Last night I was lucky enough (thanks mom!) to get tickets to the Lance Armstrong Banquet. It was held in the fabulous new Stadium, making use of its many levels. We entered on the field and climbed the stairs up to the main concourse/food area where we were given champagne and snacks. It was a who's who in the local cycling world, with many familiar faces, although it was a matter of visualising them in helmet and lycra, and not fancy evening wear! 

We were then ushered up to the 4th level, into the VIP area that had been laid out for the banquet itself. I didn't find the venue the ultimate for this kind of event, as it was a long narrow space with the stage in the middle. In order for people at the end to see what was going on, they had set up TV screens. So I saw Lance on the tele more than in real life.

Nice touch: the napkins were black, each with a yellow LiveStrong arm band as the napkin ring.

The whole point of Lance Armstrong's visit to Cape Town is to support the JAG Foundation and help raise funds for it. Speakers for the evening included JAG founder Greg James and JAG CEO Elana Meyer. James spoke about how the foundation started and where the inspiration came from. Meyer seemed to be a bit overwhelmed by the whole affair and gave a very brief thank you to all who were there, guest of honour included.

For me the most interesting speaker was Gayton McKenzie. Once a hardened criminal, he is now doing what he can to help tidy up the streets and encourage kids to get involved in sports teams instead of crime gangs. As well as working with JAG, he has started his own company called X-Concepts, which only hires ex-convicts as their first employment after being released from prison.

MC'ing for the evening was the ever entertaining Dan Nichol. Over the past few years I've only really heard his voice at the Cape Epic, so I had flashbacks to tired legs and a sore rear end. And the Voice of Cycling himself was there too! Phil Ligget. As soon as he spoke I thought of the Argus coverage. But sitting next to me was Karin Pohl of PPA, who was having flashbacks to many years of watching the Tour de France as she heard Ligget speaking.

The guest of the moment, Lance Armstrong, didn't give a motivational speech as I thought he might. Instead, they had cards on all the tables that guests could write questions on. While we ate our starters these cards were collected and sorted. Armstrong and Ligget then got onto the stage and went through the questions in a very casual, sincere and friendly manner, which was great to watch. It was obvious that Ligget has interviewed Armstrong many times over the past years, so it was like watching two old mates having a chit chat. Good fun!

The main meal was then served and Lance was whisked away, probably to get some well earned sleep. Later they held an auction to raise funds. Two artworks were up for grabs, and then a Trek Road Bike in the LiveStrong colours with the number of days that Lance was retired from cycling and the number of people that died of cancer during that period. The bike also came with a set of LiveStrong kit including helmet and sunglasses. The last item up for grabs was a ticket to spend the day with Lance and ride to Hermanus.

A LOT of money was raised last night - I'm glad some people still have money during a recession! Dessert was then served, with coffee out on the balcony and music filling the stadium. What a glorious view. The Stadium really is a wonderful venue. As we left, each person was given a gift of a gorgeous artwork from the City of Cape Town and chocolates and nuts from Discovery. Yippeee!!

All in all a great evening out, but I'm still bummed I didn't get to shake his hand. Another day...