As life returns to normal I thought I would share an e-mail I sent to the staff this morning sharing with them what was another amazing CA2CX. I understand why so many people keep doing this tour.

 

Last week I rode a cycle event, Cape Town to Knysna, in aid of Die Herberg orphanage in Robertson. This is the institution many of you contributed to by sponsoring the reading program for the children. Last Monday we had lunch at The Herberg. Seeing kids there who had nowhere to go for the school holiday stays with you for the rest of the ride. Sitting on a saddle for more than six hours a day gives you time to reflect on how fortunate most of us are and how different life could have been. Suddenly you view life differently.

 

On the Sunday the wind was the strongest I have ever ridden in. Clocking 87km/ph on the flat indicates the strength of the wind. Monday's was a stormy and rainy start. The next three days the temperature in the morning was -2 degrees. On Tuesday and Wednesday we did two legendary mountain passes, Ouberg and Rooiberg, which tested our physical abilities. The final day into Knysna started and ended in the rain. Wet and cold. In the end we did 660 km with a total of 8510m of ascent.

 

On Friday morning standing in the rain I was talking to Balie Swart, a 95 World Cup hero, and we agreed that when you just think of the kids in the orphanage the hardships we endured in the week is actually nothing. As I came into Knysna in the pouring rain with a happy heart knowing my family would be there to welcome me my thoughts went back to The Herberg - FAMILY- something many of us take for granted is the very thing the kids in the orphanage yearn for most of their lives. How fortunate we are. A humbling and emotional experience for all the riders.

 

Petro, an organizer of the event, who was an orphan herself, ensured the event was a massive success which resulted in the cyclists raising R400 000 at the gala event on the last evening of the ride. Cycling for a cause results in a bunch of like-minded cyclists becoming firm friends within a few tough days in the saddle.

 

Hopefully our small contribution will lead to the kids reaching their full potential in life.

 

When I finished writing this I could hear Balie say “ F….. manne ons verststaan net nie wat hierdie kinders deurgaan nie”

 

I hope to see all of you on CA2CX next year!

-- Ernest