- Eelco Meyjes successfully arrives from Johannesburg at his daughters flat in Cape Town after the ALL OR BUST RFCG fundraising cycle ride. photo : Willem Law
After cycling a distance of 1,485 km from Johannesburg to Cape Town, Eelco Meyjes successfully completed the ALL OR BUST Rare Finch Conservation Group’s ( RFCG ) fundraising cycle ride. An amount of R30,000 was pledged by well wishers towards the ride and its worthy conservation cause. The enduro cycle ride took a total amount of 19 days to complete, which included 2 rest days ( 1 in Kimberley and 1 in Beaufort West ). His average distance covered per day was 87 km and his average speed, with his 30 kg of self supporting spares, nutrition, first aid and riding kit, was 14.8 kph. His solo cycle ride was completed without the aid of a back up support vehicle. Crossing the Great Karoo in South Africa ( an approx distance of 600km ) with midday temperatures of 42c meant that a fair amount of night cycling had to be done between 1 am and 9 am in the mornings. Even many of the finches seen on route found it difficult to fly in the midday heat.
The RFCG would hereby publicly like to thank Tracetec, who kindly sponsored his on board satelitte tracking system, CG print ( Castle Graphics ) who printed all the promotional material, as well as all the individuals, bird clubs and organisations who kindly made a pledge to the Rare Finch Conservation Group.
The money raised from the ALL OR BUST Johannesburg to Cape Town cycle ride will be used to try and help find one of Africa’s rarest finches . The Shelley’s Crimsonwing ( Cryptospiza shelleyi ). Painting done by Howard Robinson
For those finch enthusiasts that would still like to make a donation to the the RFCG they can do so by simply using the convenient and secure PayPal payment facility below . All donors will be publicly acknowledged on the Rare Finch Conservation Group website. The Rare Finch Conservation Group is registered as a non-profit organisation.
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