5Q4> A "Circle of courage" Cyclist

On March 8, 2007, seven cyclists completed the 2374-kilometre
ride from the bottom to the top of New Zealand.
The “Circle of courage” cycle tour aimed to raise awareness of issues affecting young people and how adults can make a signifi cant difference in the lives of young people in their communities. The youngest member of the team was 16-year-old Rebekah Rankin from Auckland.

1 Why did you get involved in the “Circle of courage” New Zealand cycle tour? > I wanted to do it because Dad was doing it. It was mostly because Dad was going to be away for a month and I thought I might as well go with him. Dad said I could go if I put in the work training—and he didn’t think I would.

2 So what has been involved in training? > I have been training for the past year, doing between 10 and 16 hours per week. As well as road riding, I have also got into track cycling and training. Earlier this year, I competed in the Auckland Track Cycling Championships. I improved my personal best times for my events, which was good in my fi rst year of competing.

3 What was your longest ride? And how do you ride such long distances? > The ride from Timaru to Christchurch was our longest day—176 kilometres according to my bike odometer. The thing I found was that after a few hours on the bike you go into neutral; it’s like you break through this pain barrier then your legs start just going. Doug [McLeod, another of the “Circle of courage” riders] said it’s being “in zone.” When you are “in zone,” it’s like nothing else is clear except the road ahead of you. The only problem is when you have to stop, then you can feel every muscle in your legs and butt—and sometimes even your feet.

4 And how has it been riding as a team? > It has been good. Everybody has been great. Everybody rides diff erently but we have worked well as a group.

5 As a young person, what does the “Circle of courage” message about building young people’s resilience mean to you? > Resilience is like when somebody falls down, it is the ability to get back up again. It helps young people overcome adversity and make the most of what they’ve got.

The message is very cool and if people get that it will be good.

It’s not really big stuff . It’s just about older people taking an interest in young people. For example, there have been a couple of older ladies who have encouraged me. It wasn’t a lot but they are really cool. I think everybody should take this seriously.

I have a lot of friends who, if people had made an eff ort in this way, it would have made a real diff erence for them.