TyronLab

I'd take a stab and say a few main reasons. One, redundancy, should your hydration bladder pop or malfunction you still have a backup in the form of a bottle in the Tankwa. Two, variety. Having just water gets old if you have big gaps between WPs, having one bottle coke, one bottle energade, one bottle water gives you some options I guess. Given the budget, I'd be rocking a full frame bag with a big bladder in the bottom along woth ine spare bottle, similar to Bianchi Arcadex dude.

I'd also like to give the oke riding the Rapide Tigre with day-to-day components some kudos. There's a clear trend of those that can afford the entry also not being shy to splurge on their bikes too. Its refreshing to see a bike in the mix that's more steel and duct tape than Apidura and primo-everything. I, for one, wouldn't bring anything I'm not willing to damage/scratch/drag/rebuild to this ride. I see a lot of post-ride maintenance bills at Cyclelab being more than my current bike's value even if all goes smoothly.

I used to think the same, and I unfortunately still can't manage to fork out R30k to do this (even though I desperately want to). Having done the Grit Cradle and knowing the company and rep that was doing the RV and WP logistics for that, I can tell you it's no small feat. It was a mammoth task coordinating sleeping arrangements, sustenance, safety, medics etc. and that's a 500km circular loop. Considering the full fat Munga is a 1100km one-way ride, it makes the logistics much harder. This isn't a CTCT water table with a few cups of coke and maybe an energy bar if you're early enough. There is a mountain of food, and multiple food options, at every WP and RV, as well as tents, bedding, medical supplies. All of which are expected to operate continuously for at least 3 days with people literally arriving and leaving constantly at any possible hour. Multiple full-time medical vehicles patrolling the route. You're also splitting this cost between a very small number of entrants (~120), so the per-person cost skyrockets. Sure, I think they must be making some money out of this, but having dipped my toe into Munga water I can confidently assume that they aren't raking in 60% margins you might think they are. Considering they only have 3/4 events a year and it takes a team of people to arrange it, and the fact that this is as niche and boutique as something like the Epic without the notoriety and people-draw that has, the entry price makes sense. On topic, best of luck to all of the riders, One day I'll hopefully be in Bloem alongside you nervously kakking myself for what lies ahead. Just keep moving, keep the pedals turning, and take the time to have this experience saturate you to the core as I know it will.

If you're not on the Bicycle Line group you should join. They generally have a plan for every day for the whole period, short and long routes, to get to 500km in 4-5 days. It's also much easier to do a lot of this in a group. Much less effort for the same average speed, less recovery needed. If I wasn't going away over this period I wouldn't mind to have tackled it, but I'd be keen to do the majority of it in one big ride (300km+) then two smaller chunks.

Yebo yes! It has the Biocentric 30 BB in it. So far I'm really impressed with this frame. It's my first "high-end" one, and golly gosh it feels it. Niner's EBB system is really superior compared to the ones I've used on our tandem. Just need to get a torque wrench now, I am very slightly scared that the feeler-gauge I've been using so far isn't going to cut the mustard. I must say, the matte clear coat over raw carbon looks frikkin' awesome in the sun.

So happy I can finally throw a bike into this thread... My new-to-me Niner Air 9 RDO. It can do with a dropper at a later stage, but so far this bike is getting very close to that "is it a rigid MTB or a flat bar gravel bike?" sweet spot I enjoy. Very much an oddball, but absolutely love it. Gets off the line like a startled cat (even with the relatively aggressive Purgatory / Ground Control combo), and is surprisingly comfy off-piste. There's a 15t cog on the way, the current 34x20 I got it with will be used for hillier trails / dirt adventuring / Suikerbosrand. I successfully piloted 42x16 on 650Bs over Sylvia's pass, so I think 34x15 should be good for my daily riding.

I've delved into this many many times before, and drop bar MTBs are awesome but inevitably either a huge compromise/faff and relatively expensive OR horrendously expensive and easy as pie. Go out and buy an AXS drop bar shifter set and an AXS derailleur and bob's-your-uncle, super simple drop bar setup on a MTB (if you can find a frame where the geo works). It'll cost an arm and a leg though... I'm bang-on between a M and a L mtb at 1.78m tall, and to get the right reach/stack I often run into a L frame with a 35mm stem still being 15mm too long with a drop bar, or a M frame with too much exposed seatpost and a lot of spacers to get the stack right. Flat bar rigid MTBs with gravel tyres are a fracking hoot. Gooi some cheapo bar ends in-board of the grips and you've got a relatively aero position too. My current rig: (this is getting skinnier wheels and rubber soon, so don't think I'm proposing a 3" tyre as a "gravel" mtb)

Have to give props to Garmin. My 3 year old and well-used 735XT (2x Munga Grits, 1x Transbaviaans...) started randomly turning itself off and not switching back on again. After trying to do some fault finding myself ended up taking it in. With the 735XT being discontinued they offered me an upgrade to a 745 (a brand new one, not a refurb) for R1660. Considering the 745 is R4000 more than a 735XT, and my 735XT being way out of warranty, I think that's amazing service.

I'll do you one better. I have purposely gone out and done some muddy bog exploring and messing around on my bike (similar to what you would in a 4x4) to get it proper dirty to have the OCD-tickling joy of washing it afterward. Granted, I never have expensive drivetrains or suspension for that matter, so no resultant damage, and I get to spend time cleaning something that's important to me. My wife knows if I'm planning on being home at 09:00 then I'll be back in action at 10:00, as the hour after a ride is bike-washing time.

Ironic image much? Pressure washing like this is why people think pressure washers are bad for bikes. This oke hates his bottom bracket...

They for sure won't fit, unfortunately. The stock really is the bottleneck for this frame to make it really rowdy. I've had a 650B x 48mm GravelKing SK in there and it was very tight, so tight in fact that I wore into the fork with some mud at the Munga Grit. There's probably ~3mm clearance per side with the 650Bx48s, with 700c x 48mm it would probably be 1mm, 50s won't fit. Here's the clearance with the stock 650B x 47s (probably ~4mm per side). As you can see it tapers inward so it'll be tighter with 700c's. Sorry to burst your bubble... On the rear a 2.25 should fit without issue, tons of space back there. Also keep in mind it has a relatively slack seat angle, so if you do put that rigid MTB fork on which has a ~490mm axle to crown it'll slacken it even more seeing as the stock fork has an A2C of 420mm.

Interestingly, there seems to be a trend towards off road specific vehicles being friendlier and more open to greeting. Landies (restricted to old Defenders though), mountain bikers, and proper adventure riders (i.e. non-GS's) generally greet and are lekker. Roadies, crotch rockets etc. generally won't greet back. I'm a firm believer in greeting whoever else is on two wheels. Bikers, cyclists, commuters, almal. No harm in putting some positivity into the universe. If they don't greet back, they just get a muffled "drolgesig" comment and I move on none the sadder.

That's a lekker bike dude... With flat pedals nogals?

All this detail and then no post of the actual bike?!? Marra why though?

Yeah, dude, I feel your pain. 29x3.0 trail tyres and a 32T chainring was not conducive to riding at that pace 😄

Can confirm this bike is badass IRL, saw it yesterday morning at the Bicycle Line group ride. BTW, not sure how the 27kph group ended up, but I was very, very, VERY ambitious to tackle the 32kph group (which, by the time we got to Sunward, was averaging 38+) on my current steed... I should have stuck with you guys.

You say you might not be gravel fit, but the off-colour bibs and whispy moustache get you most of the way there right?

"Ugh, expensive, gargantuan, underutilized cars are a disgusting cancer of a superficial society" baulks the weekend warrior straddling a R90k full carbon/electronic shifting/Kashima-slathered racehorse toy he rides gravel roads with twice a month... 🤣

Search for the "How to Build a Monstercross Bike" thread, heaps of info there. I have spent a LOT of time researching this and partly doing it. Why are you looking at converting your current bike vs buying a gravel bike? A drop bar MTB's advantage over a purpose-built gravel bike is 50mm+ tyre compatibility and being able to run "normal" MTB suspension, not the super expensive gravel specific forks. If you want a convertible bike you can play around with an MTB / gravel config, then go for it. Just beware that the ease of getting this done and the cost of getting it done are inversely proportional. Seeing as you're running a short stem with minimal spacers under it you're 99% likely going to be uncomfortable on a drop bar conversion on this frame. Running flat bars, gooi some inner bar ends on there, big chainring, rigid fork and gravel tyres and have a jol. Least amount of faff? Buy a Rook Scout. Trust me when I say, bang for buck and capability, you'll be hard pressed to find something better.

I think that MOOTS looks dope as balls, that being said, I think all of their bikes are gorgeous and I am hook line and sinker bought into the gravel bike "hype". More to the point, another wheel size is just another specialisation that makes an ideal bike for some niche riding segment or the direction riding is developing. In the same way people rode downhill on rigid 2" tyred mountain bikes 25 years ago doesn't mean that; A that was the ideal/fastest design for that course even at that time and B that downhill courses are the same now as they were then. Bring on more bikes, different bikes, more options to choose from to buy or build something that suits what fits you and what you want to ride perfectly.

I'll contest that statement by saying that your arse was sore because of riding a full sus... This may not apply to you, so this is not a jab at you at all, but in general when I see people riding my local trails on full sus bikes, they very rarely do anything but just sit and pedal. They rely on the suspension to take up any imperfections and don't move or use their bodies. They also complain that you "need" rear suspension for comfort because of a sore arse. Generally, I've rarely seen skilled hardtail / rigid / gravel riders just sitting and pedalling those same trails, and complain less about soreness. I've ridden a rigid bike almost exclusively for a few years, and a good fit and being an active participant in the ride, not a passenger, makes a big difference in how much punishment you take. Sitting in the same position for extended periods of time, and a lack of saddle time, is what can give you a sore bum. I'm not bashing full sus bikes and saying everyone needs to ride a rigid singlespeed to prove how hard they are. Suspension does not equal a better / fun time. Being a skilled, fit-enough rider outweighs the equipment.

Mechanically, a good gravel bike will likely take a lot of abuse before failing, 100% agreed (and tested, by me, on cheap gravel bikes...). The lack of suspension, tyre volume and grip however means your room for error on gnarlier terrain is very small.

Can a gravel bike do it? For damn sure. Gravel bikes can ride pretty much anything outside of jumps and drops above a certain spicyness. The real question is the rider's intent and mentality rather than whether the bike can do it. Gravel bikes need some compromises when ridden in specific sections of mtb events, for sure. If however you're out there to have a good time, take in the sights, and are prepared to take a little bit more of a beating and ride a little more considerately, you'll have a blast. I would recommend fitting the largest tyres your frame can handle with mud clearance, ideally reinforced versions, and spend time getting used to riding MTB trails with drops. If your budget can stretch it, a wide and flared handlebar makes a world of difference off road (I can recommend the Ritchey Venturemax and the Rapide Frontier gravel bar).

Haha, dude, I tip my hat to you, you had a proper adventure! As much as it sucks in the moment, it is those kinds of experiences that stick with you. No good story is ever based on everything going hunky dory! Pity about the wors though, I guess it just takes one dodgy one to cause an issue. The food at TB is generally top notch. Good on you for sticking it out though. I've seen some unfortunate souls that had called it quits at Bergplaas take a VERY rough ride in the load bed of a bakkie down the Big Dipper, if they hadn't been ****** at Bergplaas, they sure as hell were after that "rescue". Chapeau!

This resonated with me, so very very much. Suddenly deciding to do some "quick" job at 2130, only going to bed at midnight having jaaged more *** aan than doing something productive is something of a hobby of mine. My wife opening the garage entrance door, middle of the night, dik geslaap still, going "what the **** are you still doing?" and me, still in work clothes, stumbling over my words trying to explain how a tyre pressure check became a headset service and a sealant top-up, up to my elbows in grease and sealant, must be a sight to behold.