More than 200 volunteers will work tirelessly behind the scenes to ensure that the 24th edition of The Herald Volkswagen Cycle Tour run like a well-oiled machine.

Race organiser Shane Bradfield said yesterday the group of volunteers once again formed the backbone of the event, which takes place on Saturday, January 31, and Sunday, February 1.

“These are the people who go beyond the call of duty to make sure there are no glitches come race day and that the event is a pleasant experience for participants and the public.”

Bradfield said the volunteers represented numerous organisations and clubs, as well as private individuals, and that they pledged their time because they had a passion for the event and the region.

Organisations that will be on duty during the two-day festival of cycling are the Tri-Angle Sports Club, the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality’s traffic department, the Mountain Club of South Africa, Gardmed, Round Table, the MTR Smit Children’s Haven and the Childhood Cancer Foundation of South Africa (CHOC).

Tri-Angle’s Alan Taylor said they would be deploying marshals at 75 points along the various road race routes. “We love getting involved in this event; we have a longstanding working relationship.”

He said they often organised races, especially road running, and were therefore experienced in marshalling sporting events of this magnitude. Taylor urged motorists to obey the marshals, who can be identified by their VW bibs and red flags.

According to him, the marshals played an important role in ensuring the safety of cyclists, motorists and pedestrians. He said they would once again be working in conjunction with the traffic department.

Rob MacGeoghegan said the Mountain Club of South Africa would be patrolling the mountain bike routes at Addo on the Saturday in case any of the riders got into trouble. He said their mountain rescue team would work in conjunction with Gardmed’s paramedics and that they would have a helicopter on stand-by.

Bradfield said game rangers from the Addo Elephant National Park would act as marshals in the reserve, while CHOC would handle the registration and kiddies’ areas. “The Kirkwood Round Table will provide food stalls and general assistance.”

The Herald VW Cycle Tour weekend starts with four mountain bike events on the Saturday from the Addo Polo Club. These are the newly introduced 85km feature race, the 65km Vodacom Challenge, the 42km Family Fun Ride and the CHOC Kiddies’ Challenge.

Also on the Saturday, The Boardwalk Casino & Entertainment Complex will host the MTR Smit 30km Family Fun Ride and the Reach for a Dream Kiddies’ Challenge.

The 105km The Herald VW Cycle Tour and the 75km Schools and Open Challenge will take place the next day from The Boardwalk.

Entry forms are available from cycle shops, www.heraldcycletour.co.za or www.cyclelab.co.za. For more information, phone Shane Bradfield on 074 114 4811.

Issued by:

Full Stop Communications

Coetzee Gouws
082 575 7991
041 368 4992
coetzee@fullstopcom.com
www.fullstopcom.com

On behalf of:

Avusa – The Herald