Headshot

Getting hypothermic waiting in a long Q is not part of a fun ride with your mates but it is at a race like this.

Anything new feels amazing for the first few rides until you get used to it and then the effect fades and you start looking for the next big power gain eg an electric motor. 🙂

The point is that the stuff be it South Industries or anyone else is ridiculously overpriced for what it is. A set of bike wheels. No, we don't have to buy it and I never would as a matter of principle, but it sets a mark and leads to overpricing lower down the line too. You can double the price of a decent set of alu wheels and they'd still look like value compared to these and I suspect that is what happens sometimes.

Ouch, another beyond expensive bicycle accessory. I guess guys making affordable components simply don\'t have the ad spend that these guys have because I would far rather see advertorials on value oriented products not overpriced stuff I would not buy even if I had the cash. I\'m all for innovation and local production but who cares what the pros are riding, really? If they are using it, its probably something you or I should not be using. IMO of course :-)

You may be right - I'm going on second hand information re Microshift but I'd be prepared to give it a go as the pricing is so competitive even in SA. You're paying a lot more for XT and GX. Microshift is more in Deore pricing territory.

There is no need to cry - you'll be able to get normal derailleurs for years if not forever. I reckon microshift 10 speed with 11-48 rear cassette is the way to go. Cheap and works great by all accounts.

That isn't what you nay think it is. I wonder if there will ever be an adaptor to make your older bike UDH compatible?

They dropped the HL on the Epic a few years back didnt they? Its more about how much longer can they flog the brain dead horse.. I think that there will still be courses where the even lighter HT will be favoured by weight weenies. Their marketing spiel is typical OTT BS like the SRAM Transmission hype and many others.

What's the Trek - 80mm? When a softer tyre makes a noticeable difference to how the back end of a bike feels I suspect that 80mm is more than enough for most XCO and even marathon duties. BTW, "full house" is at least 160mm at each end in my book 🙂

I think they scared Trek will get a head start on the legal action if too much detail is leaked way ahead of the big loooooorrrrrnch.

Depending on the temperature I tend to just wear a long sleeved top - either trail running or bike specific as well as a tailored wind breaker as a shell. As long as you're generating heat while riding this keeps you protected from excessive wind chill even though you're wet.

I bet they've gone back to a 72deg HTA after DnD complained it was getting too slack so he'd never buy one 🙂

Ooooh, treading on dangerous ground here...Specialized Forces will be unleashed on a black op shortly...

Bwahaha... Missing link on a gravel bike. Just wear hiking shoes.

Okay, so you were leaned on, bike mafia style 🙂

Does anyone here ever ride in a fully waterproof riding jacket? I would imagine you are soon as wet as you would be if it wasn't waterproof just from the sweat?

So that fun thread about the new Spesh Epic has disappeared. I know I'm slow out the blocks but did Spesh lean on BH management to get it ripped?

My 2018 Spesh has internal routing and so far it hasn't been an enormous hassle. Ive done a brake hose and a rear derailleur housing - the latter did take dismantling the FSR pivot to get the cable through the chainstay but its still pretty easy. There are no internal tubes for the cables but its easy to feed them through the frame and access the ends at the down tube/head tube junction. Strangely, they also don't rattle.

You must ride it after hundreds of DH bikes have been practising for a day - surface turns to dust, big ruts, high speeds and tricky gaps you have to make low down or you have no chance of a decent time. That said its not as gnarly as upper Phoenix where you could launch off the mountain quite easily if you get it wrong...

I have entered but I am now feeling fearful - hopefully my 180 fork can handle all the rocks and what if it rains? So many enduro worries.

If they'd used Enjoy to supply the kit it would all be at least two sizes too small...

Not entirely sure - I am hoping for the end of the year at the latest, but a lot depends on finances and how long it actually takes to reassemble/get running. I need to get quotes for repainting side covers, front fender/nose and the enormous fuel tank(s). Hairy you referred me to someone a while back - can you recall who it was and their number?

My DR Big restoration has moved on a teeny bit with the servicing of the front caliper. I managed to get replacement seals from Suzuki South but ran into an issue with a very stuck piston. After much prizing out of old outer seal, spraying of a variety of toxic substances and the reconnection of the master cylinder and bleeding of the system, it came out quite easily. The caliper is now clean and has fresh pads and rubber. Its also been pained silver since the pic was taken. The air filter on the bike had been cobbled together out of new paper and the old top and bottom caps glued together with way too much epoxy - it didn't fit properly as you van imagine but luckily I was able to find an original Suzuki replacement. I also drained the oil and fitted a new filter and cleaned the gauze trap underneath. The oil filter housing had destroyed threads - hamfisted mechanics using big tools? It had also had gasket compound smeared all over the ancient looking O-ring, some of which had found its way into the filter... After a thorough clean and a new O-ring from Suzuki I refitted the cover using longer socket head bolts - an old trick I discovered with a mtb stem bolt that stripped - and it has worked perfectly - so far. The drained oil looked relatively good and I did not see any metal fragments in it...

Just say no to E.