^{Date Published: 25 Nov 2010 10:57am
Author:Steve Moore}

Last night the whole crew, Red, Blue and Caribou got together at the Austral Hotel in Colac for dinner. The Blues rode into Colac in atrocious conditions and Red rode out in equally horrible weather. Ted Whitten encapsulated the spirit of the ride last night in his words to the crews and then was up and riding 15k’s with Mark and Steve M this morning from Colac.

Conan and Steve A hit the road in Winchelsea bound for Geelong and the next rider change at the Ford Discovery Centre. I think the conditions are getting worse, although on the up side the traffic has thinned out for the time being. Paul, Al and the other drivers were having a tough time of it with the weather and traffic making life difficult.

Conan and Steve A arrived at the Discovery Centre and sent Sam and Andy off towards Werribee. Thanks to those who supplied food and snacks for both teams.

Thanks to Werribee Ambo's for the use of their station due to the inclement weather. All 12 riders assembled, for the first time since Darwin and the Remembrance Service, ready to head back into Melbourne. There were guest riders from HostPLUS and a number of MFB riders who joined us for the ride. The riders sipped on Champagne (In colour matching flutes) before the whistle blew (do that again and I’ll show you where to put that thing!) and the last chapter of the ride had commenced.

Riders chatted, swapping stories and anecdotes along the road, through the back streets of the western suburbs weaving our way to Footscray and then onto Docklands Hwy, past Etihad Stadium and soon we were on Flinders St.

The feelings within the riders were similar to when we left, not really able to believe we were on the bikes for the last time. Bumper to bumper traffic on Flinders St slowed our progress, along Wellington Pde and all of a sudden we were rolling through the MCG Park towards the arch and waiting family and friends.

Soon there were hugs and kisses, we had completed the Inaugural Around Australia Firefighters’ Ride. Unbelievable. Inside for the formalities and presentations of plagues [I'm almost certain he means plaQues - ed] to the riders and certificates for our magnificent support staff, outside for team photos and the ride is complete.

Thank you to all members of the Red Team, Our riders, MFB support and of course the Caribou boys. The last 3 ½ weeks have been a memorable experience and it’s been an absolute pleasure and privilege to spend it with all of you.

Thanks to our sponsors, as was said during the formalities without you the whole show would not have hit the road. The MFB support has been extraordinary and covered so many different aspects of the event. Thanks Caribou for your support, co-ordination, logistics, counselling and a few laughs along the way “me peeps”.

A special thanks to families and friends, your support and belief has allowed all of us participate in this special event.

Special thanks to Mark O’Connor and Dave Doherty. You guys took the vision and, with an extraordinary amount of effort, saw it through to its completion. All 30 odd people on the road will be forever indebted to you.

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