Kilmacabea GAA Club in Co. Cork will jump into action on the upcoming bank holiday Monday (August 7) with a ‘Leap Dyno Day’ to raise funds for an astroturf development in the area.
Dynamometer testing will start at Kilmacabea GAA grounds, Leap, at 9:00a.m. A full complement of 100 vehicles is booked in.
The need for an astroturf facility was highlighted last winter when a ladies and youth team from Leap parish travelled to nearby Skibbereen to use an astroturf facility there to train. A rota of drivers shuttled the team members back and forth.
Those involved lamented the fact that while the local GAA grounds have a relatively new pitch and clubhouse near the village, there wasn’t an astroturf facility.
Dyno day
The astroturf fundraising began in earnest and the proposal of a dyno day took off to boost the coffers for a facility that is expected to cost over €250,000. It will be open to all club members, local schools and groups.
“A dynamometer or ‘dyno’ for short, is a device for simultaneously measuring the torque and rotational speed – revolutions per minute – of an engine, so that its instantaneous power may be calculated.
“Tractor horsepower may be calculated in this manner and a print out of the results will be available to the machines tested at the fundraiser,” the organising committee said.
Three dynamometers will be on-site from three local companies: McCarthy Plant and Agri Sales Ltd., Lisavaird; Shorten’s Garage, Ballineen; and MC & S Agri Sales, Bandon.
A regular dyno test would cost in the region of €200, according to the organisers. For this event only, machines will be tested for €50.
A huge tractor, truck and car run incorporating the scenic areas of Glandore, Tragumna, Baltimore, Lough Ine and Skibbereen, will take registrations on the day from 10:30a.m, starting at 12 noon sharp. It will be led out by the female drivers.
There will be also be a children’s toy-tractor run, on-site music with local musicians all day; an animal roadshow; food trucks; novelty events; Kilmacabea’s fittest-four obstacle course; and a car-seizing competition.
Other events on-site on the day will feature a coast guard display and side shows along with special guest appearances including Deputy Christopher O’Sullivan and others to be confirmed.
Present at the launch was Katie Shanahan who presents ‘Farming Now’ on the Sky platform. The local woman has included segments on the show from local agricultural shows in Dunmanway, Bandon and Clonakilty already this year and recently a piece on her local Leap Horse and Pony Show. Katie will attend on the day and take part in the tractor run.