23 November, 2018

Peloton Events Ultimate Charity Challenge 2018 – Stage 7

Written by

Alex Kemp

We are sorry for the delay in the publication for the Stage 7 blog. Unfortunately the week that was, combined with an immediate 15 hour cross-country drive back to South Australia has meant this final post has taken an extra couple of days to write.

Stage 7

The final day of the PEUCC18 ride started with groans and moans as riders mounted and pedalled with heavy legs from the previous day’s momentous 255km ride. The first stint was spent getting the legs warm before we were joined by professional cyclist Simon Clarke, currently riding for EF Education First-Drapac. The two groups joined on the KOM climb (won yet again by Willem) and proceeded to ride the rest of the stage into Sydney together with Simon drifting up and down the peloton, sharing stories and engaging in banter with all of the weary riders.

#UltimateCharityChallenge2018

As we neared our final destination the gorgeous countryside and relatively quiet roads were replaced by the hustle and bustle of the urban sprawl of Sydney and in true traffic congestion style the final 20km seemed to take forever! At 2:10pm, on Sunday- we reached our destination- Barangaroo Reserve, the Sydney Harbour Bridge resplendent in the background creating the perfect location to conclude an event of this magnitude. The reception was amazing as family and friends welcomed us with cheers and applause, bringing goose bumps to most and tears for some as the enormity of what we had accomplished ever so slightly began to set in. Hugs, photos, a great spread of food and some cold beverages consumed the next 30 minutes before final speeches from sponsors, charity partners, riders and event organiser Jon Leighton brought the Peloton Events Ultimate Charity Challenge 2018 to a close and we were all left a little flat with the prospect of returning to ‘real life’.

The final event jerseys were awarded to:

Fundraising Jersey- David Warneford ($22,761 raised so far!!)
Sprinters Jersey- Andy Ballas- too big, too strong, too fast)
KOM Jersey (Willem Van wyk- more graceful than Marco Pantani)
‘Ingers Spirit of the Peloton’ Jersey- Neville Owen- Orange Sky Laundry (Nev- we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. Your enthusiasm, drive and altruistic demeanour made you the obvious choice for this year’s award. You are an amazing person)

The week was truly amazing. 1,300km distance, 18,000m elevation. The support of a good cause. The determination to push bodies to levels most of us didn’t know existed. The relentless and unwavering energy of our amazing support crew. The stunning climbs. The daredevil descents. The emotional highs and lows while on the bike. The bonds and friendships formed while accomplishing a common goal. The lifetime of memories.

Thank you to all the supporters who followed our adventure- for the words of support, for promoting our cause- we thank you.

We are in the process of creating a short video of this year’s ride. Allow us some time to sift through the roughly 4,000 photos and 24 hours of video footage collected from drone, GoPro x 2, Garmin Virb, Fly6 x 2 and Gimble. The finished product is sure to impress, and may just motivate you to sign up for 2019 where an all new challenge awaits!