Carrol Boyes designs trophy for new visually impaired category of the Cape Town Cycle Tour
Celebrating its 40th birthday in 2018, the popular Cape Town Cycle Tour is proudly adding a new category for cyclists with visual impairment. The new trophy was designed by South African studio and global design favourite Carrol Boyes.
Carrol Boyes’ design is inspired by the technical and kinetic elements of this new category. The visually impaired cyclist rides a tandem bicycle and sits directly behind a sighted cyclist. The new trophy design depicts tandems encircling two wheels, symbolising two riders working in unison. The base is made from fragrant cedar wood, and the design features tactile elements that are inspired by braille script.
“The non-visual senses are stimulated by the kinetic spinning of the wheels,” Holly Birkby the designer of the trophy explains. “The design continues the machine aesthetic of the previous trophies, combining laser-cut stainless steel and industrial fastenings.”
The Carrol Boyes design team also developed the Cape Town Cycle Tour’s men’s and women’s trophies in 2013. Drawing on diverse elements, including the Cape’s rugged terrain, the design showed vignettes of cyclists and distinct local mountains, such as Table Mountain and Simon’s Town’s Hangklip. Stylized king proteas (the shape of which echoes that of a bike sprocket) and penguins were included in tribute to local flora and fauna.
The Cape Town Cycle Tour is currently the world’s largest timed cycle race, a meandering 109km route known to attract thousands of participants. This year, the Cycle Tour is expected to the attract 30 000 cyclists from across the world. Carrol Boyes’s trophies are an apt tribute to the camaraderie for which the event is known.
