It is with great regret that we let you all know that the #moonlightmass rides have been cancelled indefinitely. Sadly, our event permit has been withdrawn by The City of Cape Town.

#moonlightmass started humbly and simply when a group of friends got together for a fun ride under the full moon; it was never intended to have it become the biggest social ride in Africa. Since January 2012, #moonlightmass has grown from 30 riders to over 4,000 riders at times, Cape Town’s biggest monthly cycle event.

It has not been an easy journey but we worked hard to maintain a few basic principles: free, fun and social, while encouraging cycling as a means of transport. Take our word for it, keeping #moonlightmass free from branding and corporate involvement has been no small feat.

Being a solely community driven ride, #moonlightmass has faced a wide range of challenges including public safety, rider safety and traffic management. We believed that through numerous discussions we would be able to develop a partnership with the city, all the while maintaining the ethos that is #moonlightmass. Through this engagement we applied for and received an event permit and support from traffic/police officers on event days. We worked hard to educate the community on always cycling safely by using helmets, lights and obeying road rules. This process began to show positive results, having more riders using helmets and lights than ever before.

#moonlightmass changed the face of cycling in Cape Town forever.There are more bicycle shops, more bicycle rental facilities, bicycles permitted on MyCiti busses is now a reality, the Sea Point Promenade is a shared space, Cape Rail introduced bicycles on board and locking facilities at stations. #moonlightmass also managed to raise a donation of bicycles for the Camps Bay police patrols. Through #moonlightmass, #CityActivation and #CommutingFriday was introduced, giving businesses the opportunity to reward those who use bicycles as a means of transport. 

None of this would have been possible without the amazing support from all of you. We would especially like the thank: Beverly Schafer, Richard Bosman, Think Bike, Olympic Cycles, the PPA and the amazing group of paramedics that donated their time, allowing #moonlightmass to happen every month.

It has been a privilege and an honor to ride alongside all of you through the streets of Cape Town for the past 23 amazing rides. Keep cycling,and keep exploring your city. Always remember: safety first.

Daneil and Elad

#moonlightmass     

update 1(09/11/2013 09:00): Our discussions with the city started in April 2012, we had many meetings with the city officials including;Anton Groenewald (Head of tourism, events and marketing), traffic officials, sport and recreation, waste management and disaster management. #moonlightmass have been receiving the help of police officers through the support of Richard Bosman (Executive Director: Safety and Security) and at no point did we refuse to meet and discuss the way forward with the city. We offered the city to own the ride as a city function subject to the few principles: FREE, FUN and SOCIAL with no ownership of a brand. without the help of Councillor Beverley Schafer and Richard Bosman we would not have been able to keep #moonlightmass going and for that we are grateful. more then anything else the biggest problem with #moonlightmass is that it does not fit in any official event box and the city is struggling to accommodate such an event outside the box.

View offical letter here.pdf