Ras na mBan 2026 - Carlow Stage over Corrabut Gap

What to Expect

Ras na mBan is Ireland’s international women’s cycling stage race and 2026 marks its 20th edition, running from Wednesday 2 September to Sunday 6 September with Kilkenny again serving as race headquarters. The 2026 route is billed by the organisers as the most radical overhaul in years: six stages over five days, more than 400km of racing, three all-new stages and two new race locations, finishing with a time trial and a circuit race around Kilkenny Castle on the final day.

The reason it matters in Carlow is the new stage that crosses the county. It takes in not one but two ascents of Corrabut Gap on Mount Leinster, the long drag up onto the Blackstairs that local club cyclists use as their benchmark climb. A summit finish on the Gap makes this the hardest day of the week and, in a five-day race, very likely the stage that decides the overall standings. Road racing is free to watch from the verge, and a mountain-top finish is the best kind to spectate: the field splits on the climb and riders come past at walking-crowd distance rather than in a blur. The organisers publish the confirmed stage-by-stage route, timings and road closures on rasnamban.com in the weeks before the race.

Good to Know

• Race dates: Wednesday 2 to Sunday 6 September 2026
• Six stages over five days, more than 400km of racing, race HQ in Kilkenny
• The Carlow stage features two ascents of Corrabut Gap on Mount Leinster
• Free to watch from the roadside; no ticket needed
• Exact stage day, start time and route are published on rasnamban.com
• Expect rolling road closures on the climb; follow marshals’ directions

Getting There

Corrabut Gap is the pass over the Blackstairs on the Carlow side of Mount Leinster, in the south-east corner of the county beyond Myshall and Bunclody. It is a narrow upland road with very limited parking, so park well below the climb in a village and walk or cycle up rather than driving to the top on race day. Carlow town, about an hour from Dublin on the M9, is the nearest large base, and Kilkenny, the race headquarters, is around 45 minutes away.