It's less than three weeks to go now before the big Noosa ride and I'm starting to feel a bit apprehensive.  The training is coming along well enough, but 400km is still a hell of a long way.

On Friday a group of the riders did a tour of the Royal Children's Hospital in Brisbane to see where the money we raise will go.  There are over one million children aged 0-14 in Queensland (28.5% of the population) and the hospital is at the epicentre of treatment and care for all of these kids.  We were joined by the guys from Day of Difference who were able to explain how the foundation has been able to assist in the support of critically injured kids in the past.

We all know what a great job the hospital does in caring for kids, but walking around the hospital and meeting the staff gave me a real appreciation of exactly what they're up against.  We visited the ICU and heard from the staff about some of the kids who are currently being treated.  The sophistication of the technology they are using is amazing, as is the sheer amount of it.  If the funds we raise are able to help in the purchase of just one of these pieces of equipment we will have done something special to help these kids. 

The area that probably affected me the most was the Burns Unit.  You really don't want to think about children and burns, but I was surprised at how common these injuries actually are.  We're all familiar with scalding from hot liquids and this is a common injury, but I wasn't aware just how common campfire burns are in children here in Queensland.  I was even more surprised to learn that treadmills are also a major source of friction burns in children.  Prevention of accidents is obviously crucial, but the treatment the hospital is able to provide is quite extraordinary.

As a parent you always hope that your kids won't need to use the care that the hospital provides, but meeting the staff and some of the kids demonstrated to me what an important cause this is.  If you would like to support this fantastic cause you can donate through my sponsorship page.

See you on the road.

gz