Meet Kevin O’Meley, an extraordinary individual with a passion for cycling despite facing the challenges of vision impairment. Through sheer determination and profound love for the sport, Kev has proven that obstacles are merely opportunities to push the boundaries. In only three years of tandem racing, this Southern Highlands local has racked up quite the list of achievements in spite of having less than 10 degrees of peripheral vision remaining. Kev participated in last year’s Bowral Classic completing the 120km Challenge Classic with pilot cyclist and friend Richard Vollebregt. We caught up with the 51-year-old to discuss all things cycling ahead of this year’s event.
How long have you been racing?
I have ridden bicycles most of my life, riding endurance rides with my brother in our youth. Back in July 2020 I contacted the Southern Highlands Cycling Club asking if they knew of anyone that would be keen to take on the tandem pilot position for competition riding. The club came back quite quickly with a yes. Richard and I started training soon after and entered club races. Over the years Richard has become a friend and a mentor, encouraging me to continue racing. After racing and training twice a week we decided to enter the State Championships. Fronting up to our first competition – we came in second, some 1.5mins behind the winner of the time trial. This was an eye opener for what is required to be competitive. Since that day I have trained hard in my goal to become the best I can. Those days paid off and in 2021 we entered the National Championships in the B (Blind) Tandem para-cycle category for time trial and Road Race. We won the time trial and became National Champions at our first attempt, and placed 3rd in the Road Race. I have competed in many competitions in the three years Richard & I have been racing.
Tell us about riding a tandem – how is it to ride? How often do you head out? What kind of comments do you get when out and about?
Riding the tandem, you need to have a lot of trust in your pilot’s ability and bike handling skills. When riding or racing there needs to be communication between the pilot and the stoker so to be as smooth as possible in controlling the bike. What I mean is don’t be like a sack of potatoes and flop around on the back, this puts the bike off balance making it hard to steer, balance and control in general.
My tandem is quite good to ride, although awkward in tight situations to turn. Over the years I have made upgrades to make it smoother and faster. During the winter months we ride twice a week and in summer about four times, this includes racing at the local velodrome. “Oh there’s two of you on the bike”, “How do you pedal in sync so easily!?”,”Who does the most work?”, “Does the stoker have brakes on his handlebars?”, “Who controls the gears and brakes?” and “Do you fight?” are common questions we receive.
Being vision impaired, cycling must be so liberating and enjoyable, would you like to tell us more about what cycling means to you?
Being vision impaired makes life challenging. I have an eye condition called Retinitis pigmentosa (RP for short). It’s an inherited eye disease that slowly deteriorates your peripheral vision. Having a good group of people around me makes it a little easier. Being able to get out on the tandem has meant I have a friend that is encouraging and tries hard to understand my limitations, making getting out enjoyable even though when we go out it’s training training training and very little social riding. Racing is the best part of riding my tandem, I train hard to be competitive and experience that feeling of exhilaration.
Are you training for the Bowral Classic? What are your go-to training tips?
I don’t train specifically for the Bowral Classic as I am always training. As the date approaches I tend to do more hill climbs on my indoor trainer using various APPS.
My tips are, practice hill climbs to get that endurance up. Have a nutrition and fueling strategy sorted before the day – there’s no point trying something new on the day.The Bowral Classic is challenging and you don’t want to be caught out and not finish.
What do you love about the Southern Highlands, and what’s your advice to others thinking about riding this year’s Bowral Classic Event?
I’ve lived in the Southern Highlands most of my life and the countryside is what I like most. The variation in the areas as you move around the shire makes you glad to live here and not in a city. My advice to others doing the Bowral Classic is to take in the scenery, stop and take a photo. Keep hydrated and keep up the nutrition during the ride.
Join Kevin for the 7th Bowral Classic this October 21-22. With three road courses to choose plus the thrilling Bowral Crit. Experience the Southern Highlands the best way we know how – on two wheels. Register here.
