Cycling for a Cause

HOW A SOLO BIKEPACKING EXPEDITION SUPPORTED ZCP

[WRITER: Brooke Berlin ] [ PHOTOS: Johann Vanzyl ]

I have cacti and succulents on my mind as I look at a little indoor garden I planted in April, in solidarity. My husband, Johann Vanzyl, still has pinprick scars on his legs from barreling into a barrel cactus while solo bikepacking The Arizona Trail in the United States as a fundraiser for the Zambian Carnivore Programme, and so I think of these aridadapted species often.

Curious to make even more of a connection between the two countries (USA and Zambia) beyond the biking (more on that below of course), I asked around, and Kyle Branch, Director of Tusk & Mane Safaris, let me know that “Zambia has around 50 species of Euphorbia and even more succulents under the Euphorbiaceae genus - some very uncommon.” Examples of some are Aloe chabaudii in the north’s rocky outcroppings and the Victoria Falls area, Kalanchoe lanceolata in the open woodlands and rocky areas, and Cissus quadrangularis (a common climbing succulent) widely found in various trees. For me, the candelabra Euphorbia (or Euphorbia ingens) common in the Lower Zambezi National Park is as

iconic as the umbrella Acacia in the Maasai Mara National Reserve or the baobab in Ruaha National Park (though both classified as trees of course).

Covid continues to impact funding for conservation entities that protect these beautiful landscapes as well as the creatures living on them, and the people whose lives and livelihoods depend on tourism. Johann has been as enamored with Zambia as he has been with mountain biking for the past two decades, so when he discovered a new genre of the sport – bikepacking – and actually had time at home in Boulder, Colorado (a cycling mecca) available to train and go offgrid, we decided to turn his adventure into a fundraising endeavor. Bikepacking is similar to backpacking, but instead of carrying your life, and life support, on your back, you outfit your bike with bags holding your tent and sleeping bag; all-weather clothes; first aid and mechanical needs; food and water (he carried up to eight liters of water a day); and more, including the GPS with SOS I insisted upon for this ride, as last year, when he rode The Colorado Trail in support of Uthando in South Africa, he didn’t have a way to get in contact when outside of mobile range.

He did research, bought a new kit, trained daily, doubled-down on a Keto diet, and eventually weighed out every ounce of food, mapped every possible place to refill water, planned every logistical twist and turn, and then drove to the US/Mexico border to start the 1,120kms of riding, with over 22,000m of uphill climbing, to the south rim of the Grand Canyon (the full Arizona Trail entails disassembling your kit, hiking it across the Grand Canyon, and reassembling it before riding to the Utah border as no wheels are allowed on the Grand Canyon trail).

At a time when so many people seemed to be looking for positive motivation and something to be part of that reconnected them to a wider community again, it was amazing to see how many people followed his two-week journey via social media updates and supported his efforts. In total, more than USD 4,500 was donated to the Zambian Carnivore Programme. “It was just nice to make a difference by inspiring people during a time when we all needed a little push forward. And I wanted to support an organization that wasn’t just working in one region on one species, but across the country in various ways,” Johann said.

A tiny little movement can make a very big difference, both in bikepacking, and in fundraising. With the donations, Matt Becker, CEO of Zambian Carnivore Programme, let us know that two important projects were supported:

1. Satellite/GPS collars for wild dogs and cheetah in the Luangwa and Kafue. This revolutionary technology has made it possible for them to intensively monitor entire dog packs and cheetah groups in high-risk areas of these ecosystems in addition to collecting critical data and providing these data to direct anti-snaring patrols. A collar generally costs about $2,300 (depending on if you include downloads at $13/month, activation fees, etc.). With the help of a couple of collars in each group, they tracked 279 wild dogs in 22 packs and dispersing groups last year across nearly 30,000km2 .

2. Uniforms for the rapidly growing team, now close to 50 people. Quite often an overlooked aspect of need and a very difficult thing to fund via most grants, is professional field gear which is needed as an organization becomes more high profile. Across the country their teams conduct a range of conservation initiatives, including community meetings, school programmes, training programmes, humancarnivore conflict mitigation, meetings with

DNPW and government, and work with film crews (several films with BBC and National

Geographic are ongoing). South African-born, Johann has ridden around his home country in both urban and safari areas. He prefers the more remote locations though because being out in the wilderness for a prolonged period, camping with the raw elements of nature all around, is what excites and ignites him. Historically, in Africa, his options were mountain biking, which he’s also done solo from Tongabezi at Victoria Falls and with John Coppinger of Remote Africa Safaris in the South Luangwa. For a more modern spin on the sport, he was eager to e-bike at Cottar’s Safaris in Kenya’s Maasai Mara as part of their impact activity offerings and is now counting down the days for e-bikes to be delivered to Green Safari’s newest Chisa Busanga Camp in Northern Kafue as part of their silent safari offerings. When he’s ready to ride a mountain bike again, he has his eye on a trip that crosses Rwanda and Uganda on off-road village footpaths (he actually bought and brought back one of the traditional handmade wooden bikes that the local Ugandans use when we were there last October; it’s a piece of art!). And when a road ride is calling, of course the most epic accomplishment will be riding Cape to Cairo. “It remains a lifelong dream but isn’t practical right now from a time perspective,” Johann said.

So, for a more time-sensitive spin, he’s also wanting to do the Elephant Epic, which he first found out about when his mate, Jason Mott, owner of Sausage Tree Camp, did the fundraising ride himself. It’s put on by Game Rangers International, the same organization that supports the Lilayi Elephant Orphanage in Lusaka, and is a 75km ride from Lusaka to the Lower Zambezi. This specific ride supports both Game Rangers International and Conservation Lower Zambezi. Until the time when he has more time to do it in person, he signed up for the virtual event this year. Whether you’re riding to raise funds in person or from your Peloton at home, or simply cycling for personal enjoyment, being on a bike is one of life’s joys. So definitely grab ahold of some handles the next time you have the opportunity. Getting around Africa on two wheels is an intimate way to experience local communities and the landscape from a different perspective. It brings you closer to the people and the place and brings a perspective distinctly different to what any game drive vehicle can offer.

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