 Simon
Alston and Craig Northam are two South Africans getting ready to depart
on an epic cycle journey that will take them from Cairo to Cape Town,
all in the name of charity.
Alston,
at 26, is a consultant, and 34-year-old Northam, who is an architect,
are planning on peddaling 12 000km in 100 days through 10 countries, to
raise money for charities. These charities provide bicycles, and
promote their use, in African communities.
The
journey will take them through Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania,
Malawi, Zambia, Botswana, Namibia and finally into South Africa.
According
to Alston they have been planning the journey for about 10 months and
aim to set out in mid-February. He says it is very difficult to prepare
for this kind of journey, as they have no idea what to expect. He says
they mainly spend as much time as possible cycling to be as fit as
possible.
Because
of limited packing space they won’t take anything with them
besides a change of clothes, some waterpurifiers and basic bicycle
repair kits. For food they will rely almost entirely on the generosity
of the inhabitants of the villages they pass through.
Alston
says both of them are toying with the idea of returning home for good
and what better way can there be to make up their minds than cycling
through the continent.
The
charities Alston and Northam are cycling for are Re-cycle, which
collects bicycles from the UK and redistributes them in developing
countries, and BEN, which also distributes and promotes bike use in
poor, outlying African communities.
Alston
admits that the journey may be dangerous in parts, but says they have
planned their route to avoid the most dangerous countries such as the
Congo and Zimbabwe, and although they will be cycling through Sudan he
says they are avoiding the hotspots.
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You can follow Simon and Craig’s progress or make a donation
to Re-Cycle and BEN, on their website at
www.cairo2capetown.org
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