IN THE SADDLE: Bicycles change lives

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Kevin Benkenstein showing his strength at the base of the Sentech Tower in Auckland Park, Johannesburg, while climbing for Qhubeka

A mate of mine, Kevin Bekenstein, is a guy who loves riding his bike and gets a kick from seeing others have fun on their bikes. Depending who you speak to, some might call him a tad crazy as he enjoys pushing his limits on the bike and has plenty of rad stories as a result. If you enjoy good photos and a story or two, check out his blog entitled Benky.

Kev is on the final stretch of his Qhubeka Challenge for 2016! Qhubeka is a phenomenal initiative that provides bicycles to people in rural communities. Pop onto the Qhubeka website to see how bicycles can change lives.

Of course the Qhubeka Challenge involves riding bikes and a lot, and yes a lot of climbing. The goal? “Three Everestings” in three different cities. You may be wondering… how do you “Everest” in the city? Surely you need to go to the Himalayas to achieve this?

Everesting on a bike is achieved by climbing (essentially going up and down the same hill), the vertical ascent of the world’s tallest mountain. In order to say that you have Everested a climb, you need to climb 8 848m. Depending on the climb, the number of laps needed to achieve this varies. One thing is for sure though, it will be a long, tough ride and you will spend more than 12 hours in the saddle.

If you are up for a challenge or feel like pushing yourself, check out the the rules of Everesting.

The first of Kev’s three legs began on the 10 September on the slopes on Table Mountain, 28 laps were required to conquer the climb!

The next leg, Jozi, and Sentech Tower – an iconic shape on our city’s skyline!

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High fives halfway up the hill. (That’s me on the left)

I was fortunate enough to be able to show my support for a mate (20 laps for me) and to make a small contribution to his greater cause of putting kids on bikes. To put this into perspective, the guys who Everested the Sentech leg rode 110 laps. Yes, it took a long time.

I was reminded recently how important it is to support others. No matter how small the contribution or the shape or form in which you do it, it can make a huge difference.

We need more people to stand up and say, “I want to make a difference!”

Kev, congrats and all the best for the last leg coming up this weekend! If you’re in KZN this weekend, go join in at Drummond – the killer hill of the Comrades Marathon. Kev and the crew will be doing 67 laps, totalling 310km.

Oh and if you want to connect with this crazy mate of mine, give me a shout. The target for Kev’s 2016 Qhubeka Challenge is to raise 30 buffalo bikes. In monetary terms, he is aiming to raise R85 000. Any donation, no matter how small, would be more than welcome.

 

DONATE HERE

 

Follow Kevin’s progress on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook. Also check out #crewforqhubeka #climbingforqhubeka #Everesting #bicycleschangelives and #foreverclimbing.