Easter Camps 2026
Ballyhoura Youth MTB Easter Camp
Location: Ballyhoura Mountain Bike Trails
Dates: 30th March – 1st April
Participants: 72
Three days of structured mountain bike coaching for youth aged 10–18, from complete beginners through to experienced enduro riders. Each day featured two ability-based half-day sessions, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Monday was dedicated to Enduro skills, and Tuesday and Wednesday focused on core skills and progression.
Reflecting on the camp, Regional Development Officer for Munster Stevie Griffin said:
"These camps are something we genuinely look forward to. There's something special about watching young riders grow in confidence across even just a few hours on the trails. We're so grateful to the parents who keep bringing their kids back, that trust means everything. The kids themselves are brilliant, they show up ready to graft, even when the weather has other ideas!
“We're incredibly lucky to have such a strong pool of coaches to call on, and to be working at world-class trails like Ballyhoura. A special mention too to Chris and Liam at Trailriders too, who are always on hand to sort us out with a rental bike or trail essentials at a moment's notice"
Parents of some of the participants, gave their feedback:
"He had a super day and is already looking forward to the next day out — he's hoping his three pals get in with him for the next one!"
"My two boys absolutely love it and wouldn't stop talking about it all weekend. Thank you to you and all the team."
"Thanks very much for a fantastic training session - he is buzzing still!"
Marlfield GAA Cycling Skills Camp – Clonmel
Location: Marlfield GAA, Clonmel
Dates: 30th March – 1st April
Participants: 40
Run in partnership with RAYC Sports, Clonmel CC and Cycling Ireland, this was a three-day cycling skills camp for children aged 5–15 who can cycle independently. By popular demand, two separate daily sessions catered to different age groups:
The morning session was for children between the age of 5 and 10, it included fun games, obstacle courses, balance, braking and turning. The afternoon session was for children between the ages of 11 and 15. It focused on confidence-boosting skills, group riding challenges and more technical progression
Activities across all days included cycling games and challenges, obstacle course building and riding, and themed skill-based activities.
Coach Ray Clarke gave his feedback on the camp:
“From my perspective, to see improvement from every cyclist over the three days was a win, and one particular cyclist who was extremely nervous of any form of jump on day one, with some one-to-one coaching, encouragement and pointers he was clearing a jump with a gap by the end of day three. That was a standout win from my perspective.”
Tina Clarke added:
“My aim at the start of any camp is to help each cyclist work towards their goals. For some it’s learning to design an obstacle course, for others it’s pulling a skid, and others it might be clearing a jump, but we build the course around what their aim is. We try to create a relaxed atmosphere where everyone is heard, and they encourage each other to give things a go.”
Donegal Bay CC 2-day camp at Ballyshannon
Location: Ballyshannon
Dates: 30th – 31st of March
Participants: 20
Participants were divided into two age groups – under 6’s and 8’s, and under 10’s and 12’s. Both groups started every session with a safety and bike check, and dynamic warm up.
Over the two days the younger group learnt skills such as braking and cornering. The sessions included lots of fun games such as bike limbo, rob the bank and stuck in the mud! The sessions took place on grass and on astroturf.
The older group focused on skills such as braking, cornering, mount and dismount over a plank, start practice, and much more. These sessions took place on grass, practising skills needed for cyclo-cross.
Ballyshannon was an ideal location for the camp, the young riders concluded with two laps of the 1km grass circuit. The older riders enjoyed a spin into Ballyshannon and finished off with a two a two lap race around the 1.5km grass circuit as a fun race.
Reflecting on the camp, coach Ted McCaffrey said:
“For Seánna as coaches and me, we were delighted that they all enjoyed it. We learned a lot from it too. We included an adventure into town for older ones. Every group of kids are different, so it was nice to have two days with this group.
“We got to know each other on day one and we tailored things to suit them better on day two. We would definitely like to do this again next year. It is a great way to kickstart the youth season for us as we start our weekly sessions this week.”
Omagh Wheelers 2-Day Camp
Location: Gortin Glen Forest Park, Co Tyrone
Dates: 9th – 10th of April
Participants: 19
The camp ran over two days and included two sessions per day. Participants were split into two groups – a beginner group for 8 – 12 year-olds, and an intermediate group for 10 – 16 year olds.
The beginner group focussed on basic MTB skills such as balance, braking, cornering and gears, using the car park, skills trail and bottom of the Rollercoaster blue trail for practice and coaching.
The intermediate group focused on basic skills such as cornering and line choice and did some sessions on the Blue runs. They also focused on more advanced skills such as slaloms and jumps in the grass area.
The coaches enjoyed the camp and felt the children all improved a lot over the two days, they said:
“It was great to see the progress made by all the kids in just two days, really shows how getting a similar group together can move them on.”
Bangor City Bike Club 1-Day Camp
Location: Ormeau Park
Dates: 8th of April
Participants: 15
The camp included two sessions on the day. The morning session was for riders aged 4 to 6. The group worked through a structured skills course, including cone weaving, limbo, and practising standing pedalling.
The session then moved to the BMX track at Ormeau Park, where the riders applied these skills on the humps and jumps. Confidence grew throughout, and by the end of the session all participants were able to complete full runs of the track. Engagement was high across the group, with some children choosing to continue practising during the break.
Six riders took part in the afternoon session. To support progression, the group was split so that activities could be better tailored to individual skill levels. On the BMX track, riders developed their technique starting from the ramp, progressing into learning how to pump over the humps. This was followed by a series of short races to consolidate their skills.
The second half of the session took place on the gravel pitch, where the focus shifted to road cycling skills such as riding one-handed, passing items, and picking objects up from the ground while maintaining control. The session concluded with a game of “cops and robbers,” which provided a fun finish.
“Fantastic progress from all riders - confidence, skills and smiles were on display throughout both sessions” said coach Maia Simmons.