Dobri

Few questions: 1. Is the start at Loskop or Cullinan - there is a discrepancy? I assume it is Loskop as from Cullinan it is 255km. 2. Same with the ascent - from Loskop it is about 550m less. 3. Loskop to Tondeloos via Stoffberg is around 130km - where is the extra distance? 4. Is the race on 12 or 19 September - also discrepancy in the text? 5. I also assume this is not the return of the Cullinan - Tonteldoos night ride under a different name and start point being a 100 miler and not 255km? Personal observation - the week of 10 - 17 September is the Go2Sea ride / race to which many have already committed, if this event is on 19 September than entries might be diluted, it is to close and not sufficient time to recover. Starting a point to point ride / race so far from away PTA / JHB will also present logistical challenges for us living in JHB / PTA. The old Cullinan - Tonteldoos ride / race was very popular due to it being a night ride and the start point just outside of PTA.

Sent you a PM.

No, we did not stay in tent city, I was fortunate that my partner arranged off site accommodation and our wives did the driving and support. Reason why I would not do it again - costs and fun factor. Besides the entry fee there is the flights to get to CT, bike transport, the mechanics support during the race which is a must, all the new bike parts including new tires (I did not have to do this but I made sure that I cannot blame the bike for not finishing - set of new pulleys, hub bearings, BB or new SLX chain is cheap compared to everything else) Fun factor - in Gauteng we do not have similar trails like in WC, the closest is maybe Hennops and Breedtsneck, so it was difficult for me to have fun in Montagu or Greyton as the trails where very demanding, you cannot just let go, you have to concentrate 100% all the time - I can ride technical trails no problems but it is a different skill riding loses rocky trails compared to prepared manicured trails - and that is just my preference - some riders love the unprepared and lose. So I think I will stick to S2C, B&B and W2W in the future.

Here is my experience as a newbie, not sure I will do this again though. I was on holiday in CT in December and rode the Meerendal, Jonkers and Banhoek trails, most of the others I knew from W2W - this was just a coincidence as I got the invite 5 weeks before the race, I was fit but racing was out of the question - finishing was the target and it was achieved. The only day I had fun was at Meerendal, the atmosphere around the two steep concrete switchbacks on Stairway to heaven was electric and absolutely amazing, to experience such atmosphere first hand, same as pro's, will be remembered forever, seeing it on TV does not do it justice, those cow bells ringing around my ears and so may people shouting and supporting is the best experience ever on a MTB as an average Joe - and a HUGE thank you to all the locals who stood there for hours cheering and supporting. The two stages in Montagu were hard and I saw many riders with broken rims, lots of punctures, few falls. The downhills were not fun as they were very rocky and loose - staying upright and avoiding sharp rocks was the target. I had rim inserts (Pazner XC) and everything that rotates or moves was replaced prior to the race - very lucky not to have any punctures or mechanical's but had to change brake pads after stage 5. The first transition stage 3 was gravel grinding and stage 4 was not as difficult because the UFO climb was on concrete strips - the downhill was rocky and loose - little time to relax and not much fun as arms got fatigued. Stage 5 broke me physically and emotionally - not the distance or the last climb (it was not as bad as it looks as it was on a gravel road) but the weather - cold and wet up to the Gantrou pass. The bike had so much mud when we were at Paul Cluver that even pushing it uphill was a HUGE effort - the wheels did not turn, they were sliding. Stopped few times to clean the mud from the chain stop, cassette, used the bottle to clean the chain - it was fugly. Seeing Stellies after the climb was such a relief but the downhill once more was not fun due to arms fatigue - my fingers cramped just holding the brakes. I know some called them coward levers but I was not going to risk anything so close to the finish. Stage 6 and 7 I knew and it was nice to ride smooth manicured trails again and I was so thankful to the organizers not to take us to the top of Saaltjie via the single trail at Jonkers - that would have caused huge backlogs as it is so much harder with very steep sharp switchbacks. Saw few okes washing out on last day - stupid to risk it so close to finish. Broken and lose left cleat made my last 10ks or so hell - I was looking forward to the Stellies XC track and I could not enjoy it - next time when in CT for sure I am riding it properly. Overall opinions - the event organisation was world class and flawless - not one thing to complain about - only to praise them - I can only imagine the effort it takes to stage such a huge event and to run it as smooth as it was. I am sure there was more support crew than participants! Food, water and refresher drinks were plentiful and abundant. Most foreign riders (South American especially) have no riding etiquette - cutting and pushing in, passing on dangerous single trail positions - like wtf - I was in batches H and I - where are they racing too? Saffas on the other hand cool and always asking to pass when safe. Lots of riders missing simple technical skill of riding slowly uphill and balancing on the bike - the few uphill single trails were a challenge. My few tumbles where all on the uphills - not enough time to unclip as some riders stopped dead - war scars I guess! Lifetime memories made - the vibe and gees was excellent and the local support along the routes over the 8 days was amazing - so many people pulled out chairs and umbrellas and just sat and supported - some literally in the middle of nowhere - my wife met so many people who had no family or friends taking part - they just came to support the event - thank you WC people - you definitely made it very special to me!

The original date was 19-21 June, no interference with any other major races. Not sure what prompted the change of dates but I agree, it will dilute the field which is a huge pity considering we don't have that many big races left north of the Orange river. I chose Sani2C Nonstop over R2TS as riding at night (even for only few hours) is for me the ultimate mtb experience.

Hi Chris, my post was more related to other road user on that section as I am referring to in my 3rd last paragraph. That section of road has two solid lines. I was driving on my right line, not theirs so I did not cross the middle of the road. I was obeying the speed limit, the roadies did not. There is danger sign for sharp curves and hidden entrances from both ways - I obeyed it, the roadies did not. I passed the two MTB's on the straight before the sharp bend to the left, up to that point I passed couple other groups of MTB's and roadies cycling to the top, I anticipated there could be more coming up. Did I mention that I was driving into the sun. I was driving defensively (like I would in the Cradle in Joburg) anticipating possible problems yet the roadies where cycling like there was no possibility of any danger in front of them. So why am I in the wrong? What could I have possibly done more? If that section of the road, with all the speed limit and danger signs, does not warrant for the roadies to slow down then this is a silly debate and an accident waiting to happen.

I was in two minds about adding to this thread but considering what happened to me this morning I think I have to. I live in Joburg, ex roadie but I avoid tar roads as much as possible in the last few years, to many close calls, prefer gravel and trails. In CT for a week so decided to visit few MTB parks besides the ones I did ride as part of W2W. On my way to Jonkershoek this morning, around 7, about 1km from the parking lot, road is very narrow, no shoulder, and since I was driving directly into the sun and not sure where is this place my speed was around 20-30kmph. Sharp bend to the left and since I just passed two MTB's before the bend I was driving over the right solid middle lane. At the same time a bunch of 5 riders (few more behind them) appeared coming down the road at high speed, two of them hugging the right solid middle lane from their side. Besides the roadies exceeding the speed limit, there is a 30kmph sign coming down, both of us adhered to the rules of the road. We missed each other by a foot!! Very lucky escape for both of us but what if we hit each other? At least two of them would end up in hospital, I would end up being traumatized for life by the incident to no fault of mine. Everyone of BH would assume I was drunk, watching my cell phone or whatever. My heart and fury about the incident was high so I calmed down after tasting the awesome Cortado the coffee shop sells and checked the people around me, majority were hikers, most speaking with an accent so they foreigners. All this mean they would have been much less aware of cyclist then I am. So to all the CT roadies out there, please, PLEASE, ride defensively for the next few weeks!! I still need to visit other MTB parks and I really don't need more "excitement" than what Armageddon has given me this morning. 😊

I ordered two of the Souke bibs and I am returning them. They are not manufactured correctly - the reason for the "massive camel toe" is that the padding is stitched to far forward so I am not sitting on the padding at all and the part that's supposed to protect my perennial area goes half up to my belly button! I have never experienced this before and it is weird - it must be a defect production run or something. Temu insist on providing pics with the refund claims - they were not pretty! 🫣

I don't have carbs in my bottles, only electrolytes. Hydration in the bottles, nutrition in the pockets.

Thank you, this is exactly what I was looking for. I will need to find Magnesium Malate as I react to the citrate version, not good on long rides. How do you measure the mg? Even on Temu I struggle to find a scale that measure less than 1 gram.

Thank you, I use Biogen too as I found it to be the cheapest but I missed the Lifestyle ones, I will give it a try.

Hi guys, has anyone tried to make own electrolytes? I see there was threads about energy gels and bars but I did not find any for electrolytes. At R10 - R20 per bottle, and I use anything from 6 - 16 bottles weekly, it becomes very expensive. I try to stock up when sales are available but I would like to try and make my own, at least to use during training. There is a few videos / suggestions on Google but I would like to know if anyone has actually tried it and did it work, was it worth it, list of suppliers. etc. Thank you.

The frame is the limit on most mtb but Epic for sure and I think Trek and perhaps Titan can take up to 38T, minimal clearance so get clogged in the mud very easy but doable. Ideal for long training gravel rides. A friend of mine just added a spacer on his Epic WC and managed to squeeze in a 42T chain ring, drop bars - it is a proper gravel racing machine and looks spectacular. The chain might might be a bit stretched on top of the 52 cog though - he still needs to test it under load.

I have a gravel bike for racing, I am talking about riding / training. I do not have the skills to ride a gravel bike, rigid or DS on trails. And how do you make a switchback on a gravel frame without your shoes hitting the wheels, you have to pedal on uphill switchbacks, the wheelbase is much smaller than the mtb frame. So I can either train on gravel (gravel bike rigid or DS_ or on the trails using a mtb. So for training purposes one bike is the solution, mtb with a large chain ring for the gravel distance riding and then some single track. I am not Matt Beers so the 38T chain ring up front on trails is a challenge in many cases but speed is not of essence when training. I race using a 34T chain ring. In the Cradle I can ride to Magalies and back and then practice on the mtb trails around the Cradle or Avianto or Cradle Moon. In the WC same can be done. I think the manufacturers are still thinking that gravel and mtb are two set of clients but not so, many cyclist ride both - like me. Epic WC or Trek Supercaliber conversion to drop bars is one great solution bar the limit to 38T chainring - but never tried drop bars on trails - could be interesting.

Love the look but now weight given? And max 34T chain ring? I ride my Epic 80% of the time on gravel roads, having a 38T chain ring makes a huge difference. I wish companies will start designing DS frames that can take up to 42T chain rings without any need for spacers.

Hi Don, the routes are all marked at VG but to get to 70km you will need to know your way around. Only the North routes are maintained and properly marked, the routes in the South are only maintained when there is a race like Trailseeker otherwise most markers should still be there but VG does not take responsibility. Here is a gpx file that includes the South Route, you can just remove the Breedsneck section. Van Galeens - Breedsneck 131km.gpx

Thank you for the info on the Dirty South gravel event, looks really nice and exceptionally well priced. I will follow them if they have similar events next year. I was seriously looking at GB and the GRG but I just cannot justify spending so much money to ride on open gravel roads. For the same price I can go and ski for 10 days in EU!

Hi Jana, the tar road to Fouriesburg is very good quality, has a nice shoulder all the way, no potholes and not very busy, rolling hills but hit it early morning, and then with the sun behind you stop to enjoy few views, they are breathtakingly beautiful. If you have a gravel bike taking the detour to Destiny Castle is worth the time, stunning place, but book in advance. The road into Golden gate is good quality but has no shoulder, taxis and locals are respectful of cyclist but GP okes driving big 4x4 with SDS are not and you need to very careful. Gets very busy on weekends. There is a few hard climbs. In my view the area is best enjoyed on a gravel bike, or MTB, I have few gravel routes I can share, please DM me or check my Strava.

Hi guys, I have two solo tickets for B&B The Descent next weekend with self drive / shuttle ticket available for sale, including accommodation at a two bedroom lodge 2,5km from Emseni camp. Please DM me if interested.

Hi Gav, thank you for plotting a fantastic 43km route, however, some suggestions for next year to avoid the havoc experienced over the last weekend: 1. Perhaps charge R100 more per entry and have separate running and MTB boards? Maybe even have a runner on the actual board if colour options are limited to avoid any confusion. One purple board used for the 21km trail run on Saturday and not corrected for the MTB event casused all the problems on Sunday. 2. Maybe some youngster can ride the route on a motorbike early morning to check the markings? 3. Have the fun MTB family rides on the Saturday and the Nationals on Sunday? 4. And if the above is not possible, at least please try not to share the route used for a National event with fun riders. There are lot of options around KCC to plot a 20km fun route and not share it with the riders racing. Having to share the single track towards the end through the forest and next to the river asking at least 30-40 families with kids to move to the side was not fun for me but more importantly not fun and not fair for the parents and small kids that most probaly took part for the first time in a MTB race. Those kids might reconsider the fun effect next time dad says lets go racing. Otherwise well done to the team, everything else was superb and I will support all your events as I enjoy coming down to Karkloof and riding around - lots of fun.

Hi Gav, how do I download the routes without opening an account and giving them my credit card details? Nothing on KCC website.

I have also bought a lot from Temu, took 3 orders to get the right shorts as I like the padding very thin and agree, Lameda is excellent quality so far, should last as long as Assos or Ciovita did. Glasses with myopic lenses is a winner. MTB shoes I found weird fit, I'll avoid in future, cleats slightly to big and didn't fit properly in the SPD pedals so I will also avoid this in future. Gloves and especially winter gloves are good quality. Refund / exchange process was flawless so far. But I made a mistake and ordered from Ali Express last time - nightmare - I will strongly advise to avoid them. One set of shorts completely wrong size on the website, I send photos of the advertised product, my waist, other shorts I have etc. - no luck, they refused to refund so I donated them. Second set of shorts - the seller stated wrong item description - gloves instead of shorts, customs cannot clear them due to wrong value and description, it has been 2 months and still arguing about the refund even though I provided all the evidence and they have been shipped back to China.

Very nice, but that's bit ageist Fine, I'll buy my own "Karkloof Gravel branded garment and a decent steak roll at the finish line" ! 😉

Yip, a MTB with drop bars is classified as a gravel bike. I took part at the Berg 100 last weekend and one lady showed up with an S-Works Epic World Cup LTD that her husband converted to a gravel bike by replacing the flat MTB bars with drop bars - no comment from the CSA commissioner. It is the most beautiful bike I have ever seen.

I know the area well, the trails around the Falls is not tame (or less technical) but are easily handled on a MTB, on a gravel bike a very different story. There is lot of options around Karkloof and no reason at all to use any single trails, use the jeep track and farm roads if needed be, why not make it pure gravel - why make a GravDuro event, makes no sense to me.