Cyclists enter the new Rattrace
“Come along, enjoy a day out in our beautiful countryside, contribute to a very good cause and enjoy the camaraderie of a winter day on bikes.”
The annual Rattrace, near Rorke’s Drift this Saturday, will see cyclists take on a rugged 28 kilometres in a bid to raise funds for the David Rattray Foundation (DRF).
Now in its ninth year, the Rattrace is one of those enjoyable fundraising events, during which participants can see some of the area they are helping.
Contributions come in many forms – the most notable, raising many good-humoured laughs – is the fining process.
Riders are ‘fined’ (requested to make a contribution) for riding a flashy bike, not riding a flashy bike, for running the race instead of riding it, for wearing non-DRF kit, talking too much during the ride, or taking a short cut along the 28km route.
Fines are all read out after the bicycle ‘race’ is over, while everyone is gathering for lunch.
“Come along, enjoy a day out in our beautiful countryside, contribute to a very good cause and enjoy the camaraderie of a winter day on bikes.”
The race starts from Fugitive’s Drift Guest House in Rorke’s Drift, with registration at 7.30am and the event launching at 8am.
Cyclists pay R395 to enter and an additional R50 for lunch.
For more information, contact Fugitive’s Drift on 034 271 8051, or send an email to reservations@fugitivesdrift.com
The David Rattray Foundation
David Rattray had a belief that by giving people a decent education, they would better be able to fend for themselves and make a substantial contribution to their homes, villages, district and the nation as a whole.
Thus, they would become a national resource.
The foundation has existed since 2007, and in achievement of David Rattray’s objectives provide support to 19 schools in the Rorke’s Drift and Isandlwana areas, assisting with buildings, classrooms, school management training, teacher development, art classes, preschool construction, equipment and training, IT and science labs, sports equipment, water, electricity and the other essentials contributing to an improved education.
An excerpt from a recent report by the University of KwaZulu-Natal said of the DRF schools, “Both the schools and the Department of Education officials say, qualitatively, there has been a vast improvement in their schools since the DRF began its improvement program.”
“There is a greater sense of purpose, of pride and of achievement in these schools; pass marks have improved by 48 per cent and the number of children who go on to tertiary educational institutions has increased by 32 per cent.”
