The Highland Fling has officially come to an end.
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The Final Fling was held on the weekend of November 12 and 13 after a 20-year journey.
To celebrate the final event, Wild Horizons’ Huw Kingston made the decision to use the final event as a fundraiser for Save the Children.
Save the Children is one of Australia's largest aid and development agencies dedicated to helping children.
The organisation works hard to protect children from harm and help them access quality education and health services.
The Final Fling raised more than $63,000 for the organisation.
Mr Kingston said the Final Fling was a very special event not just for Wild Horizons, but for the community.
“I loved seeing the Ferndale Event Centre undertake one last transformation from rural paddock into buzzing event centre,” Mr Kingston said.
“To welcome for one last time familiar faces, listen to the Dawn Piper’s traditional bagpipe wake-up call, watch the nervous anticipation on the startline and of course get up to some tomfoolery that has been a mark of our events from the Polaris Challenge, 3 Ring Circus, Mountains To Beach through to the Highland Fling.”
Mr Kingston also said he was pleased that after 20 years, there was never a late start to a race.
“Our 20 year record of never starting an event even one minute late stand – something we’re pretty proud of given the weather conditions at times,” he said.
While The Fling will no longer continue, Mr Kingston and Wild Horizons will still be a big part of the cycling world.
“Whilst we might be done with running our own events we’ll remain very much involved with the sport we love, this will include continuing to run our cycling tours,” Mr Kingston said.
Events like the Fling couldn’t have happened without the help of the community, and Mr Kingston thanked the support and hardwork of the community over the past 20 years.