Female fox

Charity ride hits the road

BY NICK RIDLEY

Acharity event raising money for East Grampians Health Service while recognising fallen police officers will roar to life on Sunday.

Victoria Police Blue Ribbon Foundation Ararat branch Grampians Ride to Remember has attracted about 500 motorcyclists who will ride a 197-kilometre circuit from Ararat and through the Grampians-Pyrenees region.

Registration starts at 7am at Ararat RSL and a safety briefing will begin at 8.30am in the RSL car park.

Police will have the honour of starting the ride at 9am, when they will wave chequered flags.

The Ararat branch hopes to raise $65,000 for x-ray equipment in the John McNally Medical Imaging Department at East Grampians Health Service in Ararat.

Spokesman Dean Pinniger said a wide variety of groups and organisations would be present on the day.

“There will be display tents from groups such as Psychs on Bikes, an organisation that focuses on mental health, and the police Blue Ribbon van will be selling merchandise,” he said.

“Ararat Lions Club will provide lunch at the Alexandra Gardens.”

Mr Pinniger said the event also supported communities and businesses in the Ararat region. “It’s been a difficult thing to arrange because of COVID-19, but we have chosen not to cancel it this year,” he said.

Mr Pinniger said the event would be consistent with COVID-19 mandates and assured the safety of Ararat community was a priority for organisers.

“We have made sure that all riders who are attending are double vaccinated,” he said.

Mr Pinniger said the ride had been going strong for 14 years and had benefitted many people in Ararat.

“The organisers hope the ride will continue year-after-year,” he said.

Circuit

Participants will travel through rural countryside within Ararat and Pyrenees municipalities.

Riders will stop for a 45-minute break at Des Brennan reserve at Buangor.

The group will then head onto Raglan, Elmhurst, into the Pyrenees via Wimmera River valley, Glenlofty and onto Malakoff forest.

The riders’ final leg will be through Landsborough before heading back via Crowlands to lunch in the gardens.

ACE Radio, Ararat RSL, Horsham Harley Davidson and Shannon’s Insurance are sponsors of the event. INSTANT: Wimmera Highway Patrol Senior Constable Rochelle Carter checks details using automatic number plate recognition, ANPR, technology. More than 200 Victoria Police highwaypatrol vehicles now have the technology. Horsham Senior Constable Mitch Gallop said the numberplate recognition system could scan four cars at the same time. “It lets us check on more vehicles and if there are any issues with the licences or registration it allows us the ability to check on the owner’s vehicle details,” he said. Picture: PAUL CARRACHER

OAM recognition for Wimmera duo

A long-time fine-arts advocate who spent many years in Horsham and the Wimmera was among Australia Day Awards recipients.

Marion Matthews, formerly of Horsham and now of Port Fairy, received a Medal of the Order of Australia, OAM.

Ms Matthews received her acknowledgment for service to visual arts.

She has been GrampiansArts programs co-ordinator since 2008 and fulfilled management roles in Horsham Regional Art Gallery.

She was also a former community representative in a Horsham Town Hall redevelopment project and former drought officer and cultural development officer with Horsham Rural City Council.

As a volunteer, Ms Matthews was a former chairperson of Horsham Regional Arts Association, a Horsham Town Hall board member, Wimmera hospital board member and supported Wesley Performing Arts Centre in Horsham.

She is also a former chair and treasurer for Horsham Art is… festival committee and former chair of Makers’ Gallery in Horsham.

She has also had other volunteer roles with Nati Frinj festival and is a former management committee member of HUB Adult Learning Centre in Horsham.

She was Regional Arts Victoria regional arts development officer from 2002 to 2008 and was a social welfare officer between 1982 and 1990.

Stephan honoured

Tokyo Olympic rowing gold medalist Lucy Stephan was awarded an OAM in Australia Day honours last week.

Stephan, originally from Nhill, was one of 23 gold medalists from the Tokyo Olympic Games honoured.

Swimmer Emma McKeon and basketball’s Patty Mills received the highest accolades, awarded an AM, Member of the Order of Australia.

The women’s rowing four of Stephan, Rosemary Popa, Jessica Morrison and Annabel McIntyre held off a fast-finishing Dutch team to win gold by 0.34 of a second.

Stephan grew up on the family farm at Woorak with her parents Gus and Mandy Stephan and brothers Fred and Oscar, attending kindergarten, primary school and secondary college at Nhill, until year nine.

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