Seventh 606 kilometre ride for Ruimsig cyclist
Leon riding in his seventh race this year
Leon Crous, a 34-year-old Ruimsig resident, will be competing in his seventh consecutive Ride for MRP Foundation this year.
This race is an annual event, and this year it will be taking place on 3 and 4 December. The aim of this punishing 606 kilometre ride from Johannesburg to Durban is to raise awareness as well as funds for the Mr Price Foundation.
The ride will start in Nigel at 4.30am on 3 December, and cyclists will pass through Standerton, Volksrust and Newcastle. They will arrive in Ladysmith after 14 hours of gruelling cycling. The next morning at 4am the riders will leave Ladysmith, descending through Estcourt, Mooi River, Nottingham Road, Midmar, Howick, Hilton, Pietermaritzburg and Hillcrest. Metro Police will escort them through Pinetown to the finish line at the Mr Price Head Office in Durban.
Among the 50 cyclists courageously attempting to raise R1m for the Foundation are rugby legends John Smit, Jeremy Thompson and Wayne Fyvie.
As a youth development organisation, the MRP Foundation’s mission is to empower young people from low-income communities as they journey from school into a career, empowering them to become part of the solution to end poverty and inequality.
The Foundation’s programmes in education and skills development, as well as the inspiring ride, demonstrate the power of partnership and how joining hands with business, beneficiaries and others can lead to more good being done together. Since the inaugural ride in 2010, the event has welcomed on board a passionate group of partners, including Absa, Spar, Futurelife, CMH Nissan Durban, Expand-a-Sign, Maxed, City Logistics, KTM South Africa, Traderplus, Cyclesphere, Giant Bicycles and Defy.
Leon said, “We aim to raise R1m for the MRP Foundation, which will be directly ploughed into empowerment and skills development programmes.
The other 49 cyclists joining me start off merely as fellow cyclists. However, after between 26 and 28 hours (depending on the weather) on a bicycle we all leave as friends, knowing we are making a difference in the lives of the youth of South Africa, for a positive future.”
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