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Black Dog Ride raising funds for, and awareness of mental health issues in Seymour
The Seymour community is invited to be part of the 2024 Black Dog Ride, a nationwide mental health day with up to 8000 motorbike riders expected to be involved across the country.
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Seymour will host one of 47 rides organised by the not-for-profit with the aim of increasing awareness of and raising funds to address mental health issues.
This will be a day for everyone, whether you own a motorbike or not.
Cars are also welcome, or you can simply pop down to the Royal, take a look at all the amazing bikes, and wave them off.
It’s a round trip, and the riders will return about two hours later, at which point the Royal will put on a barbecue lunch, and live music will begin.
Locals Peter and Kylie Comte are the ‘1 Dayer Seymour ride’ co-ordinators and have volunteered in that role for several years.
Kylie said the beauty of the Black Dog Ride was it not only provides a safe, inclusive space where people can feel comfortable to talk and feel supported, it also raises funds that go back into local communities to support vital mental health initiatives often overlooked for funding.
“The Black Dog Ride is essentially a mental health program with a specific focus on depression and suicide prevention,” Kylie said.
“The ‘1 Dayer’ is an event we run every year with rides happening across Australia.”
It’s held on the third Sunday of March and started in Seymour in 2020.
“We were very lucky that first year,” Kylie said.
“We had the ride, and one week later, everything closed down because of COVID.
“It was a bit of a baptism by fire as we had 200 riders turn up, which was great.”
Kylie said the important part of the day, and the Black Dog Ride’s overall mantra, was about breaking down the stigma attached to mental health, talking about how you’re feeling and reaching out for help.
“We use the image of the big burly motorbike rider to let people know that if these guys can sit down and talk about how they’re feeling, it helps to show that it’s not a weakness, that it can affect anyone and there is no shame in it,” she said.
“And if anyone is suffering in silence, hopefully they will be encouraged to reach out.
“Then they can find out they’re not alone and that there is help available.
“One in five Australians experience a mental health condition each year, three million Australians are living with depression or anxiety, and sadly, eight Australians take their lives each day.
“The ‘1 Dayer’ creates a camaraderie and can lead to a bit of a friendship group for people.”
Community members unable to attend can still donate to the cause by visiting www.blackdogride.org.au/view/donate/ and Kylie said the good thing about these donations was that 100 per cent of the money goes into a trust that is overseen by the charity.
“During different times of the year, that money is made available for local mental health initiatives, with the opportunity to go back in the communities where the money was raised, and further,” she said.
“Anyone can apply for a grant from that trust. Whether it’s a local community group that wants to do mental health first aid training or a support group, the charity will ensure it goes to the people who need it most.
Nationwide, this will be the 14th ‘1 Dayer’ event. However, in Seymour, it will be the third after last year’s was cancelled.
“It was not long after the floods, and the roads were not in a good condition,” Kylie said.
“It was a tough decision, but our number one priority is safety, and we felt putting a big group of bikes on to those roads was not a good idea.
“But we had other rides in places like Bendigo and Wangaratta that local riders went to.”
Kylie said they were expecting a good turnout this year with lots of local riders from the region and beyond who were keen to return to the Seymour ride.
“We also get lots of veterans who do the Seymour ride,” she said.
“With Pukapunyal so close, we have a lot of riders who were there at some point and now enjoy returning.”
Kylie and Peter said they wanted to acknowledge Paul and Leigh from the Royal, who had been big supporters of the ride.
“They’re a big supporter of mental health initiatives and the community in general,” Kylie said.
“We will finish the ride, and there will be a barbecue lunch on offer for everyone. And on top of the live music, there will also be a raffle and auction.”
If you would like to take part in the Seymour ‘1 Dayer Black Dog Ride’, you can register via events.humanitix.com/seymour-vic-black-dog-ride-1-dayer-2024/
Kylie and Peter also asked if anyone in the community, be it a business or local person, would like to donate an item to the auction, it would be much appreciated.
You can arrange that by contacting Kylie via seymour@blackdogride.org.au
You can find out more about the Black Dog Ride via www.blackdogride.org.au/
If you or anyone you know requires crisis support, contact Accessline on 1800 800 944, Lifeline Australia on 13 11 14, Beyond Blue on 1300 224 636 or Kids Helpline on 1800 551 800.
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