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Cycling in a pink tutu for the Cape leopard

Published: 10 January 2013
Piet van Heerde in his pink tutu cycling along the Bottelary road

Early on Saturday morning, 8 December 2012, motorists and cyclists along Bottelary road were treated to the singular sight of a big guy cycling on a single-speed bike, wearing a white t-shirt with the words “Cape Leopard Trust” in bold black letters printed on the back and...a pink tutu!!

This spectacle was the result of a challenge set to Piet van Heerde, a member of the Land Cruiser Club of Southern Africa (LCCSA), by some of his fellow club members after purchasing a bicycle with the same name as their favourite off-road vehicle...a simple, black, single-gear Cruiser.

After one LCCSA member commented that he’d pay to see Piet ride this bike, it was only a short while before the club formalised the challenge into a fundraising event in support of the CLT’s Boland Project. Members could pledge their money for any distance at a rate of R1 per meter, and soon pledges started rolling in. Then someone raised the stakes: If Piet would shave off his beard (his wife who has known him for 18 years has never seen him without it!) they would double their pledges.

Beforeandafter

Before and after the challenge… Piet firmly drew the line at requests that he should shave his legs as well!

Piet describes himself as an “absolutely unfit, over-weight party-animal”. When he started training for this challenge five weeks ago he felt like dying after a mere kilometre. However, on Saturday he completed the required 23.7km route, along the Bottelary Road and R304 outside Stellenbosch, with relative ease.

This creative fundraising event was rounded of with a year-end spit braai at the LCCSA Western Cape Clubhouse. True to the members’ giving and enthusiastic spirit a further R8460 was raised thanks to the two lambs donated for the spit by Johan “Tyres” Viljoen and Jean Du Plessis and the raffle of a 5l bottle red wine donated by Christian Kuun. This brings the total amount raised to about R33 000.

Spitbraai

Land Cruiser Club of Southern Africa’s Western Cape Clubhouse year-end spitbraai.

Since the start of the CLT Boland Project in 2010, the LCCSA Western Cape has taken this project under their wings. Their support ranges from significant financial contributions to a short 4x4 driving course, volunteering their time to help with camera servicing, and two-way radio communications.

The Boland team would like to thank all members of the LCCSA for their continued interest and support!!

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