Record-breaking ride brings hundreds to Miles

When the Miles Memorial Trail Ride was first established organisers couldn't have predicted just how big the event could become.

FULL THROTTLE: The Stone family at the 2019 Miles Memorial Trail Ride held over the weekend. Picture: Matt Stone

WHEN the Miles Memorial Trail Ride was first established in honour of local enthusiast Casey Orchard, organisers couldn't have predicted just how big the event could become.

This weekend marked the sixth annual ride, with a record-breaking 300 riders travelling from near and far to take to the track.

Ride secretary Roni Gray said it was an impressive result for an event that's traditionally been only small.

"We've never wanted to be a huge ride, we were really happy to get 300 riders, we got a lot of families and we got a lot of novice riders which we were also really excited about,” Mrs Gray said.

Riders and helpers came from as far afield as the Sunshine Coast, Brisbane, Charleville, Toowoomba, Monto, Goondiwindi, Texas, and even northern NSW.

"And they're just the ones I know about,” Mrs Gray said.

The ride is in memorial of Casey Orchard, a Miles cross-country motorcyclist who longed to bring a trail ride event to Miles.

After he died suddenly in a motorcycle crash in 2012 on his 32nd birthday, his family and the riding community made his dream come true. This year as always his father, Cliff, was in attendance to both support and help out across the two-day ride.

As for the increasing attendance, Mrs Gray chalked it up to the ongoing drought which has resulted in a number of cancelled events, and the Miles ride's low fees. Despite a few comments on the dusty track, Mrs Gray said the feedback this year was largely positive.

"We had a lot of people coming up as they were leaving and thanking us for the ride,” she said.

Proceeds from the event are donated back to the community, particularly the Murilla Kindy. Mrs Gray extended thanks to the landowners, sponsors and locals who helped make the ride possible.