Agenda for Cong Food Festival (updated to include ride out on Saturday)

Cong Food Festival 2019 will take place on 14th and 15th September in the village of Cong, Co. Mayo. It will be a weekend of food and fun for all the family with activities including cookery demonstrations, Farmers Market, sheep dog displays, live music, "Ready Steady Cook", baking demonstrations and cocktail making.

GWOCNI and GWOCI have been invited to take part in the festivities in an official capacity on Saturday. There will also be a GWOCNI-organised ride out on Friday and a GWOCI-organised ride out on Saturday, both of which are open to members from both clubs. The biking agenda for the weekend is as follows.

Friday 13th September

Ride out: Assembly location (in or near Cong Village) to be confirmed for departure at 11am.

Saturday 14th September

Ride out: Denis (Leinster Rep) will lead a scenic ride out departing Ryan's Hotel Car Park at 10am. All welcome, full tanks please, coffee stop en route in Leenane, returning to Cong at approx. 1pm. Group riding "drop off" system will be used. Route is available to view in advance at https://goo.gl/maps/MQGJHJJU1NK9MZhK6.

Meat in the Middle / Ready Steady Cook: Bikes assemble at Cong Abbey (GPS coordinates 53.540325, -9.286832) at 3:00pm to take part in the celebration and delivery of four pieces of meat (one from each province in Ireland) to be used in the celebrity cook-off between the chef from Ashford Castle and the chef from The Lodge at Ashford Castle. One member from GWOCI and one member from GWOCNI will ably assist each of the two chefs in their bid to be crowned champion!

Light Parade through Ashford Castle: Bikes assemble at Cong Community Centre (Eircode F31 PY97) at 8:00pm for departure at 8:30pm. There will be two prizes for bikes taking part in the Light Parade: (1) Best Lit Solo Bike and (2) Best Lit Trike or Sidecar Rig. Bikes will be judged by local dignitaries prior to departure. Prizes will be presented by the Mayor of Cong on return to the village where complimentary finger food will be served.

Members should organise their own accommodation but please be advised that booking in advance is recommended, particularly for those planning to stay in hotel or B&B type accommodation, as this will be a very busy weekend in the village.

Camping and camper van facilities are available at Lakeland House (see https://www.congcamping.com/ or https://www.lakelandhouse.net/ for more information).

Keep up-to-date on the festivities in the run up to the weekend by heading over to the Cong Food Village website (http://congfoodvillage.com/) or following them on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/congfoodvillage/).