hubbernero

So around 2300m elevation in the first 160km if my rough calculation is correct. Om die Pot 100miler had 2600m elevation over 160km, which wasn't to bad. Road surface/conditions would obviously be the biggest difference between the two (other than overall distance).

Tougher in terms of the extra distance? Or the terrain/road surface/conditions?

Getting an entry first would be a start. I've done Trans Baviaans before. How does it compare? Managed to survive K2C this year.

Can't seem to find a Desert Dash 2019 thread. Thinking of maybe doing this, if I can find an entry. Anybody perhaps know of an available solo entry? With 2 months to go, is there enough time to train for this race?

Other than the Old Wa Pad desent which is a little loose, I don't see where you would have struggled anywhere in that race on a hardtail?

From Stellenbosch head out onto the Stellenbosch Arterial road, take Devon Valley road past JC le Roux, up and over the hill down to Bottelary Road. Take a right at the circle head to R304 and cross it onto Kromme Rhee. (This bit just to avoid Kayamandi). Take a left onto the service road next to the railway line. Cross railway line and left onto Muldersvlei. Carry on over the N1 onto Herculus Pilaar - becomes a gravel road. Follow onto Protea Road and left onto Eenzaamheid. Take a right at Langvlei road. Take a right at Vryguns Road. Head to Noord Agter Paarl, get onto the Bergpad, up and over until you get to the Taal Monument road. Turn left own the hill, right at the T-junction and over the N1. Take a right onto the R101. From there you can ride on the gravel shoulder next to the road until you cross Muldersvlei Road and follow the same way back to Stellenbosch via the railway line. Should give you close to 110km's. with a mixture of gravel and tar roads.

Get a second set of wheels for my mtb and fit them with slicks (I'm running tubeless, so just switching tyres isn't an option). Get yourself a set of FARR DOT Gravel tyres. They are pretty much like a slick and you run them tubeless. At 45c width they won't make your MTB look to silly either.

Avid BB7's, the Road version (It has a shorter pull than the MTB version). Will be the cheapest option and they do the job. Anything else will probably cost more than what you paid for the bicycle.

Not a gravel bike. He did it on his Canyon Exceed hardtail, setup as a monster cross with drop bars. The same bike in this article: https://www.bikehub.co.za/features/_/gear/gear-news/the-bikes-of-tour-de-braai-r6553

I have managed to escape/avoid an attack there a while back. I was lucky. Stopped cycling past Kayamandi a long time ago. I don't understand why people put themselves at risk cycling past there. I go over Polkadraai or take the Devon Valley Road past JC le Roux. Yes, it's a few more hills to climb. Can only be good for your training.

I got Graves disease about 15 years ago, caused hyperthyroidism. It was pretty scary as it caused severe heart anginas/pulpitations. Lost almost 10kg's in 6 weeks. Thyroid was removed (via Radioiodine). Took a few months to recover fully but all is well now. Just need to take Eltroxin daily.

From where in Durbanville? The best option I think would be to go through Brackenfell via Kruis pad onto Bottelary Road.

The eTrex Touch 35 has Ant+ support. Not sure if the battery life is comparable to the simpler eTrex models though.

With a flat bar setup it would still just be a rigid hard tail mtb. If you put some drop bars on it then technically yes, it would be called a monster cross.

Question.... Are rigid hard tail mtb's now referred to/known as "gravel bikes"??

So it's OK to skip a red because you are training for a race? Your motivation for cycling is irrelevant when it comes to the rules of the road, like stopping at a red traffic light for example.

Have been riding on my own for this exact reason years ago. The typical cyclist mentality on display here just reinforces that decision.

I received an e-mail from CRC customer service stating that they are sorry for the issues with my order and that they have contacted the courier to request the return of the order. All I can say is good luck with that one. If they can't even get the delivery done, I sure as hell can't imagine how they are going to get the return done. CRC said they will contact me once the process of the return has started. It has now been 7 days and I have had no reply. I suspect this is going to take a while. I'm not holding my breath. At the same time I need to somehow get a refund from Skynet for the invoice that I pad. I suspect that I have a better chance of falling pregnant than getting my money back.

I gladly pay the VAT, twice. Their service is brilliant. Bought loads of stuff and use my AramexGlobalShopper account. Their service is brilliant.

They are beyond useless. I have given up. Delize was the first person to contact me (via e-mail) that my package has arrived. Some two weeks later I finally get an invoice from another person, promptly paid, and sent through proof of payment. It has now been almost two months since my order was placed and paid for express shipping. Numerous phone calls (including the airport branch), more than 20 e-mails later, still nothing. This after they actually confirm in e-mail that the package will be released. I'm still waiting. I have now e-mailed Chainreactioncycles and told them to cancel my order and ask their useless courier "partner" to return the package to them, as they are clearly not interested in delivering it to me. I also want a full refund. I'm awaiting their response.

I don't think i've dealt with a more useless bunch than Skynet ever before in my life. Placed an order on the 20th of November and paid for Express shipping. Package arrived in SA on the 23rd. Received an e-mail from Skynet on the same day telling me that formal customs clearance is required because the value exceeds R500. Send ID details, etc. Still haven't receieved my parcel after eventually getting invoice for the duties payable on the 10th of December. Paid next day. I have stopped counting the amount of e-mails sent between myself and Skynet. They told me last week the parcel would be released. Nothing a week later. Another mail sent, reply with parcel will be released. Still nothing. What a useless company. Have no words.

If you read Mike's post again you will see he specifically mentioned a top 10 finisher. I have sympathy for those not racing at the sharp end of the race but the upshot of the rule relaxation is that even top 10 riders took advantage of it much to the frustration of their competitors. This was from another rider: "We had someone in our group while on the road to Britstown stating aloud to all of us that he was going to draft us for the rest of the event, knowing the only penalty would be no prize money (that's a 20 to 30% energy saving). He drafted my wheel for around 700km's (not exaggerating there!) all within the gambit of the rules, still receiving his finishers medal at the end. No transgression of the rules but I do feel sorry for the 11th placed finisher who missed out on a top 10. If it was me I wouldn't be happy."

From what I heard there was one one rider who placed very high in the top 10 that was drafting for the majority of the race. Perhaps one can look at what penalties were handed out and put one and one together. You cannot draft yourself to a top 10 (as an example) finish and expect people to accept it just because you take yourself out of the running for prize money. Also, I cannot think of something more annoying than you riding/working your butt off while there is someone sitting in your slip getting a "free" ride.

https://www.transcontinental.cc/

I would be interested to know what "packing" system the rider will be using? I know you get dropper post specific seat packs. If a seat pack will be used there is no space for extra water bottles. What is the rules regarding water carrying, 4L? So there needs to be another 2 bottles on there, or a camelback.