Applecross resident gears up for first Ride for Youth

MATT Gibbs will get on his bike for a good cause later this month.

After twice taking part as a support crew member, the Applecross resident be a cyclist in the Hawaiian Ride for Youth for the first time.

Mr Gibbs is a part of the team Clough Foundation, which has raised more than $30,0000, while he has raised $6000.

The ride raises money for mental health organisation Youth Focus, a cause close to his heart.

He will ride from Albany on March 26 and through the Wheatbelt to Perth, arriving at Kings Park on March 30.

“After being a support crew member I decided I wanted to ride because it’s a good cause,” he said.

“I wanted to support Youth Focus in another way and I’ve always enjoyed cycling, plus my wife Lynda inspired me to take part as she has been a support crew member for years.”

Mr Gibbs said he had been training for about eight months for the ride, which was made more difficult because he was a fly-in, fly-out worker.

“I’ve ridden about 3000km in training and also spent 55 hours on a spin bike,” he said.

“I’m feeling OK about the ride; they told us if we did the training then we would be fine.

“My longest ride to date is 120km and the longest day on the ride will be 195km.”

Mr Gibbs has previously helped Youth Focus as a mentor for young people between March 2017 and March 2018.

“It involved meeting up with a young person once a fortnight and doing different activities,” he said.

“It was great to see the young person evolve; they were pretty quiet when we first started.

“Mental health is an important subject for me because it has impacted my family and friends.”