Community
2 October, 2024
Boulia mayor ready to ride to help kids with cancer
Rick Britton is once again pedalling for a good cause this month.
Rick Britton has kicked off his month-long Great Cycle Challenge to raise funds to fight kids’ cancer.
It is the fifth year the Boulia mayor has set himself the goal of cycling at least 200km over the 31 days of October in support of the Children’s Medical Research Institute, which conducts cancer and genetic disease research at Westmead Children’s Hospital in Sydney.
Cr Britton said he was not a “sporty” person but was motivated to combine the exercise with a good cause.
“I was a bloody hopeless sportsman – I can’t run and I can’t fight and I can’t do nothing,” he laughs.
“But this challenge is nothing compared to what those little kids battle with every day.”
Rick said his cycling journey began in 2018 when the Diamantina council challenged the Boulia council to ride the 230km road linking Boulia and Bedourie.
Cr Britton said he trained for the challenge on an old exercise bike he had long abandoned in a garage at his Goodwood station before purchasing a bike from SportsPower in Mount Isa.
“Myself and the CEO finished the challenge and I lost about 4kg over those two days,” he said.
“I thought that was a pretty good way to lose weight – so I started riding between 20-40km every day.
“Then I heard about this Great Cycle Challenge and I gave it a go.”
The 61-year-old encouraged other men to dedicate a small portion of their day to regular exercise.
“A lot of blokes think because they do physical work in the sun all day they don’t need to spend any time on exercise,” he said.
“But I found it is good not only for your physical health but your mental health to get up and just go for a walk or a bike ride and clear your mind for a while.”
Support Rick at www.greatcyclechallenge.com.au/Riders/EricBritton