I am riding the Tour De Chance 2018 with 30 other riders, 1000km over 8 days starting this Saturday, February 24 from Sydney to the Gold Coast. I enjoy a ride with my mates, but this is further than I have ridden before in one week, its the middle of summer with forecast rain and headwinds. But its an inspirational cause!
The inspiration for Fighting Chance was Jason, the younger brother of Laura and Jordan O’reilly who, although he had Cerebral Palsey, was encouraged to do anything that any of the rest of the family could do, including even mowing the lawn. Laura and Jordan came home after finishing uni courses to find Jason, post school, was being looked after under expensive government programs that had him totally unengaged and often sleeping in the corner. He was much more capable than that.
Laura and Jordan started Fighting Chance to offer the approximately 2 million Australians with a disability, who are of working age, an opportunity to find meaningful and engaging employment for them. Through the activities of Social Ventures like Jigsaw, they are looking to scale this working model nationally to a meaningful proportion of people with disabilities, by matching the right person with the right opportunity. See Conor’s story.
If you would like to support me in raising funds to extend initiatives like this please donate to the Tour de Chance fund-raising initiative.Here is a link to the fundraising account Fighting Chance Australia has Tax Deductible Gift status.
Hi All,
(Feel Free to forward)
A late post to Day 7 as it took a lot longer to upload the days video..
As we pass through the towns that we all know are clearly Northern NSW, like Ballina and Byron, it is clear we are almost there. One more day to go @ 74km to finish in Burleigh Heads tomorrow morning.
Last night was an enjoyable barbecue meal hosted by Matt Muir from Yamba Shores Tavern. He looked after us and generously supported the ride.
This morning we were let off the hook for 58km at the start of the ride as this stretch of the Pacific Highway is one of the most intensive road construction projects in Australia. We were bused by Matt in his Courtesy bus, while the bikes were stacked up in the support vans. As we passed these roads we could see it would have been impossible to ride this section, so conscience is clear.
Todays lower temperatures, overcast skies and more favourable winds, gave us an opportunity to ride two by two in parts and chat with the people we have been riding with during the week. It was great to spend this time before starting to climb the hills between Ballina and Byron. The hill climbs were more challenging and many riders were falling back during the day, which meant lots of regroups on the top of hills.
We dropped into the Byron Bay Coffee Company HQ in the hills outside Byron and were hosted by Annie and Franco for a late breakfast, early lunch. It was served, with coffee on tap, on tables under trees with surrounding lush rolling grass hills. One of the guys suggested it might be a mirage for us sweat soaked riders but I thought maybe closer to a scene from Lord of the Rings, initially thinking Rivendell ( the last homely house) before deciding that maybe Lothlorien was a better comparison!
When it was time to hit the road, we joined as one pod for the last stretch that took us through the hustle and bustle of Byron before sharing a few narrow shoulders on busy highways to get eventually to Brunswick heads. It all felt a little chaotic as some of the riders seemed to get a new lease of life as we get towards the finish line and headed for the front of the pack.
Tour Blog: Caning it
PAUL BROWN · POSTED 2 MAR 2018
Like horses returning to the barn, the riders have caught the scent of the finish line, hitting the pedals with renewed vigour in the run down to tomorrow’s final day of the Tour de Chance.
Today’s ride from beautiful Yamba to the delights of Brunswick Heads was abbreviated by the need to divert from heavy roadworks, but included some of the best scenery and finest parcour of the tour.
The ride proper began after breakfast at Woodburn, with the peloton caning it through the sugarlands of the mighty Richmond River, criss-crossing the river by bridge and the final ferry ride of the tour into Ballina. If the beauty of the road out of Ballina through the Byron hinterland failed to compensate for the strain of the hilly terrain, the lunch stop at the park-like home of the Byron Bay Coffee Co certainly did.
Most riders were willing to call it quits and stay, such is the beauty of the BBCC location and so warm the welcome from Annie and Franco Invancich – proprietors, supporters of the tour and friends of Tim Powell.
However reluctantly we left their verdant retreat, there was an air of anticipation as the riders cruised into Brunswick for the final last night dinner of the Tour de Chance.
No doubt great and hilarious moments from past tours will be recalled and a few regrets aired about its ending – but all will rest happy in the knowledge that each drop of sweat – and blood – across the five tours has, via donations, translated to better futures for our Fighting Chance interns. That’s what its all about.
DUBIOUS TOUR FACTS
Across the five Tours it can be estimated that 90 riders completed the course, making allowance for drop outs, chairman’s riders and that Tim Powell was the sole rider on fund raiser number one. With this premise and an average tour length of 1,100 kms the following can be calculated.
Cumulative distance – 99,000 kms, which is 2.5 laps of planet earth or 25% of the distance to the moon
Energy generated – at an average 175 watts output the tour riders have generated enough energy to power an Australian home for 50 days
Calories consumed – the 6,000 excess calories consumed each day is cumulatively equal to the average intake of an Australian for 40 months or that of eight people over a year in the most calorifically challenged countries
Heart beats – the excess heart rate, assuming an average of 145bpm on the ride, generates an extra 18.5 million team beats, or 179 extra days of beating for an individual.
Pedal strokes – at the assumed gearing of 50/17, the tour has generated 16 million pedal strokes
Cents per – with an expected life-span raising of $1.85m, each pedal stroke has generated 11.25c, each extra heartbeat 10c
HEROES ALL
Every rider is a hero and each one a champion but special mention should be made of those who have ridden them all.
Five rides – Tim Powell, legend
Four rides – Greg Rector and Graeme Wilson, co-winners of the Maddest and Baddest Award for conspicuous contribution, over and above the call of duty, to all of the tour facts.