Danny ‘Spud’ Frawley had to dig deep to remember a time when he has endured a physical test as punishing and relentless as the Captain’s Ride from Sydney to Byron Bay. He recalled a pre-season training camp at Bacchus Marsh early in his career that was very tough physically, but as hard as that was, he didn’t have to put up with saddle soreness.
“There’s a bit of baboon tendonitis down there, it’s a bit raw and tender that’s for sure. 100 ‘kegs’ sitting on a seat about four inches wide and about one inch at the front is not the greatest,” Frawley said.
The riders have now ridden 780 kilometres from Sydney on their way to Byron Bay. They rode from Dorrigo in the NSW Northern tablelands to Grafton which involved a lot of hills. The groups climbed 2,000 metres before the downhill run into town in time for the Jacaranda Festival. However, even the downhill section wasn’t that easy with driving rain forcing riders to exercise extreme caution as they descended.
Although there are three different groups based on riding speed, some of the stronger riders will take it in turns to ride with the slower riders and help them out.
“There’s no egos on the trip and I think Steve Waugh epitomises that. The guy’s a class act. Any town you walk into he’s got time for everyone so he’s leading from the front and look he’s hurting big time. He said this is the toughest thing he’s ever done,” Frawley said.
MORE: Steve Waugh ‘King of the Kids’ on the Captain’s Ride
Waugh wanted the Captain’s Ride to be a searching test of character because he wanted participants to have an understanding of what is like for children and young adults to cope with the effects of a rare disease.
The Steve Waugh Foundation provides support in various ways to young people who would otherwise slip through the cracks of the medical system. One of those is 23 year old Renee Eliades who is just 81 centimetres tall due to a rare form of dwarfism and needs to be connected to oxygen bottles to leave her home.
Residential housing developer AVJennings has named three homes after Renee and donated the profit of their sale to the Steve Waugh Foundation. It is also sponsoring several riders on the Captain’s ride including St Kilda’s High Performance Manager, Jamie Cox and Frawley.
“I have to admit being a former AFL player and Coxy a cricketer, I was sort of looking for any crack, any weakness there but he’s been outstanding. He’s led from the front and he’s been very fastidious. His work rate and his ability to get through has been terrific. It’s been good to do this with somoen you work with day in and day out,” Frawley said.
There’s no let up for the riders on the last day with 180 kilometres to cover from Grafton to Byron Bay and no improvement forecast in the weather.
AVJennings QLD General Manager, Rod Chadwick, who is an accomplished amateur rider said high levels of concentration were needed in order to stay upright in the slippery conditions.
“The rain makes its very uncomfortable. At 30 ‘kays’ an hour that rain starts to make little pin marks on your face as you are riding along and you have to get the water out of your eyes. The benefit you would usually get from ‘drafting’ … was completely lost,” Chadwick said.
Chadwick who has recently approved the construction of the fourth Renee home to be sold to raise money for the Steve Waugh Foundation said he thought of Renee Eliades when it was getting tough on the road.
“When we are riding along I have reflected on the life of Renee and that’s got me through. I have thought about what she endures and particularly on Day 3 on that really really tough vertical rise I was just thinking I’ve just got to keep on going,” Chadwick said.
