Kevin Evans matriculated in 1996. He played a lot of sport at school but says cycling always appealed to him most. He raced at national level between 1994 and 1996 and today he is a multiple SA Champion on both road and mountain bikes.
After school, Kevin spent some time travelling abroad. In the USA, he completed a comprehensive course in all aspects of cycling at The United Bicycle Institute in Oregon. He returned to South Africa to open the successful The Bike Shop in Plett with his father Leon in 1999, which he still runs.
He has been racing professionally since 2004, and has won a number of national and international races. He is seven times South African Champion ( 4 x Marathon, 2 x Cross country, 1 x Trial Road Champs); he was placed 8th in the Marathon World Champs in 2009 in Austria, and has represented South Africa 12 times at the World Championships. Locally he has won Sani2c and Joberg2c, and completed numerous of Cape Epic challenges, known as one of the toughest races in the word. He finished on the overall podium three times, his best result being second place with David George in 2012.
“My dream was always to become a professional sportsman, and I’m very happy where I am in my life now, running my shop and living my passion of cycling and family life,” he says.
“Oakhill equipped me very well for life after school. I think having such a great school so close to home was very important to me. Many of my primary school friends were sent to boarding school to go to what their parents perceived as a ‘good’ high school, but Oakhill afforded me equal if not better opportunities right where I live.
“I think the smaller classes made for a much more intimate relationship with friends and teachers, so there were many special memories, but most of mine are from the sports fields.
“It’s amazing to see what the kids at Oakhill have now compared to what we had in terms of sports fields and equipment. But all schools have to start somewhere, and it’s been a pleasure to watch Oakill grow so successfully and know that once I was a part of it.”
Kevin is married to Karen and they have a 6-year-old daughter Ruby, “who will one day hopefully attend Oakhill.”
