Cyclists riding from Albany to Perth to raise money for youth mental health make a stop in Harvey

A procession of cyclists clad in yellow spandex rode into the Harvey last week meeting the applause and cheers of a gathered crowd.

Cyclists taking part in the Hawaiian Ride for Youth— now it it’s 23rd year — travelled across three routes from Albany to Perth last week, raising more than $2 million for the charity Youth Focus to deliver initiatives to incite positive change to youth mental health across Western Australia.

A portion of the more than 150 riders taking part in this years ride made their way though Harvey last Friday, stopping off at the Harvey Senior High School to talk to the students about their own mental health journeys.

When the riders rode into the school they were met with the cheers of the Year 7 class celebrating their incredible journey before heading into the gymnasium to hear from former Harvey local and ninth time cyclist Barry Elmslie — riding under the name “Big Bad Bazza”.

Mr Elmslie said he once attended Harvey Primary School and had fond memories of playing cricket in town and riding his bike along the back streets as he went to school each morning.

Speaking to the Year 7 class he said he found himself struggling with mental health after leaving Harvey, but found support from a friend’s parent who he could confide in.

Mr Elmslie told the students how important it was to have a support network of people you can trust and talk to to help manage mental health.

Speaking to the Reporter, Mr Elmslie said he loved taking park in the ride each year, as it was a great cause he was passionate about.

“Young people are our future, and it’s great to give them the best hope they need to be able to deal with the mental side of things,” he said.

“We get a buzz out of seeing the kids react with us when we’re talking about mental health, as they seem much more aware today, even in the nine years I’ve been doing it.”

Along with Mr Elmslie was James Sutherland, who has taken part in the ride since it’s inception in 2003. Mr Elmlsie said it was people like Mr Sutherland supporting him over the past nine years which makes the ride so enjoyable.

The procession left Harvey High School around 10am to make their way to Mandurah. From there they travelled to Perth on Saturday morning to finish their ride.