The point of our adventure was for me to participate in a 300 km bike ride to raise money for various charities. I was riding on behalf of Compassion who do amazing things for poor people across the developing world.

In Geelong, I woke up early in order to be at the starting point with bike and travelling gear before 6 am. The adrenaline was flowing and I was about to start the ride of a lifetime. Bags were stowed in the support vehicle and off we went.

Wow! I was finally here on the first leg of a 300 km journey. We got 50 m before we hit the first red light. After a dozen of those, we finally headed out of town towards Torquay and the Great Ocean Road.

Bells Beach is a famous surfing location where the swell from the Southern Ocean hits the rugged southern coast of Australia. We stopped at the headland overlooking the beach.

From here it was on to Apollo Bay via Lorne. I stopped briefly to take this photo of the iconic  Aireys Inlet lighthouse.

So the first day was done, a total of 120 km.

Dinner was at a local restaurant. I sat and chatted with Adrian, the Compassion partnership representative.