Tour D’Afrique

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Man, I love the Tour D’Afrique group. Bike Rumor has a little write up on stage 1 of the current (actual) Tour of Africa–the picture really makes me envision myself there.

On their journey through ten African countries Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, Botswana, Namibia and South Africa, the riders travel past ancient temples, through game reserves teeming with wildlife, across deserts and the foothills of legendary Mount Kilimanjaro, alongside the rugged and biblical landscape of Ethiopia’s Simian Mountains and through Botswana and Namibia’s most magnificent wilderness areas. The journey takes approximately 120 days of which 96 are cycling days, averaging 125 km each day.

via Bikerumor | All The Best Cycling News, Tech, Rumors and Reviews!.

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As I was reviewing David Gillespie’s slideshow deck titled Digital Strangelove – or How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love The Internet (please click the link and take a few minutes to review–well worth it), which is an amazing slide deck discussing the Intention Economy–what the Web is going to be–check it out and enjoy!–he noted an online application called Tumblr

So, I took a brief break and ended up on Tumblr, creating a micro blog platform in under a minute, Tony K’s into the Ether. My goal is to have the Tumblr posts feed into Tony K’s got something to Say. This site will still be primary vehicle for writing but Tumblr allows a very easy way to post my “lifestream“, shorter updates and thoughts, pics and events, it integrates to Facebook so my friends can keep up-to-date and it sends my notes to Twitter (finally, I have a way to interact with Twitter that is not a forced activity just because I work in online communications!). One thing that really struck me was the capability to upload posts via e-mail–this single item has kept me hooked since 6am. Finally, a way to get rich content from various experts within an organization without having to train or change anything they do, think about what this can do for a more robust integrated online outreach strategy…

The barrier to entry is removed, so there is nothing left but to engage and let the ideas flow.

I encourage everyone to check out Tumblr–it doesn’t constrain you like Twitter and does not make everything about the destination, like Facebook–it is yours.

As part of my effort to gain sponsorship from a bike company (or a local shop: Conte’s, City Bikes, The Bike Rack, Bonzai, Revolution Cycle, Capital Hill BikesJamis, Felt,, Trek, Giant, Scott and to establish an in-kind services relationship (free online communications strategy and outreach  for  Tour D’Afrique and the sponsoring bike company) I will be using Tumblr as a keystone in the creation of my outreach strategies

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OK, I am still seeking sponsorship–seriously, consider me your two wheeled ambassador of good will & adventure. I am going to work out my initial strategy and plan to target U.S. bike makers–have one you would like to see sponsor me, let me know by leaving a comment below. Facebook folks you can follow and comment on Tony-K.org.

I have been doing some more reading on the organizing company’s (Tour D’Afrique, LTD) site and have learned they have several tours they organize and they have thought about the time and money issue a bit–each tour can be done as a whole or in stages. With the staged approach I would like to note to potential sponsors, this does not change my offer to be your advocate and brand ambassador on these rides but it does mean we can have even more time and locations to help build your brand and increase your audience/customer base….

The Silk Road Tour, is part of the their Epic Tour series, they also have started a Dream Tour series–design your own and make it part of the tour services they offer, currently in Beta–there is one Dream Tour posted–the amber route (St. Petersburg to Vienna).

Tour D’Afrique also has a foundation–I am really becoming enamored with this company.

The Tour d’Afrique Foundation is an integral part of our company vision. The foundation was set up at the same time as the Tour d’Afrique Bicycle Race/Expedition to fulfill key elements of our mission:

  • To give something back to the people and the communities of the areas that we pass through on our cycling tours.
  • To raise consciousness about bicycles as an alternative and, in many ways, better and more beneficial means of transport.

To fulfill these objectives the company has focused on:

  • donating bikes to individuals and organizations in Africa
  • supporting bicycle advocacy and promoting projects that protect the environment
  • encouraging participants in the tour to raise funds for their favored charity whether in their home country or in Africa or both

When it comes to raising consciousness about the bicycle as an alternative mean of transport, we feel that simply by having riders complete the 12,000 km journey year after year, the Tour d`Afrique makes an impressive and significant point about bicycles and their potential use. To quote the writer Iris Murdoch; “The bicycle is the most civilized conveyance known to man. Other forms of transport grow daily more nightmarish. Only the bicycle remains pure in heart.”

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