Cycling for Rhinos
Last week, 18 adventurous cyclists travelled up to Botswana to partake in the Cycle Mashatu challenge. For four days, these passionate individuals rode 150 kilometres, six to seven hours a day, through the Mashatu Game Reserve.
Ancient elephant paths provided the single track that wound through the assortment of savanna, forest, rocky outcrops and wooded floodplains. This year, Rhino Africa sent Ingo Brüggemann (Head of the German Division – Rhino Afrika), who jumped at the opportunity. Along with Ingo, the team consisted of 17 other riders all from the tourism industry, compiled by organiser Peter Allanson (from Lion Roars).
The mission was to raise funds for wildlife conservation and to help put a stop to rhino poaching. The total is to be split equally between the Chipembere Rhino Foundation (a privately run, non-profit organisation committed to assisting in the protection and conservation of Africa’s rhino) and the Wildlife ACT.
We caught up with Ingo, who told us more about the experience. He said that while the distance might not have been as much as the Challenge4aCause Damaraland Challenge it was still spectacular and demanding. They cycled from early morning to lunch time, when they’d set up camp for the day.
The wildlife was particularly abundant. Elephants often crossed their path and the team also spotted leopard as well as plenty of giraffe and birdlife. At night, they saw hyenas surrounding their tents at the campsite; they cycled into a cheetah kill as the big cat was digging into an impala; and they heard lions at night… It was definitely an adventure!
Since these wild animals perceive the tents as foreign objects, as they would a tree, they didn’t come too close – although some elephants did trash the riders’ makeshift bush toilet. With the assistance of two trusty and armed guides, the team had to ride slowly and often take detours because of the wildlife.
The landscape was diverse and impressive, with everything from thick bush and desert dry conditions to river beds with thick sand. The cycling was quite technical and demanding as a result; there were many punctures and they often ran short of spare tyre tubes – thanks to the thick, spiky devil thorns.
The Mashatu cyclists slept in two-man dome tents and on the last night, on stretchers in a boma with nothing between them and the naked starlit African sky. Which, while being beautiful and a unique experience, didn’t allow for much privacy…
All in all, Ingo, like many of the other cyclists, are keen to do the challenge again next year, especially since they managed to raise about R180 000 for rhino conservation.
Pictures by Susan Parker-Smith of Catalyst Communications.
For more information:
Read our introduction blog about Cycle Mashatu.
E-mail: info@challenge4acause.com
Find out more about this year’s Challenge4aCause in our blogs and video here.