Sport
13 March, 2023
Cyclists encouraged to take in sights of the Pyrenees
Avid cyclists will be given the opportunity to enjoy the views of the Pyrenees in a safe, relaxing atmosphere when the Maryborough Rotary Club operates the Pyrenees Magic Tri Circuit on Sunday. Three different ride lengths will be offered on the...
Avid cyclists will be given the opportunity to enjoy the views of the Pyrenees in a safe, relaxing atmosphere when the Maryborough Rotary Club operates the Pyrenees Magic Tri Circuit on Sunday.
Three different ride lengths will be offered on the day, with a 33 kilometre ride for novice riders, while more experienced riders can take on a 53 km or 98 km route.
Riders will start at Summerfield Winery, taking in the towns of Moonambel, Landsborough, Elm-hurst and Avoca along the way.
Maryborough Rotary Club chair of the fundraising committee, Brian Reed, says things are in place for a good event on Sunday.
“We’re looking good, the weather is looking great for Sunday. But it doesn’t look like we will have the numbers that we had for our September ride,” he said.
“We currently have about 70 or 80 riders, and we’ll probably pick up around 100 before Sunday. We normally pick up around 20 or 30 walk-ins on the day.
“It’s an enjoyable ride. A couple of Rotary members are riders, they say the 98 km ride near the end has a long gradual rise, but there are no steep hills. We’re off the Pyrenees Highway, we stay away from the main roads, but it’s mainly flat and there’s good scenery.
“In September, I was there greeting all the riders as they arrived and they agreed that it was a good ride with the conditions of the road.
“We had 300-400 one year, as word gets around that it is a safe ride and people put it in their calendar.”
Reed says there will be a new system in place to ensure more riders are able to stick around after their ride, with a check in/check out system allowing the club to draw their raffle during the ride.
“In September, we waited for the riders to come back before we did the raffle,” he said.
“It’s important that all riders who checked in also check out for safety reasons. If we had 220 riders, and 200 check back in, we start to worry.
“We do have sag wagons if someone happens to have a fall or their bike breaks down — they’ll be picked up and brought back. But to make sure we do our due diligence, we will tell everyone when they log in that the raffle will be drawn as they are riding, and to find out if they have won a prize, they need to check back in again.”
Reed says plenty of local businesses have joined up in support of the event.
“Local business have been really encouraging with the events. When we went to Summerfield Winery, they were more than willing to do it, as was the owner of the Moonambel Hotel when we suggested there was a break stop there.
“We are trying to get more suitable businesses on-board as well,” he said.
“The prizes include a $100 gift card from Bunnings, wine from Summerfield and various other prizes as well. The Moonambel Hotel is giving away a meal for lunch or dinner as a prize.”
Reed says profits from the event will go towards local projects as a means of giving back to the local community.
“The profit from the ride will go towards local projects — books for children at schools, the oncology unit in Maryborough and various projects like that,” he said.
The Pyrenees Magic Tri Circuit will start at 9 am on Sunday, March 19. Tickets for the event can be purchased by searching for ‘Pyrenees Magic Tri Circuit Ride’ at www.eventbrite.com.au or search for the event page of the same name on Facebook.