http://www.justgiving.com/KavAndPCapeEpic2010

Family, friends and colleagues...

Ok so I realise at this time of year people are suffering from donor fatigue, but this is no easy challenge we are asking you to donate for . We are cycling over 700km and climbing over 15,000 vertical meters over 8 days, all for a great cause, Starfish Greathearts Foundation (www.StarfishCharity.org).

Donate here: http://www.justgiving.com/KavAndPCapeEpic2010

Please see below for more details.

Our Story…

OK so the Cape Epic (www.Cape-Epic.com) is an 8 day Mountain Bike Race set in the surrounding areas of Cape Town. It is a gruelling event allowing amateurs ride side-by-side with the pros to cover 722km of perilous mountain terrain. Riders face a daunting 15,000km of climbing (that’s 1.5x the height a Jumbo Jet flies) and we have little respite between each race day.

Early on we managed to secure sponsorship from Mio (www.mio.com), so a big thanks to them!

The Race is ridden in teams of two, the rules clearly stating that we need to be side-by-side at all times. Cute, yes, but my partner Paris Basson is a total mentalist and is not allowing me to take photos. "We are racing, Kav!" We have been friends for 25 years, which you would think would help but if you know him like I do, you understand my concerns.

Training for me has been tough in the never ending Northern Hemisphere Winter of 2009/10. This has forced me to train mostly in the comfort of my living room.

To pass the mind numbing 100+ hours spent on the indoor trainer, I have:

listened to Harry Pothead,
-watched a few seasons of 24 (they are all exactly the same but it seems no-one has noticed),
-followed the football (come on Chels!) and the early Super 14 games (Stormers!),
and watched a stellar 2010 Winter Olympics (biathletes are super-human, sliders should be committed to a mental health institution).
Thanks to Claudia for putting up with the incessant whirring of my bike on the trainer!

By all accounts Paris has had it a bit easier, in terms of weather. But his tales of riding 100km+ to work 4x a week and his gleeful giggle of "breaking" any rider who has dared to hit the hills with him has put the fear of God into me. Anyway he has promised to be gentle. But I don't believe him.


This has all been for two reasons. Firstly, bragging rights that we have at least entered into the Epic. And secondly and more importantly, we are doing it to raise money for Starfish Greathearts Foundation (www.starfishcharity.org), a charity aiming to bring life, hope and opportunity to children in southern Africa who have been orphaned or made vulnerable by HIV/AIDS. So please give as much or as little as you like. A fiver is far better than naught!

All those who do donate, I will put onto our "followers list" who will receive daily race updates on our progress with photos. For those of you who can't donate/donate in your own way just ask and I will add you too.

We will be updating this blog throughout the race, letting you know if we survive each day so stay tuned.

Please leave comments! All good wishes (and others) are wanted!

The JustGiving link for donations:

http://www.justgiving.com/KavAndPCapeEpic2010

Big thanks to Carrie for seconding us, and keeping the blog up to date! And a final thanks to our sponsors Mio, (www.Mio.com).

Best regards and thanks for the support!

Cheer Kav