Deniliquin High School’s Great Vic Bike Ride team has returned home triumphantly after conquering the prestigious and challenging almost 500km journey.
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In a remarkable feat, a team of Deni High students, staff and community support riders set a record, completing the longest single-day distance in the history of the Great Vic Bike Ride.
The ride has been described as a “rolling bike festival’, which travels from town to town, setting up camp to do it again the next morning until the ride is complete.
Students began in Wodonga, on Saturday, November 23, meeting for the ‘arrival day’ to get ready for the beginning of their ride the next morning, first travelling south toward Myrtleford and then camping for the night to kick the ride off.
Day three sees riders head from Myrtleford toward Wangaratta for a 54km ride.
On the fourth day, riders are tasked with the Wangaratta loop, a course has been mapped out, running through Warby Ovens National Park.
On day five, which is commonly known as ‘Challenge Day’, students were prepared to attack the longest part of the trip.
Originally mapped at 100km, poor weather added extra distance.
“114 kilometres is the longest single riding day in the rides' history,” Deni High teacher and ride participant Sue Laing said.
Not only did the group of students complete the longest day of riding ever, they also did it under some very trying conditions.
Starting off with blue skies, the group would have thought the days had been picked perfectly for the ride, until they hit Mansfield.
“Rain didn’t start until Mansfield, and then the heavens just opened up,” Mrs Laing said.
“The kids all did extremely well. They completed it and should be extremely proud of themselves.”
On day six, students and staff were given a rest in Mansfield, where they had a great deal of fun just being able to relax and see the town.
“We had a fabulous rest day once we hit Mansfield.
“The kids all went out op-shopping and got dressed up for a bit of fun.”
Across days seven and eight, riders travelled between Mansfield to Alexandra, and then on to Marysville, setting up a nice short ride for the final day.
The final day of riding saw the Deni High team go from Marysville to Healsville - a short and sweet 34km ride.
As part of the cost of participating, riders were provided with the ‘fuel’ they needed to get through the challenge, with breakfast, lunch, dinner and dessert supplied each day.
All participants also had access to the ‘Good Oil’ newsletter editorial that comes out following each days riding.
Delivered to their campsite, they could read up about the route they were on, some trivia, things to do and see in the towns they stopped in and even some feature pieces on people who are participating in the ride.
Quite often, the ride works as a way for old friends to catch up on how things have been since the year's previous ride, with a lot of the friendships across the ride being formed at the event years and years ago.
The students' extraordinary mental grit and physical prowess deserves high praise.
The Deni High team was made up of 16 students - 13 girls and three boys.
Most were from Years 8 and 9, and one from Year 7.