WITH three satellite phones and two 4G mobiles, the Black Dog Ride crew are ready for their big trip around Australia.
The national ride starts in New South Wales on July 26 with many places lacking in basic phone reception.
With the satellite phones from Telstra, the Black Dog Ride team will be able to contact anyone, anywhere.
Telstra has been supporting Black Dog Ride for three years and area manager Boyd Brown said they were proud to help out the cause.
Black Dog Ride founder Steve Andrews said it was comforting to know they will be able to connect to people wherever they were in the country thanks to Telstra.
The Black Dog Ride was founded by Busselton resident Steve Andrews in 2009 when he decided to ride his motorbike around Australia and raise awareness of depression and suicide prevention.
Since then the Black Dog Ride has raised thousands of dollars towards mental health organisations as well as taking hundreds of riders across the country.
The national ride will meet up the WA state ride which starts on August 10.
More than 100 riders have registered for the state event which will take them through Dongara, Leonora, Kalgoorlie, Corrigin, Pinjarra, Bunbury, Busselton and Margaret River.