Cycling the Xtreme route to aid children
On the last day of the tour, the cyclists are expected to finish off by competing in the Cape Town Cycle Tour, which is a stretch of about 109km.
The Xtreme for Kids Cycle Tour, an initiative of Matla A Bana in association with various sponsors, will be expanding its awareness footprint in the next 11 days as seven dedicated cyclists embark on a Johannesburg to Cape Town tour.
The tour was launched on Tuesday evening, 25 February, at Parrots in Clearwater, roughly a day before the start of the gruelling challenge.
At the casual but prestigious event, sponsors such as the Old Mutual Foundation, Mercedes-Benz, Clearwater, Moore Stellenbosch, and Wolf Security and cleaning services were recognised for again making the 2020 tour possible.
The seven cyclists comprising police officers and passionate individuals are expected to test their legs to the limit for over 1 000 kilometres in 11 days and in between, be part of road shows that will be staged at various schools along the way to the Western Cape. This year the route has been extended to create more awareness.
The shows include a character called Smiley and a trickster who both provide edutainment to the listed schools, according to Monique Strydom, the CEO of the organisation.
She detailed this year’s plans. “This is a project that we do in partnership with the police. So this year we got more cyclists to participate, including three police-sponsored cyclists,” she said; however, still concerned about non-participation of women in the challenge.
She said the purpose of the tour is to raise as much awareness about child abuse as possible.
In view of an accident during last year’s challenge, Monique assured that extra measures had been taken to ensure safety. “People need to remember that we do over 1 000 kilometres on the road. Unfortunately, last year a truck skipped a stop-and-go intersection and hooked our trailer. But luckily this year we haven’t had any issues, plus we work with police along the way and have two first aid qualified members as part of our crew,” she explained.
On the last day of the tour, the cyclists are expected to finish off by competing in the Cape Town Cycle Tour, which is a stretch of about 109km.
Keeping this initiative alive is the Old Mutual Foundation, which has partnered with Matla A Bana for the past 12 years.
Speaking about the commitment, Renée Palmer said their company realised the fantastic projects that Matla A Bana initiates and they wanted to be associated with them.
“Old Mutual has had a long partnership with Matla A Bana. In recent years, through our programme by which our staff contributes funds every month from their salary, which the Old Mutual Foundation matches, we give back to Matla A Bana that in turn runs numerous projects such as the schools projects,” she explained.
To track the whereabouts of the cyclists, follow their updates on The Xtreme for Kids Cycle Tour Facebook page, where messages of support are also welcomed.
