A Roaring Success For Red Ride

By Sheree Hoddinett

A sea of red rode through the streets of the Moreton Bay Region on Saturday May 20, raising awareness for domestic violence.

More than 200 bikes took part in the Moreton Bay Red Ride covering about 184km of road from Caboolture out to Redcliffe, down to Strathpine, across to Dayboro and then on to Woodford and Beerburrum before finishing back in Caboolture at the showground. An afternoon of festivities followed with a show and shine featuring 20 cars, loads of fun and entertainment for all family members.

A beautiful day of fine, sunny weather set the scene for an event that was all about turning heads. Red Ride committee member Randall Macey was grateful for the sunshine and positive feedback they received about the ride.

‘It was a great day, full of red which is what we wanted to see,’ he says. ‘The weather was awesome. When I woke up that morning, I rode out there at 530am to help start the set up and to see the sun coming up was the best view. ’

‘It’s everything – the planning and behind the scenes stressing – it’s all worth it to see the smiles on people’s faces as the ride takes place. We actually had one lady that started tearing up because she realised what the event was for. So when you get people out in the community talking to you and actually recognising this is all about a good cause, it makes it so worth it.’

All too often now we hear about domestic related incidents happening to families out there and the Red Ride is all about trying to combat it from happening.

‘We can’t save everybody,’ Randall says. ‘As much as you want to help everybody and give them all the money, you just can’t. But if you can save say 10% out there, that’s 10% more getting the help they need.’

Creating awareness is a big focus of the Red Ride with participants encouraged to wear red or even add the flag featuring the event emblem to their bike. All funds raised from the day will be donated to organisations that provide services and support to victims of domestic violence.

For Randall, doing his part to make his bike stand out was up there as his favourite part of the day.

‘Setting up my bike and having people looking at it was just the best part of it for me,’ Randall says. ‘I had a big flag on the back and another small flag at the front, along with a fair bit of red ribbon all the way around it…I wanted it to stand out. And then riding it, that was pretty special too.’

Planning is already underway for the next Red Ride to be held on May 18 next year, with members of the community already putting their hands up to take part. But none of it would be possible without the contributions of the many volunteers and sponsors.

‘Planning an event of this size takes quite a lot of combined effort,” Randall says. “There’s a lot of people involved in the background and a lot of unsung heroes. For everyone who helped out and did their bit, whether it was volunteering, sponsorship or riding in the event itself, thank you so much!’

For further information about the Red Ride, please visit www.redride.org