BY MUNYARADZI MADZOKERE LOCAL car dealer Autoworld Zimbabwe believes their involvement with the off-road motorcycle event the Isuzu Victoria Falls Enduro is a reflection of the organisation’s passion for conservation and protection of the country’s natural environment.
Through their Isuzu brand, Autoworld are the title sponsors for the event which held its tenth edition of the competition on April 29 and 30 in the resort.
The Victoria Fall Enduro is organised by the Zambezi Off Road Club to fundraise for conservation efforts in and around Victoria Falls and Autoworld have been part of this event for the past two editions.
“At Autoworld, we are very passionate about conservation and the protection of Zimbabwe’s natural environments. As a result, we try to support events that help to protect these things,” marketing manager Sebastian Baumhoff told The Sports Hub.
“The proceeds of the annual Victoria Falls Enduro go towards a handful of organisations that are extremely active in wildlife conservation. These include the Bhejane Trust, Vic Falls Anti-Poaching, Victoria Falls Wildlife Trust and VAWZ.
“The fact that this event has been running for 10 years shows how much the sport of Enduro has grown and it’s great to see that so many people show up on the day to watch what these incredible riders can do.
“This year we even had pro riders from South Africa, Botswana and Zambia. Over the last 10 years, this event has managed to raise over US$100 000 for the trusts and beneficiaries,” he added.
The 2022 edition of the Victoria Falls saw top Dakar Rally riders from the southern Africa region namely Zimbabwean Graeme Sharp, who flew the country’s flag at Dakar Rally in 2020, Ross Branch and James Alexander from Botswana and Zambian David Reeve.
Autoworld Zimbabwe pledged to support the event for many years to come while expressing the desire to see it grow bigger.
“We will continue to sponsor the Victoria Falls Enduro for as long as we can. It’s a great event and also provides us with a great opportunity to expose our brand,” Baumhoff said.
“The sport of Enduro as a whole is growing really well in Zimbabwe, and events like the Vic Falls Enduro expose a lot of youngsters to it as well, so it serves as a great platform to grow the sport organically. As with anything, there is always room for improvement, so hopefully next year we will have an even bigger turnout and raise even more money for the beneficiaries.”
Proceeds from the Victoria Falls endure have assisted in buying dip for the cattle in the riding areas, repair and maintenance of dip tanks, pumping water for wildlife and livestock, education programmes on sustainable utilisation of natural resources as well as vet services for local livestock and patrols for the illegal poaching of wildlife and trees over the years.
“Autoworld also sponsors another enduro event which is held later in the year – the Arcadia Enduro, which is a little closer to Harare. We are also currently one of the sponsors helping to get the Zimbabwe Sables, our national rugby side, to the next Rugby World Cup,” Baumhoff said.
“On top of that, we partner with organisations, such as KeepNet, the Zimbabwe Professional Guides Association, the Old Legs Cycle Tour – all of which do fantastic work to promote community development and conservation in Zimbabwe.”