The Postie Bike Run

The Postie Bike Run is a fundraising event that saw 26 Postie bikes travel from Toodyay, WA, over 2,400km to Broome in eight days, from June 17-25, to help raise money for Lions and the Royal Flying Doctor Service. The Run saw 42 people make the epic 2,400km voyage north, with the ride raising over $100,000 for charity.

This event was the brain-child of Toodyay Classic Cars owner, Alan Rose, which took him more than 12 months to plan. In the process the event brought many community members together from both Toodyay and Broome.

Most bikes were ridden solo, but seven of the bikes had partners to share the experience. It was a fully supported ride with a semi-trailer equipped with all the swags and supplies, a bus and trailer carrying the fuels and support crew and an F250 and trailer with a full-time mechanic and bike spares.

Each day was broken into manageable sections of about 250-390km, with regular fuel stops. Most nights the crew were camping out.

One of the participants in the ride, Roley Bayman, commented on the durability of the Posties, saying, “These postie bikes are unbelievable. Apart from two running out of fuel and one replaced clutch they seem to be just as indestructible as my usual ride, a DRZ 400!”

Riders had to stay vigilant for road trains and Grey Nomads but Bayman says there biggest challenge was the elements, “Our biggest challenge was dealing with head and cross winds in an effort to try and maintain a cruising speed of 70-75km. However, there were sections when the wind had us down to 60km on full throttle! On that particular day every bike needed the engine oil topped up – about four litres of oil across the 26 bikes.”

With over $100,000 raised for charity and 42 happy participants the Postie Challenge was a huge success. Bayman puts it like this, “I now have 41 new friends and some once-in-a-life-time memories, and would I do it again? You bet, in a flash!”