Cycling to the Edge of the Caribbean
11 August 2022
All event photos kindly provided by: Dennis Allen for @TTGameplan - https://www.instagram.com/ttgameplan/
Our partners at Overwatch were proud sponsors of the #C3toICACOS2022 annual Icacos Fundraising cycle event this weekend, run by Central Spokes Cycle Club in Trinidad. Check out how it went below.
The southernmost country in the Caribbean Archipelago is the ruggedly scenic twin island Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. Trinidad, the larger of the two, sits at the very end of the paradise chain that forms a cobblestone path through the sea connecting North and South America. To the southwest of Trinidad extends a slender peninsula, blanketed in coconut palms, stretching out and ever reaching out to the south American mainland of which it was once part. The very tip of this peninsula, where the fine fawn-coloured sands littered with tiny pebbles and shells give way to the murky, relentless waters of the strait dubbed by Christopher Columbus as the “Boca del Sierpe'' or Serpent's Mouth, is Icacos Point, the very southernmost tip of the Caribbean Archipelago.
Overwatch Caribbean is the security subsidiary of the KVR group of companies in Trinidad and Tobago and specialises in advanced automated real-time solutions for remote monitoring, tracking and management of assets and people. Overwatch has been partnering with GetHomeSafe in the development of their services. To launch GetHomeSafe in Trinidad and the wider region, Overwatch Caribbean has been seeking out and sponsoring the use of the GetHomeSafe platform for the safety management of local endurance events.
In June Overwatch partnered up with the Central Spokes Cycling Club for the return of their annual 85-kilometre ride across Trinidad’s southwestern peninsula to Icacos Point, the southernmost tip of the Caribbean. The Central Spokes Cycle Club is a non-profit organisation aimed to encourage a passion and appreciation for cycling while creating a family among all fellow riders. The club began in 1998 simply because of a few friends who enjoyed cycling and has grown to one of the largest clubs in the country.
The annual 'C3 to Icacos' 85km ride is a major fundraiser for the Haven of Hope Children’s Home for abused and at-risk kids. The ride attracted over 300 cyclists of all ages and all walks of life.
GetHomeSafe was used to keep track of cyclists in real time and allow the ride marshals to ensure that all riders remained on course, but primarily the platform was utilised to ensure the safety of all cyclists, to ensure that they can call for help at a moments notice and have assistance be dispatched to their exact location if in need. Thankfully only one panic alert was set off throughout the entire ride and was done so by a marshal who needed assistance in getting herself and the riders under her supervision back on course.
The ride began at the C3 Centre, Trinidad and Tobago’s newest world-class retail and entertainment destination. The course mostly hugged the coastline of the Gulf of Paria, before winding inland and then back out to the famous Pitch Lake, the world’s largest natural asphalt deposit and affectionately known as the “Eighth Wonder of the World.” The contingent of remote villages peppered the peninsula as they continued their journey, etching away on the miles that stood between them and their goal. Braving the ever-volatile Caribbean weather, shifting hour by hour between hot sun and high temperatures, pouring rainstorms and cool breeze with overcast skies, the cyclists trod on, until finally coming upon the coconut palm-filled marshlands of Icacos village, the final cauldron before reaching the edge of the Caribbean.
As the rain clouds receded and the afternoon rolled in, so too did the cyclists, finally completing their journey to the edge of the Caribbean. GetHomeSafe was utilised to ensure all registered cyclists arrived at the finishing line safely to enjoy their post-ride celebrations.
Content supplied by Fidel Castagne from Overwatch.
