Racing across SA for the slow guys
PAULSHOF - THIS year marks mountain biker Michael Devereux’s 50th birthday, and to celebrate he is endeavouring to cycle in a 2 300km race across South Africa in just 26 days to raise money for tortoises and chameleons which are rehabilitated at FreeMe Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre in Paulshof.
The race, also known as the Freedom Challenge, involves riding a mountain bike on district roads, cattle paths and sometimes, no paths, from Pietermaritzburg to Cape Town. It is an unsupported non-stop race along the Drakensburg and Eastern Cape mountains to Wellington in the Cape. “On average I will have to do about 100km a day, but the first six days are usually the hardest,” said Devereux.
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Each rider has been given an opportunity to pack essentials they will need for the race in ice cream tubs that will be sent forward to farms along the route.
Participants need to navigate the mountains so they spend a lot of their preparation days working on understanding the maps. “There are 82 maps in total to get us from point A to B, and mapping is as difficult and time consuming as training,” he said, adding that he had been doing a lot of preparations for the race including cross-fitness to build his upper body strength.
Devereux said more than half the cyclists who start the race don’t finish. “It’s also a mental game, so I meditate and visualise and plan for the worst. I see my challenges, but I also visualise myself in the end,” he said.
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Devereux said he chose to ride and raise money for tortoises and chameleons because they were also part of the world and were often overlooked.
His campaign is called the Dead Slow Project and will raise money for FreeMe which is a rehabilitation centre for indigenous wildlife.
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The finishers of the race receive a bottle of wine and a Basotho blanket for competing. “It’s nothing much, but I get the satisfaction of raising money for the slow guys and being part of the clan of the blanket wearers,” said Devereux.
To find out how you can support FreeMe and the Dead Slow Project visit their website on www.freeme.org.za
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