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THE Burren Smokehouse in Lis- doonvarna has received it’s second major accolade in a week with the news that it has been selected as one of the fine foods which will be served at the launch of the Volvo Ocean Race in Spain on October 9.

The smokehouse was selected by Tourism Ireland in conjunction with Good Food Ireland to be part of the prestigious launch dinner which takes place in Alicante in Spain later Woo)

The world famous race will this year feature two Irish teams and has also an Irish stop for the first time Oe

Burren Smokehouse founder Bir-

gitta Curtin will represent Ireland at the event alongside Peter Ward of Artisan Food Produce.

The menu for the evening will fea- ture a number of dishes from the smokehouse including honey lemon and pepper hot smoked organic Irish salmon, hot smoked plain and spiced Irish mackerel, honey lemon and dill hot smoked organic Irish salmon, smoked organic Irish salmon and hot smoked Irish silver eel served with lemon wedges.

Other Irish dishes including Con- nemara Irish lamb, Sowan’s organic brown soda bread, beef from James Whelan’s Butchers in Tipperary and Country Choice Cheese will also be Oy NEO)

This news comes just after a week

after the Lisdoonvarna smoke house, along with St Tola Goats Cheese in Inagh, was asked to participate in the Good Food Ireland Award Showcase in Dublin.

The showcase, which took place last night, is one of Ireland foremost annual cullinary events.

‘The key objectives of these awards are to honour those members who epitomise this philosophy and to raise standards within the food and hospitality industry,” says Margaret Jeffares, Managing Director, Good Food Ireland.

“The Good Food Ireland philoso- phy is to prioritise the core indig- enous ingredients of Irish cuisine and promote local and artisan food producers. Members are independ-

ently assessed by an expert judging panel.”

Good Food Ireland is the only all- island food tourism marketing group. Members come together to be pro- moted under the brand.

It is a not for profit organisation and is driven by the industry in a bottom up approach.

The steering group, executive com- mittee and members all work on a voluntary basis.

The Good Food Ireland members vision is to grow Ireland as a food tourism destination by promoting to domestic and international visitors places to stay, eat, cook and shop that are all committed to using above all else Irish, local and artisan food pro- duce.

THE PROBLEM of algal bloom in Lough Derg is “destroying” an al- ready hard-pressed Clare tourist in- dustry, it has been claimed.

Calls have been made to speed up approval of sewerage schemes to stop raw sewerage ending up in the JEN cor

Speaking in the wake of the latest toxic bloom warning, with notices being placed at the lake-shore last week, Teresa Browne of East Clare

Tourism says solutions are not being implemented fast enough.

“I’ve been told by fishermen that there was raw sewerage in the river at Scariff and it follows that that flows into the lake. We’ve had this problem for years now and we’ve been promised a solution but it hasn’t happened yet”.

The tourism businesswoman said that the incidents of algal bloom had not been as frequent this year, largely due to high water.

‘The truth is that even if the weath-

er had been better, visitors wouldn’t be able to go into the water when there’s algal bloom. This is destroy- ing the tourism trade and things are difficult enough”.

While providing treatment plants around the lake are an important part of solving the problem, Teresa says things are not moving fast enough and season after season the lake is being hit by the toxic bloom.

“Look at Scariff – we have a whole new network of pipes almost finished but the money for the treatment plant

hasn’t been approved yet. When is that going to happen?”’

The warning signs on the shores of the lake are to alert people to the fact that there is blue-green toxic algae in the water, which can cause rashes in humans and have previously proved fatal to dogs.

High water temperatures have contributed to the toxic bloom, ac- cording to North Tipperary County Council, who were responsible for erecting the notices.

Local county councillor, Pat Hay-

es, says he is confident that approval will be given in the near future by the minister to finance tenders for the upgrading of the Scariff sewer- age treatment plant.

“Thing have improved in recent years. The Blue Flags for water qual- ity at Ballycuggeran and Mountshan- non are testament to that,’ he told

has learned.

Speaking during his visit to Clare on Friday, the Minister for Commu- nity, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Ea- mon O Cuiv said that his department would like to take a leading role on a project to reopen the railway as a

tourist location.

“There is huge potential in cycle based tourism in Clare. Cyclists want to be out in the countryside but they don’t want to have to battle their way around traffic on small country roads. That is why I think that the idea of opening the old West Clare Railway track as a cycling way is an idea with huge potential,” he said.

“We would need the good will of a lot of landowners but I feel that this project is a very viable one that the

department can support. The com- munity has to be behind the project. If they are really concerned about the challenges facing the tourist industry in Clare then this project is one that they can take a positive step with. “If people can take a larger view and pool their resources on this I be- lieve it can be achieved. Clare has always been at the forefront in terms of innovation in the tourism sector – right back from the early days at Bunratty and place like that. If we

all work together then this slump is something that we can overcome.”

O’Cuiv admitted that areas of Clare had been under funded in the past but said that he viewed this as a chal- lenge for the future rather than a vote of no confidence.

“It is true that things have not been developed to their full potential but I would take a totally different view on this that calling it a failure. We are where we are in terms of history, and I think that it is great to see that

there are things that are still to be done,’ he said.

“There is no point of focussing on the developments that were not com- pleted in the past, I would always prefer to focus on the challenge of completing these development in the future. We would be in a bad situa- tion if we woke up one morning and discovered that all that had to be de- veloped was already developed, that would be a very depressing situation indeed.”

THERE are some stories that are too good to be left untold. Like that Spring afternoon back in 1934, when a plane fell from the sky in a field in Moy and the attention of the world was all on north Clare.

Decades before Air Lingus or Shannon Airport had even been conceived, the crashing landing of the Leonardo daVinci in a field in Clooneyogan made national headline in Dublin, New York and Rome.

Piloted by American Captain George Pond and Italian Lieutenant Sesare Sabelli, it was attempting to become the first craft ever to fly from the US all the way to Italy. As we ap- proach the 75th anniversary of the crash, a group of locals are planning

the first formal commemoration of the flight of the deVinc1.

“Their goal was to fly direct from New York to Rome. At the time that would have broken the distance record for flying across the Atlantic. It had been tried before on a few oc- casions be they hadn’t made it,” said Michael Hayes of the Moy Historical Society.

“The left from New York and after 33 hours of fling they crash landed in Clooneyogan.

‘The plane had bad engine trouble during the crossing and more than once Pond had to clime out on the wing and fix a problem with the fuel Wb avery

‘There was a lot of competition to be the first to do it and when they crashed in Moy they were of the

opinion that their fuel lies had been tapered with. They were trying to do an emergency landing at Lahinch but the tide was in so they had to circle – but they eventually ran out of fuel and crashed here in Moy.”

After landing in Moy they were re- ceived by Eamon de Valera in Dub- lin before returning to Clare to finish their journey.

After encountering more engine trouble they landed in Wales before eventually landing in Rome on June 12 where they were greeted by Pope Pius XII and Mussolini.

The Moy Historical Society are compiling information on the flight and are trying to raise enough money to commemorate next years anniver- Se HMe

We have contact both the Ameri-

can and Italian embassies and they are keen on the idea,’ continued Michael.

“Michael McTigue is putting to- gether the place but we are looking for anyone who has information on the plane but also for anyone who might be interested in sponsoring the plaque and helping us to get this project off the ground.”

For more information § contact Michael Hayes on 087 9025283 or Colm Hennessy on 086 8123811.

FOURTEEN rural roads in Clare will benefit from €376,399 funding under the 2008 CLAR Programme. The projects, which are co-funded by the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs and the

Department of the Transport were proposed by Clare County Council.

According to Minister of State and local TD Tony Killeen, the CLAR fund is an investment programme designed to tackle the problem of de- population, decline and lack of serv- ero UO Melee D Er: Dustakce

He said the grant allocation to GETMAIN Yee elena Zounlae meu tcaatshyI of all allocations received by local authorities in Ireland, would be of enormous benefit to local commu- nities. The allocations were deter- mined by the county’s percentage of the total population in CLAR areas.

The roads to benefit under the 2008 Programme are at Ballyartney, Coolmeen (€49,880); Decomade, Clondagad (€27,/720); Cloontabon- niv, Kinturk (€22,000); Mount Cal- lan, Formoyle (€50,000);

Lehaknock, Killanniv (€20,000); Ballyvaskin (€25,000); Tullygarvan,

Moy (€13,000); Killanniv, Kilma- ley (€15,000); Derryabbert, Ayle (€24,000); Ballylaghnan, Ogonnel- loe (€32,000); Magherabaun, Ayle (€44,000); Clogholia, Castlecrine (€13,399); Hurdlestown, Kilseily (€20,000) and Ballydonnell/Fahy, Fahymore (€20,000).

ONE of West Clare’s greatest sport- ing heroes returned to his home patch yesterday as the county’s most successful dog trainer, Pat Curtin, returned to his roots at Mullagh Na- tional School.

Pat, who himself attended the na- tional school in years gone by, re- turned to where his nephews now go to school to show the students his recently won trophy for the Irish Greyhound Derby.

Earlier this month Shelbourne As- ton, which is trained and co-owned by Pat, picked up the €175,000 first prize for winning the Paddypower.

com Irish Derby. This was Clare’s first Irish Derby success in 39 years and has already been described as one of the greatest finals ever with Shelbourne Aston passing out four other dogs in the last 75 yards.

The victory insured both dog and trainers place in history as Shel- bourne Aston became only the third greyhound ever to win both the Champion Stakes and Irish Derby.

“It’s great to have Pat back down to us. He is a past pupil of the school and he now has the very successful Ballygodoon Stud up in Tipperary,” said Connie Sexton of Mullagh Na- tional School.

‘His two nephews now go to school

with us here in Mullagh. All the school is very proud of him. It’s great to have someone who came out of Mullagh do so well. His father was always a great greyhound man here in the village as well so there is a ereat family tradition in it.

‘There is a great interest in grey- hounds locally and Pat would be a relation of the Doherty’s in Coora- clare who were the last people from Clare to win the Derby.”

Pat holds joint ownership of the dog in partnership with Noel Hehir and Margaret Montgomerie. Shelbourne Aston is the son of Just The Best and Queen Survivor is now expected in the English St Leger at Wimbledon.

‘No other dog has ever done the Irish Derby and the St Leger back-to- back and that’s something I’d love to do. And the Leger is over 660 yards which would suit the dog down to the ground,’ Pat said after the race.

“But we’ve still to make up our minds on what exactly we’re going to do. Over the past two days, there’s been a lot of interest from Australia and the United States, but we haven’t made any decision yet.”

EXPECT plenty of fun and games at the Share A Dream Foundation’s annual party bonanza, which takes place in the West County Hotel on Sunday October 26.

The foundation’s ‘Dream Hallow- een Party’ for all special children in mid-west region was launched yes- terday in Ennis.

Each year the Share a Dream Foun- dation organise a concert/party for sick, disabled and children with chronic illnesses and their siblings in different parts of the country.

Silom oy-Vuava sU me corclneuuom olorule)meer-veer es by boybands, pop singers, enter-

tainers and hip hop dancers. The fun doesn’t end there with face painters, characters and lots more including a goody bag filled with treats for all the family.

A spokesperson for the Share A Dream Foundation said the annual party has always been enthusiastical- ly supported and this year promises to be no different.

“Share a Dream rely totally on con- tributions from the public and it is only your very kind support that we can continue making dreams come ture and creating smiles for very spe- oF el abe lehno eee

In the 17 years that the charity has been in existence it has made dreams

come true for over 17,000 children. At present 127 children’s charities from around Ireland benefit from the wonderful work and fun activi- ties organised by the Share a Dream Foundation.

Share a Dream organise parties, concerts, outings, holidays, special events. One child may wish to meet their favourite character, another wants to be a fireman for the day.

The Share A Dream Foundation was established in Limerick by Shay Kinsella in 1989 with the purpose of making dreams a reality for sick children all over Ireland and to date it has managed to create a smile for thousands of children in Ireland.

Share A Dream makes individual dreams come true for sick children no matter what their illness or dis- ability. The spokesperson added, “If you have a special child or work with sick or disabled children, you can contact us for a special family pass.”

For further information on how to obtain passes for the ‘Dream Hal- loween Party’ phone 061 343434 or email dreams @iol.ie today”.

DOCTORS in Clare have reported an increase in the numbers coming to them seeking a second opinion, following the two recent misdiagno- sis at Ennis General Hospital.

Last week the Health Service Exec- utive issued a statement urging peo-

ple who are concerned about tests carried out at Ennis General Hospital to contact their local GP and arrange for a new test to be carried out.

One west Clare doctor believes that while there is concern among the pa- tients she is seeing, there is faith in Ennis General Hospital.

“T have had some people 1n to me in

the last week who are worried and if they are worried then they have the right to be re-tested,”’ said the doctor, who asked not to be identified. ‘There 1s concern in the area, but I would stop short of saying that there is panic. The key thing 1s, if people are not sure then the best thing for them to do is get it checked again, for

peace of mind if nothing else.”

However, Ennistymon based doc- tor, Gerry Wheeler said that to date, he has not been contacted by anyone concerning a re-test.

“The HSE sent around a form last week telling anyone who is unsure or who has concerns over a test to have a recheck. They also advised anyone

in that situation to contact their local GP,’ he said.

“To date however, I have not been contacted by anyone from the area who has concerns. I don’t know whether that means that no one in this area has worries over the situa- tion or not but factually, no-one has contacted me so far.”

THE ACHIEVEMENTS of young people who took up the challenge of getting an education will be cel- ebrated this week at a special awards ceremony in Spanish Point.

The Clare VEC Youthreach Awards night, which takes place every three years, will be held in the Armada Hotel on October 2 at 7pm and eve- ryone is invited.

A lucky thirteen sucessful students will be presented with their awards in areas ranging from Applied Leav- ing Certificate studies to Food and Nutrition, Interpersonal Skills and modules such as Maths and English.

The Youthreach Programme was set up in Ennistymon in 1990 in the Community centre and from there moved to a vacant office and work

space in a local factory, Data Display in 1992.

When the VTOS programme fin- ished in the old vocational school in Milltown Malbay in June 1996, the Youthreach programme moved from Ennistymon into the rent-free build- ing in Miltown Malbay.

The Ennistymon/Doolin/Lidoon- varna students were then transported by bus to the centre. Students also came from Miltown Malbay, Quilty and Mullagh.

And since then, dozens of young people who have either left school early or decided to pursue a differ- ent route than that of the standard secondary school education have availed of learning and training op- portunities with Youthreach.

‘As well as the academic subjects we offer vocational training a sup-

port through jobs skills training, work experience interview skills and personal development,’ said co-ord1- nator, Josephine Dempsey.

Young people usually come to Youthreach from school but some have ventured out into the world of work and decided to return to im- prove their abilities and qualifica- tions and in turn, their job opportu- nities.

As well as being helped to find their niche by the scheme’s two career guidance teachers, the young peo- ple are catered for in small classes, working at their own level.

“We have very good working rela- tionships with employers and schools in the area, so we can also give sup- port once they have completed their studies and training and we track what is happening with the students

when they leave,” said Josephine.

A glance at the results of all that hard work for this year’s Youthreach graduates shows that the plan works. All have either found employment or are continuing their studies, with one student gone on to college.

“We usually have a 100 per cent take-up with people either finding employment or going on to further education,” said Josephine.

The awards night will be for those students who completed their sub- jects in 2007 and 2008.

Anyone who would like further information about the opportunities available with Youthreach or any of the VEC courses can get details in the Adult Education handbook from libraries or post offices or by email from yrmilltownmalbay@eircom. ate

A BID to promote awareness of breast cancer lies behind the Create A Cure event in the West County Hotel on Friday, October 10.

A cheese and wine reception will be followed by a pottery and paint- ing session where participants will craft their own ceramic design.

The ladies-only event continues with music courtesy of the band Happy Days. Vouchers and goodie bags will also be handed out on the pubrea al

But the main reason for putting on

the event, as outlined by organiser Siobhan Tierney, is to raise money for breast cancer charities in Ireland and promote awareness of the dis- ease.

“IT have not been directly affected by cancer, but everyone knows some- body that has,” said Siobhan. She continues, “Awareness was the main reason for doing it, more so than rais- ing the money. The more women that are aware, the better. Early detection is hugely important.”

Breast cancer is the second most common cancer in Ireland after non- melanomatous skin cancer. Accord-

ing to Breast Cancer Ireland, Irish statistics note that breast cancer ac- counts for 28 per cent of all cancers in women in Ireland, with an average of 1726 new diagnosis each year.

Organisations like the Irish Cancer Society and Breast Cancer Ireland are among those working to high- light the issue.

“TI think the kind of work they do is amazing and after the event last year we wanted to support them again”, said Siobhan

Last year’s Create A Cure event attracted 160 people and Siobhan is hoping 250 people will be attendance

in the West County next Friday.

“It was very popular we got great sponsorship from local businesses last year, everyone supported us. I think there was almost €30 worth of vouchers given to each attendee.

“It was good fun last year. There were over 100 women in the room. I think there were only two men, the band.

“Tt was a bit like a Joe Dolan con- cert. It’s a really great, different night out for women”.

Tickets for the event cost €30 and are available from the Craft Box, Quin Road, Business Park.