By Nathalie Rosa Bucher
"May the best person win" were the parting words of Mayor Helen Zille to Andrew Wheeldon of the Bicycle Empowerment Network (BEN) as the two prepared to head off into the rush-hour traffic - he on his racing bike and she in the mayoral car.
It was to be a race, but a race with a purpose.
Pedal power, BEN is convinced, is the way to beat rush-hour blues.
The network has, in collaboration with the Pedal Power Association (PPA), organised an informal "commuter challenge" on Friday, to test the relative efficiencies (travel times and costs) of the humble bicycle against buses, taxis, trains and the private car, the main cause of congestion and pollution in the city.
Wheeldon's race with the first citizen of Cape Town produced a salutary result. Covering the nine kilometres from Foreshore to the Zille household in 13 minutes, at an average speed of 43km an hour, he proved the virtue of the fable that pitted the hare against the tortoise: he won hands down.
Wheeldon's classic Italian racer, aided by legs of steel hardened by two decades of road-racing, left the mayor's German-engineered limousine lagging far behind in the late afternoon traffic.
"I wanted to prove the efficiency of the bicycle," he said, grinning with satisfaction. "Besides the advantage of low travelling time, it is especially (cheap) to cycle."
Although Wheeldon is a pro, he said it was possible for everyone to commute by bicycle.
"I mostly commute to work by bicycle. I live only 3km away from work, so it would be silly to drive. The car won't even warm up in that time," he said.
Zille said she was inspired by the outcome and was considering cycling or taking the train to work on World Carfree Day on September 22.
"I also have a bike and a helmet," she told the small crowd gathered at the finish line, on the corner of Woolsack and Main Road in Rosebank.
"In the mornings, I leave so early I manage to escape the traffic. In the afternoon, however, I often take up to 40 minutes to get home from work. I used to take the train."
For more information on the commuter challenge, call the PPA on 021 689 8420 or BEN on 021 671 4655, or log on to Pedal Power Association or Ben Bikes.