Springbok icon Joel Stransky is embarking on the cycle ride of his life to raise funds to give the gift of sight to more of South Africa’s children. Riding with his Lumohawk Foundation team and former ABSA CEO Arrie Rautenbach, Stransky will leave Durban on 22 November 2025 to cycle across the country and through Namibia to Swakopmund for the 14-day 2,500km Hope Ride From Sea to See fundraising journey.
The Hope Ride from Sea to See Ride will pass through treasured South African towns like Mooiriver, Harrismith, Ficksburg, Kimberley, and Upington, among others, with the last 400km, known as the ‘Desert Dash’, between Windhoek and Swakopmund taking place in the heat over 5 and 6 December 2025, the ride’s final but massive stage.
“Madiba always spoke of the importance of education in our Rainbow Nation, and we’re taking on this immensely tough challenge at the peak of the Southern African summer to help make education possible for more of South Africa’s children,” Stransky says. “We’re appealing to corporates and private donors to sponsor our work as we improve the lives of the children of low-income employees and help families who don’t have an income give their children the gift of sight.”
With this route never having been cycled as an organised event, the ride passes through some of South Africa’s most iconic towns and dramatic landscapes, intent on raising funds via sponsorships to continue the work of the Foundation’s mobile eye clinics. The LumoHawk team visits the country’s underfunded schools, screening and testing children’s eyes, and providing them with prescription spectacles of their choice where needed.
Where more serious intervention is required, appointments are arranged with ophthalmic specialists who give of their time and resources to help these young learners.
The issue of children having poor eyesight is surprisingly common. Eye and sight development can be adversely affected by poor nutrition, learning to read in poor light, and under-development due to parents’ lack of awareness about early childhood support to stimulate vision development. In some areas, as many as 15% of South Africa’s children have sight problems that cause them to struggle at school – not because they are unable to learn or can’t play sport, but because they simply can’t see well enough to learn or to participate.
“Many of the children we test are unaware that they even have a problem, and few people in disadvantaged areas can afford the eyecare they need, whether it’s medication or spectacles that can help them see. The LumoHawk Foundation takes care of these needs, providing their services and materials at no cost to the communities they serve.”
Each child’s needs and circumstances are considered. Those that need spectacles can choose their frames, giving them the power of choice and the dignity of wearing a life-changing device that they like and feel good in.
Sponsors wanting to support The Lumohawk Foundation and the Hope Ride from Sea to See can donate on the Foundation’s website or email hello@lumohawk.co.za.
