TyronLab

First off, big respect for completing this, it is no small feat and you should relish in the sense of pride and accomplishment you feel as you deserve it. As far as hands go I can only speak about my Munga Grit experience, but the numbness and loss of dexterity subsides after a week or so. I personally blame flat bars for this. They're designed to provide a lot of leverage and a robust grip for aggressive technical riding, which they're great at. What they (and the human body) isn't designed for is hours upon hours of being in the same, slightly awkward position. I see you at least had bar ends, which at least offer some relief for your hands but are still an awkward position for your arms. This is a personal preference thing, but I wouldn't do another endurance event with flat bars again, and lament the lack of reasonable local options for drop bar mountain bikes. My Grit #1 was on flared drop bars and 1.85" 650B tyres, zero hand issues. Grit #2 was on "high end" flat bars with additional sweep, 2.35" 29er tyres, had some pretty severe hand issues for a week afterwards.

That's flippen awesome, thanks! It gets me from Vereeniging to Richmond on a known dirt route. That leaves home to Vereeniging and Richmond to Willowmore that I'd need to plan still, but this takes a lot of uncertainty out of the route at least.

I'm considering doing a bikepacking tour from home (Jo'burg, GP) to the start of the Transbaviaans (Willowmore, EC) for this year's race. Idea is that I'd arrive in Willowmore the day before the Transbaviaans, then do the event itself. I'll likely fly home or get back some other way, it'll be a one-way trip. This is pretty ambitious for me to tackle, so I'd appreciate any advice (packing, baggage, route.... anything). This thread will serve as the collaborative journal of my plan to attempt to try and do this. I'm keen on doing it mostly on gravel, as I'd much rather take the slower average speed but deal with less traffic on the way there. Also would ideally be overnighting at establishments along the way and keeping camping to a minimum too, for a few reasons; 1. I have no camping gear, so I'd have to buy a lot of kit I'd likely get little future use out of. 2. I'd have to carry all the camping stuff too, and seeing as I don't have racks or bags or whatever that means buying more things to carry things in. 3. I don't want to take too long off work, so I'm planning on doing long and relatively big days of riding (12 moving hours and 160 - 200km a day). Staying in an establishment means I'd likely get some better sleep and won't have to take the time to set up a camp. When I popped the start and end points into Komoot and hit "Mountain Biking" it spat out this route (84% Unpaved / Gravel, 4100m of elevation gain). Home - Klerksdorp (213km) Bloemhof (370km / 157km) Kimberley (545km / 175km) Hopetown (670km / 125km) (De Aar is too far a stretch at 245km from Kimberley) Richmond (882km / 212km) Aberdeen (1053km / 171km) Willowmore (1195 / 142km) Only editing I did was reroute through Aberdeen to divide the last days up more evenly. Other than that its obviously very rough (hell, I know nothing about any of these places, so assuming there will be some place to stay My back-of-bidon calculations tell me that if I ride between 04:00 and 19:00 every day that gives me 15 planned hours between stops. Assuming 3 hours of stoppage during that time (lunch, peeing, pooping, having a lie-down, buying food etc) that gives me 12 hours of moving time and a required moving average speed of between 11 and 18 km/h depending on that day's distance. For reference I averaged 15.7 km/h moving speed during the Munga Grit in 2022 which had 1000m more elevation gain in less than half the distance. So it's in the realm of my physical ability at least (I'm purposefully ignoring thinking of the impact doing that daily for a week back-to-back is going to have). ... More pondering to follow.

If you haven't ridden one in a while you should do yourself a favour and give one a spin at some point, especially if you're a mountain biker and especially if its rigid too. It's almost a completely different discipline to riding a normal mountain bike and a trail you've ridden a thousand times will suddenly be brand new. SS road bikes have this effect too, but I found the difference to be even bigger on a trail. Geared bikes are more efficient, faster, and easier to ride than a SS, no doubt about that. But if you remove the pretense that a ride needs to be those three things, you get a new perspective on riding. Everyone should have a SS in their stable, and luckily they're usually cheap as chips.

Yeah nah yeah, cycling glasses are an interesting aspect of the culture, like cycling caps and shaving legs. To other mamil's = trés chic To the other 98% of humanity = Super dorky. Also, white glasses akin to tank-tops, sleeveless hoodies and anything made by Ed Hardy...

Here are some ramblings from '21 and '22. I haven't written further to the '22 story (it wasn't that eventful to be honest).

I got 'em from Decathlon. They're just standard bar ends that have a hole straight through, allowing you to install them anywhere on the bar. They definitely worked as an alternative hand position. Are they as comfy as proper brifter hoods? Not by a long shot. But they do give you an additional hand position that, most importantly, doesn't need to use your palm. I spent a lot of time riding with my thumb over the bars with the nook of my thumb on the bar end. Getting away from resting on the same spot on your palms the whole time is the aim here. They're a little too short to hold as a grip for a long time, and because they aren't curved you can't relax your grip too much. Still, better than nothing.

As with most things, girth shows worth! For shizzle though, tyre width is less of a factor in rolling resistance than compound, casing design and tread pattern is. The benefits of wider tyres far outweigh the downsides for real world applications. Go as wide as your frame allows.

A lot of issues with gravel tyres are related to pressure. Searching for grip and comfort means minimizing pressures in most instances. I've had some good success with GravelKing SK's (the normal version, not the Plus version), but after the Munga Grit the sidewalls were toast and weeping sealant. I was obviously running pressures pretty low that caused it, but the actual tread section took minimal wear and didn't have any punctures. I think the Plus version should be pretty bomb proof. I've run the Sawtooth and Ramblers for just a few weeks no and they've seem pretty robust so far. I've also run the Vittoria Terreno Dry tyres. They were really well damped and comfy, but were pretty susceptible to punctures from thorns.

Took Night Crawler out for its inaugural "gravel" ride. One of those where you leave the house with no plan but to go out and ness around on some dirt. Recent rains meant there was a substantial amount of time spent drifting around in sludge at walking speed, giggling like an idiot. So much fun! This bike is 😍

So I see now that you should have your number board "verified" at the expo? I'm traveling and having a colleague pick up my race pack, can't get my number board to him. Using the same one as last year. Sounds more like an excuse to get more feet through the Expo.

The Oos Rondt was having a pearler this morning. One of those rides where you forget about training, perceived exertion, heart rate zones and distance and just chorrel around on your bike because its fun and goergous outside. Also, Night Crawler is 😍 so far.

Thanks! It's good to be back. I never really left (I had a Rook Scout single speed as my second bike for a while), but I'm back in with both feet now. Hell, my moustache even plumped up by itself as I drove home with it!

Aaaaaaaand I'm back on a gravel bike again... I've now gone through a number of bikes and with each iteration I've refined my list of wants/needs and have come closer to the one. Finding that sweet spot bike to try and maximize fun (the reason I ride bikes) for as much of the riding I do as possible has lead me back to the unholy altar of Gravel once more. My laundry list during the search: Steel frame - I like that Steel is bomb-proof, can take a bit of abuse, and is most definitely very Real i.t.o. comfort. Clearance for 700x45 tyres minimum Flared Drop bars - I just haven't been able to get a flat bar setup (regardless of sweep, position, roll, grips etc.) to be as comfortable or fun on or off road. Low maintenance. I hate spending money on maintenance or being forced into proprietary requirements so: Rigid. 1x Drivetrain. Mechanical discs (hydro brifters are daylight robbery) HG freehub. Standard seatpost diameter. Threaded BB. MTB wheels (ideally 21mm internal or wider). 3+ bottle mounts. I present Night Crawler. Yes, from the Judas Priest song (the one that introduced me to 'Priest actually, still one of my favourites). The riser drop bars and canvas bar tape / saddle are pretty dope. Wheel decals are going to be removed and some 45mm tyres are going on (either Ramblers, or Cinturato M's) then it'll be on like a scone!

Thought I'd share my good experience with @Bike Market Sandton recently. I bought a bike from them a few weeks ago which was in great nic. They were very helpful and communicative, and I walked away pretty stoked. I only did two short rides but noticed a clicking sound during pedaling, which sounded like a seatpost/BB/stem that needed grease (although it was clear they had freshly greased these interfaces). After a strip down and clean post ride #2 I realised that the problem was slightly more severe: I contacted them immediately thereafter, knowing that they offered a three month warranty on the frame. They immediately got back to me, asked me if I'd prefer that they collect the bike or if I'd be dropping it off for them to inspect and advise. There was initially a few days of delay in communication from their side, but they contacted me and updated me frequently thereafter. They were trying get a warranty replacement frame for me but that didn't pan out. So, out of their own, they offered to strip down one of their other bikes, a Specialized Sequoia that was also my size, and have me pick and choose which parts from which bike I wanted to bolt to that frame. The Sequoia ostensibly had a more valuable frame, and they without hesitation accepted my wishlist and got to work. I ended up better off at the end of the day, and they went out of their way to accommodate me. I will for sure be knocking on their door should I be in the market for another bike, as they definitely added some very real value and aren't just acting as a middle-man and shifting bikes. Really great group of guys.

Au contraire monsieur! If you're willing to part with a LOT of money this fine instrument covers the requirements perfectly. One day, when I'm big, one of these shall be mine (this specific one just needs a dropper, other than that, it's pure perfection). https://www.curvecycling.com.au/products/big-kev

Out of interest, what are the Lefty servicing intervals and costs like these days? I've always been nervous to ride one for this very reason when compared to traditional forks.

He wasn't maybe riding a tri-spoke single speed with a Capetonian accent per chance? Jokes aside, this is disgusting. As someone who was sometimes on the receiving end of bullying I know how you must be feeling dude, and it sucks. Even if you don't manage to find this fuckface, I am positive that the universe has a way of balancing things out and he'll get what's due to him in some way, shape or form.

Just keep in mind that the sidewalls on non-tuebeless tyres are flimsier than the tube-only versions, and the beads aren't designed to seal and be as robust. This puts you at a higher risk of the tyre rolling and/or coming off of the rim at low pressures. With high enough pressure you should be fine though.

As a counter point to this, when I did the Grit Cradle on my Rook Scout (with 650B 43mm and 48mm tyres) last year I took some shots, but my hands and bum were hunky dory even that evening, I rode a few days later. Did it on a rigid MTB this year (also steel frame, same as the Rook, but with a carbon fork) with 29er x 2.35 tyres and I had large/bleeding saddle sores and some extensive nerve damage done to my hands that kept me off the bike for two weeks. I couldn't tear a piece of toilet paper for two days after finishing as I couldn't clamp down on it with enough force. Sure, both my examples are rigid bikes, but there's more to comfort than how many mm of travel... I struggle to get comfy on flat bars on longer rides, and I've tried a bunch. OP, see if you can demo a gravel bike. Maybe it works for you, maybe it doesn't. Hell, the vast majority of MTBers I know shudder at the thought of riding a hardtail and think droppers are unnecessary, and mostly ride easy gravel roads at worst. So it's a personal thing.

I think it very much depends on where and what you're riding, and what you enjoy about riding. I ride with roadie groups in the week, and I like riding to MTB trails (that are pretty basic/easy for the most part in GP), doing their longest loop, and riding back home on weekends. Or long gravel cruises. That inevitably means quite a lot of road riding mixed in with MTB trails. I find a MTB quite tedious on the road so it feels like I want to get the road bit over with, but I have fun on a trail on pretty much any bike at any speed. I found that to really enjoy an easy trail on a MTB you have to gun it, increasing the risk factor substantially. So, to me, a gravel bike is ideal. I get to enjoy the road bits and actually have fun, and I have as much (oftentimes more) fun on the trails at much lower speeds on the gravel bike as it makes easy trails fun and mild tech trails a blast at a speed where I have little risk of having a moerse prang. I also prefer drop bars by a huge margin due to the various hand positions and comfort they offer. If you want to ride technical / rocky trails at warp speed a gravel bike is going to suck. If you hate being jostled around, or have a weak core or propensity for wrist/butt isues it's also going to suck on gravel vs a dual sus bike. I've tried to make my MTBs more gravel-ish, but I've come back to the good old gravel bike time and time again. I had a rigid steel MTB with light wheels and very low resistance tyres, and it still wasn't a gravel bike. If you're after a one-bike-quiver it's a very personal thing and very dependent on your riding style and preferences.

@Titan Racing Bikes From what I can tell the "new" Switch range has increased tyre clearance over the previous models, is this accurate? My previous Switch Pro had a rated tyre clearance of 38mm (according to the info on the seat tube), realistically could probably fit a 42mm and still be borderline. Site now states 700x50mm clearance. Is that a 700x50mm tyre with clearance, or that the actual physical gap is 50mm which means you can maybe fit a 45mm in?

+1 For these, they're my go-to. End up scratching your bottles (as most cages do), maar hulle klou soos 'n drol op 'n wol kombers.

Out of interest, did you weigh this bike at any point? I'm assuming its the fork that's the heavy bit? I'm also interested in the tyre clearance, any comments on how much clearance there is with 700x45s?

Ish, dude, I'm glad you're OK. That little bit is known for dodgy pedestrians ending long night shifts and being daft.