Ballarat cycling group Velorats are endeavoring to raise tens of thousands of dollars in support of children's mental health as part of the Murray to Moyne Cycle Relay.
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The group will ride 520 kilometres, from Echuca to Port Fairy, between Saturday April 6 and Sunday April 7, 2024, and are aiming to raise $25,000 for the Ballarat Health Service Foundation.
At a fundraising event at Racers café on Sunday March 3, Velorats captain Ross Huntington told The Courier the team would have 13 riders participating in the relay event, who would each complete somewhere between 250 to 350 kilometres by the time they reach Port Fairy.
He said the group were aiming to raise enough money to allow for refurbishment of the Grampians Health Ballarat's child and young adult mental health unit building.
"A lot of our riders have young families, so we understand people over the last three or four years have been struggling with their mental health, especially in the younger generations," he said.
This year's event will be the 21st time Mr Huntington has participated in the Murray to Moyne Cycle Relay, and he said the fundraising aspect was part of what attracted him to keep coming back each year.
In 2023, the Velorats raised $30,000, which allowed for renovation of the cancer patient gym at the Ballarat Regional Integrated Cancer Centre.
Grampians Health Ballarat head of fundraising Sarah Masters described the Velorats' fundraising efforts as "extraordinary".
"An event like this takes an enormous level of commitment and organisation and diligence," she said.
"The fundraising efforts these guys have made are huge for us."
Ms Masters said child and adolescent mental health services attract less funding than other areas of the health system, so the support from the Velorats could make a big difference to their facilities.
"The [child and adolescent mental health] facility was fitted out to support the mental health of young people, in consultation with a group of young people, but a lot of the features weren't able to be put in because they ran out of money," she said.
"So it's going to enable us to be able to finish all that off and just make it a more welcoming space, and a more appropriate space for the treatment of young people with mental health challenges."
Before embarking on the Murray to Moyne Cycle Relay, the Velorats will hold further fundraising events on March 7, 17 and 21.
For more information or to donate, visit the Velorats Murray to Moyne fundraising webpage.
