CIPRESSA CYCLING

THE EXPERIENCE

Why Our Club Is Different

Our Values are Simple and Straightforward

Respect

Primarily, respect for all our members, the communities we hail from and society at large, the stakeholders we partner with, the charities we support and the commercial partners who support us. Treating others the way that we would like to be treated.

Accountability

To be accountable to all our members as well as our partners, and ensuring that we manage our club ethically and professionally at all times.

Integrity

Simply put, being honest and doing what is right and principled. Ensuring that our words and our actions are congruent and that we are always transparent. Trust is everything.

Fun

To always have fun and ensure that our environment is a positive one. Our relationships with partners, while sometimes quite serious and formal are also casual, filled with energy and ultimately everybody enjoys what they are doing. Life is stressful enough. Having fun is an important aspect at Cipressa.

What We Stand For

Cipressa is a young, vibrant, values-driven club based in Johannesburg. We welcome everybody regardless of race, religion or gender. In our club we do not discriminate. This is a club where everybody knows your name.

Whilst we are Johannesburg based, we also have members now in the Western Cape, North West Province, Mpumalanga, Northern Province, as well as Abu Dhabi and Germany. Although we have expanded beyond the borders of Gauteng, we remain true to our working class roots in the City of Gold.

Weekly Training Rides

Our weekly training rides are based primarily on the West Rand.
Different ability groups with Marshalls and Captains.
Support vehicle is present at our training rides.
Click here for details of our Training Routes

Member Benefits

Weekly training rides.
A truly diverse group of fellow cyclists.
Team spirit and camaraderie.
Safety support vehicle.
Regular outrides.
Annual tours.
Discounts from NamedSport, Westdene Cycle Works and BestDrive Braamfontein.
Partnership with Gobik

Guest Rider Policy

A member who has invited a guest will be a gracious host and always accompany the guest on a ride.
It is considered polite to introduce a guest. If you have arrived without a host, please enquire who the Ride Captain is and come and introduce yourself.
Guests are to ride at the rear of the paceline, unless otherwise instructed by the Ride Captain.
You are welcome for four rides as a guest.

Rider Safety

Rider safety is one of our core principles.
We always observe all the rules of the road.
There will be a Ride Captain and Marshall who ensure safe riding and keep an eye on rider welfare at all club rides.
Members are regularly informed about ride awareness.
Most club rides have a safety vehicle accompanying it. This improves our visibility and safety on the road.

Documents & Forms

Who We Are

Our membership base is made up of folks that come from all walks of life; we have students, artisans, entrepreneurs, professionals, blue collar or white collar, we are all one family.

Cipressa welcomes everybody regardless of race, religion or gender. This is a club where we do not discriminate. This is a club where everybody knows your name. We are a microcosm of our diverse country, South Africa, and we are proud that we are able to attract so many likeminded individuals from so many different walks of life.

Whilst we are Johannesburg based as mentioned, we also have members now in the Western Cape, North West Province, Mpumalanga, Northern Province, and as far as Abu Dhabi and Germany. Although we have expanded beyond the borders of Gauteng, we remain true to our working class roots in the City of Gold.

Club Rides

Currently we have official club rides every weekend as well as public holidays. The rides are generally between 100km and 130km on a Saturday, and between 50km and 75km on a Sunday, with public holidays being similar in distance to a Sunday.

We have designated routes all around Johannesburg and surrounds and we ride west, south, north as well as east. The routes are structured and designed to factor in safety, levels of difficulty, visibility and ultimately enjoyability and fun.

We cater for different ability groups and we always try to ensure that Marshalls, Captains and a support vehicle are present at our training rides.

Youth Development

We know that the youth in South Africa are going through an extremely tough time. Unemployment rates have reached record highs. According to statistics the leading cause of unemployment is inadequate education and training.

Cipressa doesn’t have the ability to solve the unemployment crisis but we have taken a decision to encourage the youth at our club to not only focus on school and university, but we have also incentivised them to be fit, to be disciplined, to work hard, to take accountability for their results at school as well as on the bike.

We are pushing them to prepare them for the “real world” by becoming book smart and by working hard at all times, as well as providing them with performance coaching and development so that they have an opportunity to cycle in the Elite and Junior racing groups in the country.

There is always the possibility that one of our young members gets scouted and signed by a professional outfit and makes a living from cycling, but we know that if that never happens they have been equipped with certain life skills that will help them face the world with a lot more confidence and determination, and will definitely increase their chances of being successful.

Social Responsibility

We acknowledge that we are extremely privileged to enjoy the sport of cycling and it is something that we do not take for granted. The majority of us are from humble beginnings and we are grateful for the opportunity to be able to give back to the community.

We believe that it is our responsibility to try and make a difference in the lives of the less fortunate. With this in mind we have a number of charities and communities that we support and these vary from youth centres such as TAG in Westbury, to old age homes such as Jordan House, orphanages such as the Maraisburg Orphanage, Eldorado Park Old Aged Home, EACO Project, supporting school girls with sanitary items, Itereleng Creche in the informal settlement next to Laudium, Gift of the Givers, Book Ibhoni in Soweto (recently in conjunction with the Mail & Guardian), Acts Of Love and Salahudien Educare Centre.

Giving back is part of our DNA. When one embarks on the journey of giving back you can never give enough, but every little bit helps to make a difference.

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