Sport
6 July, 2026
Battling the outback by bicycle
Local cycle enthusiast Mike Hawley was among a group of riders who last week completed an unforgettable event known as the Shearer’s Ride.
The Shearer’s Ride, an annual event, was completed for 2026 last Wednesday.
The original Shearer’s Ride commenced in 2014.
The concept was the brainchild of Mulga Bill’s Cycles’ Lyle and Kaye.
The Shearer’s Ride pays homage to the shearers of the early 1900s travelling from shed to shed on their bicycles.
This year’s ride started at Quilpie on Saturday the 20th of June and finishing back in Quilpie last Wednesday, the 24th.
The group consisted of 25 riders and four support people.
Mike Hawley said the route consisted of bitumen and gravel roads.
“Due to plentiful rainfall the gravel road was quite boggy in certain sections,” he said.
The overall distance covered was 370 kilometres.
On Day 1 the participants rode 77 kilometres from Quilpie to Toompine.
On Day 2, the stretch from Toompine to Moble Station Shearing Quarters was 76 kilometres.
The riders left Moble Station Shearing Quarters on Day 3 for another 77 kilometre ride to Toogunna Plains.
Day 4 was the easier run in terms of distance, taking the riders from Toogunna Plains to Eromanga, a distance of 30 kilometres.
The biggest stretch was on Day 5 from Eromanga to Quilpie - 106 kilometres.
