Mountain Bike Magazine MTB Autumn 2019 | Page 166

GIVING BACK MORE THAN JUST A BIKE RACE The Absa Cape Epic raises awareness and invaluable funds for a number of worthy causes. These are the event’s official charities. CAPE LEOPARD TRUST Much of the Absa Cape Epic’s best loved trails cut through the mountains patrolled by the endangered Cape leopard and its fellow illusive Cape predators. Since August 2004, the Cape Leopard Trust – an active predator-conservation working group – has used research as a tool for conservation, resolving human-wildlife conflict and inspiring interest in the environment through dynamic education programmes. It is the authority on predator conservation in the Cape, and one of the leading authorities in SA, with projects in the Cederberg, Gouritz Corridor, Namaqualand and the Boland mountains. www.capeleopard.org.za QHUBEKA Simply put, bicycles change lives. In South Africa, where many people are forced by poverty and circumstance to walk great distances to school and work, bicycles can and do make all the difference. Qhubeka is an Nguni word that means “to progress” or “to move forward”. The Qhubeka charity moves people forward with bicycles that are earned through its programmes, so improving access to schools, clinics and jobs. With a bicycle, a person can travel faster and further, and carry more. Through the donation of bicycles to individuals who have met certain pre-set goals, Qhubeka helps the people of Africa move forward. www.qhubeka.org LAUREUS – SPORT FOR GOOD FOUNDATION One of the world’s most recognisable sporting charities not only celebrates the icons of elite sports but funds social projects with a sporting component, to live up to the ethos of Sport for Good. Laureus’ core concept is to create global awards that recognise the achievements of today’s sporting heroes. It brings sportspeople together – united in achievement but divided by sporting code – to utilise their reach to use sport as a tool for social change. Together with Laureus’ Founding Patrons and Partners, the world’s greatest sportsmen and women can contribute meaningfully to social projects, all the while living up to the motto: Sport for Good. www.laureus.co.za ANNA FOUNDATION Supporting rural children in areas the Absa Cape Epic traverses, the Anna Foundation teaches life skills through reading, writing and running. The Anna Foundation aims to empower disadvantaged rural children with life skills, values, self-worth and self- responsibility through its “3 Rs Programme: Reading, Running, Right-ing”. This after-school sports and life skills programme (presented through drama) involves women and men from local farming communities, who have been trained to run it. The foundation wants to see each person involved in the programme develop a positive vision for his or her future, while ensuring they make a positive future contribution to South Africa. www.annafoundation.com IRONMAN FOUNDATION The IRONMAN Foundation is a vehicle for distributing funds raised through charitable efforts to small organisations within the communities through which the race passes, that do not have the capacity to reach large audiences. The IRONMAN Foundation is always thinking about the families and organisations that make each race community vibrant and unique. By racing to create positive, tangible change in race communities – through grant funding and volunteerism – the charity donates to worthy causes in the areas through which the race passes. At the 2018 Absa Cape Epic, IRONMAN Foundation athletes awarded R225 000 to six local organisations, changing the lives of those who live in three of the communities where the race was held. www.ironmanfoundation.org 166 | MTB | The Untamed African MTB Race