Dirty Raffle 2022: Passion for a Greater Good

Win a Turbo Levo SL Comp Carbon!!

The neighbors were laughing.

But Ester, head down as her community joked that her maize would look like sugarcane, patiently carried on farming. Once her fields were prepped, our modern-day Noah waited for the rains to prove she wasn’t crazy.

Ester’s field produced 10 sacks of maize that year — that’s 8 sacks more than a typical year’s take. As she celebrated her harvest and newly established respect in the community, she found dignity in responding to her neighbors’ requests for her to teach them about farming as well as pride in seeing them grow enough food for their families.

Mountain biking contributed to Ester’s success.

“As mountain bikers we’ve got an opportunity to play a very important role in using our passion for a greater good,” explains Fanie Kok of Specialized. The company’s Soil Searching initiative has partnered with Red Knot Racing Company and the Grumeti Fund K2N stage race to improve lives in Tanzania.

Ester was trained in conservation agriculture by Red Knot with a focus on soil resilience and fertility in order to promote sustainability in farming. Appropriate agricultural solutions will ensure food security for Ester’s generation and those who follow.

“It’s a powerful and unique occasion when our passions intersect with a greater purpose,” observes Brett Harrison, Red Knot owner and K2N founder. “K2N is more than a world-class mountain bike race; it’s an opportunity for us as cyclists to shoulder the responsibility of caring for both our neighbors and the planet we share.”

The Grumeti Fund K2N sees riders cycle from the slopes of Mount Kilimanjaro to the shores of Lake Natron, through the rugged backcountry of northern Tanzania. The course boasts a diversity of landscapes, incredible wildlife viewing, and a chance for cyclists to encounter the culture and hospitality of the Maasai and Chagga people. The 2022 event will take place 31st May to 3rd June. 50% of K2N race profits go directly to community development.

Investing in soil is something cyclists have in common with farmers. Soil Searching is a Specialized Bicycles program to recognize, celebrate, and support the trail builders who help shape our sport. Soil Searching’s partnership with Red Knot Racing goes a step further: we are using our sport to shape the world.

In order to scale the good K2N accomplishes in Tanzania, Soil Searching and Red Knot are raffling a Turbo Levo SL Comp Carbon. A result of a 40-year obsession with creating the world’s best-riding mountain bikes, the Levo SL is the liveliest and most responsive e-MTB in it’s class.

The Turbo Levo SL is available in S, M, L, and XL. Raffle tickets are $10 each, and 100% of donations go directly to community development work in Tanzania. Half of each raffle ticket will provide agriculture and health trainings to rural farmers along the K2N race course, and the other half will be used to build MTB trails on the western side of Kilimanjaro in order to fund mountain, forest, and wildlife conservation efforts.

Tickets can be purchased from anywhere in the world. The drawing will be 8th June and the winner announced that day. Shipping costs are on us. Invest in soil, and share the stoke.

A single $10 raffle ticket provides a half-day community training to one Tanzanian farmer AND builds 5 meters of MTB trail. Get one, or a few, here.