New wheels for Bhomela resident Teekay
Ndwakane has earned great respect from the local cycling community with his amazing bike skills.
Thokozane ‘Teekay’ Ndwakane, a 23 year old Bhomela resident, was recently given the chance to realise his dreams by someone who almost lost his.
The Southbroom Conservancy launched a raffle in April, with a sporty silverback mountain bike worth R15 000 as the prize.
Ari Miltiadou, a regular holidaymaker from Johannesburg bought raffle tickets and forgot about it.
Miltiadou is a seasoned cyclist who has achieved results in various mountain bike and road race challenges like the KAP Sani2c and the Cape Epic to name a few.
He suffered a head injury in 2014 and was in a coma for a week.
As he recovered, Miltiadou decided to take on a personal quest to ride 10 000km in a year and to raise funds for Qhubeka. He has succeeded at both.
Surprisingly, his name was drawn as the winner a few months later and he immediately decided to donate the bike to an up-and-coming cyclist who would benefit from it.
The Southbroom Conservancy posted this offer on social media. Entrants had to write a letter explaining why they needed a new bike and the impact it would make on their life.
It so happened to be Ndwakane’s letter that caught Miltiadou’s eye.
He works as a mechanic at a cycle shop and cycles 32 km daily to work. He also participates in club rides every Wednesday and Saturday whenever possible.
Ndwakane has earned great respect from the local cycling community with his amazing bike skills.
Miltiadou flew up from Johannesburg in September to hand over the bike, but unfortunately Ndwakane tested positive for Covid-19 the day before.
Luckily a week later, Amanda Murray from the Southbroom Conservancy and Bennie Kruger from Riptide handed over the bike on Miltiadou’s behalf.
Ndwakane is optimistic about his future as a cyclist and is looking forward to competing in more advanced rides.
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