HOWLONG residents woke up on Good Friday to the world’s largest bike doing the rounds.
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The only one of its kind on the planet, 33 cyclists powered the five-tonne Big Red Bike around town as part of the Good Friday Appeal.
Good Friday Appeal Howlong area manager Cassandra Beddows said the cyclists covered most parts of town on their three-hour ride to Lowe Square yesterday morning.
“People were blown away by it!” she said.
“Kids were running out of their homes to get a better look and people had stopped their cars to take photos on their phones.”
Ms Beddows said the bike was controlled by a steering wheel up the front and was fitted with a microphone.
She said it weighed about five tonnes with 33 riders on board.
“At one stage we looked to have accumulated 20 riders hanging off the back,” she said.
“That might have made it harder to steer!”
Ms Beddows said it was the third year Howlong had its own Good Friday Appeal.
She said previously Howlong donations had been tallied with Albury.
“(Three years ago) I was watching the Good Friday Appeal and Lee Kernaghan slammed Howlong big-time for not raising any money,” she said.
“Our donations went on Albury’s total; I applied to become the area manager for Howlong’s appeal.”
Ms Beddows said Howlong punched above its weight in community fundraisers.
She said it raised $8500 on Good Friday alone last year.
“We hope to better that this year,” she said.
Howlong’s Good Friday Appeal coordinators host fundraising dinners at the Howlong Football and Netball Club twice a month.