Ann had racked her brains to find some way of putting back into the larger community the kindly support and generosity of her small Tzaneen, South Africa, community. They had made it possible for her to participate in the 5,000m and 10,000m running events at the World Association of Veteran Athletes' Championships in Durban in 1997, placing third in the former.

After many frustrations and resistance from Colin, she organized a tandem cycle ride from Beit Bridge to Cape Town in 1999 for the SOS Children's Villages.

This proved such a success and so much fun that she immediately...