Personal Choice: Rwanda Cyclists are Coming!

          Jacques Boyer was the first American to race in the Tour de France, but more importantly, he has been helping the people of Rwanda ease away from the genocide of their past, through cycling. He started and has been maintaining a Rwandan racing team named "Team Rwanda." He has been involved with Project Rwanda, a program based on getting bikes and other aid to people in need of help in Rwanda. His idea of having a cycling team in Rwanda comprised of both Hutus and Tutsis, the races of people that had been locked in a terrible genocide for about 40 years, was groundbreaking. The fact that the team worked well together, and even had a member attend the Olympics this year for the mountain bike race. The conception of the team is groundbreaking, and it serves to show that the human race can overcome any obstacle as long as both sides are committed to working through it.
          Why am I so interested in this? Well, first of all, BIKES. And, as one might be able to infer from the mysterious image displayed above, Rising From Ashes. Rising From Ashes is a film that documents Team Rwanda and what they do. The film covers the ideas behind the team, what they stand for, and the journeys their athletes must make in order to overcome the obstacles of the past. The film will be shown here in Napa in early November, but what is even more exciting is that two of the Rwandan athletes will be flying over to Napa to promote cycling and their movie, and ride around Napa to get a feel for American cycling.

American cycling has a lot of intense mountains to climb

          They will be showing the films at a few high schools around Napa, but so far Napa High School hasn't committed to participating, and I would like to change that. So, hopefully my wonderfully charismatic attitude and charm, or my immense modesty, will convince the staff to show the movie and take part in a presentation about the world's issues. Essentially, they will be talking about how if these athletes in Rwanda can overcome genocide, why do we even have crime and violence in America, where nothing of that magnitude has occured since the unknown devastation of Natives hundreds of years ago?
          I am really excited about the two Rwandan guys that will be visiting Napa, they have expressed interest in riding the routes that I ride weekly, which means that I may be able to go for a few training rides with them. They also seem to want to see what the Napa High Cycling Club is, and will most likely want to go for a few rides, and, being world class athletes, they will be valuble mentors for all of the riders on the team, even the coaches.
          Overall, after discovering what their story is about, I have enormous respect for the Rwandan cycling team, for they have made me reflect on how amazing cycling is as a sport. I truly believe now that cycling can be a medium of change in the world, because it is a sport in which the athletes can talk, joke around, work incredibly hard, and grow together with. The sport has had a large impact on Rwanda, and I hope that this film will have a similar effect in America. Either way, I know this has made me understand how powerful a force cycling can be.