Social media will pedal Liezel van der Westhuizen forward

Liezel van der Westhuizen, presenter of Expresso on SABC3, will enter the Cape Argus Pick n Pay Cycle Tour but she can only move forward on her custom-fitted techno-wonder bike with 'likes' from the company's Facebook page. For every 'like' recorded, 10 meters will be added to the distance van der Westhuizen is able to ride on race day. For every 10km she rides, Pick n Pay will donate one bicycle to the Velokhaya Life Cycling Academy.

The Like Bike is a custom-built Trek bike, which has been sprayed, baked, glazed and fitted with special pedals and custom-made mounts for an iPad on the handlebars. This will enable her to track the amount of support she receives via Facebook and Twitter. She will also be able to post pictures and responses to comments via an iPad application. The Like Bike forms a nexus with cutting-edge technology and green power as the iPad will be powered via a specially fitted dynamo, which will be fired up as Liezel pedals. Two GoPro cameras have also been mounted on the Like Bike to document her race.

Van der Westhuizen and the bike will be tracked by tracked online via Google Maps and GPS. Bronwen Rohland Director of Marketing at Pick n Pay said, "The development and planning of this project is a great credit to Pick n Pay's digital online team, who came up with the concept. The group is committed to using technology for our customer's benefit by making online shopping available to them and as a means of communication with them through social media platforms."

For more information, go to www.facebook.com/picknpay and click on the Like Bike tab. For mobile & tablet users: http://m.likebike.co.za/