Six months training on Sundays, and COVID lockdowns, we did it!! The Tour de Brisbane Medio ride! nearly 80 kms in 3 1/2 hours averaging about 22 kms per hour. We crossed the finish line together. To top it off Lach was served at the TdB tent by a palestinian who said how much he liked our Free Palestine shirt. Then after the presentations one of the winners declared to us that he supported Palestine because he had visited his niece there and was taken on a tour by a Palestinian man showing him what was going on in that country.
The Big Ride for Palestine
Now onto the Big Ride for #Palestine! #TourDeBrisbane
Instead of having one team ride from Brisbane to the Byron Shire as we have done in previous years, we are asking people to nominate a ride or other activity (walking, jogging etc.) of their choice. You can ride as an individual or in small teams. Riders register … and seek sponsorship from supporters, friends and relatives. We are hoping to run the ride covid safe over two weeks in late August till early September ’21. More details to be announced soon.
So onya bikes and get ready.
Tour de Brisbane
Thanks to Lach and all our training partners (Graeme, Terry, Ali, & Corey) for making it possible for the Big Ride for Palestine to make an appearance at the Tour de Brisbane 2021. Thanks to our supporters as well. I was pretty happy with my own performance coming 11th in my age category. If it weren’t for the 20 minutes waiting in the big queue for the toilet at the halfway point, I may have done better.
Cycling Industry
A quick observation on the state of the bicycle industry. There were over 6,000 bikes (mine was the only recumbent trike) that turned up on Sunday. They were all pretty flash bikes, unlike my $100 Aldi bike, say they were worth, on average, $2000 each and multiply that by 6500 contestants, that’s over $12M worth of bikes right there at the start line in Gregory Terrace. If you run a bike shop, there is no reason why you shouldn’t support this race and together with all the kit that people were wearing no reason why you aren’t making money.
BDS
For information about the Boycott Divestments & Sanctions (BDS) campaign go to Justice for Palestine (Brisbane).
We’ll be doing the Big Ride again this year, Covid safe. Enjoy the gallery of our pictures in preparing for Tour de Brisbane.
Ian Curr
12 July 2021
Start 
Storey Bridge 
Near the end
Melbourne 
The top of Brisbane’s Gateway Bridge (the longest bridge of its type in the world). Not a border check to the Occupied Territories. Wire fence but no machine guns! 
Nudgee Beach 
Graeme Lach Ian 
Terry Ian Lach 
Terry Ian Ali 
Ian Lach Graeme 
Terry Ian Lach 
Training ride – strava 
Ian, Terry, Lach 
Moscow Circus 
Bulimba Creek Pine forest 
Carpet snake at Bushland reserve stop 
Burnett’s bushland reserve
Sydney 
Start – TdB Finish – TdB 2021
A Palestinian marathon runner was attacked several times by Israeli forces as he warmed down at the finish line of a race in East Jerusalem. (warning: distressing) …
https://youtu.be/mhitZ75vN4c