Update | Travel scene – Dieter Schneider: Motorbike riding and doing good
The Fellows Ride, the motorbike demonstration for depression support and mental health, is entering its fourth season this year. There will be 25 rides in Germany and other European countries in 2024.
Last year, the Fellows Rides raised around 33,000 euros, which was donated to sixteen projects. Dieter Schneider, founder and organiser of the project, is very proud of this impressive result. "With our motorbikes, we were able to draw attention to a taboo subject and raise a considerable amount of money," he says. Numerous regional and national media reported on the events.
This year, there will be rides for a good cause in at least 25 locations in Germany, Austria, Romania, Portugal and Switzerland. There will also be a Fellows Ride in Lucerne for the first time, organised by Touratech Swiss. Dörthe Winkel, the Managing Director, describes her advocacy: "The topic of depression needs to receive more attention. Too many people don't get the support they need and there is a lack of understanding. I want to help break the stigmatisation of depression and hope that people can get help more easily and quickly."
Touratech has been a partner and supporter of the movement since the first Fellows Ride in 2021. This year, in cooperation with Good Souls, there will also be a Fellows Ride Black Forest for the first time. The start and finish will be at Touratech in Niedereschach on 13 July 2024. "Without the support of Touratech, we would certainly not have been so successful so quickly," says Dieter Schneider, describing the cooperation. The partnership is made visible by the Fellows Bike, which is branded by and with Touratech for each season. Last year, it was a Ténéré 700 that attracted attention. This year it's a Zero DSR/X. "This season, I will be travelling between 10 and 15,000 kilometres from Fellows Ride to Fellows Ride and collecting donations," says Schneider. This year, a first aid course for mental health is being developed in cooperation with the Centre for Mental Health at the University of Würzburg.
Anyone wanting to find out more about the Fellows Ride project can meet Dieter Schneider and his colleagues at the Touratech Travel Event from 31 May to 2 June 2024 or on one of the 25 Fellows Rides.
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