Co Down man cycling 500 miles in memory of William Dunlop
Bike enthusiast to raise funds for late rider's family
A Holywood man has vowed to raise £5000, in a bid to help the late William Dunlop's grieving family.
The Ballymoney rider was killed in a crash at the Skerries 100 in Dublin in July 2018.
Adam Carroll from Holywood was a huge fan and says he has attended every North West 200 race meeting since he was four.
The 28-year-old paid tribute to William:
"William was a hero of mine, when he passed away it affected a lot of the motorcycle fans of Northern Ireland and myself.
"I just wanted to do something in his memory and my own personal tribute to help Janine and their two, young, children."
William died during a practice race for the event.
In a statement, Loughshinny Motorcyle Supporters Club confirmed his death back in July:
"The Loughshinny Motorcycle Supporters Club, organisers of the Skerries 100, deeply regrets to announce that competitor William Dunlop of Ballymoney, Co. Antrim, has passed away following injuries received in a tragic accident that occurred during practise which took place today 7th July 2018.
"The Loughshinny Motorcycle Supporters Club extends their heartfelt sympathy to William Dunlop's family and friends. Our thoughts and prayers are with them at this very sad time."
Adam told us he will never forget the moment he found out about William's death:
"I was shocked, I can remember... scrolling through Twitter and I was keeping an eye on the qualifying from the Skerries.
"I remember seeing the news that William was killed and I was just in shock.
"I dropped the phone and got quite emotional, I can remember it like yesterday.
"It took quite a long time to get over."
William was part of the renowned Dunlop dynasty with his dad Robert and uncle Joey both killed in racing accidents.
His brother Michael just recently returned to racing this season, after taking a break in the wake of William's death.
Adam told us the Dunlops are regarded as 'Gods' here:
"There's only one Dunlop family and the Dunlop dynasty are just everything to us fans.
"They are Gods of Northern Ireland, they're a huge part of the motorcycle community.
"Now it's left with Michael."
The 28-year-old plans to cycle over 500 miles across three international road race routes in May, with all the proceeds going to William's family.
He described the gruelling route which he plans to complete over four days:
"I'm going to be cycling on the first day from Holywood to the Ulster Grand Prix circuit where I'll do six laps of the Dundrod course.
"After Dundrod I'm going to the North West 200 circuit and doing six laps around that track.
"On day three I'm going to the Isle of Man and lapping three times the TT circuit and on day four I'm doing another three laps of the course, finishing at the TT grandstand."
Adam said he felt compelled to help support William's family after meeting his hero on a number of occasions:
"I was fortunate enough to train with William in a gym in Belfast a few years ago and I also got to know him when I was in Joey's bar in Ballymoney a few times.
"The odd night you'd be there watching the football and he'd be there.
"He was a down-to-earth guy and one of the nicest guys I knew who always had time for the fans.
"He was just so humble, he was just really shy and...didn't really have a lot of words to say but when he did he always had a smile on his face and was good craic," he said.
"He was just one of the lads," he added.
The 28-year-old shop assistant also hopes to gain support from four-time World Superbike Champion Jonathan Rea, who dedicated one of his races to William Dunlop in the wake of his death.
You can see more about Adam's journey here