Steve Waugh Foundation launches first Riderless Bike in new work via Havas, Red Agency + FINCH
The Steve Waugh Foundation has partnered with Havas, Red Agency and Finch to launch the world’s first Riderless Bike to raise much needed awareness and funding for the approximately 400,000 children affected by Rare Diseases in Australia.
The Riderless Bike will participate in the Steve Waugh Foundation’s annual fundraising event ‘Captain’s Ride’; a 6-day, 700km bike ride through NSW.
As part of an integrated campaign the Riderless Bike was developed so the children affected by rare diseases who unfortunately are unable to participate, could become part of the ride.
Built in house at FINCH by a team of five engineers, the Riderless Bike is a children’s bicycle that autonomously follows the peloton with an infrared tracking system, an autonomous steering control system and a 360 camera that allows the children to virtually experience the ride live from their own device. A seven-inch tablet at the front of the bike displays the faces of the children with rare diseases to remind the participants who they are riding for.
A 48V lithium-ion battery provides power to the motor, custom made to fit inconspicuously into the bike frame. The tracking system means the bike follows an infrared beacon attached to the rear of one of the bicycles in the peloton at a range equal to or less than 20 metres. The beacon technology enables target detection in all operating conditions, locking onto to the infrared beacon whilst altering the steering depending on its location.
Steve Waugh, the Riderless Bike and a group of high profile riders began ‘The Captains Ride’ epic six day journey on the 29th Octobersetting off from Mittagong in NSW’s southern highlands and reaching the peak of Australia, Mt Kosciuszko on the 3rd November – climbing over 10,500 metres. The riders will cover a gruelling 116 kilometres a day.
Steve Waugh says that when choosing which route the ride would take, naturally he wanted the one that posed the greatest challenge topographically to match the demands these children face each day.
Says Waugh: “The tallest peak in Australia would come closest to reflecting the challenge faced by children and young adults living with rare diseases and require the same perseverance and determination to overcome it. For us, it’s about teamwork, camaraderie, mateship and ‘Strength of Character’. It’s at the core of what we do, from the people we support to the people who support us.”
Some of the high profile figures joining the ride, include Australian cycling legend Anna Meares OAM – fresh from the Olympic Games in Rio; two-time Brownlow Medal and Australian Rules Football (AFL) Champion and Australian of the Year, Adam Goodes andlegendary British Olympic decathlete, Daley Thompson CBE, who won gold in 1980 and 1984.
Waugh says that since 2005, the Foundation has supported over 600 families (or 1453 individuals and their families), thanks to the generous support of patrons, sponsors and volunteers.
Says Waugh: “The rare disease patient is the orphan of the health system, often without diagnosis, without treatment, without research and therefore without hope. This is why the Steve Waugh Foundation exists. We highly encourage that anyone and everyone wanting to show their support to come down at any point of the journey and cheer on the riders or make a donation at www.riderlessbike.com.au.”
You can follow the Riderless Bike’s journey and watch its live 360 video stream here.
Production Company: FINCH
Director: Kelvin & Vicki Saik
Producer: Amy Dymond
Executive Producer: Corey Esse
Director of Applied Technology: Emad Tahtouh
Senior Applied Technologist: Patrick Barnes
Applied Technologist: Albert Woffenden
Applied Technologist: Hamish Pain
Producer: Hazel Gibson
Production Assistant: Cara Szabo
Creative Agency: Havas
Executive Creative Director: Stu Turner
Executive Creative Director: Seamus Higgins
Digital Creative Director: Gustavo Vampre
Digital Creative Director: Josh Bryer
Creative: Zac Pritchard
Creative: Damian Galvin
Digital Strategy Director: Bohdi Lewis
Senior Account Manager: Lawrence Pretty
Account Director: Carly Pelham
Broadcast Producer: Harriet Tahtouh
Digital Producer: Angelica Scott
Senior Designer: Nic Adamovich
Head of Design: Darren Cole
Digital Design Director: Clint Crothers
UX & Design Director: Adam Shutler
Digital Executive Producer: Peter Segerer
Social Media Producer: Dena Mohamed
Drone: Rotor Works
Post-Production: The Editors
Offline: Grace Eyre
PR: Red Agency
CEO: James Wright
Senior Account Manager: Nick Day
Senior Account Executive: Peter Lochead
Account Coordinator: Brenna Baeyens
21 Comments
Fuck yeah.
But this is a hard one to hate.
Great, simple idea. Hopefully this works hard for them.
very cool
That’s awesome. I love the way that it’s nothing like ‘This bike has MS’. Should do really well in awards unless someone invents a riderless time machine and goes back 12 months to create ‘This bike has MS’
Considering its the same agency who did the worlds most powerful arm. They have gone and used the exact same formula. Just in a more boring way.
Out of the 30 or so people you’ve credited on this job, did anyone raise their hand and say “Hey have you guys seen this thing Grey did? They created this bike for a charity and it’s going to ride in the charity event and show what it’s like to have one of these horrible illnesses.”
ECD2: “Na man, haven’t seen it”
ECD3: “Na I haven’t go time to look at Cannes showcases”
What an amazing idea. Great work!
Great work guys! It certainly is a hard one to hate… unless you’re a complete cretin.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=LSZPNwZex9s
Please can you explain how this is like the MS bike? Beyond it just being a bike. Or are you saying all ideas involving bikes are off the table?
@Lance Armstolen Hey mate, thanks so much for pointing out the MS Bike thing. We live under a rock so we hadn’t seen it yet. Amazing how similar our ideas are. A bike, a race, a charity. Fuck yeah that’s been done before, you’re so right. Please do send me your book sometime as we could use a mind like yours around here. Email me at stuart.turner@havas.com
Couldn’t agree more. Using tech and a charity and some PR is so 2 years ago. New ideas please!
I like it.
But can it go faster than 5km an hour?
If not, it’s going to be a loooooooooooooooooong race.
Did you really just fall for a Google April Fool’s joke? From a year ago?!
OMG! ROFL! Baaaaahahahaha. Crying here!!! LMAO! WTF! Waaaaaahahahahahaa.
Nice to see a few peeps from Havas on here backing up their work. Unfortunately it looks like you had an idea similar to that of the MS bike and masked it as something else. Lets see how the shows judge your plagiarism
People confusing a mech for an idea.
People falling for year old April fool’s jokes.
Best comment stream ever!
MS: a bike that rode as if it had MS
Riderless Bike: a bike that lets kids with rare diseases ride along virtually
If you can’t see the difference, you probably have a rather common disease:
thickness.
Thanks mate, we are pretty happy with it. It’s a long shot but we are counting on award judges to be able to see that it’s a different idea since they are not some untalented fuckmouths. Love to you and the family.
Another boring ‘tech’ piece with a crummy film to back it. Come on, take your training wheels off
What no helmet? That’ll be $350.