access in the area of the track is poor and makes paying by card slow.

Practice day is Saturday, July 18, when roads are closed from 11am to 7.30pm; race day is Sunday, July 19, and roads close from 8am to 7.30pm.

There is plenty of free car and bike parking on all approach roads to the circuit; campervan parking is on right hand side of first corner after the main straight, Corr Cross.

The eircode for the paddock is: N37 Y156.

Entries continued to come in after the programme was printed last week, so not every rider is included in the lists.

Brief history of Fore motorbike races

The first race in Fore took place on August 28, 1973 and among the riders that day were Courtney Junk, Ian Switzer and a young Joey Dunlop.

The races were run by the Fingal Motorcycle Club for a number of years, and when they decided to pull out, the North Dublin Motorcycle Club took over.

The Fore Motorcycle Racing Club Ltd was originally founded as a supporters club to raise funds locally to help run the races, and they took over running the races in 1989; they now the Race of the South at Walderstown, Athlone.

Oldcastle vet Noel Kavanagh, a keen motorcycle and car enthusiast, identified the circuit at Fore, and he approached the Fingal Club to run a road race there, which they did with help from other clubs.

The last race in Fore village was in 1997, and the move to Walderstown was in 2000.

Over the years Fore hosted five time Formula 1 world champion and 26 time TT winner Joey Dunlop, his brother Robert, Eddie Laycock, Ryan Farquhar, Michael Dunlop (TT win record holder), Richard Britton, and of course, the Mullingar Missile, Derek McGee, who has 12 wins on the 2.5 mile circuit.