It’s Ride for Sight time in Ekurhuleni

The prestigious Dis-Chem Ride for Sight is one of the most popular and enduring cycle events on the local road cycling calendar.

It has consistently raised funds to fight retinal blindness for the last quarter of a century.

The 26th event will be held at the Boksburg City Stadium, in Jubilee Road, Boksburg, on Sunday, February 16.

It was held in Benoni in years gone by.

The event is again proudly hosted by the City of Ekurhuleni and they bring the technical and managerial expertise and infrastructure of the entire metro in to support the event.

Over the past 25 years the event has raised millions of rand for research into retinal degenerative conditions, such as Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP), Macular Degeneration (MD) and dozens of other rare and devastating forms of retinal vision loss.

Retina South Africa has pledged all the proceeds from the event to bring international clinical trials to South Africans.

This will bring the hope of a sighted future to thousands of young South Africans affected by these genetic eye conditions.

The entire organising committee of the ride are volunteers and, with the help of Dis-Chem Pharmacies and the City of Ekurhuleni, the costs of staging the event are kept to a minimum.

Race secretary and Benoni resident Claudette Medefindt said: “We don’t compromise on safety, security and the cyclists’ well-being, but with the help of our sponsors and the hundreds of volunteers who make this event happen, we are able to contribute significant funding to genetic eye condition research in South Africa.”

For the novice cyclist and competitive junior, the shorter Vita-thion 62km Challenge, which takes place in conjunction with the longer 116km event, offers all the thrills of the longer event, with far less sweat and tears.

On line entries for the event are closed, but late registrations can be done at Tour de Frans Cycles, on Atlas Road, until 2pm on Saturday, February 15, or, depending on available space, at the stadium on the morning of the race .

The event has been won by many of South Africa’s top cyclists, including Arran Brown, Christoff van Heerden, Nicholas White, Malcolm Lange, Andrew McLean and, amongst the fairer sex, by Cherise Taylor, Ronelle van Wyk, Chrissie Viljoen and Anke Erlank, to name but a few.

The event is a qualifier for both the 2014 Momentum 94.7 Cycle Challenge and the 2015 Cape Argus Pick n Pay Cycle Tour.

Medefindt also encouraged disabled cyclists to participate.

For more information, contact Retina South Africa on share call 0860 595959.