i98fm Camp Quality Convoy for Kids 2011

What is i98fm?

My favourite Illawarra radio station. Check them out here.

What is Camp Quality?

A charity who helps families that are affected by childhood cancer. Check out their website here and their Illawarra specific site here.

Personally, I first heard about Camp Quality in my teens, when a girl I was at school with (Janet) went on one of their camps as a buddy to a child with cancer. Janet is a child leukaemia survivor, thanks to a bone marrow transplant she had in primary school, which would have been 1980. Imagine how many other families have been touched and supported by Camp Quality in all the years since.

What is Convoy for Kids?

Motorbike riders & truck companies can register to ride & drive in the Convoy. They get a Convoy tshirt to wear & the money goes to Camp Quality. Over $410,000 was raised in the lead up to today, with Illawarra Truck Repairs & Spares bidding/donating a massive $66,000 to have the honour of being the lead trucks. All the other companies whose bids are unsuccessful still donate the money. Another reason I like trucks!

Last I heard, there were 671 trucks and 617 motorbikes participating in Convoy this year. The bikes go first as they are a bit faster than the trucks! (Ray used to ride in it when he had a motorbike). This is the 7th year Convoy has been running.

Here is my day!

8:30am - day of Convoy - set up has already started:

Trucks arriving:

Zac when we found him after a few hours - he started there at 8am:

Bits of the day -

Wes Carr performing

One last glimpse as we were leaving at day's end.........(lots of trucks had left already)

This is the same paddock that was empty in the 1st photo.

As a side note, I really, really, really wanted to see Diesel perform (he was on after Wes Carr). I took the kids back to the rides during Wes Carr's set so they would be done & ready for a sit down when Diesel was on. We lined up, we frowned at the kids who pushed in (which meant my kids missed out by 1 kid on being in the next group to go on the ride) and cursed (under my breath) the parents who teach their kids to push in. I gave my kids their "last ride" warning - by this time I could hear Diesel singing. They were pushed in on, again. They had their last ride & we walked back towards to stage, just in time to hear Diesel say "Thanks for having me". I didn't even get to see him.

So, if you are a parent who permits & even encourages your kids to push in, you owe me a ticket to a Diesel concert. Even though today's was free - at least if you have to buy me a ticket, you might learn something.

But I don't want to take anything away from the real reason for the day. It wasn't about me, it was about the kids who are living with cancer, and their families.

Thanks i98fm and Camp Quality, bikers, truckers & everyone else involved with today for a fabulous day out. The kids and I are exhausted!

What did you get up to today?

Karen xx