Hi there,
Thanks for visiting my page.
Most people who know me will know my story and the effect that Dementia has had on my life. For those that don't, or are new to supporting Bondi2Berry, here is a little insight into why we are putting in so much effort, to raise funds and awareness for this terrible disease that effects so many people. Unfortunately my mum passed away from the effects of Dementia on 24/11/2019. Only recently Nick's Dad also passed away from Dementia.
Here is a snippet of my story.
In 2015, in a small village in Ireland, my Mother, living alone in the country side, aged only 63 years old was diagnosed with having moderate Dementia. After 2 years of looking for assistance, trying every channel for some kind of test, we finally got an actual diagnosis. However, with no structure for support, not yet at the retirement age of 65, it was left in the hands of her children.
Spending weeks hitting wall after wall and every door closing, we finally got some assistance and guidance into what to actually do. We succeeded, to some degree, to setup a structure for her to have some kind of existence and the small possibility of slowing this cruel and heartbreaking disease down. After 1 year at home and that was only possible with the assistance of home help, we made the unenviable decision to put Mam into full time care.
Every family, has their up and downs, highs and lows, success and failures but some more than others. This woman, my mother, was very special, had her fair share of lows and obstacles to conquer, she certainly didn't deserve this. As we all know this disease doesn't discriminate..
As a result, myself and a close friend Nick Young, whose father also suffered from dementia, decided to do something, try to make a difference, raise some money and awareness for a disease that is the 2nd biggest killer in Australia. Bondi2Berry was born and as a charity has raised over $1,000,000. Despite Covid, Bondi2Berry has completed the 155k journey every single year since 2016, Bondi2Brighton (1200k's) in 2019 and Bondi2Bluemountains (650k's) in 2022.
With an ever ageing population, it requires us more now than ever, to raise funds for research and create awareness for this terrible illness that wreaks havoc on relationships and families.
Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for giving whatever you can afford and helping us make a small ripple in a big pond.
Like our Facebook page to get up to date details on our ride, fundraising efforts, events and pictures.
Why are we riding?
We are riding to raise awareness of dementia.
Organisers Nick and Pierre have first hand experience with the disease. Both of Nick's grandmothers passed away after suffering from dementia and Nick's father was diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease in 2011 and sadly passed away in Aug 2022. Pierre's mother was diagnosed in 2015 and also sadly passed away in 2019.
Their personal experiences, as well as those of many of their close friends prompted the guys to use their passion for cycling to raise awareness and funds to help find a cure for this terrible disease.
Dementia is the second leading cause of death of Australians contributing to 5.4% of all deaths in males and 10.6% of all deaths in females each year.
Dementia is the leading cause of death among Australian females, surpassing heart disease which has been the leading cause of death for both males and females since the early 20th century.
There is an estimated 459,000 Australians living with dementia and without a medical breakthrough, the number of people with dementia is expected to increase to 590,000 by 2028 and 1,076,000 by 2058
Currently an estimated 250 people are joining the population with dementia each day. The number of new cases of dementia will increase to 318 people per day by 2025 and more than 650 people by 2056
Three in 10 people over the age of 85 and almost one in 10 people over 65 have dementia
Thank you for supporting our ride, you are helping to make a difference.
Journey
22/03/23 5:27pm
Day #6, best day for the group to date. Averaged 36.5kph for 150k. Tolling really well together and assisted by a slight tailwind
22/03/23 5:26pm
Day #5, we decided to split into 2 groups for the first 50k. Very fast and fun first 50k of a big day for everyone. Got some rain but nothing compared to what was predicted.
22/03/23 5:24pm
Day #4 and the shortest of the tour at 135k, lucky to have a tail wind and group moving very nicely together
22/03/23 5:23pm
Day #3, another hot day but everyone got through in one piece and last day of climbing
18/03/23 3:33pm
Day #2 was equally as hot but a good day. Ride well together and arrived at our hotel a little earlier than yesterday. Time to recover and get ready for tomorrow.
Thanks to everyone who has donated so far, very much appreciated 😊
18/03/23 3:31pm
Bondi2Barossa day #1, long hard day with a lot of traffic getting out of Sydney and once we did the heat hit. Tough ride but got everyone to Bundanoon in once piece
09/03/23 2:06pm
Another big wend of training completed for Bondi2Barossa. Just over one week to go.
09/03/23 2:05pm
Another big wend of training completed for Bondi2Barossa. Just over one week to go.
09/03/23 2:05pm
Another big wend of training completed for Bondi2Barossa. Just over one week to go.
13/02/23 9:45pm
13/02/23 9:45pm
13/02/23 9:44pm
13/02/23 9:44pm
13/02/23 9:43pm
13/02/23 9:43pm
13/02/23 9:43pm
Thank you to everyone who has donated so far, im humbled by your generosity.
A little update on my training progress. After a big week in Adelaide, I had a relatively easy week, still riding but not as long or as intense.
Getting some longer rides in and some interval sessions on the trainer at home.
25/01/23 2:50pm
A big week of training just finished in Adelaide at TDU, to prepare myself for this gruelling 9 day ride.
5 days, 650kms, 6740mtrs of elevation
25/01/23 2:50pm
A big week of training just finished in Adelaide at TDU, to prepare myself for this gruelling 9 day ride.
5 days, 650kms, 6740mtrs of elevation
25/01/23 2:49pm
A big week of training just finished in Adelaide at TDU, to prepare myself for this gruelling 9 day ride.
5 days, 650kms, 6740mtrs of elevation
25/01/23 2:42pm