_David_

I'm sure I'm going to be in the minority here but i don't have an issue with these tattoos. Tattoos are a personal choice and they normally tell a story. At least these have some meaning better than some random tramp-stamp or some crapy tribal tattoo.

Hahah... especially if you call her a Hippo.

My thoughts exactly

Hahah saw this on Reddit this morning. Apparently Hippos have been known to be ungrateful assholes

WTF who is this guy, some sort of social media Influencer?

Waste of beer money.

Agreed, I'm so jealous of the guys living in the Cape!

Only if you ride the epic on your epic bike and post about it on the hub.

Sheesh... I've just learned something new

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Hahah... **** thats me! I most definitely cant afford it but If I had the money I would definitely do it.

pussies ride with Camelbaks only take one 500ml bidon. Hahaha... this is one race that will make you appreciate your camelback, especially if it is a hot, dry day.

Same thing happen to me I had Covid end of June this year with very light symptoms. While exercising my HR was higher than usual and I had a hard time bringing it down. Its been about 2 month now and I am only now starting to feel 100% again. It might have sucked but I think you made a pretty good choice by not doing the race. Listen to your body and ease back into exercise, you don't want to do permanent damage to your heart. https://www.runnersworld.com/health-injuries/a33822804/exercise-myocarditis-and-covid-19/ "Being healthy, fit, and strong may help you avoid some of the more severe symptoms of COVID-19 like ARDS, but it doesn’t make you immune from some of the more insidious effects of the disease. And even if you only come down with a mild to moderate case, you are still at risk for myocarditis, inflammation of the middle layer of the heart wall, which can weaken the heart and lead to heart failure, abnormal heartbeat, or even sudden death."

Don't know by how much you can stretch your budget (and not sure about availability) but the Chisel Comp looks like an awesome bike. I like the new 2022 Trek X Caliber 8 as well. https://www.specialized.com/za/en/chisel-comp/p/184105?color=291528-184105 and I saw this bike in the secondhand bikes if you are 1.86m tall you should fit on a Large. https://bikehub.co.za/classifieds/item/hardtail-mountain-bikes/492891/amazing-trek-pro-calibre-96-special?referrer=top

Sheesh... cool pic, wish I lived in the Western Cape!

All of the bikes on your list are decent bikes just double check stock and availability. On a hardtail your front suspension is very important and expensive to upgrade. Try and get a bike with a decent suspension fork. Good luck and I hope you find your dream bike!

Good luck to all, it's going to be tough but thats what makes Attakwas great!

Making money and being able to pay the bills helps as well :-) Money doesn’t buy happiness, but that the lack thereof will make you miserable.

Holding thumbs for good weather and race conditions for you!

Well done you are very lucky.

and why do it anyway? When you turn your passion into a job, it becomes just that - work.

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Maybe "disaster" was the wrong word :-) For me it is mostly ego, I don't like training for a race only to get passed by a heavier bike with less less effort. I prefer a level playing field were we all suffer together were you get rewarded for the training you put in.