Headshot

You also need to make sure of two things 1. - is the star nut thing in the fork steerer tube firm and not slipping up when you tighten the top cap? and, 2- is there is room to pull the stem and headseat up tight? By this I mean that the steerer tube needs to end at least a few few mm below the top of the stem. If there is no gap there, the top cap tightening will achieve nothing. Add a spacer below the stem if you need to increase the steerer/stem clearance..

Hans Dampf super gravity casing 2.35's are great in front. I'd go wide and softer on the front and narrower and harder compound rear. I have just put on a Nevegal 2.3 at the back - a little heavy but more durable than my last one I hope...

DH spds - very good but heavy compared to the 520s on up.

If you had looked carefully you would have seen that the perps you saw wear green parks uniforms. The baboons fight all the time - it sounds worse than it is. They are no more aggressive than they have ever been IMO - I regularly encounter them and stop for a drink to watch their antics. They are not dangerous in my experience. A large male climbed into my car to look for food the other day. He simply ignored my attempts to chase him out but left after I got into the car with him. Irritating (and entertaining) yes, dangerous, not in my experience.

FF gloves are definitely a bit hotter but worth the pain. I sometimes leave them off on the uphill part of my ride if its very hot.

No I think I am having trouble following your English. And reading Tubehunters post again, I think you didn't understand his English.

That's old news - read the thread and dismount from your high horse. You didn't answer the question posed. Please do so before asking your own. This is hypothetical remember. What would you have done if your life had been endangered by the van driver in the manner suggested. If it was like that I think many people may well have understandably reacted in exactly the same way as the cyclists did. in fact, their behaviour could even be seen as self defence. If they had not perhaps the van and its occupant would have continued to endanger their lives. If it was nothing like that, their reaction was probably excessive. I am looking forward to hearing the full other side of the story as should everyone else.

http://www.canberratimes.com.au/executive-style/fitness/blogs/on-your-bike/youre-a-cyclist-so-its-your-fault-20140205-321np.html A slight mood lightener and very apt description of what being an outie or cyclsit is all about. Apologies to Flowta if he already posted this link.

Think I need a bike on car road trip to KZN....

Rule no 1 - do not buy MTB specific gloves from a bike shop. Rule 2 - go to a motorcycle shop and buy a pair of strong long lasting MX gloves for a fraction of the price. Fly racing are good - my current and only pair are several months and crashes old and still going strong. Giro FF gloves I have had were worse than shite - they used some real leather on the palms with multiple seams - slippery and not durable at all. Just junk.

Ja, I suspect that the Capra may get the same kind of review as the Rallon - a great bike downhill but not the first choice when the ride includes lots of climbing. Could make a good bike if you want to do enduros and race DH with one bike though

Noted - seems the crims are everywhere these days. Note to self - find that missing pepper spray canister and stick it on the camelbak. TMNP could also do better on the security front - instead of wasting time and money fining people for swimming in the dam near Rhodes Mem.

The Orbea and YT look a bit alike - and I like them both... Have to start saving...

I was in no way blaming the trail for the incident - that corner was always there albeit with a tree to mark the spot. Thing is trees do stand out rather well, whereas stumps lie low and nail you. I have had my fair share of run ins over the years. A jump off that stump would be a good way to use it to our advantage. Years ago I witnessed a crash on the jeep track from the neck as we rode up. The guy lost it round a corner and flew head first into a pine tree. He and his bike ended up meters down the slope. Lets just say he lived but his head wound was not pretty...They sent a heli for him too. Lets face it - MTB can be dangerous - that' s part of what makes it fun.

Just watched a video of me and HHH riding that trail. You carry speed off Cobra and enter Mamba. Shortly after that is a massive stump (ex tree :-( ) that the trail ducks to the right around. If you aren't concentrating properly or lose control when you brake to get around the short right hander, it is waiting for you. By the sound of it he hit the stump at speed and went OTB on his head. Not great.

Still waiting for the perps to come up with their side I see. I am guessing that isn't ever going to happen... As the judge in Oscars trial will eventually say - "Guilty"

Super fun event guys - well done!

Just fitted a 2.35 Nevegal to my back wheel - 900g and has lovely stiff side knobs. Had to tweak my rimstrip and add three layers of tape to get them to mount tubeless. Width is fine for the back wheel ie noticeably narrower than my HD 2.35 on the front. I had to ditch my 2.35 Bronson because of excessive tread wear. Its a great tyre but the compound is way too soft which is a pity because it mounts tubeless easily is fat for a 2.3 and has tough side walls...

50mm might make the change more extreme but nothing you can't overcome with stem and headset spacer changes and some extra air in the rear shock - I could make it work I bet. You can't just change one thing and leave the rest alone or expect the bike to feel the same as it did. See my earlier comment on the proper way to ride - ie not like a sack of potatoes, but mobile over the bike.

Guys, don't get ahead of yourselves. You'd have to really do something bizarre like mount a DH fork on an XC bike to get the kind of problems you mention. Adding 20-30 mm to a fork on a bike designed for a 120 or 100mm fork will not have a negative effect, unless you expect the bike to still ride exactly like the shorter forked version - in fact it will be better if you like descending...

But the Fuel is not slack in today's terms - about 68 or 69. what fork you running?

Ya, nothing wrong with riding up a hill - its just that if you want to enjoy the downs and have sufficient energy and time left to ride them properly or more than once, doing hill repeats does not work so well. And most of us pedal on the downs, unlike most SA mtb riders

And of course wider bars make steering on the technical uphills perfectly easy on a slacker AM bike, as does a shorter stem eg 50mm.

Whaaaat? Were you trying a 63deg DH bike or something? Most AM bikes these days come with a HA of between 66 and 68 degrees. However, may things affect the stated HA such as the fork travel - a taller fork slackens the HA . A softer rear shock may also cause the rear to ride lower and have the same effect. My bike is about 67 deg but with the fork dropped 30mm to 120mm travel is probably more like 68.5. I use this for the climbs. The slacker angle helps hugely with stability on steep descents but you also need to be mobile on the bike and change your riding style a bit. Moving weight side to side and forwards to cover the front wheel a bit is standard stuff if you want to go fast downhill.

My word, so much wheel size opinion derived from bike shop sales pitches and bike advertising nonsense on this thread. Enjoy the new bike!