Full steam ahead for Cork engine operators for road run

A heritage steam engine road run will take place next week, starting in Kildare and ending in Halfway in Ballinhassig in Cork.

Beginning on May 24, it will take the 14 large steam engines and three model engines a week to make the journey.

Among those taking part will be a third generation steam engine enthusiast from Cork, and a Kinsale man who developed a love for the vehicles when a neighbour was doing one up when he was a child.

The road run event is organised by the Irish Steam Engine Owners’ Association (ISEOA) and has taken place every five years since 2000. It was postponed in 2020 because of covid and that event took place in 2022 instead.

This year’s run is in aid of the Irish Wheelchair Association (IWA).

Chris Glynn, a founding member of the ISEOA, said: “It is good for everyone involved.

“The steam engine enthusiasts want to keep the heritage of steam engines alive, while at the same time collecting funds for a good cause”

En route, the engines will stop at towns and villages for people to see the vintage vehicles.

Chris strongly believes that it is important to keep our heritage alive. She said: “We don’t want to see the old traditions dying, or the vintage vehicles being taken off the road. It’s very important to show the younger generations what the engines are.”

The steam engines will also be stopping at schools along the route so that the students can experience the engines first-hand.

The vintage vehicles involved will be coming from all over Ireland and the United Kingdom.

The ISEOA was founded in 1998 by James Glynn and Benny O’Gorman, and members of both these men’s families are still involved.

Mr O Gorman’s granddaughter, Caitlin O’Gorman, who lives in Cork, is a third generation steam enthusiast and will be driving in the road run.

There will be two engines travelling from Cork. These will be transported to Kildare, where they will then make the road journey back to Cork on their own ‘steam’.

Andrew Cast, from Kinsale, who is now in his thirties, has been a steam engine enthusiast since the age of ten. There weren’t any steam engines in his family. However, Andrew recalled how he originally got involved.

“I was influenced by a neighbour in Kinsale called Tim Nagle. He was an engineer, who was a sewing machine mechanic in Kinsale. He bought a steam engine back in the 1970s in Wexford and restored it over 22 years.”

He didn’t know it at the time, but to this day it’s the oldest working steam engine in the world, dating to 1878.

Andrew remembered how he would call to his old neighbour’s house and sit on the wall and watch him steaming up the engine, getting it ready for the St Patrick’s Day parade or the Innishannon Steam Rally.

Mr Nagle used to store his engine with Alan and Mary Barry in Halfway. The Barry family, who have always been very involved with the ‘steam family’, used to host vintage days and thrashing days. They established a tradition that Halfway became the epicentre in Cork for anything vintage.

Mr Cast always had an ambition to own his own steam engine, and in 2017 he went to an auction in the UK and bought one.

Andrew explained that he put a lot of work into it and gave it a full overhaul. However, none of the internal working parts have been changed since it was manufactured in 1930, in Rochester in Kent.

His engine, called Sir Kay, will be taking part in the road run.

Alan and Mary, who own the Ramble Inn in Halfway, have had a huge influence on the steam engine community. The family have their own steam engine and are a huge support to the ISEOA. They will be taking part in the road run.

When vintage road runs finish in Cork, they always end in Halfway, where members are welcomed into the Ramble Inn to ‘restore’ themselves after their adventure.

The poignant thing about this road run is that, on the Monday following the event this year, Alan and Mary, after more than 50 years looking after the public and particularly the steam enthusiasts, are going to cease trading in the Ramble Inn.

Andrew Cast said: “There are a lot of members taking part in the road run from all over Ireland and the UK so that they can help to give Alan and Mary Barry a big send-off at the end, as it’s the end of an era”.

There will be more than 40 people helping to drive the engines. It is very much a family event, where second and third generations are continuing the tradition of driving the engines.

The road run will start at Redhouse, Co. Kildare, at noon on Saturday, May 24. They hope to travel the 21 miles that day and arrive at Tracy’s of the Heath by 6pm.

The engines can drive at a pace of 4-18 miles an hour, depending on the size of the engine. Driving them is very hard work as the engine has to be constantly fed coal and water to drive the steam.

Prior to 2022, when smoke-free coal was made mandatory, the engine owners used to get sponsored by Bord na Móna to cover the cost of the coal used in heritage events. However, now they have to import a specialised steam coal from the north of Ireland and the UK.

The average cost of the whole journey, depending on the size of the engine, will be €550. This cost is paid by the engine owners.

Members of the Irish Wheelchair Association will be collecting with buckets and QR codes for the charity along the route. Every cent collected goes directly to the charity.

The road run will stop at Durrow, Urlingford, Mitchelstown, Rathcormac, and finally reach Halfway at 6pm on Friday, May 30.

More details can be found on the ISEOA road run Facebook page.

Please stop and admire this magnificent demonstration of our heritage on their journey if you get the chance, and if you are in the position to support the charity, please do so.