Riders around Australia are invited to attend the Ride 4 Our Fallen Riders event next Sunday (24 June 2018) in Brisbane or organise their own ride to honour the memory of the 211 motorbike riders killed on Australian roads in 2017.
The Brisbane ride has been organised by Nikki-Anne Mooney, whose younger brother, Timothy McKenzie, died in a motorcycle crash in September 2016.
She has also asked riders in other states to organise their own rides or at least observe a minute’s silence in honour of the fallen.
Nikki-Anne hopes to make the ride a national event.
The second annual Ride 4 Our Fallen Riders event starts at Pine Rivers Park, Bald Hills, at 9am and rides to Suttons Beach Redcliffe.
“This day is to honour the fallen riders and give family and friends a day to honour their lost loved ones,” Nikki-Anne says.
“We have a number of amazing guest speakers that will be covering a number of road safety issues and the effects of road fatalities.
“We would love to have a minimum of 211 riders – one rider for every rider killed.”
The event will include a service for the fallen riders and entertainment such as face-painting, kids’ dress-up competition, live band Relic and a raffle.
“We would love riders and drivers to attend to show that we are all humans with families and we all need to look out for each other we all have family and friends,” Nikki-Anne says.
“We all deserve to survive.”
Vigil honour
The event ends with a candlelight vigil for the 211 riders killed In 2017 with a tribute slide show and a minute’s silence for all 6102 riders killed on Australian roads from 1989 to 2017.
The first annual Ride 4 Our Fallen Riders attracted about 70 bikes and 70 cars.
“We did not do any fundraising last year; I funded everything for the tribute etc,” Nikki-Anne says.
“It was such a great day.
“Thanks to everyone that came out to honour the lives lost and also to raise awareness for motorbike safety and the importance of change to rider safety and not accepting ‘I’m sorry I didn’t see him/her’ as an excuse for killing riders.”