THE BODY CENTRE

Will upload a couple more tomorrow. http://www.flickr.com/photos/24461527@N07/sets/

No oil of any kind is going to 'warm up' the muscles. It might make your skin 'feel warm'. So if you want to shine, or tan, or smell rubbed in -- you have plenty to chose from what everybody has posted here. Bio oil is another (expensive) alternative, but as with the others - there is no magic 'warm up of muscle' effect. Warm up your muscles as Auction Lamb suggested - that works!

It warms up the arm and hand muscles of the person doing the rubbing rather nicely!

Some more here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/24461527@N07/sets/

Johann doing his interview with Johnny Koen. (Big to his mum & dad for having me in their car along the route today!) and Kriek! I didn't stay for the other groups to finish, but Coetzee was there, so hopefully he will post some later.

Pleasure Thornman - (couldn't resist sneaking you in) The bunch sprint -

The 4 stayed together - this was just after Malmesbury And ended with Johann R victorious Well done Johann! The sprint for 2nd

Thanks Skye! The view WAS beautiful from there! Ok, back to the climb Rabie was followed by Moolman, Johann van Zyl, Nolan H The bunch ..

About 1km after the start (photo fundies: what happened here?? ) The break starting the climb Johann Rabie Ronelle2008-10-11 04:29:59

One example of a stretch: http://www.floota.com/PsoasStretch1.html The main hipflexor is called psoas, or iliopsoas .. and google is your friend!

Ok -- it seem a lot of people have hamstring AND backache. Except Dickie What I've often come across in cyclists (road and Mtb) -- is that a person complains of hamstring pain -- and then gets treated for hamstring pain ... BUT hamstring pain is only the telltale sign of something else wrong. Most often the hip flexors (the muscles in your groin, attaching your pelvis to the front of your leg) - are shortened AND they are encouraged to shorten even more, because of the nature of the sport -- working the legs from a sitting position - hips flexed. So - shortened hip flexors mean - you lose the ability to extend you hip fully --- you have a 'fixed' pelvis area. This results in the gluts weakening and therefore to be able to pedal strongly, you tend to compensate by using the hamstrings more AND more strain is put on the lower back. The hamstrings now have to contract over a longer distance. To test whether you have shortened hip flexors: lie on your stomach put your one hand under your body in your groin area. Now bend up the knee on that side to 90degrees - now lift your knee of the ground. IF you groin lifts from your hand -- chances are good you have shortened hip flexors AND weak gluts. You should be able to lift your knee fairly high, and your groin should be pushing DOWN into your hand. So the remedy is to start by stretching your hip flexors!

Dickie - do you have a stiff lower back? Or even a tendency to backache during or after a ride? If yes, PM me - if no ... just ignore this question

** double post removed ** Ronelle2008-10-09 00:59:15

Tracey working hard, Kelly in new kit ... ActionLamb (sic!) and Johan Rabie James Tennant David Garret Johann v Zyl and Tredoux TooHot!!! ...and you guys were to busy racing, but at one stage the sky had this one beautiful orange cloud .. Kriek: what do you look like? Kit? Bike? Some more here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/24461527@N07/sets/

I will upload the rest tomorrow .. t i r e d. Goodnight

BMCFan and Who knows who... in the mix there ... FanieFiets doing the Killarney salute

A lovely evening... a bit more light than the last couple of Wedn's .. a bit of wind FanieFiets and ? on his right

Oops sorry! Wrong forum Will upload to flickr later tonight, or tomorrow.

Killarney tonite

Jason P & Reniel M

The development riders A very focussed development rider --- in the saddle and ... A more relaxed development rider Nice meeting you faniefiets!

A couple from last night - Jeremy M and .... Stefan Ihlenfeldt and CWCOnline Nolan H (IMPRESSIVE sprint - explosive power!) Well done!

HR - at the moment, those yellow flowers are everywhere where there is 'veld'. Even at Killarney! But I have no idea what they are called. The only other 'yellow flower' I know of, is canola, but I doubt the farmers would have their cows eat that.