All of the riders demonstrated resilience and teamwork to make the event achievable, Big Ride organiser Shane Wilson said.

"Riding 280 kilometres by yourself into a headwind is almost unachievable, but when you do it as a group it is very achievable," he said.

"It was a surprisingly good day given the south-easterly to easterly wind didn't help much as all.

"The group broke up into smaller bunches which supported each other, and the support crew made sure people were well fed, well hydrated and well supported.

"I wouldn't go as far to say it was easy but given the amount of training everyone did it felt good."

Some riders had only six weeks to prepare for the event.

More then $40,000 was raised by the riders to be used to support the Big Life school program.

"This event will fund the Big Life program in two to three primary schools this year," Mr Wilson said.

"Big Life is an organic community response to the mental health challenges.

"This puts the program on a steady basis, it means we can take the next step forward with confidence.

"There is a demand for us to expand but we are purely rely on donations to fund the program."

Big Life is running programs in both Warrnambool public secondary colleges and three primary schools."

The Big Life program is a proactive mental health support which assists students to become 'life ready' Mr Wilson said.

"On their journey through school there will be numerous challenges for students," he said.

"We want the students to live a big life while at school and then come out with the tools to be able to deal with difficulties so they are not suffering from mental health issues in their teens, twenties and thirties."

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