When I moved from Durban to Johannesburg in 2000 to become Editor of Ride Magazine, I inherited a contributor named Ron Thompson. We lost touch when I left Ride, but briefly reconnected during that strange, life-altering pause brought on by COVID – and again after my heart attack last September, which has led to this…
By Sean Badenhorst
Before I explain what this is, I need to rewind a little and describe Ron as I’ve come to know him.
Ride Magazine’s founding editor, Susie Mills, had given Ron a page in each issue to write about BEN – the Bicycling Empowerment Network. For most of our readers, it wasn’t particularly enticing content. It didn’t feature racing, cutting-edge bikes, or pro riders.
Instead, it offered updates on BEN’s work – promoting sustainable social and economic empowerment through bicycles in disadvantaged communities. It was Ride Magazine’s contribution to a charitable initiative rooted in the very essence of cycling. It was also somewhat of a precursor to Qhubeka, which Ron has an involvement in.
At some point during my time there, I met Ron and his friend Eddy Tomlinson for a short ride and a coffee. They were a generation and a half older than me – I was in my early thirties – but our shared love of bicycles and riding them bridged any gap.
In 2003, I left Ride Magazine to launch the South African edition of Bicycling Magazine, and in the process, lost regular contact with Ron. But I continued to read his contributions in Ride, which evolved from BEN updates into gravel-riding adventures – two decades before gravel bikes became a formal sub-category in cycling.
And note: gravel riding, not gravel racing. There’s a difference. Like many, Ron was drawn to the freedom and relative safety of South Africa’s gravel roads. His stories reflected that – rich with a love for bicycles, for shared journeys, and for this extraordinarily beautiful country.
Frustrated by formulaic content and limited earning potential, I left Bicycling Magazine in 2007. Eighteen months later, I launched TREAD Magazine, focused solely on South African mountain biking, which was then booming. In 2016, it transitioned to digital media, and it still does enough to keep the lights on.
Like many during lockdown, I found time for things long neglected. One of those was revisiting old Ride Magazine content – both personally and through TREAD Media. Through Facebook, I reconnected with Ron and discovered he still had a complete set of every issue of Ride.
That led to a visit to his home in Alberton. I arrived with a scanner, and we spent hours sipping tea, talking bikes, scanning old articles and covers – and, of course, looking at bicycles.
Ron had amassed a collection of more than 300 classic and vintage road bikes, along with thousands of parts and accessories spanning roughly a century. Bianchi, Campagnolo, Mavic, Cinelli, Daccordi, Brooks, Sturmey-Archer, DHC – on and on. Tyres, wooden rims, steel frames, complete wheels, handlebars, derailleurs…
A lifetime’s collection spread across six buildings on his property. To many, it might have looked like scrap. To a discerning cyclist, it was a treasure trove.
Ron could speak in detail about every bike, every frame, every component we paused at. His knowledge – and memory – were razor-sharp. He was 82 at the time.
It would have taken days to fully absorb what he had built. I had only a few hours, far too short, but long enough to deepen my appreciation for Ron as a true bicycle man.
I took a few photos, some of which I’ve shared here.
Ron is now 88 and living in Durban. He’s found a kindred spirit – another collector of vintage and classic bicycles – to whom he has entrusted his collection.
Though he’s slowed physically, his mind remains sharp and his memory remarkable. After my heart attack last September, Ron – like many – reached out with messages of support. We kept in touch online, and recently he suggested writing an occasional column for TREAD Media.
It didn’t take long for me to say yes.
Ron may not be a mountain biker, but he’s something of a gravel-riding pioneer. More importantly, he’s a storyteller who brings depth and texture to anything he writes.
You see, Ron isn’t afraid of detours. On a bike, he’ll take them willingly, just to see what lies beyond. In his writing, he does the same. A single magazine page must have felt like a cage for someone so expansive.
The internet, by contrast, has no such constraints – no page limits, no hard deadlines. It’s the perfect home for Ron’s wandering mind and generous storytelling.
So, starting this week, we’ll be publishing and sharing Ron Thompson’s writing – detours and all.
We’re calling it THIS, THAT AND THE OTHER WITH RON THOMPSON. Because while it mostly revolves around bicycles… sometimes, it doesn’t.
Here’s Ron’s first column: THIS, THAT AND THE OTHER WITH RON THOMPSON: OAK TREES
