Great Aussie Rickshaw Ride: Fri 17 Sep

Fri 17 Sep

The plan this day was for Jeff, Parvin, Farida and Carlyn to meet Ross, Bev and Val off the boat in Devonport. However, Farida had developed an extremely painful toothache, so Leah made an appointment for her to see a dentist in Launceston. Parvin stayed back to support to Farida, who turned out to have quite a nasty infected tooth and gum.

In Devonport, the three Queenslanders arrived after a very bumpy crossing due to a swell whipped up by the same winds that had made the previous day's flight so bumpy. Bev in particular was looking very green around the gils. The wind was icy and still blowing strong as the team gathered at Perry Bros Bakery for breakfast.

After a hearty breakfast, several rickshaw riders assembled in the bakery's carpark: Ian Howard, a councillor with Meander Valley Council, along with his two daughters Zoe and Ruby and Tom and Cath Cloudsdale (Cath is Leah's sister). Safety briefing complete, Ian began the first riding on Tasmania soil. He hadn't got far before we were met by Carly from the Examiner newspaper. She took a great photo of Ian and his girls riding and quickly jotted down notes for a story. It seems her note taking may have been just a tad too quick, because the subsequent story attributed Ross, Bev and Val has having been the only team members to have cycled all the way from Queensland!

The riding on Friday was through stunningly beautiful farmland between Devonport and Deloraine. The landscape at this time of the year is lush, with spring lambs and daffodils around every bend and farm dams full to the brim. The only issue was that the chosen route (through Railton and Kimberley) was rather undulating. The team was joined part way through by additional riders: Dylan and Brady, one of the youngest pairs to ride and Peter and Chris. Unfortunately Carlyn was feeling sick, otherwise she could have had the distinction of being the only person (besides Jeff) to have ridden in more than one state.

The arrival into Deloraine was fantastic. There was a good crowd gathered as the rickshaw wound it's way down the main street to the Train Park. The local mayor Mark Shelton gave a short speech to welcome the team into town, before inviting all and sundry (probably 30 in all) to afternoon tea at the cafe across the road from the park. This was one of the few times that a council (Wodonga's Deputy Mayor did the same) had offered such extravagant hospitality throughout the entire journey and it went a long way to making the team feel welcome in Tasmania.