I am a 43 year old Norwegian who grew up in a loving home, in a small country town in the fjords of the west coast of Norway. Now I live in Perth with my amazing wife and 2 boys.
As a grown up I have realised that my safe upbringing have given me the opportunities to take risk and explore opportunities most people would shy away from. However, with risk comes "failure" and mental challenges that are hard to understand and deal with if you have no tools. I would have appreciated a better understanding of what mental health struggles are at a younger age, having a toolbox to tackle adversity when life throws you a curve ball later in life.
Through the Hawaiian Ride for Youth I will get an opportunity to help youth develop their toolbox and, hopefully, inspire them to explore life with a positive attitude. Knowing how to pull yourself back into a healthy headspace after a setback will, I hope, provide youth with a half full glass attitude that will give them a much greater opportunity to find a fulfilling and purposeful life.
My family and I know what it means to have mental health challenges. With two young boys who will soon discover adversity, as they leave the safety of our four walls, Hawaiian Ride for Youth provides me with a great chance to show them I am here to support them grow develop their mental health toolbox.
The ride also provides personal development opportunities, both socially and mental / physical health, through structured and regular training with a great group of people who are passionate about youth mental health.
I have never cycled on a road bike, I have never liked to get up early in the morning and I have not consistently exercised in the last 25 years. Just getting going is a massive undertaking for me and I hope you all support my efforts in raising money for youth who needs a hand to become caring and proud people in their communities.
