As from January 1, the P&L Hardware Cycling Club is not affiliated to any cycling body in South Africa. The club decided to withdraw from its association with Gauteng North Cycling (GNC) at the end of 2005 in order to establish a more regional and repre-sentative body - Limpopo Cycling.

Through its association with GNC, the P&L Hardware Cycling Club had representation on a national level at Cycling South Africa but because of the club’s geographic location, it was always difficult to attend GNC meetings. Most, if not all, GNC decisions also favoured clubs closer to Gauteng and subsequently there was in fact no real representation.

According to insiders it became a situation where the only time the club heard from the GNC was when it was time to hold the Kremetart Race and then there was always a money problem, as the GNC wanted certain amounts of money per rider before they could sanction the race. Last year, according to sources in the P&L Hardware Club, the GNC and Cycling South Africa even tried to stop licensed riders from tak-ing part in the Kremetart Race. This problem was luckily resolved before the race.

The new Limpopo body will decide at its first general meeting whether to seek membership with the Cycling South Africa or not. Until recently, cycling in South Africa was controlled by several large Pedal Power Associations promoting cycling for over a hundred thousand recreational cyclists and the small but internationally recognized SACF controlling cycling for about 4000 competitive cyclists. This arrangement had led to deep divisions in cycling as the small SACF tried to impose their rules on large numbers of recreational cyclists who, in turn, provided most of the funding. In order to try and unify cycling again, Cycling South Africa (CSA) was formed.

Limpopo Cycling and the P&L Hardware Cycling Club, as one of its founding members, will decide on the way forward after detailed investigation into the positives and negatives of membership to CSA for its members. Some of the other clubs in the Limpopo Province retained their links to the GNC, a situation that might change in the future as Limpopo Cycling picks up speed.