Headshot

I wonder if there is a generic equivalent - it may be a standard belt? When a car V Belt costs R500 for a long, German made item, this looks like blatant price gouging by wahoo.

I see the highlights have taken a page from Netflix and added some drama and music to the recap. I liked how Wout threw his bottle onto the tar to add some drama to the finish zone. Warming Tiz up to watch todays stage...

They close up at 1530 and are on their way at 1545 from what we saw...

Not sure if it has been mentioned before but TMNP close their office at 15h45 not 4 pm as I believed.Just doing their bit to contribute to greenhouse gas emissions with a few wasted car trips I'm sure...

Here endeth the lesson.

This is what I'd term a preachy condescending comment based on assumptions and very little information about the person or equipment you're commenting on. BTW I still have a set of Mavic rims on Shimano hubs that came on a 2005 bike that wasn't top range either and they still work just fine despite being used often outside their comfort zone.

The rubbish wheels I experienced were neither strong or light or on very cheap bikes. And neither bikes were designed to be light, they were both trail/enduro machines with wheels that were not fit for purpose. Thats certainly not what I wanted, so it isn't the markets fault, its cheapskate profiteering bike companies taking chances on sub par components hoping the owner won't ride the things properly.

I concur on the wheel aspect. Even quite expensive bikes often come with pathetically weak rims and hubs. It seems to be an area where skimping occurs at various price points. Specialized and Giant are guilty.

I like Tiz because despite subscribing to GCN plus, I can't watch the TDF thanks to the Supersport monopoly. We have just started watching the Netflix TDF soapie and its great.

Is the name of the race based on the trajectory of the entire country at the moment?

You would think that removing alien invasive species and fixing trails should be part of their core skill set. I think what they say is merely an excuse to justify not doing something they could if a decent budget was allocated to TMNP for such things. Also when you have contributing to the developmental state as an aim, conservation and preservation suffers, if you look at Tokai and Cecilia at the moment.Restaurants and other things like that are a different story.

They get stock in all the time so I'm confused why you are worried about the service kits. Their service is legendary. I fitted a 100mm drop Lyne to my wife's old Zula. Its been flawless for more than three years with just a clean and lube to keep it happy.

They do love to extort cash whenever they can however. The last item above is part of the problem as it is elsewhere in SA society. everything goes out to tender, wasting months or years and often leading to poor performance by ill-equipped contractors. Alien clearing at Tokai being a case in point. The lack of a dedicated trail repair team being another.

Not a "bark striper" which is a kind of fish.

You jest. SANP don't even have a dedicated trail repair or alien hacking crew, so any jeep track maintenance seems to get put out to tender, which of course leads to delays, overcharging and probably corruption. All in the name of allowing everyone to "eat a little bit" at the expense of the environmental gem that is Table Mountain.

I think you've missed my point in your haste to bat for SANP (and tell us naughty bikers off?) Its not even about not caring its about rank inefficiency and poor communication, misappropriation/allocation of resources, incompetent staff, and sadly, lack of maintenance of trails. It's also about all visitors not just cyclists. (I'm not sure where you think they're doing a good job maintaining hiking trails but as far as I can see its largely being done by outside groups like FOTM). I love the Kirstenbosch traverse - it is a real gem, but its becoming less and less of an option for beginners due to the parlous state of the SANP sections of jeep track. Its almost gone full enduro and is heavy going even for hikers. The Kirstenbosch sections are in near perfect condition which stands in stark contrast.That said I did see them removing a fallen tree on Friday. Their R1 Million SANP Cruiser had managed to get to it but was going to k@k off on the drive up to the next one. I'd be happy to pay for access to the mountain as a hiker or cyclist if that cash was actually used to maintain the numerous trails, deal with poachers and bark strippers,, in contrast to money paid to TokaiMTB or FOTM which shows tangible results. Perhaps we need to go back to square one and make any and all access to the mountain subject to a permit fee? But who would buy in to that given their track record of poor comms and misallocation of budgets. Its like paying taxes and expecting the government/Eskom to keep the lights on...

Yes stated like it's some revelation that recently came to light... SANP is an excellent example of why SA is failing. Government is simply hopeless. I see it every day in the way state institutions are managed. They are rule bound and incapable of making practical efficient rules. The concept of cause and effect are lost on them.

Are there any trails left at Tyberberg?

My card has also lapsed so I've been forced to pay the crazy SANP Tokai gate fee of R100. The main reason I haven't renewed yet is the drive to Tokai - only about 20km round trip and the hassles involved - photos and the form, completed and signed by both applicants. Last time they made me get my wife to sign the form at work and whatsap me a copy so they could see she'd signed the indemnity and issue the card to her. I still have flashbacks of utter frustration when I think about going back. 🙂

Bridle is excellent and the climb is not that extreme even on a normal bike. A nice route is to start with Bridle, then go back up for all the snakes and then down Dh or Vasbyt.

If you don't know your way around study Trailforks and make sure you know where everything is. Tracks are shorter than JH but no less fun.

As far as we are aware this was a once off that probably won't happen again.. The reality is that the land is part of a national park. In no park in SA do SANP cater for mountain biking other than providing access and some rudimentary trails. Think Harkerville and probably a few others where cycling is permitted. The kind of "proper" MTB trails with exclusive bike use ( no hikers) at Tokai, exist only because of TokaiMTB which not only repairs the trails there are but also helps fend off environmental lobby group agitation against "downhill trails" and liaises with SANP management. The trail maintenance is key - if the trails were left to waste away and erode, SANP would simply close them and the enviro lobby groups would have a field day. Tokai is in most respects better as a trail riding destination than it used to be. Its gnarlier and more fun than it ever was when it had so-called crown jewel status. I think people just have fond memories of the trees which fogs the memory. That was also before Tygerberm and JH became so well developed. That said, Tokai is the second most ridden destination in the country, running a close second to Tygerberg on ridelog stats.

Some guys have broken down rocks and tried to put some illegal woodwork in the Cecilia area. So things are improving for gravel bikers. Ya know if your bike isn't up to it you can always bash the trail smooth...

Actually I think its you, Nino.

The UCI/ESO really are mad. I spent almost the whole weekend on the couch watchin DH and XCO racing and now the same the next weekend with an enduro thrown in for good measure. Luckily the weather in CT is making actually riding your bike near impossible but still, I think its an excess of TV on one weekend. According to some commentators, Austria is a really bad place to ride MTB's because most land and tracks are off limits, unlike France and other Euro countries. So the enduro is going to be on a lot of boring bike park tracks. The DH is always good though. Did anyone notice what a cry baby Fluckiger was after the race on Sunday. What a sad little man.