Schools show mettle for the pedal

A CONTINGENT of Upper Yarra students and teachers will head off on the Great Victorian Bike Ride later this week.
The group includes seven students and three staff from Millwarra Primary School and one student from Upper Yarra Secondary College.
The cycling enthusiasts will ride from the Murray River at Swan Hill to the Yarra River at Heidelberg over nine days, travelling a total of about 600 kilometres.
The students and teachers have been training for the event since the middle of the year, completing three organised group rides around the Upper Yarra each week.
The students and teachers will depart Swan Hill on Saturday, 26 November and camp overnight at various towns as they make their way to the Yarra River.
The longest ride will be the 109-kilometre stretch between Echuca and Heathcote, with the shortest leg of the ride 37 kilometres.
Millwarra Primary School principal Rob Clark, who is leading the students and teachers on the ride, said participating in the event was a unique education experience.
“Being part of the ride is about setting goals and personal challenges then working hard to achieve them,” he said.
“When I’ve taken students on the ride in the past they have benefited in a number of ways.
“There are the obvious physical benefits and then there are opportunities to learn in other ways.”
Mr Clark said the ride would help the students build teamwork skills and learn about cooperation, and the staff on the tour would be able to relate aspects of the ride back to the school’s curriculum.
“As we are riding the students will be able to learn about the geography of the landscape they are seeing first-hand, and they can learn about the history of the towns and regions we visit,” he said.
“The ride is also a wonderful introduction to the joys of camping and other forms of outdoor recreation and leisure.”
The Great Victorian Bike Ride will finish in Heidelberg on Sunday, 4 December.