Adare Run April 2022

Cars started to arrive on Saturday evening and were securely locked indoors. Participants have travelled far and wide, from Northern Ireland, Donegal, Dublin, Cork.  Most of those who arrived on Saturday stayed in Adare and enjoyed the local food and hospitality.

From 9.30am on Sunday morning, Drive it Day, cars started to arrive and we had a total of 25 cars and about 60 people. Unfortunately, a couple of cars were not ready in time however their owners still came for the spin.  Marian was up early as was Aoife preparing freshly made scones and cakes which went down a treat. 

We left the garage at 11.30am Irish time and travelled through Adare arriving at the palatine museum, in Rathkeale, where Austin Bovenizer gave a talk on the history of the palatines.  The museum is located at the start of the limerick greenway and has a lovely coffee shop as part of the museum. 

On their website they record the event thus:

Recent visitors to the Irish Palatine Museum

Last Sunday, 24th of April 2022 saw the first large group of visitors to the Irish Palatine Museum since the outbreak of Covid-19.  Driving their Model T Fords and dressed in period costume, the very colourful group consisting of up to fifty people, arrived at approximately 12.00 noon.  With the distinct sound of vintage engines in the air, these beautiful and precious machines were carefully parked before drivers and passengers disembarked.  

We presented a brief account of the Irish Palatine story to all assembled before browsing through our exhibition and enjoying a cup of coffee in the coffee shop.  This group of Model T’s, their owners, family and friends had gathered in County Limerick for the weekend where local Model T owner, David Cuddy and his wife Marian, had organised this veteran car run on local roads using some of the interesting stops along the Limerick Greenway route for the group.  The event certainly was a most uplifting experience for all on the day.

We then left at 12.50 and with the help of the Gardai, who safely assisted us in crossing the busy N21 and we proceeded to the Ardagh greenway, Ardagh being best known where the Ardagh chalice was found.  The Ardagh Station House and Abbeyfeale Railway Goods Shed along the Limerick Greenway will once again welcome visitors thanks to funding from the Rural Regeneration Development Fund.  A total of €600,000 has been allocated to Limerick City and County Council for the projects in Ardagh and Abbeyfeale in the latest tranche of funding by the Department of Rural and Community Development. 

The funding provides for the development of detailed plans  to renovate the heritage buildings and sites adjacent to the Limerick Greenway providing improved visitor services and experiences for the public and visitors along the Limerick Greenway.  This in turn will provide a range of benefits to the adjacent villages and the population in the surrounding area in the long term.  The projects involve a detailed technical design for the re-development of Ardagh Station House and site as a railway-themed experience along the Limerick Greenway and the re-development of a Railway Goods Shed building at Abbeyfeale to host Limerick Greenway services.

We then left Ardagh, travelled through Newcastlewest and onwards through Ballingarry and on to view the Croom round tower.  Dysert Oenghusa Church is found near Croom, County Limerick. The site’s previous monastery was the first mentioned in history, in 1083. A 20m-high round tower sits adjacent to the church.  The present church dates back to the 15th or 16th century, but previously the site housed a monastery that was the first mentioned in history, in 1083.

We left Croom and meandered to Woodlands hotel for a lovely lunch.  We arrived back to the garage at 16.45 where the cars were loaded on to their trailers, chat and finally good bye to all our friends.

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