Becoming Limitless: First Day in Cape Town
“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving. ”
I started my Eisenhower Fellowship by visiting a bike club for teenage girls created by Khaltsha Cycles. The girls participated in Khaltsha Cycles’ Bike2School program, which is a schoo based program for students and learners to use bicycles as a means of transport to commute from home to school. On weekends, the girls in the Bike2School program most committed to learning the sport started to ride together with Juma Mkwela, one of the founders of Khaltsha Cycles, in the township of Khayelitsha.
The Bike2School students in the bike club are an awe-inspiring group of young women - strong, brave, courageous, confident, thoughtful, strategic, empathetic and relentless. They shared with me that being a teenager is difficult because there are many negative temptations that would derail their goals. Life can be even more challenging while living in the townships, where they do not have financial resources to access activities.
“Cycling has made me believe in myself. Before the Bike Club, I had never been on a bike, and now I ride many kilometers every weekend. If I can do that, I can do anything. I can go anywhere. I can even visit you in the United States one day. Before, I did not even have a vision of that being possible.”
However, they maintain that being able to ride bikes has changed their lives. It has kept them focused and active during weekends when idle time could lead to negative incidents. It has made them confident - they have the bravery to literally stop traffic to ensure bikers and pedestrians pass safely. It has made them mobile and allowed them to travel to different areas and access new experiences. And, they are healthier, both physically and emotionally. The girls showed so much pride when sharing about the way in which they have built muscles, lost weight and toned, but have also matured and now encourage themselves, each other and their families to make more productive choices. In short, the girls told me they feel limitless. They can go anywhere, and they believe they can do anything.
Khaltsha Cycles is a one-stop bike shop founded by people with a shared passion to create and promote the culture of cycling in townships in Cape Town by offering quality affordable bicycles. Juma believes that bicycles change lives. He has made it part of the business model not only to partner with manufactures that produce quality affordable bikes but to create bicycle programs that will change the lives of underresourced communities.
As part of my visit, I contributed to Khaltsha Cylces work. If you are interested in learning more, visit Khaltsha Cycles.
