I rode my CT 125 around Australia

[DMickyD]

I just arrived home after a 14,500 km ride around Oz on my new CT125. It went well and sat on 80-90 km hr all day. The longest stretch was 600 kms. Planning to go again next year and like this ride will be raising funds for suicide prevention. To check out vids and more photos of this ride see the public FB group apostieride4ptsd. A robust engine on the CT and I’ve been impressed with its performance. Highly recommend the bike.

 

[SneakyDingo]

Reckon we have a new contender for highest mileage forum user

Did you mostly camp? Any high points of the trip? Love the Where's Wally outfit.

 

[DMickyD]

Reckon we have a new contender for highest mileage forum user

Did you mostly camp? Any high points of the trip? Love the Where's Wally outfit.

Yes, camped at times but of the 46 days it took to ride around Australia we had free accommodation for 44 of those nights, mostly in motels and cabins in caravan parks. Many, many highlights; riding from Cairns in the east to Broome in the west on the Savannah Way which had a long section of corrugated dirt that was very rough indeed - more than 300 kms of a road straight out of Hell. It felt like my brain was going to bounce outta my head. And it had more rock than and AC/DC album, LOL. To get through that was awesome, but at the end of the day I was totally exhausted. We crossed five rivers that had crocodiles in them - scary as. Became severely dehydrated in the north and bitterly cold down south. Learn more on my public Facebook group, apostieride4ptsd
Other highlights; being charged by a bull but escaping unhurt, just missed hitting a kangaroo, seeing the beautiful outback of Australia which has an incredibly rugged aspect to it. Raising $35,000 for suicide prevention in just six weeks. I am yet to ride through Tasmania and we are still collecting funds as we go.
The Where's Wally outfit had meaning - people hide when they are mentally unwell like Wally hides, and we were trying to find them and inspire them to start a conversation and seek professional help.
Thank you for your queries, great to meet on this forum, SneakyDingo.
Take care, mate,
DMickyD

 

[rightspy]

oh man. Fond memories of renting an SV650 on deployment and riding the eastern side of AUS. Beautiful country! I am jealous. Great trip.

 

[SneakyDingo]

.... I am yet to ride through Tasmania and we are still collecting funds as we go.
The Where's Wally outfit had meaning - people hide when they are mentally unwell like Wally hides, and we were trying to find them and inspire them to start a conversation and seek professional help.
Thank you for your queries, great to meet on this forum, SneakyDingo.
Take care, mate,
DMickyD

Rolling through Tassie would be pretty nice in the drier months, but probably not a lot of fun in the winter. I hear the riding over there is ridiculously gorgeous and nothing but constantly sweeping bends. I'm guessing you're taking the Spirit of Tasmania ferry over?

You're giving me some interesting ideas about what to do with my next job. There's a... "raising awareness" clause in the USA for participating employers. Long story short, for 501c(3) qualifying charities, there's a way to get your employer to donate on your behalf to a charity for hours ridden on the bike. They get a tax break, you get to choose the charity, etc. I first heard about it 14 years ago and we used this along with some minor personal effort (and t-shirts) to raise over a million dollars for Seattle Children's Hospital T-Cell therapy.

Lately I've been eying off the idea of a Black Dog ride, which is more focused. I have the bike, the route, but not the experience and I couldn't claim it until next month.... But maybe I put this seriously on the books for 2023.

 

[DMickyD]

Rolling through Tassie would be pretty nice in the drier months, but probably not a lot of fun in the winter. I hear the riding over there is ridiculously gorgeous and nothing but constantly sweeping bends. I'm guessing you're taking the Spirit of Tasmania ferry over?

You're giving me some interesting ideas about what to do with my next job. There's a... "raising awareness" clause in the USA for participating employers. Long story short, for 501c(3) qualifying charities, there's a way to get your employer to donate on your behalf to a charity for hours ridden on the bike. They get a tax break, you get to choose the charity, etc. I first heard about it 14 years ago and we used this along with some minor personal effort (and t-shirts) to raise over a million dollars for Seattle Children's Hospital T-Cell therapy.

Lately I've been eying off the idea of a Black Dog ride, which is more focused. I have the bike, the route, but not the experience and I couldn't claim it until next month.... But maybe I put this seriously on the books for 2023.

Yes, tassie in winter is dangerous on two wheels. A couple of years ago I rode a pushbike around Australia for children suffering cancer, but I waited for spring before I tackled Tassie. Awesome work re ur fundraising - I'm seriously impressed. When it comes to achieving your dreams I have many things to say, including, at the forefront of my mind - Go For It!
Thanks for the message, mate.
Take care,
DMickyD