He's tweaked the itinerary considerably. Leura's epic bike riding septuagenarian, Bob Montgomery, has hit a few hitches on his 4000km fundraising journey from Perth to Leura over the past month.
Nine days into the ride and 1000 km down, Bob's wife and Winnebago driver, Jenny became ill - what she thought was a bad flu turned into a kidney infection.
A detour of hundreds of kilometres for emergency medical advice and a Royal Flying Doctor Service air ambulance trip to recover in a Kalgoorlie hospital saw the pair abandon their support van, affectionately nicknamed Nullabor Nellie, to their other driver Peter Shehadie to head for home. The ride was cancelled.
"The main thing in my mind was to get Jenny right, I didn't think of anything else. Thank goodness for the [Royal] Flying Doctor Service and the Kalgoorlie staff who had all her x-rays done in 35 minutes."
With the all clear for Jenny about a week later, Bob re-started the ride at Port Augusta, making up the 1000 km across the Nullabor on the Indian Pacific to catch up with his driver. [His wife is now resting comfortably back at "base camp" in the Blue Mountains with their daughter stepping in to help with her safe return].
Bob said he had made a commitment to raise the money for Motor Neurone Disease and didn't want to let the cause down.
"We didn't want to quit. We'd made a commitment, so much training and we were doing it for MND and that was the bottom line. I told myself 'you can still do it'," he said.
Talking to the Gazette last Friday, 22 days in and less than 1000km from home, Bob said he and Peter had been battling tough 47 degree days and were looking forward to being back in the Mountains.
It had been "harder, hotter, windier, more emotional and lonelier" than previous rides.
Along the way he's ridden on Australia's longest straight road of 146.5km.
As a friend posted on Facebook: "Imagine no bends or curves for hours on end. Mentally that is tough and yet Bob posted a time competitive with other top riders who have previously done this leg."
And he made the front page of the Barrier Daily Truth newspaper in Broken Hill.
"I was very surprised. I said to them 'You must be short of news in this town'," Bob told the Gazette laughing.
This is Bob's second charity ride. The former state squash player rode from Katoomba to Port Douglas and raised more than $30,000 in 2013. His target this time is $50,000 and at last count he had $27,000 still to raise.
MND is a death sentence, and its incidence among Australians has risen by more than 250 per cent in the past three decades.
The disease attacks the nerve cells that control the muscles that allow us to move, speak, breathe and swallow. Those nerve cells degenerate and die.
Scientists are working hard to find a cure and MND NSW spokeswoman, Kym Nielsen, said the money will make a big difference to research and member comfort.
"This is the second pretty huge challenge Bob has taken on for us. We're thrilled Bob has done this for us and the effort he is going to," Mrs Nielsen said.
Bob, a management consultant and member of Upper Blue Mountains Sunrise Rotary Club, is expected to ride into Leura Golf Club this Saturday October 17 just after 10am.
A phalanx of about 30 local riders will accompany him from Mt Victoria into Leura's Fairmont Resort where a crowd including state member Trish Doyle will be waiting to congratulate him with a morning tea.
The community is welcome at the finish line where someone will make a last rattle of the can for MND. To donate visit the website: perth2sydney4mnd.everydayhero.com/au/perth2sydney4mnd.
