ChrisF

Adderly road, leaving Durbanville has no shoulder. LOTS of cyclists on this road !! Same once you turn towards Philladelphia. Still reasonably safe. About 2km past Philladelphia the road passes under the N7 ... now you pick up the Atlantis business traffic. This should not br an issue on your date. Once you turn onto thr Old Mamre road the game changes .... this road is littered with potholes, in the shade of the trees. Thankfully a short section. The Melkbos strand road has a shoulder, and regular cyclists.

As @NotSoBigBen says, these are just temporary setbacks. The last 2 years I have been working with a biokinetocist to improve my overall health. The irony being that I was progressing very good, then pushed too hard in a park run on 7 December. Thought I pulled a muscle on the inside of my knee, and thought a bit of rest would do the trick .... took two sessions with a phisio to sort out the issue ... now two weeks of rehab exercises before the next park run. Thankfully I can do a bit of road cycling. Lesson .... it is possible to improve overall wellbeing, despite aggresive arthritis and a torn meniscus. Setbacks is part of the process ... in a few weeks this setback will be a memory. Rapha and similar challenges is a test of our will power and our health. Absolute priviledge to be able to complete this.

That sucks. I feel your pain, having been side lined myself this year.

bump .... According to the IDT threads there are many broken trainers, i.e. blown electronics, that cant be fixed. One of these, with the option for a thru axle, would be ideal to mount a bike for a basic bike fit session. If you have a broken one that is in your way .... it would make a nice doner part for some experimenting ....

Well Done !!

D'ville Cycles, Durbanville, has/had stock of a range of Meridas. Also Bike Addict

Anybody with a broken wheel off trainer ? It could be handy for a bike-fit test rig ....

At 1,75m I am on the cusp of M to L for most frames. At 1,8m he should be safe with L, and a bit of room for growth.

Tubeless tyres .... Normally it has "TR" or Tubeless Ready etched or printed on the side of the tyre. If these tyres are not TR .... put sludge/sealant in the tubes. Buy a set of TR tyres in a few months.

Quick lap of Bottelary .... Thanks to the gent on the MTB, on the way back just before Hazendal .... always nice to give it some stick .... RESPECT !!! You are one strong rider !!

+1 for checking the size chart.

Cant do anything to somebody sitting under a bridge .... Yet they have the whole day to scout for the absence of enforcement and a lone cyclist ..... or a small group if the days pickings were slim .... With zero political will this wont get resolved .... Be safe out there

Everybody is on leave. Dont expect any answer until 3rd week of January.

Nice empty roads ...

Christmas morning ride. 24km for 2024. No trails for a few weeks .... No Rapha this year .... But keep the wheels rolling, as much as possible.

Also have a look at the range at Specialized

Physio in the morning .... Ride in the afternoon ....

. Many holiday riders that dont know the trails ... then again, sadly so, many regulars that turn one-way sections into two-way trails. Even Granny Gear coaches letting their kids walk up sections of Lombards to session it ... Stop your bike at 45-degrees, blocking the trail. Calmly explain it is one-way, and that their actions are dangerous.

I get up to 70km on 500W.h. I have done 200km with this setup, that also included Franschhoek. Around here there are no long routes without lots of climbs. Might be interesting to see what the range would be without all this climbing.

That aint no joke !! Bellville to Stellenbosch was breezy this morning. Once over Helshoogte it was a perfect day !!! Coming back .... ouch !!!! With 120km in the legs the South Easter along Bottelary was proper high intensity training .....

Step ONE .... very few of these racks truly accommodate two boost frames ..... (jip, sure, some of the latest models claim to fit boost size MTB's next to each other) Best look at a 3 bike rack. Why is a Merc/BMW better than a VW/Toyota/Ford ? Thule is expensive .... but it offers very good value, and thats why it remains in the market. Sure, Holdfast, and now a few others, do offer decent value for money .... I was going to say that spares are readily available for Thule, but a few threads have questioned that .... I do know that Holdfast is a strong SA brand, and all bikes shops can order in their spares for you. All said, if you can add the bit extra for Thule .... you wont regret it.

Is it still an un-supported ride when you know where you are getting thee best pitstop ? First proper long ride this summer. Banhoek Padstal is fast turning into our favorite stop. With 100km in the legs this is a welcome sight .....

Obviously Swartberg pass, possibly some way to De Hell ... I enjoyed the ride out on Weltevrede road to the farm at the end of the road. Nice coffee stop at this turning point ... depending on your dates, just call to check if they will be open. NOTE - couple of fruit farms on this road ... harvest time the road might be busy with trucks ... and possible corrugated from the seasons traffic. Out of season this road was an excellent ride. These are the obvious routes .... sure Arno has a few gems he can share with you.

I have the 530. I have switched the beeper off on the 530. Yes, to really tweak these units you need to play with the phone app.

Your questions are debate, not answered, here -