Zambezi Cycle Challenge

The Zambezi Cycle Challenge is a fulfilling and exciting 3 day tour all for a good cause

The Zambezi Cycle Challenge is a fitting event for conservationists as well as those who seek a thrilling and challenging cycling activity in Victoria Falls.

It is a fundraising event which aims to raise funs in order to preserve the wellbeing of Victoria Falls and the surrounding environment. To read more about the beneficiaries of this event, click here.

"Teams will be required to be made up of at least two members, but the race organisers will consider single applicants for as long as they agree to be grouped with other cyclists of a similar ability."

Cycle Challenge participant by the Zambezi gorges

Add on a few days and enjoy Helicopter flights, Canoeing, Rafting, Elephant back safaris or for the wild at heart some gorge swinging or bungee jumping. Packages are available through us.

The three day stage event will cover a distance of between 55 to 75 kms each day

Registration

Registration is now open and you can do so at this link.

Detailed Itinerary

You will find diagrams of the routes for all three cycling days here.

Registration Day | July 8^th

The registration desk will be open at the Cycle Village from 12h00 to 17h00. The welcome, safety and race briefing will be done at 18.00hrs. It is compulsory for all participants to attend this briefing.

Dinner and drinks are available after the briefing (at your own expense) and buses will shuttle riders back to the Cycle Village at the end of the evening. Dinner is included, but drinks are at own expense.

Most importantly for those who do not have their own transport to the start, please ensure that your bikes are numbered and have been delivered to the Cycle Village before 16.00. Please place them on the bike racks available to you, so that they are loaded on the trucks that will deliver them to the start the following morning.

Challenge Day 1 - 65 Kilometres | July 9^th

Bikes will be loaded the night before and entrants will depart from Ilala Lodge at 6 am. The road transfer will take approximately 25 minutes along the Bulawayo Road and start just behind the Airport. The ride starts at 7.15am. The first 5kms will be on gravel road and then enter a double track for the next 10kms. After the 10km track, the elephant trail will take you to Elephant Pools. Thereafter, its a combination of single and double track for the rest of the route, riding through community areas and wildlife areas. The ride also goes pst the Wild Horizons EWildlife Sanctuary, then past the Victoria Falls Hotel and end at Ilala Lodge. Enjoy the natural surroundings and keep a respectable distance should you came across any wildlife. There will be safety marshals present in places where riders will mostly likely encounter wildlife, but riders still must be vigilant throughout this days ride.

Lunch at the Cycle Village is at the riders' expense.

For the Cycle Village residents at Ilala, dinner is included and non-residents welcome at own expense ($20).

Bikes must be delivered to the Cycle Village by 16.00hrs for loading if riders do not have their own transport to get to the starting point for Day 2.

Challenge Day 2 - 75 Kilometres | July 10^th

Entrants will depart Ilala Lodge at 6am, and the transfer to the starting point is about 15kms out on the Airport road.

This day will start on the tar to separate the riders a bit and then wind its way through a scenic valley, taking them through many authentic village scenes. Some technical riding but generally short hills and sharp descents. Some wonderful fast and winding sections on cattle paths through some woodland will eventually take you back through a new section through the Wild Horizons Sanctuary and back to the finish at Ilala.

Lunch at the Cycle Village is at the riders' expense.

Bikes must be delivered to the Cycle Village by 16.00hrs for loading if riders do not have their own transport to get to the starting point for Day 2.

Challenge Day 3 - 55 Kilometres | July 11^th

The buses will leave the Cycle Village at 6 am and transfer riders to the start, approximately 30kms downstream from the Victoria Falls themselves. It's just about all single track and the most technically challenging day of the event. The start has a 3 km stretch on gravel before entering a gentle single track through the rural villages.

The route then goes through the Wild Horizons National Park concession and via a single track that is at times meandering and pleasant to technical and potentially dangerous. Interspersed regularly along this route are (some) breath taking views of the Zambezi River way below. Stop and enjoy the view, as there will be a section that is a compulsory walk for safety purposes. As riders approach the end of the ride, they will be greeted by the thunder and spray of the Victoria Falls before the final stretch to the Cycle Village.

This afternoon is spent relaxing and soothing tired muscles before meeting at 3.30pm for transportation to the sundowner cruise. The cruise takes place on the river above the Falls, and lasts until just after sunset.

The cruise drops us off at the gala dinner venue on the banks of the Zambezi where there will be prize giving, dinner and drinks.

Final Day

Tour ends.