Matt Meyer Bicycled A Rhino From Canada To Mexico – Help Him Save The ‘Chubby Grey Unicorn’
“Rhinos are just chubby grey unicorns,” claims Matt Meyer, a South African man who is making waves (or tire marks, rather) in wildlife preservation.
Living in South Africa exposed Matt to the reality and every day consequences of rhino poaching – one rhino killed every 8 hours, to be exact. One day, Matt decided he could take matters into his own hands.
On April 17th, 2017, he brought his bicycle to the Washington/Canada border and began a 60+ day bike ride down the west coast of the United States to Mexico… with a 300-pound rhino named “Lunar” in tow.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BUx15QhlD0N/?taken-by=rhinoride2017
Matt bicycled Lunar through all types of weather, tight city corners and even up 2,500-foot inclined hills (scroll through the Instagram gallery immediately below).
https://www.instagram.com/p/BUgCiwfFkiX/
For Matt, the physical strain of his journey – which, at times, he “thought was going to be the end of [him]” – was completely eased by “the blind faith and hope, that it’s not all for nothing.”
This mantra-turned-hashtag, #icaniwill, coupled with images of the rehabilitating rhinos back home, is what kept him pushing beyond his limits.
The aim of Matt’s “Long Ride to Free Them” is to create global awareness of the rhinoceros poaching crisis in Southern Africa, and raise funds to target it.
Because Matt’s ride was completely sponsored by Piper & Health Travel and Wilderness Safaris, 100% of every dollar raised from it will go to one of three organizations committed to conservation of the rhino:
- Care for Wild Africa: a rhino sanctuary rehabilitating orphaned rhinos and releasing them back into the wild
- Save the Rhino Trust: an organization in Namibia monitoring the species and conducting research
- Ol Pejeta Conservancy: a wildlife conservancy in Kenya
And on Sunday, June 18th, San Diego has a special opportunity to make an impact in the conservation efforts. Matt and Lunar will be at Quad Alehouse for an afternoon of food, drinks and some serious rhino love. The event will feature:
- Live auction of a safari worth $20,000
- Amazing raffle and silent auction items
- Free food
- Meet and greet with Lunar and Matt
- 28 beers on tap at Quad Ale House
The event is free, but please register to attend.
Every penny raised during the event will go directly to the conservation organizations. Quad Ale House will be donating 10% of all sales from the evening to the Rhino Ride.
And if you can’t make it, you can still support the rhino by donating to the causes that the Rhino Ride supports: Care for Wild Africa, Save the Rhino Trust, and Ol Pejeta Conservancy.
You can also make a difference by following The Rhino Ride on Instagram, and sharing our post or the graphic below.
Live a great story, San Diego. One that helps save the chubby grey unicorns!
