bikemonster

Troll much? Edited to add: Let's leave this to a discussion about the ride. If you want a discussion about the pro's and cons of living in ZA versus AUS, please open a different thread over in Chit Chat.

Powerbalance?

Some of you are aware that I am leaving these shores for Aussie fairly soon. So soon in fact, that Sunday (Jan 23) will be my last chance to ride my bike before it is packed away for its ocean voyage. I’d really like it if some of my imaginary friends could join me for the ride. To make that last Cape Town ride a special one, I’m going to ride from Mouille Point (park near John O’Connor Cycles/Newport Deli). The route will be along the coast to Hout Bay, over Constantia Nek and then into Constantia, through Tokai and over Ou Kaaps to Noordhoek, turning right at Silvermine and back to Mouille Point via Chappies and Suikerbossie. It’s a ride of approx 80km, and last time I rode it, it took just over 3 hours. I’ll be aiming for a similar pace (average around 27 km/h). Aim to start riding at 6:30. Any takers?

Fixed it for ya, no need to thank. Fair to say you're enjoying the new bike then?

Type the following in Google, exactly as it appears below: titanium welding cape site:.za

Woofie, are you sure it's not you? Compare your puncture frequency with that of your training partners. If you puncture more frequently than they do, then wherever the prob lies, it's not the roads to blame. Things to consider: 1. Line. Do you ride more in the gutters than they do? 2. Technique. Do you crash through potholes where they bunny hop? 3. Tyre pressure? (You seem to know your stuff, so included for completeness only.) 4. Tyre brand? Gatorskins are durable, so again, included for completeness. 5. Weather conditions. There is a theory that wet roads "lift" the small, sharp bits of debris that cause punctures. Don't take any of the above personally, none of it is intended as casting nasturtiums.

Trick question, which everybody else has gotten wrong so far. You are more at wrong here - it should be "Ever been riding without your helmet.

Try riding less often, but further.

On Thursday evening, driving down Jip de Jager I saw a dude on a bike. He waved cheerily at a ladyperson riding her bike in the opposite direction, which I thought was polite. Then he tapped his fist against the side of his helmeted head, to indicate that the ladyperson ought to be wearing a helmet too. ...and then he proceeded to breeze through every red light on Jip de Jager. So, double numbnuts then!

Another vote for the Scott. Asbestos undies at the ready... I've never been able to get excited about Giants. To me they are the Toyotas of the cycling world. I don't have anything (more) rude to say about them, they've just never excited me. My money is in the region of my mouth: both my bikes are Scotts and and I am very happy with both. (CR1 for skinny tyres and Spark for fatties.)

I'm a new convert to Powerbar from using Gu. The beauty of Powerbar for me is that a race of approx 100km means 1 Powerbar, and I feel that I have way more energy throughout the race. I've tried peanut butter (pretty good), choc (ok), berry (yuck!) and cookies and cream (yum!). Highly recommended.

Powerbar. That is all.

That is the biggest bit of marketing hoopla to have made it into the "received wisdom". Changing tyre pressure will have more impact on chatter/buzz than changing frame material could ever have.

Hi Mads Disclaimer: If you are already talking to a doctor what follows is a bit like asking a crazy street person what is wrong with your car after your mechanic has looked at it. I am that crazy street person! 1. Trying to improve to a next level is largely a question of changing your genetic make-up. For most of us, we reach our own level pretty quickly. Adding more/fiercer training will not do much to change that. 2. Are you eating properly for your rides? If you are cycling at a level of intensity above the so called "fat burning" level, i.e., at an intensity where your body cannot metabolise fat reserves fast enough to keep up, you need to be refuelling. I would suggest taking a week or two off the bike...walk, swim if you feel you want to exercise and then see where you are. Another disclaimer: I do not claim any special expertise, just passing on what works for me. YMMV.

For most of us weekend warriors, overtraining is largely a myth. (Cue a bazillion Hubbers posting to tell me how overtrained they were once upon a fairy tale.) Let's take a step back, and consider how training works. Training doesn't make you stronger. Resting makes you stronger...but you need to train first. Training is the stimulus, and does a mild break down of your muscles, cardio system etc. Getting fitter and stronger is the response, and happens while you rest between training sessions. At this point, AirBender's quote above should suddenly make a whole bunch more sense. So for most weekend warriors, the problem is not so much the hours spent training, but the hours spent doing everything else that falls under the category of not resting. If you are under-rested you will know because: 1. You will prolly hate the idea of going out training. In which case, don't. This is something we do for fun, remember? Yes, we embrace the hardness of a steep climb, or the exquisite agony of chasing down the guy on the horizon but it should remain fun, even when it hurts. 2. Your HR will be abnormal. Possibly weirdly high when resting, possibly struggling to raise it when pushing. From the sound of things, the OP overdid one training sesh, rather than being generally overtrained. Either way, the advice given above (take it easy!) is good.

He's not Shrien Dewani...I think you may mean expedited. Or are you hanging out with Mrs Malaprop?

And that is why you are very nearly St Ricky Bobby!

So, thanks to your prayer, god will be with Ashchest to help get the deal done. And if a mohammedan prays to allah to bust the deal in Sudan, then inshallah the deal will not go ahead. How does that get settled? Is it the same god under different guises getting contradictory user requests? Is it two gods? In which case which god wins? Celestial arm wrestling contest? Does Zeus step in with a casting vote?

I raised a similar point yesterday, in a thread about trying sunnies on in a store and then rushing off to buy them online. If you are using the store's advice, and you buy the goods, you ought to buying them from the store that provided the advice.

A bubble bath? You 'avin' a giraffe or wot?

Flirty fishing, anyone?

In to the traffic queue or into, erm, the warm place with the pitch forks?

Try them on at a store...and then buy online. Am I the only one who thinks that this is just plain wrong? One of the reasons bricks and mortar places are more expensive is that they must hold stock, and let people try stuff on. So you go and try stuff on...and then order elsewhere. Apply this to your line of work and see how it tastes...

Courtesy of Emo Philips... Once I saw this guy on a bridge about to jump. I said, "Don't do it!" He said, "Nobody loves me." I said, "God loves you. Do you believe in God?" He said, "Yes." I said, "Are you a Christian or a Jew?" He said, "A Christian." I said, "Me, too! Protestant or Catholic?" He said, "Protestant." I said, "Me, too! What franchise?" He said, "Baptist." I said, "Me, too! Northern Baptist or Southern Baptist?" He said, "Northern Baptist." I said, "Me, too! Northern Conservative Baptist or Northern Liberal Baptist?" He said, "Northern Conservative Baptist." I said, "Me, too! Northern Conservative Baptist Great Lakes Region, or Northern Conservative Baptist Eastern Region?" He said, "Northern Conservative Baptist Great Lakes Region." I said, "Me, too!" Northern Conservative†Baptist Great Lakes Region Council of 1879, or Northern Conservative Baptist Great Lakes Region Council of 1912?" He said, "Northern Conservative Baptist Great Lakes Region Council of 1912." I said, "Die, heretic!" And I pushed him over.

Children is putting it mildly! Sometimes the bad mojo lasts until the tenth generation. You could be punished now for something somebody did around 1811. Yep, that sounds fair and sensible to me!