Team Youghal boarded their Aer Lingus Flight just before mid-day on Monday (13th June 2011) to compete in the Race Across America which will state in Oceanside California on Saturday next at 10p.m. Irish Team. Their journey included a stopover at Heathrow Airport before touching down at LAX in California. The team will be based in Oceanside for the four days leading up to the race, using the time to get acclimatised to the heat and sunshine as well as training over the initial miles of this 3,005 mile race.

The 8-man cycling team, which will travel with a 10-man back-up crew, will depart from Oceanside, California on June 18, and race 24 hours a day across the continent, finishing in Annapolis, Maryland, about eight days later.

The Team of Irish amateur cyclists is indebted to American electronics company, Flextronics, which has a base in Cork, has signed a €20,000 sponsorship deal with Team Youghal, to allow it compete in the world’s longest endurance bike race – the gruelling 4,835km Race Across America. Other sponsors included Magners Irish Cider, Excelsys, Matheson Ormsby Prentice Solicitors, Irish Distillers, Youghal Town Council, Race Around Ireland, Lee Travel and Juliette and Brendan Casey.

The team is taking part to raise money and awareness for the Emer Casey Foundation.

Emer, who was from Youghal, in Co. Cork, was diagnosed with ovarian/uterine cancer in February 2006. She was just 27 years of age. She died on June 10 2006, four days after her 28th birthday.

Crew Chief Aonghus O’Broin, who is one of the driving forces behind the team said “This is a wonderful adventure by a group of very dedicated people from various backgrounds and I’m confident that Team Youghal will achieve it’s goal in reaching Annapolis in under 9 days”

The Team will host fundraising events before and after the race, including a function at The Consulate General of Ireland Offices, Park Avenue, Manhattan on June 28th and a 5km run in Central Park.

Folow the team by logging on to www.teamyoughal.com where there will be regular updates during the race. For more information on the Emer Casey Foundation please log on to www.emercaseyfoundation.com

This is the 30th edition of the race and Team Youghal will make history by being the first ever Irish Team in the 8 person Team Category. Crossing 12 states and climbing over 170,000 feet the race will start on June 18th and Team Youghal are planning to finish on June 26th in Annapolis, Maryland. The highest point of the race is Wolf Creek Pass, high up in the Rockies at almost 11,000 feet and the lowest point is 170ft below sea level. This is a non-stop race across the American Continent with racers competing 24 hours a day from start to finish.

3,005 Miles

The route is over 3000 miles, touching 12 states and climbing over 170,000 feet. Teams typically cross the country, averaging 350 to over 500 miles per day.

RAAM By the Numbers

• Total distance is more than 3000 Miles.

• All finishers will travel a combined distance equivalent to circling the earth at the equator seven times.

• Lowest elevation is 170 feet below sea level. Highest elevation is more than 10,000 feet high above sea level. This elevation range exceeds two vertical miles.

• Each  Team will climb more than 170,000 feet. This is roughly the distance from the ground to the edge of space, more than three times the altitude flown by commercial jetliners and almost four times the altitude of Mt. Everest.

• Racers have come from 5 continents – North America, South America, Australia, Asia, and Europe. More than 25 countries have been represented in the Race Across America.

• RAAM crosses the five longest rivers that are entirely in the US: the Mississippi, Missouri, Rio Grande, Arkansas and the Ohio.

• The RAAM staff during the race is more than 50 people. More than 200 people staff Time Stations. Racers are supported by more than 800 people. More than 200 vehicles are part of the RAAM caravan across the country.

• In the last four years, RAAM racers have raised more than $4,000,000 for charities.

The Emer Casey Foundation

The Emer Casey Foundation was established in June 2006 following Emer’s untimely death from ovarian cancer. The aim of the foundation is to raise awareness and to raise funds to secure the best independent advice in the area of ovarian/uterine cancer. The ultimate aim is to develop a test to detect the disease in its early stages.

Ovarian cancer is the leading cause of death from gynaecological malignancy in the western world. The poor survival of ovarian cancer patients can be attributed to:

1) lack of standardised screening test

2) late presentation of disease

3) high rate of recurrence

4) development of chemo resistance

5) poorly understood disease biology.

Three Emer Casey PhD Fellowship students together with the DISCOVARY Consortium are dedicated to addressing these problems. They are carrying out research in the areas of chemo resistance, cancer stem cells, circulating tumour cells and the body’s immune response to cancer. The scientists have already identified a panel of proteins that can be found in the blood of ovarian cancer patients. They have developed a near patient testing device to assess  a patient’s response to chemotherapy and are currently working on new ways to isolate circulating tumour cells in a patient’s blood.

The foundation relies on fundraising to provide this invaluable research. From our sponsors, to those who take part in the annual 10K run/walks in Youghal, London, New York and Melbourne, or raise money at local fundraising events, the foundation is eternally grateful to everyone who supports this work, in any way, big or small.

Team Youghal is being backed in its fundraising efforts by some influential US groups, including the Irish US Council, Enterprise Ireland’s US division, The Irish Consulate General in New York, The American Chamber of Commerce, The trinity Foundation, The Discovary Consortium Matheson, Ormsby, Prentice Solicitors, Emer’s former employers, and The Cork Association in New York.

www.emercaseyfoundation.com

www.teamyoughal.com