UNTIL the past month, Campbell Brown had not ridden a bike in over a decade.
But with a cause close to his heart as inspiration, the former Hawthorn premiership player will complete a two-wheel journey in excess of 1000km on Sunday.
Brown is the ambassador for the Silver Lining Ride, a month-long virtual event raising funds for the Ovarian Cancer Research Foundation.
The former AFL hard man, who played 205 games for the Hawks and Gold Coast, lost his mother Kay to ovarian cancer in 2019, opening up about its impact on the AFL On Demand series The Last Time I Cried.
"I was more than happy to put my hand up to raise awareness and raise funds," Brown told AFL.com.au.
"This is a cause that touches so many: a grandma, a mother, a daughter, there's plenty of stories out there with healthy women one day that have never had an issue in their life and out of nowhere they have a test, and something is wrong.
"That's why they call it the silent killer."
In its fourth year, the ride is 1068km, the number of women forecast to lose their lives to ovarian cancer in Australia this year.
Brown says he's a "non-rider", not even in his playing days, and has ridden around 30-40km most days of the four-week challenge to chip away at the total.
"I pulled out the 2004 bike in my garage and, dead-set, it wouldn't have been used for a decade, it was all dusty and covered in cobwebs," he said.
"My first ride was in footy shorts, a t-shirt and runners.
"I went down to the local bike store and got a new street racer, which is light, got some clip-ins and decked myself out in Lycra, which isn't too flattering.
"It's been solid and pretty tough there on occasions, but I just think back to what my mum went through and what people are dealing with at the moment and it makes you find the energy.
"Riding is the easy part.
"The Ovarian Cancer Research Foundation are desperately trying to find a cure, but early prevention is the big one.
"If I can raise one dollar or 10,000, my job is done."
For more info, to make a donation on Campbell’s page or to sign up visit www.silverliningride.com.au.