Social media helps find Canberra adventurer’s missing bike

Jack Keogh with his boxed bike before it went missing. Picture supplied It’ll come down to the wire but young Canberra adventurer Jack Keogh is still hoping to make the start of an ultra-cycling challenge after his missing bike was found – thanks to social media. The custom-built Hunt Bikes Land Cruiser went missing after it was checked into Sydney International Airport on Monday and did not show up in San Francisco when Jack landed.

He was en-route to Banff, Canada for the start of the 2023 Tour Divide on Friday morning (Canada time), a 4418km, ultra-cycling challenge from Banff to Antelope Wells in New Mexico on the US-Mexico border. Mr Keogh flew direct from Sydney to San Francisco with Qantas. When he landed in the US, he said there was no record of his bike being checked in.

READ MORE: Big push to double Canberra’s cycle path network Canberra’s ‘casual speeding’ is the worst in Australia Direct flight route to Australia’s north returning for Canberra He said on Wednesday that social media, not the airline, seemed to have found the bike back in Sydney. Mr Keogh said a supervisor at Star Aviation Services in Sydney saw a Facebook post about the missing bike and went looking for it – and found it. “He’s sorted it,” Mr Keogh said.

The bike was put on another flight to Mr Keogh in Canada, and he was still hoping there would be enough time to reassemble it and get to the starting line at 8am on Friday (around midnight Friday Canberra time). “Still no word from Qantas,” he said, although it’s understood the airline later confirmed the bike was on its way. But this time on an Air Canada flight, to Vancouver where it still had to clear customs.

Qantas couldn’t say how long that would take. Mr Keogh said he was upset that Qantas had not found the bike, someone else had, and that the airline now seemed to be displaying little urgency in getting it to him in time for the race. “It’s literally taken a random worker at Sydney airport and Air Canada to get it to me.

Qantas has completely failed in their service,” he said. The ultra-cycling challenge crisscrosses the Continental Divide from north to south, finishing at Antelope Wells in New Mexico on the US-Mexico border. Mr Keogh has spent eight months training for it.

The bike was set up for the endurance challenge – so could not easily be replaced – and it was boxed up with spare parts and riding gear as well. We’ve made it a whole lot easier for you to have your say. Our new comment platform requires only one log-in to access articles and to join the discussion on The Canberra Times website.

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