Riding through Beautiful Western Australia with the MACA Cancer 200 Ride for Research

By Shane Arnold, Delta Australia

As an avid cyclist both on the road and the trails, I was recently asked by my fellow solar industry colleagues to join them in a charity ride for the Harry Perkins Institute to raise funds towards cancer research.

Heading the team was a long time solar industry veteran and friend Rohan McGlew who is also currently living with cancer himself.

The team carries the name “PV Chain Gang” proudly and together we set off on an early Saturday morning from Perth Western Australia to the southern coastal town of Mandurah (Man-Do-Ra) some 109kms away.

The start was slow going due to more than 1,600 cyclists coming together and rolling out was done in smaller groups. It wasn’t long until we were on our way into the beautiful country areas of Western Australia such as Mundijong in the shire of Serpentine Jarrahdale. This is an area I actually spent a large part of my childhood in, even passing a childhood farm with fond memories.

Image source: City of Mandurah

It wasn’t long until we were on the home straight for around 30kms into a headwind of 25knots which due to the energy in my legs had me breaking the wind for a couple of the team. We needed to beat the weather and get to the camp as we were sure cold beer would be available.

Rolling across the finish line of Day one was met with a wonderful campsite all setup by the organising committee with lots of food, beverages and warm showers.

That night the Harry Perkins team put on a great event of music, food and presentations. Our team member Rohan was invited to speak about his story. It was a proud moment for the team when Rohan announced that we had raised $35,000 amongst us which was a GREAT achievement.

Awakening early, we headed off North back to Perth at around 7am. This time we tracked up the coast where a pleasant tail wind was our welcome friend. Ocean views of clear turquoise water lapping against crisp white sand made us wonder why we were riding and not swimming!

Image source: City of Fremantle

But we pushed forward to the port town of Fremantle. Famous for its restaurants and entertainment, Fremantle was also the host of the Americas Cup in 1987 and holds its history proud.

We headed east and tracked along the swan river, named after its population of Black Swans and host to recreational boat users. It wasn’t long and we arrived back where we started at Perth’s Optus Stadium, over 200kms completed and $35,000 raised we felt a great level of accomplishment.

Knowing that we had contributed a meaningful amount to the Harry Perkins Institute for the second year in a row as a team ended our weekend in good spirits.

About the Author (Guest Contributor)

Shane Arnold

Originally from Perth, I had moved to Melbourne with my family in 2017 and joined Delta Australia as Regional Manager for PVI. Still miss the beaches in Perth but loving the vibrancy in Melbourne. Ask me anything about Straya and Australian solar power industry. It’s not what you think it is. Connect with me on @shanefromdelta on IG.

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