On 20 July 2011 Morne du Toit and his family celebrated a moment to cherish as his doctor informed him that after 4 months of chemotherapy there were no traces of Hodgkin’s lymphoma remaining in his system.
To celebrate with his MiX family Morne carved his way through an enormous cake. The sugar rush was almost as exhilarating as hearing the good news and we are all ecstatic for Morne who has been a real role model throughout his recovery period. Never has he uttered a complaint nor become despondent, keeping his focus on what mattered most – making sure he came through well for his, and his families sake.
Our message to Morne is this: Life is like the hair on top of your head; sometimes short, sometimes long. Glad we can say in your case there is no correlation to your own hair. ☺
Congratulations and keep fighting.
For a few short but magical hours the Upper Eastside Hotel in Woodstock was the center of the wine universe as the 2011 Nederburg Auction Public Tastings dazzled wine lovers with 19 exclusive and fine wines to taste.

Showing their appreciation for fine wines, Cedric, Sabine, Gavin and Christina at the Nederburg Auction Public Tastings.
With MiX Stellenbosch offices situated in the heart of the Winelands it is no surprise that MiX was well represented at this memorable occasion. Gavin Harvett, Christina Harvett, Sabine Klisch and Cedric Jones were there to enjoy an evening of indulgence with some of the best wines the local wine industry has to offer.
Guests made their way through the tasting schedule in style as they were treated to wines representing various varietals, vineyards and cultivars. The tasting was led by Cape Wine Master Bennie Howard and guests got the opportunity to taste, amongst others, a 2004 Syrah from Marcel de Reuck, an elegant 2005 Merlot from De Grendel, Le Bonheur’s acclaimed Prima 2001, and a 2005 Nederburg Private Bin Eminence, the beautiful dessert wine produced by 2011’s Platter’s SA Wine Guide Winery of the Year.
In true fashion MiX’ers set high standards in all areas and of course our very own wine experts we asked some questions.
See Gavin and Cedric being interviewed below.
MiX Telematics is proud to launch our new Calendar Competition for 2012. The competition, which we run each year, is open to all employees and MiX Telematics dealers and appeals to our network’s budding photographers!
Each participant can submit up to 20 high quality photos and the winning entries are then published in the MiX Telematics Calendar for the year to come.
To make it more engaging, we select a theme that allows for the perfect combination between artistic freedom and impressive entries. The theme for this year’s competition is simply, COLOUR! It is no mystery that we are all affected by colour. In China, red is the colour of happiness, white the colour of autumn. Yellow is associated with happiness and fun, while brown offers a warm reminder of the earth beneath our feet. Our world speaks to us in colour and we speak back through a spectrum of interpretations and applications.
We’re excited to co-create a World of Colour with our employees and dealers and plan on announcing the winners sometime in September. The closing date is 31 August 2011.
Being passionate about testing and quality in the development process, I spend a lot of time with our QA Manager and have learned so much in the last 6 months. In any agile world, continuous introspection and improvement is a key aspect that ensures quality is maintained as we learn where we went wrong and how to do better.
As the Unogwaja athletes, John McInroy, Paul Blake, WP van Zyl, and Lourens van Zyl push on towards Pietermaritzburg, they report back on their appreciation of the support that drives them forward, and the emotional journey of envisioning the impossible.
Watch the the report-back video below by the athletes themselves
Follow the team via Twitter (@redsockfriday) for regular updates on their progress along the route.
MiX Telematics has partnered with redsockfriday to raise awareness for, and in support of AmaBeadiBeadi, a group of official Comrades charities. MiX Telematics’ technology enables the public to track the progress of four determined athletes, in real-time, as they cycle from Cape Town to Pietermaritzburg over the next ten days, in time to participate in the world’s greatest ultra-marathon, the Comrades.
“The cyclists, who aim to cover 1,722 kilometres in total, will cycle between a leading and trailing car throughout their journey. MiX Telematics’ tracking devices, fitted to both vehicles, enable the public to follow the cyclists on their journey by viewing the vehicles’ live positions on a map,” explains Catherine Lewis, Marketing Director of MiX Telematics (International). People who wish to follow the cyclists and support the Unogwaja 2011 Challenge can see the live positions by logging onto MiX Telematics’ X-Drive website or by downloading the MiX Mobile application onto their smartphone*.
The group of athletes aim to emulate the epic journey of Phil Masterson-Smith, the first man to accomplish this feat. He did so in 1933 and no one has since attempted to match Phil’s achievement. Phil was determined to finish the Comrades but could not afford a train ticket to Pietermaritzburg, so instead he cycled to the start line in time to take part in the race, finishing in 10th place. He was later named ‘Unogwaja’ or the hare in Zulu.
Redsockfriday came about when one of two close friends who had been living together overseas decided to return home to South Africa. The pair made a pact to wear red socks every Friday in honour of their brilliant experiences together and as a reminder to never give up on their dreams. The idea was inspired by an elderly man they came across who wore red socks every day of his life, in remembrance of a close friend he lost during World War I.
Today we proudly announced that MiX Telematics is officially carbon neutral. We also launched the MiX Carbon Offset Initiative which offers an industry-first service to our global customer base, enabling them to calculate their fleet-related carbon emissions and offset their carbon footprint.
In Johannesburg, on April 1st, staff were introduced to the MiX ant mascot and helped in assigning him a name, while individuals’ and departments’ carbon footprints were rated to separate the environmental warriors.. from the rest!
Some offices are handing out indigenous trees as a gift that acts as a reminder that each of us can make a difference in creating a better, greener, cleaner world.
MiX Telematics partnered with Sport24 and five celebrity riders to raise awareness at the Cape Argus for the Bobs for Good Foundation, a charity that provides quality South African made leather school shoes to impoverished children.
Bob Skinstad, Tank Lanning, Matthew Pearce and Marius Schoeman were tracked and traced throughout the race using MiX Telematics’ cell phone tracking technology so that fans and Twitter followers can track their progress during the race.
Between the MiX riders, the celebs of the Sport4Good team, and family and friends our corporate tent was alive with Cape Argus festivity yesterday! Congratulations to everyone who completed the race successfully, and thank you to those MiX and Sport24 representatives who worked together to create a memorable occasion.
Our mobile tracking system worked smoothly and without any glitches and the engagement of fans and Cape Argus followers was visible as our Twitter stream buzzed with comments and updates.
Gavin Lancaster was first in on the MiX side, completing the race in an impressive 3 hours and 9 minutes, while SuperSport’s Matthew Pearce was first across the finish line of the celeb riders – excited to have proven everyone wrong. Behind Matt followed Marius Schoeman, Bob Skinstad and then Tank Lanning.