Department of Education & Training Visiting Teacher Jeni Blake and two students with vision impairments participated in what is possibly the largest bicycle event to be held in Australia ever – the Great Victorian Bike Ride for 2004.
The Great Victorian Bike Ride, which included over 5,000 riders from all over Australia, followed a route from Port Fairy to Geelong along the Great Ocean Road. Here is an excerpt from an article from Bayside Leader 30th November 2004:
Cycling 570km along the Great Ocean Road sounds like an arduous task at the best of times - but imagine doing it when you are visually impaired. For Bayside’s Kyle Griffin and Nathan Ash, the nine-day Great Victorian Bike Ride is no different than any other challenge they have faced in life. Both boys said the bike ride was a way of showing the community that being visually impaired did not stop them from living a normal life. Last week, the two students from Mordialloc College visited Olympic champion Kathy Watt in Black Rock to get last-minute coaching tips. Organising teacher Jeni Blake said cycling was a sport for everyone. “The skills Kathy Watt displays that make her a champion – motivation, dedication, persistence and commitment – are the skills that will assist our students in their challenges in life,” she said.
“Students are encouraged to ride their own bike and where that is not possible tandems are used.”
Watt has sponsored the students and organised T-shirts for the boys to wear.
Deb Lewis, Statewide Vision Resource Centre - (03) 9841 0242
/ deblewis@svrc.vic.edu.au or
Jeni Blake, Visiting Teacher (Vision Impairment) Southern Metropolitan Region
- mobile 0428 134660
For more information about the Great Victorian Bike Ride, the Great New Zealand Bike Ride, the Great Tasmania Bike Ride or other bicycling events, see Bicycle Victoria's website: http://www.bv.com.au
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