Cr Schelling hits the road for Great Victorian Bike Ride

SHARING the experience with family, meeting people from far and wide, and the warm welcomes from communities along the way were highlights of the Great Victorian Bike Ride for South Gippsland Shire councillor John Schelling.

Those experiences made the wet and challenging conditions worth enduring.

John rode with daughter Becky Browne, who towed his granddaughter Harleigh in the early days of the ride before she went home.

Older granddaughter Jordy joined the last four days of the event, her sister Tilly getting involved on the final day, in which all three grandkids participated for at least part of the way, as the ride finished in Wonthaggi on Sunday.

It was John’s second Great Victorian Bike Ride, having tackled the event six years ago along with Becky who was towing Jordyn and Tilly.

Becky wanted to give Harleigh the same experience and John was happy to provide support again, despite not being a regular bike rider.

“I practised for four or five months,” John said of his preparation, having built up his distances over that period, culminating in a 70-kilometre ride on Melbourne Cup Day.

During the event, being hit with side winds and lashed with rain on the leg between Paynesville and Sale proved the toughest going.

“You were sort of leaning to your left to try to stop the bike from falling over,” John said.

There were some tough hills along the way, with walking sometimes proving the faster and more energy-efficient approach.

John explained that generally once he got going for the day, riding went ok.

“Getting up the next morning is the real challenge,” he declared.

Undoubtedly that challenge was all the sterner due to his rain-soaked swag.

“When you roll the swag up wet, everything inside it gets wet as well,” John said.

That discomfort prompted him to call his wife who collected him and his gear, enabling him to dry out his swag before returning in the morning.

While he suggested he may have been a bit soft, John’s riding was all under his own steam.

“I wouldn’t ride an electric bike on principle,” he said, noting many doing so told him to ‘Keep up the good work’ as they happily rode by him.

Fortunately, on the 103-kilometre stretch from Sale to Yarram, riders were aided with tail winds most of the way.

A highlight for John was riding between Welshpool and Woorarra.

“The creek was fully awash, the smell of the eucalyptus was peaceful and calm, which was magic,” he recalled.

People came and went throughout the ride’s eight days, tackling however many days they could manage, with lots of school groups participating, along with seasoned veterans such as a man in his 38th Great Victorian Bike Ride.

Fond memories of hot fire brigade sausages on a freezing day, and the hospitality of those from Fish Creek footy and bowls clubs, along with the sounds of the South Gippsland Brass Band were other great experiences.

“The communities are what make it so great and the people you meet on the ride; I met people from Edenhope and Adelaide, and all over the place,” John said.

He also spoke of the terrific support crew ensuring the Great Victorian Bike ride proceeds smoothly, with volunteers doing cooking and setting up tents, a marshal on a motorbike and police supporting riders, and medical assistance available when required.

Cyclists have the option of putting their bikes in a trailer and travelling by bus if a leg of the journey becomes too arduous.

“The coordination is amazing,” John said, noting the ability of organisers to adapt the route when weather conditions required.