Issue 14. Festival & Our Finest Olympian Fitzgerald 🏅🏅🏅

Good Morning and Welcome,

To issue No. 14 This week there’s a look back to Castlecove’s undercelebrated Olympian Eamonn Fitzgerald, all the CMAF you can handle & some deadly numbers. Another new sponsor too, it could be you next week, just get in touch.

Also your favourite game & a few more bits.

South Kerry by the numbers:

• 3,000,000: If, like many of us, you are wondering what to do with that spare 3 million in the account, you could be the next owner of the Royal Valentia Hotel, which went up for sale this week.

• 41.7: Is the average age of us living in Kenmare LEA. Never have I been so disappointed to learn I was above average.

• 77.8: Is the average age we stop living in the Kenmare LEA… Enjoy yourself, it’s later than you think.

First, a word from this week’s sponsor

Given we are fortunate enough to live somewhere that (ordinarily) enjoys the Sun’s radiation more than most of the country, you may well, like me, have thought about solar panels.

Whilst thinking about Solar panels I found myself drowning in questions. Can I put them on a flat roof? Will I ever be able to get anyone down to South Kerry? How do the grants work? Do they work on grey days (like today)?

Fortunately, I found gilroys.ie not only were my questions answered, but they were answered in a timely and knowledgeable fashion, the kind of knowledge that can only be gained through 30 years of experience. Martin Gilroy and his team were responsive, quick, competent and exceptional value. If you’ve any questions at all, just give them a call on 066 7115 920 and I guarantee they’ll know the answers.

In case you had the same questions as I did;

• Yes, they will come to South Kerry, our setup was up and running less than two weeks after ordering.

• Gilroys takes care of all the grants, I just filled out one form on the SEAI site, and they do the rest.

• Our solar panels are currently, yes, on a day like today, generating enough electricity to run the computer this newsletter is being written on. Mad.

Gilroys are in the process of putting together a special offer for Oracle readers, more on this next week!!!

Who was South Kerry’s finest Olympian?

I can’t remember enjoying an Olympics as much as I have this year. I’m not sure if it’s the sheer number of athletes we have involved, their performances, or watching these pioneers make history that makes it so compelling, but I’m hooked.

So hooked, I started to look for our own Olympic heroes from South Kerry, who are they? Where are their monuments?

Enter Eamonn Fitzgerald. Fitzgerald was born in Castlecove in 1903 and was part of the Irish Olympic Team in Los Angeles in 1932. Eamonn was one of Ireland’s most versatile athletes at the time, having won 3 Senior Football Championship medals with Kerry playing in different positions. In, what was likely a controversial decision at the time, Eamonn opted to pursue his athletics and gave up the opportunity to win a fourth medal in 1932 to compete for Ireland in the Hop, Step & Jump.

Eamonn was the Irish record holder in the event, what we’d now call the Triple Jump and in 1930 cleared 15.55m, a distance that would have seen him with a silver medal. Alas, an injury sustained in training curtailed his performance, eventually finishing fourth.

After the games, he retreated from his sporting and taught in Dublin until his death in 1958. Having never married and with few living relatives, his funeral was reportedly attended by just 7 mourners. He was still the Irish Triple Jump record holder at the time.

A plaque was unveiled in Castlecove in 1984 but really we should build this man a statue.

It’s The Signs of South Kerry 🎺🎺🎺

To keep things exciting, this week, we’ve gone indoors

Where’s this sign?

It’s more of a plaque in fairness. Do you know where it is? Click below to see just how clever you are

Congratulations to last week’s Winners 🍰🍰🍰

1. Ger Deasy, outstanding performance. For the second week running Ger was absolutely spot on. A prize is in order, just reply to the email to claim it.

Well done Ger. Apologies to the dozen or so of you who thought it was the Waterville Inn, it wasn’t.

Festival

The Cahersiveen Music & Arts Festival, CMAF, is upon us and is 100% guaranteed to be full of fun the weather can’t come close to spoiling. A revitalised team has put together a rejuvenated lineup with something for everyone to enjoy. All details here or here. Don’t forget to use the #cahersiveenfestival to show the festival committee just how much fun your having.

Everything Else

• Plenty of music around the place outside of the festival. Both The Lobster & The Villa in Waterville have music all weekend.

• Whilst today might not be the day for it, the Smugglers Inn’s new relaxation patio is available for private/shared bookings. You’d wonder how they could improve on that view, well, they have.

• Skellig Sauna are everywhere this weekend, well Cuas Crom, Ballinskelligs & St Finians Bay at least more here

• What’s the first rule of Valentia Islands Splash Club? I can’t tell you obviously, more here

Just Announced

Looks fascinating, doesn’t it? more here

Thanks

Heat recovery systems info coming very soon, bet you can’t wait.

If I’ve missed anything, you’d like to contribute or have news you think should be covered, just hit reply. Alternatively, you can just tag your posts #skoracle and I’ll pick them up.

Thanks for reading, for signing up, for following on socials, for sending over bits to be included. if you know anyone who might like this type of thing please send them on this email, and they can join below.

Good luck, be well

Dave

southkerryoracle.ie