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SPORTING PHARMACISTS


on his


BIKE!


In thE LatESt of oUr ‘SPortIng PharmacIStS’, PIf SPEaKS to croSSgar PharmacISt PhILIP BoYLE aBoUt hIS LoVE of cYcLIng…


t


he huge crowds who turned out to watch giro D’Italia in 2014 clearly showed how


popular cycling in general - and road racing in particular - are in the province. Philip Boyle, pharmacist at Pharmacy Plus in crossgar, has enjoyed a love affair with the sport for more than a quarter of a century!


‘there’s no doubt that cycling has been a major passion of mine since early adulthood,’ Philip told Pif. ‘When I first started out I was involved in easy cycling and a few charity runs with friends, but then, when some friends decided to get involved in more long-haul tours abroad, it became more of a passion than simply a hobby.


‘the first long-haul trip I did with friends was to california in 2001 the year after a cycling friend completed a trans-USa trip with Dublin based club Blazing Saddles. In 2004, I joined up again with the Blazing Saddles and completed six mountain stages of that year’s tour de france route which was particularly difficult, since it included both the alps and the Pyrenees. In 2006, my friends and I did another Blazing Saddles tour to


South africa, which, I have to admit, was pretty epic.


‘Each country that we cycled across had its own beauty and attractions, and that was one of the key things that also appealed to me about cycling. In addition to my love of the sport, I was also able to experience different cultures and landscapes.’


having qualified in 1995, Philip began his pharmacy career in newry, then moved to Belfast where he worked with Paul cooper in his pharmacy. Just over 24 years ago, the then crossgar Pharmacy contractor, frank murray, invited Philip to join him in his county Down business and he has been there ever since.


‘When I first started out in pharmacy, I had more free time to be able to indulge in hobbies such as my cycling,’ says Philip, who lives in the nearby picturesque village of Strangford but, as any pharmacist today will tell you, the amount of free time that you have is very much restricted. to be able to complete such gruelling cycling trips, I had to stay in tip-top physical condition, and I had to work very hard to maintain


my fitness levels. I doubt I would have the time to do that now.


‘at my peak I was cycling quite a few times a week. thursday nights were club races with Banbridge cycle club and I particularly enjoyed the focus on time trials, but at least two other nights a week I trained on my own, and at least once a week – usually on a Sunday – I would have completed a long-haul run of between 70 and 80 miles.’


Despite his love of the sport, and as a healthcare professional, however, Philip was very aware of the dangers linked to road racing.


‘after I got back from South africa, I continued with both the club and open road racing, but, after about six months, I realised that the open racing was becoming too dangerous. I was involved in at least a few ‘rodeos’ with other riders and I realised how messy the situation could be at times, so I decided to just focus on club racing.


‘from that point on, I became more involved in leisure tours and sportives. these are single-day tours for cyclists


PharmacY In focUS - 33


and usually feature a particular club in a local area. they provide the riders with a major day-long challenge of around 60-100 miles, but there’s a great social element to them as well.


‘I still train – in fact, I’m just back from nice where I rode with a friends from Phoenix cycling club – but not to the degree that I once did. During the colder months, I still do a bit of hillwalking, trail running and mountain biking - particularly around the trails at nearby castleward. I would like to be fitter, but, for the time being, I’m relatively happy with quality miles interrupted by the occasional coffee stop!’


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