Happy New Year, for 2019!

Happy new year, to one and all, for 2019!

For 2018, I didn’t fit in as much cycling as I’d hoped for – didn’t even breach the 1000 km mark! This was partly due to my coming off my bike, around mid-2018, and giving it a break for a couple of months. 2019, though, will be different.

In 2017, I rode my bike, from Sydney to Melbourne, in support of FightMND. It was 925 km of something I’d never done before – cycling day after day, at an average of around 70 km per day (13 cycling days). This year, 2019, I will be doing another Cycle Against the Beast ride, cycling from Sydney to Melbourne for FightMND again (a donation page will be set up later in the year – probably around the beginning of July). The distance will be twice as long, this time – about 1800 km. The route will take me through some pretty remote areas of New South Wales and Victoria. One of the highlights will be passing through the small NSW town of Ungarie (at about 500 km into my ride), which is the home town of the Daniher family (quite famous in AFL – Australian Football League – circles). Neale Daniher is one of the founders of FightMND, who suffers from MND himself. Ungarie is also home to the Big Sherrin – a giant replica Aussie Rules football.

I will also be passing through Shepparton (I passed through Shepparton on 2017’s ride), Bendigo, Hamilton, and my old primary school home town of Warrnambool, before taking part of the Great Ocean Road, and on to Melbourne. I plan to have a GPS tracker with me, so you’ll be able to see where I am!

So what does the Members’ Entry, to the SCG, have to do with this post? I’ve decided to start the ride from the SCG (Sydney Cricket Ground), on the 5th of October, and end at the MCG (Melbourne Cricket Ground) – intending to be the 1st of November. I figure it will take me about four weeks, and will likely be doing a lot of camping along the way.

This ride will also be my last ‘test’ ride, before I start my round the world bicycle trip. That will be starting at the end of January, 2021, from Queenstown, New Zealand. 2021 may seem a while away. But it really isn’t – it’s at the end of next year!