Derry bikers coming together for Ukraine

A group of Derry bikers are coming together on April 3 to raise funds for the people of Ukraine.
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The motorbike ride has been organised by Kevin Breslin, of the Shamrock Motorcycle Tourers, who feels he needs to do something to help the people in Ukraine who had to evacuate their homes.

Kevin said; “There’s a guy in the biking group who was given six months to live, so we organised a bike ride for his birthday where over 300 bikes showed up and then we had the same for someone elses funeral. This run, I expect to be even bigger because we’re giving plenty of notice.

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“It is a fundraiser with all the donations going to Ukraine. I’m not sure which charity to donate to yet, it might be the Red Cross but I want it to go directly to the people of Ukraine to help them. Obviously the money is important but we’re also doing this to send a message of solidarity to the people of Ukraine and to promote peace.

Shamrock Motorcycle Tourers on a previous group ride.Shamrock Motorcycle Tourers on a previous group ride.
Shamrock Motorcycle Tourers on a previous group ride.

“The aim is to get a big enough bike run that the people of Ukraine see it themselves and know that we’re behind them.

“The big will be all motorbikes so anyone who owns a bike can take part. We’ll be starting at the Templemore Sports Complex and then going to Letterkenny. We kept it short because we’re expecting a lot of bikes. I bought blue and yellow ribbons to dress the bikes in the colours of Ukraine.

“We’ll park up in Letterkenny for about an hour and then we’ll make our way back to Derry where we’ll park up in the Guildhall for about an hour too.

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“I’ve been reading a lot into what has been going on and I’ve been really affected by it. If I didn’t have kids, I’d be over in Ukraine now fighting myself. I couldn’t sit here and do nothing so I looked at the platform I have, the motorbike group with over a thousand members, and decided to do something here.

“Watching what all the wains are going through over there has really just urged me to do something.

“For a lot of bikers out there, the weather can often be a deciding factor for going out. It could be raining but I think people should be getting their ‘pride and joy’ out even if it is. The Ukrainian people are being rained on my bombs and bullets now so I’m hoping people will be able to look past the weather and get involved.

“I’m asking people to donate £10 per bike and people not taking part can also donate for the cause. People can stand on the footpath along the route to watch or people can come to the Guildhall for the hour that we’ll be there and have a look at the bikes. We’ll have donation buckets on the day as well for people who maybe don’t know how to donate online or would just prefer to give cash.”

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The bikers will take off at 11am on Sunday, April 3 from Templemore Sports Complex and will be in the Guildhall at around 2.30pm for an hour.

Donations can be made on www.gofundme.com/shamrock-motorcycle-tourers-donation-to-ukraine or by cash on the day.

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