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Robbie Stewart

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Everything posted by Robbie Stewart

  1. Robbie Stewart
    I have a set of Rapidé wheels that are bombproof. I've ridden them since July 2021 with no servicing in that time and they still run true and smooth with no issues. 32 hole rims with great hubs. The entire wheel set at the time cost under R6000.00 and it really was money well spent. I generally ride rocky trails with drops and gaps added for spice and then a lot of jumping as well and they've held up awesome in all that time. By comparison the wheels on my new Stumpy have died within 500km from new. I'm bargaining for new wheels at the moment, but my Camber still runs on with no problems.
  2. Robbie Stewart
    End of the Road
  3. Robbie Stewart
    In hindsight, the rugby was laced with error and silly decisions. Watching the race ended up being the better choice. I should not have bothered with the rugby.
  4. Robbie Stewart
    I watched my first TdF stage for the year today and switched over to the rugby at the last minute. In hindsight I wish I finished watching this stage. It looked like it was going to pop in that final climb, and by comparison the Boks were dismal. Tomorrow is going to be good. Can't wait.
  5. Robbie Stewart
    I do yes. I ride along the cycle path with it to build and maintain general fitness. It's a bit overkill but it works. I still have the old original roval wheels of the camber. Mmmm. Maybe put them back on and move the rapides over to the Stumpy. I'll be saving a bunch too.
  6. Robbie Stewart
    Deathgrip knock-offs. Might as well get the original and be done. I have a pair on my Stumpy and they are comfortable. I put the Spez lock on grips that came with the Stumpy on the bike I took the Deathgrips from, and by comparison those Spez grips are not great. They are hard and super uncomfortable on long rides. But before I buy chinese fong-kong I would much prefer the real thing.
  7. Robbie Stewart
    I'm having the debate in my mind if I should carry the Rapide rims over to the Stumpy, but then I lose the mullet status on that bike which I am quite fond of. That 29" front wheel is all business and the 27.5" rear wheel is where the party is at and I don't really want to lose that. I would also need to re-use the original hubs because the Rapide hubs are non-boost. But then I am also day dreaming over a set of Stans Flow EX3 rims laced to Hope Pro 5 hubs and wrapped in Maxxis Assegai / Minion DHR ii rubber.
  8. Robbie Stewart
    You've got me pegged. 100%. Well done. I'm conceding your point. And yes, it is the rear, and yes I knew it wasn't going to last. I was running the stock Eliminator GRID T7 out back which didn't last long, and replaced it with a new one a week ago. It had two rides on before it too died. I'm going back to Assegai / Minion DHR 2 with DD Maxx grip. And yes, I am built like a Neanderthal and ride like one too. I'm just annoyed that my Rapide TR-36 runs held up so well and are still running as true as they day I got them. Why can't EOM stock be as good. But yeah, cost versus function I suppose. Probably the thinking is that aftermarket replacement is inevitable, so as long as they keep me running for a while it's all good? Oh well, like I said earlier, then the bike would be 20k more expensive and maybe not such a good deal then at that price point. It's all about economy of scale I reckon.
  9. Robbie Stewart
    I'm just curious how suddenly everyone is insisting that tyre inserts are an absolute must for anything related to enduro / all-mountain-style riding. Yet, they conveniently forget that we've all been riding the same conditions for decades without tyre inserts, nor needing them. But suddenly it seems like the rims are made of butter. Or that the tyres are somehow softer. I dunno. Maybe I must eat even less than I already do and only ride soft trails without obstacles. Oh, wait. Nevermind. Those trails are called roads.
  10. Robbie Stewart
    This is the type of environment I ride most often on my Stumpjumper EVO (pic below) , which is the type of environment it is advertised as being designed for. If I am expected to ride my bike as if I'm doing a leisure ride on gravel because the components won't live up to my "abuse" then can I please return my bike for a refund, because that's not what I signed up for. Also, as I mentioned to Morne, I was running 40 psi pressure at the rear, so there is NO reason why that rim folded the way it did apart from just being rubbish. I own two Spez bikes. The other one's Rovals also died a horrific death. Yes, I am a big boy, and I've lost 14 kg overall since January, and I rode my other Spez bike on a set of Rapide TR-36 wheels over these same rocks below many times before without ONE incident. Those rims have never been trued in all the time I've had them nor has a spoke needed tensioning. They still roll perfectly balanced. (not me, not my pic, just grabbed it off the interwebs for reference. I rode down these rocks on Saturday before the wheel died on a much smaller rock on a different trail.)
  11. Robbie Stewart
    Thanks, I was also only taking the piss about my weight. I am in a bit of a training plateau at the moment due to various reasons - crashing, getting sick, all the rain, work. . . I'm amping to get after it again. Those Rapidé wheels really are good. I'm tempted to get a set again . . .
  12. Robbie Stewart
    To a degree. For the extra money I would be spending improving the wheels on my Stumpy EVO to a decent enduro spec I would be venturing into Commencal Meta territory which already comes with decent wheels. And had I the choice to spend that type of money maybe my choice would have been different. And I'm guessing that is the game. "perceived" value versus actual value. If it looks like a deal then it must be one, right? Or, after closer inspection, maybe not...
  13. Robbie Stewart
    Sure, I get that. My gripe is that if this means I'm going to spend an additional 20k on better wheels anyway then why not just fit better wheels from the outset? My thinking now is that nothing Spez tell me will convince me to buy another set of Roval wheels. I'll be shopping elsewhere. Why not do the decent thing and rather retain loyalty and ensure repeat business instead of chasing that one sale, or maybe the thinking is if you're not spending at least 100k then they don't really want your business? Either way, it's frustrating now having to source new wheels.
  14. Robbie Stewart
    When you get called fat without actually being called fat. 😂 Jokes aside. I actually pumped that brand new rear tyre to 40 psi before departing on the ride. For the very reason I push 114kg presently and my rear shock was around 250 psi. That rim still got it's life knocked out of it by a smallish rock. I found that the 27.5 wheel at the back tends to go wandering around when the pressures are too low. By default I need higher pressures on that wheel so that it tracks predictably. I can run lower pressure on my 29 on the Camber but not on the Stumpy.
  15. Robbie Stewart
    As well as the Swiss cheese Spaz use in their rims. I will put it on record that they are seemingly incapable of issuing proper wheels on their bikes. Another reason to rather just buy a frame set and build your own.
  16. Robbie Stewart
    So today, after the third ride in three attempts of descending the Contermanskloof Rhino and offering my rear wheel as a sacrifice to the rim-eating rocks I will be hitting my insurance up with a claim for a proper wheel. Specialized really do make good bikes but they are absolutely RUBBISH at making good wheels.
  17. Robbie Stewart
    About "race" coverage. Why should it matter? When coming off the bike for whatever reason causing damage then surely you are covered regardless of where, how, or when you were riding? When I claimed I was just asked how the damage occurred and when. " I fell off my bike while riding at around 10:30 on Saturday at XYZ." I've never been asked if I was racing.
  18. Robbie Stewart
    whenever I'm heading back West via Worcester more often than not I encounter a wind in that valley that shakes my KB 250 around as if it is a Hyundai i10. Riding a mountain bike there has never appealed to me for that very reason.
  19. Robbie Stewart
    So I bought me a new Spez Stumpy Evo late last year. An absolute beast of a bike. It just plows through everything I throw at it, except for the lead in to the Contersmanskloof Rhino, where there is one rock that just hates my rear wheel. I am 2 for 2 in getting a flat and a couple extra bends to my rim there. I have now taken a shifting spanner to that rim twice in the 8 or so months of owning the bike, and just replaced the rear Eliminator tyre with a new one last Friday. Does this warrant an insurance claim? Maybe. Did I? no. Could I? probably. Can I go to Spez and fight them for giving me such a toss rim? I feel that is unfair. It's me that hit that rock with a semi underinflated tyre thinking it will improve my grip levels.
  20. Robbie Stewart
    Indeed. Expect nothing for nothing. I'm insured with Santam. I've claimed a wheel and a fork from them and both got paid out, but then I have a comprehensive coverage plan with both my bikes specified. I don't just pay R1.00 though. I pay a couple of 1000% more.
  21. Robbie Stewart
    @MORNE 's tree 🤐 😁
  22. Robbie Stewart
    This is akin to the Rampage and Hardline fiascos where entertainment trumps safety. And with that mad gap jump that Bernard Kerr and Matt Jones made, but on which Jim Monro had a very bad crash on it would seem that this is a trend that won't be going away anytime soon. I think it's a mere matter of time until a serious crash happens. And maybe then things will change. I am thinking of that ridgeline edit that Gee Atherton did which could have left him paraplegic, or worse dead. He is lucky to be able to walk again after that fall, never mind ride.
  23. Robbie Stewart
    For the budget you are in a very limited bracket when it comes to new bikes. Also, resale on used bikes is dismal at present due to the post COVID bike boom and subsequent implosion. The market is saturated with second hand bikes people want to offload, and no one is buying. You will get much better bang for your rand buying used than new.
  24. Robbie Stewart
    I was granted the opportunity to ride an e-bike up the mast climb at Contermanskloof over the weekend. That was the first time I managed the full climb non-stop to the top in one go in a decade of riding there. Now all I need is to find a buyer for my one kidney ...
  25. Robbie Stewart
    The more I read about these incidents I realise how lucky I am (to a certain extent) to have the West Coast Cycle Path that runs to Melkbos. I did a ride there again today, safely away from traffic. In Melkbos there are a couple of short links straight into the adjacent neighborhood that takes one of the main roads and spits you out on the beach front where everything is chilled. That is all I ride when not on a trail somewhere. It is sad that one can't ride elsewhere safely anymore, but I just don't see things improving. Even on that road adjacent to the cycle path things are dodgy, which technically traverses a nature reserve with a speed limit of 70kph. Today a white Ferrari came past at a pace entirely not safe for the road. There have been plenty accidents in the past. Road riding is not safe anymore, period.
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