From September 21-28, the eyes of the cycling world will be directed to Kigali, the capital of Rwanda, as the UCI Road World Championships take place for the first time on the continent of Africa. Road cycling in that country does have a tradition, with the Tour du Rwanda beginning as a regional race in 1988 and ultimately attracting World Tour team rider participation as a Category 2.1 event in the UCI’s Africa Tour since 2009. While there have been books and videos about the Rwandan cycling experience, a recent YouTube offering about the 2025 Race Around Rwanda gives an entertaining insight into what one might expect of the country in September.
Portland, Oregon-based Skyler Bishop was a US domestic pro racer before turning his hand to photography as a profession. In 2018 he went to Africa to photograph the African Continental Championships and has subsequently travelled there numerous times, both as a photographer with a strong interest in wildlife conservation as well as as a competitor in off-road cycling events. In 2024 he competed in the ultra-bikepacking event The Race Around Rwanda, which he completed in five days and, as the video indicates, he returned in 2025 to improve on his time.
The Race Around Rwanda began in 2020 and is limited to 135 participants. The 2025 edition covered 1,000 kms, featuring 19,000 meters of climbing—perhaps not surprising in the country known as “The Land of 1000 Hills.” It has attracted some serious bikepackers and in 2025 there were 23 different nations represented, including 22 women, with ages ranging from 23 to 66. Only 7 of the riders were African.
The video opens with Skyler Bishop talking about his interest in East Africa and for this ride, unlike his solo effort in 2024, he would be riding with Craig Schommen, another one-time domestic US pro, and a participant in the road race at the 1988 Seoul Olympics. The duo arrive a week before the race’s start in order to ride around and acclimatize themselves to Rwandan gravel and surely to deal with the jet lag and travel fatigue—Bishop’s trip from Portland took at least 24 hours.
Those first days looked pretty nice, although some of that Rwandan gravel looked like a combination of lava rock and dirt but one surprising impression is that the asphalt roads look amazing, almost like the ones in Switzerland! Rwanda is a developing country and those smooth roads pass through typical villages that you would see in other places on the continent. Bicycles are a common sight and are used for many purposes although probably lower on the list are sporting events. Nonetheless, wherever the riders go they are met with enthusiastic people and Bishop notes that sports can kindle lifelong friendships.
In addition to the pre-race rides, the group goes for a visit to one of the charities that Bishop has worked to promote. Gorilla Doctors offers veterinarian services for the region’s endangered gorillas as well as conducting research. Mountain gorillas are the only great ape species in the world whose numbers are growing but remain at critical levels. The riders also take the opportunity to visit the facilities of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund.
Race day arrives and at 5 am on Saturday everyone sets out from Kigali, with a police escort. There is a time limit of 163 hours (or six days and 19 hours) and a celebration party is scheduled for Day 7. Bishop and Schommen set off at a good pace but progress is not always easy. Along the way Bishop becomes a solo rider again as his partner is unwell and leaves the race. While the riding is demanding, one is impressed not only by the beauty of the countryside but also the organization of the race itself, with what looks like good accommodation and food along the way. There is also rain, and mud, and riding through a rain forest in darkness, which a local does not encourage.
Skyler Bishop comes in a very credible 20th, easily beating his 2024 time. The overall winner was former World Tour pro racer and now gravel riding celebrity Ted King, but the toll is high: while 87 riders complete the course, 24 DNF.
“The 2025 Race Around Rwanda” nicely captures what endurance cycling is like in Africa and is a nice introduction to a place where cyclesport culture is aiming for a foothold. The UCI road course around Kigali in September will be on asphalt but its 227 kms will include over 5,500 m of climbing. “The Land of 1000 Hills” indeed!
“The 2025 Race Around Rwanda—Two Friends, 1000 kms and The Land of a Thousand Hills”
filmed by Skyler Bishop and Craig Schommen
29:26 minutes long, released to YouTube in July 2025
Link: www.youtube.com
Like PEZ? Why not subscribe to our weekly newsletter to receive updates and reminders on what’s cool in road cycling?
Source link