Matt Aldridge, who is riding from Cooma to Seymour this week for his charity The Coo-Wee Ride, visited the Hume Veterans Information Centre.

He said a television interview where a veteran “poured out her emotions” made him want to help.

“I thought, we send all these people over to serve for us and protect us and we’re so proud of our military heritage and Anzac Day,” he said.

“When you see behind the scenes how some of these veterans are living, it’s actually quite sad.”

The Coo-Wee Ride raises awareness of the mental health issues facing not only veterans but also farmers, an expansion that comes out of Mr Aldridge losing a friend to suicide last year.

“So I thought we’ll honour him, turn a sad situation into a good one and we can start helping out the farmers in need too, just to keep his legacy going,” the cyclist said.

“Just our little part to try and help out any way we can, really.”