It has been three years since 26-year-old Jake died and in the hope that other families will not have to face the same tragedy, Jake’s friends and family have come together to not only remember him, but to also raise money for local charity ‘Let’s Talk Lithgow.’

One of Jake’s best mates Chris Bennett helps to organise the event. He said the idea to raise money came last year when Jake’s family were organising ‘The Ride 4 Jake.’

“The idea for the ride came when Jake’s dad Col asked where we use to go riding and he wanted to go for a ride to remember his son, that’s how it started.

“This year is the second year, last year we had plenty of interest so we thought let’s do something, with so many people we may as well raise money and try find a local charity that way the money will stay local,” he said.

Mr Bennett also said while it was a memorial ride, the point was to raise money for mental health services.

“It makes us feel good, we’re just a couple of blokes that want to make a difference and if we can help someone not to do something silly it’s a win,” he said.

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He also said last year more than 60 people participated in the ride and he hoped for an even bigger turnout this year.

“This year we are hoping for 100 people, and we’ve got people coming from all over including Bathurst, Sydney and the Central Coast,” he said.

The ride will start with everyone gathering at the Blast Furnace at 8am on Saturday and the group will head towards Oberon for a fuel stop and off to Tarana Pub to quench the thirst, then back to the Lithgow Workies for a beer garden lunch and raffle.

Those without transport are welcome to just come along to lunch and the raffle. 

“The Enhance fuel station in Oberon will give us a discount on fuel and provide us with tea, coffee and water, and for our raffle we were lucky enough to get a bunch of prizes donated by local businesses,” Mr Bennett said.

Mr Bennett also said people were more than welcome to get in their cars and come for a drive as he understood not many rode motorbikes.

“We’ve even got the Lithgow Car Club coming, so bring your cars, bring your bikes and come for a drive to share stories, remember a top bloke and raise money for a charity that’s close to us,” he said.

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