Meet the 2018 Buggy Teams

Damian has loved the outdoors, animals, and adventure from a young age. He has an incredible attitude and zest for life, and is always up for trying something new. Damian is no stranger to the Cycle Tour, having participated in four. The Cape Town Cycle Tour has been the highlight of each year for us, and Damian loves being a part of the spirit and camaraderie on the road.

Jacques Junior (a.k.a. JJ) has a genetic disorder resulting in his Cerebral Palsy diagnosis. He turns 9 on the day of the Cycle Tour this year. He is an absolute adrenalin junkie. He loves speed, quadbike rides, fast cars, outings, animals and has an incredibly beautiful, soft-hearted soul that wins hearts in seconds. He is super excited about participating this year! His family also supports him and is very excited for him to take part in this challenge.

Payton was born with a very rare syndrome called Rubinstein-Taybi Syndrome. She has done extremely well despite the odds. The doctors gave her no chance of life but she has proven them wrong time and time again - she is a little fighter. She attends a school where they learn basic day to day skills to live life more independently. Payton is a fun, loving & caring child, has the will and determination to do and try anything. She is the sunshine in our lives.

Ruan had a near drowning accident when he was 4½. Although Ruan is pretty much dependant on others for all his caretaking, he has come a miraculously long way since his original diagnosis. He is still very dependent on others, but has loads of character, a wonderful sense of humour and is extremely sociable! He is, as are we, very excited for Ruan to do this – it is such a joy to be able to include him in “normal” activities and fill his life up with things other boys his age would be doing! He sees all this going on around him, and completely understands it all, so when he too can participate, it opens up a whole new world for him. We, his parents, are extremely grateful for this opportunity for Ruan and extend our most gracious thanks to Warriors on Wheels for considering him a good candidate!! Nothing on earth can replace these types of experiences for guys like Ruan!!

Ziyaad is an inquisitive 8 year old boy. Although he is unable to verbally communicate with us, through his actions we are able to understand him. He enjoys the outdoors and absolutely adores the water. He also loves working with his hands. He is a friendly and happy little boy, he has a smile that could warm any heart. He is also the busiest boy you could come across. We have had nothing but wonderful times with Warrior on Wheels and this would be the first cycle tour adventure he will embark on. I am sure he will appreciate it as much as he did the cycling at Cape Point. Thank you for giving him this extraordinary opportunity which I know he will cherish forever.

Nura is a sparkly 13 year old who loves adventures and the wind in her hair. We are committed to trying our best to ensure she experiences life to the fullest. Nura has swum with dolphins, been parasailing, slept with elephants, and enjoys hippotherapy, amongst other things. She has visited ten different countries and travelled by bus, plane, train, car, ferry and ship as she spread her joy and contagious smile worldwide. She is a faith magnet as she draws people to her. She has been the bravest and strongest warrior through many medical procedures and lots of hospital stays. After a spinal fusion procedure fusing her spine to titanium rods she is now our superhero, Titanium Girl. We have always been keen to cycle with Nura, but as she got older and bigger this seemed out of reach. When we met WoW we knew this was for us. Participating in the Cape Town Cycle Tour 2018 is our goal and we'll give it our all. #40Take2

Tiaan Louw is nine years old. He is such a super, loving, caring and happy little boy. He loves challenges in life and lets nothing get him down. He is a very loving boy and was born with Cerebral Palsy.

Luca and his twin sister Maya were born at 25 weeks, weighing around 700 grams each. Despite suffering a severe brain bleed and declared dead by his paediatrician a week after birth, Luca miraculously started breathing again. Defying all odds, Luca continued to fight to survive and so started his incredible journey of life. As a result of his injuries around birth, Luca has cerebral palsy – he is a spastic triplegic with both legs and one arm permanently stiff. Despite this, Luca continued to develop and thrive and approached his countless weekly therapies with tenacity, endurance and an incredible sense of humour. Luca managed to reach all his milestones in his own time and started mainstream schooling, but he did not develop the ability to walk. After many years of crawling and always having to look up at the world from below, Luca was advised to start using a wheel chair, but our family refused. He continued to develop into an extremely intelligent, happy, confident and tenacious child who just approached his world from a different angle. After many long years, at the age of 8 and a half, Luca miraculously managed to stand up one day and gave his first individual steps by himself! After all, it is his dream to play cricket for the Proteas one day!

Wiaan is currently a Grade 1 pupil. He is a fun loving, kind-hearted little boy. In his free time he loves colouring in and watching Hulk and Mr Bean movies.