The the nine-day cancer research fundraising ride from Sydney to Geelong will be held from May 3 to May 11.
The six-time Deniliquin Golf Club Men’s Champion first participated in the Tour de Cure ride in 2016 in honour of his father, who sadly passed away three weeks after his diagnosis in 2013.
The 40 year-old decided to take on the gruelling 1287km ride — with 13,835m elevation — after the passing of former junior golfing teammate and Australian professional golfer Jarrod Lyle.
With these two men serving as inspiration for him, Kelly has already dedicated the majority of his spare time to the cause.
‘‘I just passed 4000km since I began training, but I’ve still got another 4000km of training to go before the ride,’’ he said.
‘‘That means I have to average about 300km a week.
‘‘It’s one of the hardest tours that Tour de Cure has ridden.
‘‘There are a couple of guys that I rode with on the Peter Mac ride in 2016 who are proper cyclists and ride at least 250km every week of the year, and they have said they are stepping up their training particularly for this ride.
‘‘But riding bikes is pretty easy in comparison to what dad and Jarrod both had to go through.’’
The 2019 ride will also mark the 10th anniversary of Channel 7 sports presenter Mark Beretta’s involvement in the event.
The signature tour was designed to celebrate this amazing milestone by riding from Beretta’s workplace of Channel 7 Sunrise Brekkie Central to his home town of Geelong.
The journey will see riders travel to the idyllic seaside town of Kiama, before heading inland to tackle the scenic and beautiful country towns from Canberra to Corryong, before experiencing Central Victoria.
The track is described as some of the best riding in Australia, with riders spreading the word of Tour de Cure at school visits throughout the journey.
Kelly said Beretta has been a key reason the Tour de Cure ride has been such a success over the years.
‘‘The increase in fundraising really came when Beretts got involved,’’ he said.
‘‘He gave this event more exposure and used his role at Channel 7 for a good cause.
‘‘The school visits will be about delivering a message of healthy living as well as raising awareness of cancer.
‘‘We also want to break down the fear of cancer and to help the children understand that someone still has hope even when diagnosed with the disease.
‘‘We want them to know that cancer is something you can fight and that researchers are getting closer and closer to finding a cure.’’
Deniliquin Golf Club will hold its Tee Up for Cancer charity day on Sunday with all funds from the day going towards Kelly’s Tour de Cure fundraising efforts.
The charity day will see teams of four compete, playing stableford in a round of big hole golf, with the holes almost doubling in size to about 20cms.
There have been 20 teams registered for the event so far, with spots still available to join in on the fun.
To enter your team of four, head down to the Deniliquin Golf Club Pro Shop today.
Entry is just $25 a head, which includes a barbecue lunch.
If you can’t make it for the event on Sunday and still want to make a donation towards Kelly’s ride visit https://tourdecure.com.au/profile/?memberId=60164&tourId=1018 and follow the prompts.
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