The idea started as a joke after he and his wife travelled to Christchurch last year for Syd’s Run, an annual motorcycle event that attracted about 660 riders.
“When we got back, I joked, ‘Oh, you know, I’ll ride down. It’ll be funny going down on a small little bike, riding all the way there and back.”
He decided to turn the challenge into a fundraiser for Movember, which supports men’s mental health and suicide prevention, as well as prostate and testicular cancer research.
For Quinn, the cause was personal after he lost a friend to suicide at school, a death he said came completely out of the blue.
“There was no sign of a struggle.
“By the time we actually got round there, he was already gone.”
He said the experience had stayed with them and reinforced the importance of checking in on friends even when they appeared to be doing well.
He struggled with his own mental health last year, and he said it caused him to close himself off and not talk to many people.
Every dollar raised from Paul Quinn’s ride will go directly to Movember. Photo / Kelly O’Hara
Asked what he would say to men struggling but hesitant to seek help, he said taking the first step was not always easy.
“As much as it’s easy to say, ‘You know, just do it, reach out’, it’s not that easy.”
Instead, he wants people to check in on the men around them.
“It’s more about the people around other guys who might be noticing a struggle or anything like that; reach out to them. See if your mate’s not doing okay and have a chat with them.
“It’s so much harder to say, ‘Hey, look, I need help.’”
Quinn hopes the ride will help start those conversations.
He said the motorcycle had taken about eight months to build and was sitting in pieces in storage when he decided to take on the challenge.
He has since taken it on short rides around the Bay of Plenty, including trips to Pukehina and Te Puke.
Quinn has been riding motorcycles for about seven years but has always preferred smaller bikes.
Paul Quinn with the 1978 Honda Gorilla he’ll ride from Tauranga to Christchurch and back for Movember. Photo / Kelly O’Hara
He hopes to cover about 300km a day.
“It’ll do 50 on the flat and a lot slower uphill.”
Rain was unlikely to stop him, with wet-weather gear packed for the trip.
While some people have questioned the idea, Quinn said most had come around once they heard the reason behind it.
“Everyone sort of seems to think I’m mad for doing it.
“But they love the whole reasoning and why … when I get to have a chat with people and tell them why I’m doing it, it sort of becomes a bit like, ‘OK, yeah, you can see the whole vision.’”
He has already received support from Bluebridge Ferries and KiwiPlates, which has supplied a Movember-themed number plate. His mother-in-law, Janet, will cover his fuel costs.
Quinn hopes to raise $5000 for Movember, with every dollar donated going directly to the charity.
“If I can raise just $2 every [kilometre], it would mean the absolute world to me.”
People can meet Quinn and see the Honda at a fundraising barbecue at Bunnings Tauranga on November 7.
All money raised from the sausage sizzle will go directly to Movember.
Donations can also be made through Quinn’s Movember fundraising page.
Zoe Blake is a multimedia journalist at the Bay of Plenty Times and the Rotorua Daily Post.