Sunday 16 November 94.7 Cycle Challenge
33 000 people. 33 000 stories. Here’s mine:
On Sunday morning I met with the Vista team at the starting line. There were five of us: Jerrie, Gerhard, Fritz, James and me). The race started with an uphill, but it didn’t bother me because it was like the uphills I trained on. This was the first time I rode with a team and it was so much fun, but sometimes I lost my focus because I would chat with them and try to cycle at the same time. For me it felt like we were a group of friends being there for one another. We would cheer and motivate each other all the way. James and Fritz are epic riders; they completed the race and then came around and joined us again. On an uphill, James would come from behind and push me. This helped me tremendously. Every few minutes he would ask if we were fine. He kept cheering us on the whole way. All of us had a chance to ride in front, and it wasn’t too hard to be right at the back of the group –: seeing five other men with the same vests, working together, encouraging one another to reach the same goal was a highlight for me. The end was tough. There was one moment that I prayed for strength. In an instant, I felt a hand on my back pushing me up again and I felt a bucket full of grace being poured over me and I knew I would finish! The last few kilometers were very tough but the voice of Jerrie cheering me on was always there. A hundred meters from the finish I wanted to give up, but the team support was there again and we all finished within five hours and twenty minutes.
I did it! I have my medal!
I am so proud of myself! I proved to myself that I can achieve my goals if I focus, work hard and stay positive.
By Deon Labuschagne
