Ride 4 Awareness take it to the Cape
Posted by Chris Hogan on
It takes a special bunch of people to throw their hats into the ring and willingly take on the grueling drive from Cairns to Cape York, especially when that drive is on posty bikes. This challenge was instigated and accepted by the incredible team at Ride 4 Awareness whose determination and strategic planning took them across some of the most challenging 4WD tracks in aid to spread awareness for suicide prevention.
“Mental illness is rapidly growing in Australia and throughout the world. In Australia alone, every four hours, one male falls victim to suicide. In 2015, preliminary data showed a total 3,027 deaths by suicide. That’s over 8 people per day!” Quotes their website. “It’s time for a change.”
The 2500 kilometre round trip started and finished in the city of Cairns with the northern most tip of Australia in Cape York, marking the halfway point. Throughout their journey the Ride 4 Awareness crew dealt with handling Honda CT110 bikes on some of the country’s toughest corrugated roads whilst staying in remote townships and spreading the message about the importance of speaking up about mental illness.
“We want to encourage our friends, family and strangers to talk about their struggles and lean on each other in times of need. We aim to bring these discussions to the surface by undertaking a physical and mental challenge which gets the attention of the wider general public.”
When they reached the Northern Most Tip of Australia, the Ride 4 Awareness team proudly flew the LIVIN flag and took our message of It Ain’t Weak To Speak and removing the stigma surrounding mental illness straight to the top – literally.
It is selfless journeys like this, the people who partake in them and their families who support them that keeps the important message of talking about mental health growing.
If you are interested in becoming involved in supporting LIVIN, check out our page on how you can Get Involved.