Man cycles over 3 000km and takes on Barberton mountains to procure school shoes

One man’s mission to raise funds to buy 10 000 pairs of school shoes for South African children saw him take on the Barberton mountains during a 3 253km cycle.

Born in Siyabuswa, Mpumalanga, but now living and working in Johannesburg, Vusi Sindane shared his incredible journey for a good cause with an intimate crowd at Hotel247 in White River on Friday night, June 2.

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Sindane said the epic cycle from Musina to Cape Town was to raise funds to donate 10 000 pairs of school shoes to children across the country, distributing the shoes by province according to how many nights he had spent in the area.

Sindane, who is a software engineer, was an executive director living and working in Limpopo for six months before he started his journey. He said one day during a shareholders’ meeting, he realised he wanted to do more with his life and contribute more to society. Sindane resigned an hour after the meeting.

He said he had long had the idea to cycle a long distance, and on September 7, 2022, he finally started training, starting with short jogs and then proceeding to cycling.

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In the meantime, he had moved to and started work in Johannesburg, where he began cycling to and from his job every day, carrying his corporate clothes in a bag on his back.

On April 13, he started the journey from Musina all the way down to Cape Town. On day six of his epic cycle, he stopped for food at Hotel247 in White River during his travels, where he said owner Khosi Mthalane had told him to order anything he wanted. He said he ordered and received a fantastic peanut butter and jam sandwich.

He spoke at length about how tough cycling on the winding roads through the mountain passes of Barberton and eManzana was, saying these moments taught him to know when to push through with a task and when to pause and take a break.

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During his cycle, he was also reminded almost daily about the reason for the incredible feat he was undertaking, as he saw multiple children walking to school, either barefoot, with shoes too big for them, or with shoes so old they were falling apart.

Sindane teamed up with non-profit organisation Barefoot No More before his cycle. This organisation has designed special school shoes that are not only waterproof, shock absorbent and recyclable, but can also be washed and stretched to accommodate a growing foot.

With each pair costing just R100, Sindane’s spectacular expedition has so far managed to raise enough for 1 700 pairs.

His efforts to reach his 10 000-pair goal are ongoing.

You can find out more about Sindane and any current campaigns through his website, www.vusisindane.com.