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Ya, some signs at the bottom of vasbyt spelling out that the up rider yield to down riders will be good - the trail is a lekker up ride as well. You do have to keep your wits about you and listen for approaching riders though....

Good for a year - how about many years. My wifes second hand R10k Zula with DT 1600 wheels, XO and R1 brakes, is going to be good for ages. Many bargains to be had if you forget the wheel size nonsense and look for a good frame and components.

We use a backpack for our 12kg 16 m old - its not one of the frame versions however, those are far too unstable, but rather one of these - http://www.africanbabycarrier.co.za/gallery.htm. The advantage of this pack is that kiddo is low on your body and moves with you. You don't notice the weight much as a result. Obviously your bike set up also plays a role. I have a 150mm travel AM bike with TALAS fork and dropper post which makes it possible to tailor the ride as you go to cope with terrain. A steep forked low barred XC hard tail is not going to be ideal. A helmet is obviously required and speed needs to be kept to a safe level. Tuck and roll in a crash is not an option - you have to be prepared to get hurt to protect your baby. I have taken my son up to Silvermine dam from the arboretum a few times and carefully round Hoogekraal. He loves it and its a good work out.

http://dirtmountainbike.com/mountain-biking-events/downhill/uci-world-cup/2014-world-cup-dh-cairns-captyvate-media-practice-video.html That track looks triiiiicky - slippery as hell just adds to it.

Good idea but you could also put a post in the tech section - some of the answers may assist the rest of us...

Myles, agreed, no bun fight needed or wanted. My point about the snake slopes is that without the burn we will be perpetually fighting the encroachment of alien vegetation and risk losing any woodwork that gets put up should they belatedly decide to burn those slopes. The saplings create nice skewers when cut back. It also means all the excess wood the cutters left behind stays put making trail alterations a far from an easy task. I hope the botanical experts get TMNP to do something about it asap. PS: I see piles of smoke riding from the bonfires opposite the picnic area this morning....

Myles you go on and on about the daily maintenance which allegedly happened. i didn't see evidence of much of this I must say. Take Vasbyt for instance - the pallet drop in landing fell apart and the launch pad itself received not a spot of maintenance even after I pointed it out months ago. i have just ridden it the way it is. Bushes didn't get trimmed etc. Sorry but i am not buying your agenda ridden hard sell of the previous dispensation. We need to move on and deal with the real issues which are a land controller that does not make life easy for us and getting some improvements done on Mamba and Vasbyt. I for one am optimistic things will improve.

The snake slopes were left in a mess giving Deon et al limited choice of lines because of all the wood left there, not so? Instead of doing the required burns they have left the slopes to deteriorate further. The problems I mentioned would still be there even with a bit of trailside trimming. I for one have no problem with the enhanced tech aspects of Mamba because of the erosion, but it is causing problems for some people. Most of Mamba is doing okay considering the sandy soil. I am not sure about the burns that Deon mentioned but I have seen the wood set up in bonfire shaped piles opposite the picnic ground and presume that's where they are busy - that's not even a mountain or a slope or part of the park? Or is it? Quite bizarre that this area gets the burn while the rest of the park proper is left to turn into an alien forest.

The problem with Mamba and the other snakes is that TMNP have failed woefully to manage the area properly. They have not done the required high heat burns to stimulate the fynbos seed bed and the aliens and weeds are building into a lovely thicket that will become a massive fire risk in due course, not to mention bar catchers. SA Pine also left large quantities of branches and even entire trunks instead of clearing the area as they are doing lower down. Some doubt exists that SANParks have the necessary skills to do the burns. This makes rerouting and maintaining the trails even harder...

Ya, gradient never shows - the first part is very steep. I see there are a pile of spiders and things there to make it even more interesting for spectators and euros. Greg should have an advantage being from Africa and all... :-)

Watched the sic mic run. It looks pretty good - some cornering skill up top will be required and the speed will make it interesting...

Best wishes to your Dad - hope he heals up well. There are a few 60 plus guys who whip many younger guys asses in the enduros so 60 is nothing. That section on mamba is deceptive - its best ridden with a little speed and line choice is everything. The last thing you need is to focus on the one rock that will catch you out... A longer travel bike with a high front end also helps...

Aaah no - I'll monitor mine and see how it goes. I am using Cafe Latex so no ammonia may help...

Ya, smells nice too and comes in great colours, and best of all, no horrid adhesive residue.

I have been experimenting with different rim strip on a set of No Tubes Olympics in 26"size which I will use as my lightweight XC wheels. I found silicon self fusing tape at BW for under R60 and gave it a go. It stretches to thinner than its actual width of 25mm or so and is easy to fit on narrow rims (19mm) and fuses to itself very tightly. Initially I had my doubts because of air loss but discovered that the tyre sidewall was at fault (rubbish Bontrager tubeless ready tyre. The thickness of the tape could cause problems in certain cases and it remains to be seen if its durable enough... More tests to follow.

Stellenbosch springs to mind - we had a few WC's there back in the day - Missy Giove and all! You could build a seriously steep course and some of the existing tracks could be woven into an XC loop - Jonkershoek is magic and Stellies is a great party place.

My biggest disappointment was Mitch Rop not qualifying - dying to see how the 29er did. What happened to him?

Can't believe the beer was absent... Maybe CT can pitch for a WC dh track - then it can shift back and forth between KZN and WP. We have a lot of beer in CT...

That rock garden is real trail bike territory - not surprised there were a few crashes!

That Enduro is one 29er I would be happy to ride/own. Then again the 650 version is coming...

so few women and no SA's :-(

Ja, must say I'd be very scared on that track on my 150mm bike. Then again, these guys have fitted nice fat 36 forks with 180mm travel and such like up front which probably helps a lot...

Mitch "29er" Rop has a bloody arm already ...

Nothing at all showing - just some tiny words saying "no event"

And where the F are the trackside tweets from Warner and co - want to know how practice is going. Anyone have a twitter person at the track I can follow? Come on - this is better than the OP trial...