Delegates attending the 2013 Automotive Forum, organised by the Irish Motoring Writers Association (IMWA) and sponsored by Continental Tyres, were given a glimpse of some of the new and emerging automotive technologies that will soon be a key feature of the cars we drive. Just imagine your car communicating with the road infrastructure and other road users to warn you about traffic jams or an accident up ahead; then imagine being able to stream music and video material from the internet through your car’s audio-visual system and being able to consult apps from the dashboard that provide information about restaurants, hotels or shopping options on your drive route. However, what of the distraction potential for drivers who are facing information overload in this brave new world of motoring? An audience from motoring, road safety and other sectors came together today at the RDS in Dublin to hear two expert international speakers talk about how car technology is changing the role …

THE rich history and heritage of two well-known landmarks on the outskirts of Ennis were graphically illustrated during a recent outing as part of National Heritage Week. Last Friday evening, more than 40 people gathered for an outing organised by heritage officer, Congella McGuire and the Clare Archaeological and Historical Society. Society secretary, Edel Greene, and Ms McGuire led the group around the old church and graveyard at Templemaley and the adjacent Ballyhee Cut. Templemaley Church dates back to around the 10th or 11th century and very little is known about its founding saint, Maley, although his name lives on in Kilmaley and was previously associated with a spring well at Fountain, known as Tobermaley. In the 1830s, locals believed the church was founded by St Finghin of Quin and his feast day had previously been celebrated there. According to Ms Greene, Templemaley may have been a small monastic site that became a parish church after the church reforms of …

FOR the last 40 years, children have been receiving education in prefabs at St Conaire’s Primary School but that’s coming to an end this week. A new extension has been built, removing the need for them. Speaking on Monday, headmaster Peter Walsh gave some details of the new extension. “We’re opening it on Thursday. There’ll be three new classrooms and I suppose we’ll have been 60 and 70 children there, about 22 or 23 in each room. They’ll be replacing three prefabs that we had rented for about seven years.” He said he is very pleased with the standard of the new classrooms. “They’re fantastic, built to the highest spec. They were designed by Paul Conway and built by Dermot Custy Construction. They’re excellent. They have the best of insulation and they were designed for modern education needs. They were designed to fit an awkward site as well, so there was a lot of work done between the school and …

GARDAÍ investigating three arson attacks at houses at Beech Park halting site in Ennis, and separately a further arson attack of a house in Ashline halting site last week, say no arrests have been made. The latest arson attack occurred between 12am on Tuesday, August 20 and 9am on Wednesday, August 21 when three unoccupied houses in Beech Park halting site in Ennis were damaged by fire. Some form of accelerant was used to douse the buildings. Although it did not ignite, considerable smoke damage was caused to the interiors. The arson attacks have been condemned by the chairman of Clare County Council’s Local Traveller Accommodation Consultative Committee (LTACC) Councillor Brian Meaney, who said these arsons exemplify taxpayers’ money “going up in smoke”. He claimed more than €34 million has been invested in Traveller-specific accommodation in the county over a 12-year period, since Clare County Council embarked on a project to provide housing and caravan bays for members of the …

THE discovery of iron fittings attached to old sluice gates in Ennis dating back to the mid-1800s has been described as significant find in the industrial heritage of the county town. That’s the view of Clare County architectural conservation officer and archaeologist, Risteard UaCróinín after archaelogists from Limerick-based ÆGIS Archaeology Limited found a large volume of iron cogs, ratchets, bolts and other iron fitting totalling about a ton, which came from old sluice gates, near the Fish Pass on the Mill Road. These ironworks are now in the possession of Ennis Town Council and may be exhibited at a future date. Consulant archaeologist Frank Coyne, who was part of the team monitoring flood-relief works in the town since last March, agrees this find is very important in assessing the industrial heritage of the town. “They were part of the sluice gates controlling the River Fergus dating to the mid-1800s. The sluice gates rotted and they fell into the river. The …

MC Banner, the singer with MC Banner and the Killaloolas, whose popular song The Banner’s Back Again, is fast becoming a big hit with Clare fans, has taken his devotion to the Clare team and their manager to new levels. For the past two weeks, he has been working on a statue of Clare manager, Davy Fitzgerald. He will erect the statue on his front lawn in time for Sunday week’s All-Ireland Final. MC is a potter by trade and is fusing clay and concrete to create his lifesize Fitzgerald. “I think it’s going to look a lot like Davy but my wife doesn’t think so. She’s not mad about the idea at all at all but she understands my devotion to the Clare team. I checked with all the neighbours and they have no problem with it. One of them is knitting a jumper for it for the winter,” MC Banner revealed. MC will rig an MP3 player to …

A PLAN to show the All-Ireland hurling final on a big screen in Ennis has resulted in mixed reactions. It has been suggested the idea could negatively impact on pubs, hotels and restaurants that would otherwise benefit from the day, although members of the business community do not appear to see this as a material issue, according to town manager Ger Dollard. “The views of all members of Ennis Town Council have also been canvassed and there is unanimous support for such a proposal if it is financially and logistically feasible and would receive public support,” he said. Ennis Chamber CEO Rita McInerney said the overall consensus among members is the benefits of providing a big screen as part of a major event would outweigh any possible negatives. The town council is to make a decision later this week if it will organise a large event at a town centre venue and provide a big screen for supporters who are …

AS the scramble for All-Ireland hurling final tickets continues, 16-year-old, Sean McCaw has no worries about gaining admission to Croke Park for the big game. The Dublin-born teenager will have a special role in the drama of the occasion. A member of the Artane Boys Band, Sean will make his debut as the drum major and will lead the famous band in the traditional parade and playing of the National Anthem. Living in Artane, Sean has been with the band since he was eight and joined the band proper at the age of 12. “Sean usually plays the trumpet but the drum major is on a trip to Lourdes and Sean has been given that role for the All-Ireland final,” his father Jimmy, who hails from Ennistymon, told The Clare Champion. Jimmy is a member of the teaching staff at Brunswick Street in Dublin. The McCaw name is synonymous with Ennistymon where Sean’s grandfather, the late Joe, spent many years …