More than 50 motorbikers and support crew visited Mount Gambier this month as part of a long fundraising ride.


The bikers were part of the Black Dog Ride, which challenges the stigma of depression and suicide.


The Black Dog Ride first started in 2009 as a ride to raise awareness and has raised millions of dollars for mental health awareness.


Each state holds a one day event early in the year, along with a long distance ride. This year the riders have travelled over to WA.


The group visited the Mount Gambier Men’s Shed to have a breakfast of bacon and eggs rolls and a cuppa put on by a few of the shed members, who relished a chat with the riders about the great work they are doing.


The riders had travelled from Melbourne through western Victoria and a detour through the picturesque Halls Gap, Dunkeld area, Hamilton and on to Mount Gambier via Casterton and Penola as part of the 3445km trek.


The event’s Victorian coordinator Burnie Garvey said the first day saw a cool morning heading into a wet early afternoon before becoming fine closer to the Blue Lake city.


“Riders undertaking this year’s Black Dog Ride are spending in the vicinity of $5000 to $7000 of their own money to ride and promote the importance of mental health and suicide prevention,” he said.


“The mission riders are wanting to achieve with the support of family and support volunteers is to meet with communities along the way and promote awareness around the importance of accepting mental health and the effects of suicide, building a great friendship or catching up with old friends on the ride and raising well needed money through donations to go towards mental health supports nationally and to work towards decreasing the effects of depression and leading onto in some cases suicide.”


The men and women on the ride then headed to Robe for morning tea and were met by two members of the Mount Gambier Men’s Shed to show their personal appreciation to the riders.


The riders then headed to Tailem Bend for the night before travelling through Adelaide and heading towards the Nullabor and finishing in Fremantle.


“The optional leg that riders could elect to undertake called ‘the Long Ride Home’ will see riders undertake the trip from Fremantle to Busselton which is some 440km return trip before the ride concluding in Fremantle and riders then making their own way back to their prospective places,” Mr Garvey said.