Charity work with a roar in Cape Town

It was that of year again where 65-100 000 bikers (I wonder who counted them, but according to news sources) across South Africa participated in the annual Toy Run. This is a charity event happening across the globe where toys are collected and brought to a central drop-off point by bikers. These toys go to underprivileged children.

The event usually takes place on the last Sunday in November, and this year was no exception. The only difference this year was a change in the start-off point again. I guess each year the organizers look for a better place to start because managing a couple of thousand bikes who all wants to leave first can be challenging. There are two departure points in Cape Town leaving approximately at the same time and then meeting up somewhere on the N2 and finally dropping the toys in Wynberg at Maynardville. This year the one start point was at Ottery and the second one at Grand West Casino. 

When I picked up my pillion at 9:15 am, I thought it might be early for the 10:30 start. When we arrived at Grand West Casino it was clear that many people had earlier aspirations and was ready lined up for the start. This gave us time to have a quick coffee (and breakfast for my pillion) inside the casino complex which was thankfully air-conditioned. Outside the temperature was already reaching the upper 20's and while on the road I spotted that we were in the low thirties already. A perfect day for the beach I thought, not so perfect for black biking gear, but the cause was one of goodwill and a slight breeze with smiling faces on the side of the road helped us through. We had toys to deliver and come hell or high water, we were going to complete our mission.

The toys get dropped at Maynardville where the venue is set up with a large truck collecting the toys and also some other entertainment and stalls. Admission to the premises is just presenting a toy, any toy, you don't even need a bike or a helmet. There are numerous stalls where one can see the latest bikes and gadgets, but none so interesting as the variety of bikes you see at such a gathering. It makes my "orange mean freedom machine" looks pretty bleak. Some people really spend a lot of time and money on their bikes and I always get this urge to start decorating my bike as well. I'm not talking about the toys some hang on their bikes for the day's event, I'm talking about paint jobs and gadgets.

It is amazing how many bikers turn up for this event. I am pretty sure that if more events are organized where bikes are involved, we can even raise money for not-so-needy as well.  What I do suspect thought is that many kids believe that Santa rides a bike in South Africa and NOT a sleigh as believed by many kids across the globe. Looking at the weather yesterday his sleigh would not gotten anywhere in any case.....

Putting a smile on their faces

If you had to ask me if today was a good day for biking, I probably would've said no. The wind was howling across the Peninsula and with a pillion the trouble of keeping the bike in a straight line makes it even less inviting. Standing still at the traffic light already feels as if you are doing 60 kmp/h. Now add another thousand of bikes riding at around 40-80 kmp/h in the same lane and I am sure biking does not sound like the ideal thing to do. But, today was one of those days when you face the elements because you know that along with all these other bikers you are going to put a smile on a child's face this Christmas. Yes, it was the annual Toy Run, an event like the Buffalo Rally which most bikers do not want to miss out on. The difference between this and the Buff is...well, this is completely different. Thousands of bikers across the world use this day to collect toys for the underprivileged, something we have a lot of in South Africa.

Unlike the previous years, this year's Toy Run in Cape Town started off from a different venue. Because of the constructions going on on the M5, the local traffic department wanted the bikers to use a different route, so the kick-off point was at the Epping Market. I can just imagine that it takes a lot of planning to put this together, so well done to the organisers. What was a bit frustrating though was the speed at which we were riding. The venue was fine and the road too, but at some points there was a clear problem with motor vehicle traffic interfering and at many points one had to actually stop. My feet were more on the tar than on my pegs and I think I was in first or second gear most of the time during the ride. It felt almost like the bikes were in a traffic stand-still and not the cars. I was however still glad that I was on a bike and not in a car, at least we had right-of-way most of the times. The congestion in Wynberg at Maynarville where the toys are being dropped off, is also a bit of a problem. Finding parking for all those bikes is not easy, but I am sure they can move this somewhere else where more bikes can more easily get in and out, and where the roads are not so narrow like in this old part of Cape Town.

So, apart from those few areas in which they can improve on, the rest of the run was awesome. There is just something weird happening in a man...and I am sure in some women too, when thousands of bikes start up at the same time. For sure you will always have your hard-core bikers adding colour to the event by revving up their bikes to way above the allowable noise level any ear drum can withstand. And this was not even the Buff we're talking about, this is a charity event where everyone was sober and calm. Walking through the bikes leaves one amazed at how many different bikes there are on the road, and the way that some bikers customize their bikes is just amazing. I guess they spend their whole month's wages on their bikes and strangely enough still have some bucks left for petrol.

After dropping the toys in the big Nampak Truck, I decided that I still wanted to do a decent ride today, so instead of going straight home I took my pillion for a joy ride over Chapman's Peak. The wind was still hectic and on a few occasions I had to adjust my speed around the corners due to the wind pulling me this way and that way without any warning. I didn't want us to end up in front of oncoming traffic...and definitely NOT on the other side which is down the cliffs towards the sea. I don't know exactly how many kids are going to have a smile on them this Chritsmas, but I for sure know of one who had a smile on his face today. Until next year..... 

Santa needs new transport

After giving my opinion on Santa in South Africa delivering toys on a reindeer powered sleigh that won't get further than the Kalahari desert, I was wondering what the other option was for him to get his presents delivered. Today, I think I got the answer. I remember as a kid watching this spectacle on television news thinking that bikers cannot really be that bad if they do this for the kids. Just like I thought many years ago that Meatloaf was from hell and today actually think that he is a decent guy with some real talent, so my opinion has changed about leather clad bikers in general. Ok, I am pretty sure that are some hard core bikers out there that I would steer clear from, but I think many of them do have good hearts as well. Let me get to the point. Today was the annual Toy Run. It is basically a charity event where toys are bought for underprivileged children, and then bikers take these toys to a collection point. It is claimed to be the largest motorcycle charity event in South Africa happening simultaneously in 19 cities across South Africa. So I was fortunate to attend this year's Toy Run in Cape Town.

A bike?

Just the start...

The starting point was at the Ratanga Junction parking area in Century City. I made sure that I was early this year so that I could walk around and take some pictures. It is amazing to see so many bikes together...and so many different ones as well. Some I am not even sure if they could be called motorcycles in the true sense of the word, but still allowing more wind in your face than the average motor car I guess makes them qualify as "bikes". Like most events where you have a few bikers together, you will find the stuff that keeps them happy, like noise, burning tyres, showing off, that kind of stuff. Fortunately there was not too much of that going on around at 10 am in the morning, but a few guys did try to finish off their tyres before the event even started, and some showed that they basically only need the back wheel to ride on in the unlikely event of losing the front. Something that I thought was a bit strange was the fact that the  only tent on the premises was a beer tent. "What is any event in South Africa without a Castle Beer tent?" I thought to myself. Not worth attending. I did however stay away from alcohol, because a fall with 22 000 bikes behind you could be disastrous.

Oops!

Look what I can do

At 25 past 10 everyone started their engines, ready to hit the road to Maynardville where the other beer tents were waiting. Oh, and the truck that collects the toys of course. I was quite close to the front, hoping to get there early for parking close to the gate. We were not even gone when the first woman an a big Harley lost her balance and dropped her bike right in front of me. Fortunately we were still going very slow and I managed to avoid her. Two weekends ago I picked up my bike a couple of times from sand and decided it was someone else's turn, hoping that some gentleman will help her if she cannot manage. I was on my way to Maynardville to deliver my toys.

On the N1 south bound

I think that anyone who has experienced the roar of literally thousands of bikes together has thought of buying a bigger bike for next year's event. I have to say that the Harleys definitely draw all the attention. It might not be a bad choice for a second bike. Mmmm, wonder what the missus will say? If I only had space in my garage. On the road everything went smoothly, with enough traffic cops to keep the other traffic at bay, allowing us to go our way. I haven't heard of any incidents or accidents, but then again I was in front, so I had no idea what was going on behind me. The people next to the road was waving and cheering us on as if we were doing the Argus Cycle Race, but what they obviously did not know was that we didn't need any encouragement, we were enjoying what we were doing. And to think that it was for charity made it even more enjoyable.

When we reached Maynardville we parked and everyone dropped their toys (refering to the real toys, not the bikes) before they started exploring the stalls and tents. There we quite a few stalls selling motorbike stuff and of course beer. When we left I saw this gentleman sitting at the entrance, fast asleep. I am pretty sure he was one of the early customers at the beer tent at the starting point. I wonder what happened to his toys, or if he even had thoughts of bringing toys. At least he was still alive, well.....sort of.

From Maynardville we (my pillion and I) took the scenic route back to Cape Town via Hout Bay and Camp's Bay. I think Santa could come and take note on how we deliver toys in South Africa...and enjoy the scenery as well. I didn't see any sleighs around today and I am pretty sure that these toys will bring smiles to more faces than any toy coming from Lapland could. Anyway, it was a great event, and seeing so many bikes together just added to the excitement. I will be there again next year and I hope to see the guy in the red suit there as well, obvioulsy with his sleeves torn off, a chain around his neck and on a blood red Harley Davidson if nothing else.