wapad

Well after 5 rides, I can say that I am really happy with the Pivot This bike is an awesome climber and smooth down the tracks, the frame is stiff and now that I have the rear shock setup properly Previously on my Anthem i was running the rear shock at 205 psi to get the right sag, now on the Pivot i am right down to 120 psi partly due to the longer stroke on the shock The Medium pivot frame almost identically matches the Large Anthem so setup was quite easy except for raising the seatpost a touch, but same stem etc I am running slightly wider bars, with no rise but a few degrees sweep One thing about the bike I like is that there is far less wash out of the front wheel, I believe it is something they worked on by fiddling with the front triangle and keeping the chain stays nice and short The Formula brakes are awesome and that with only a 160mm front and rear The Arch EX are wheels are really bomb proof and the S-works tyres are great for winter although will put a better suited tyre for summer when things get sandy Still getting used to the 2x10 ( 26-38) Surprisingly have been the 36 rear yet I have tried a few saddles from spez but ended up going back to my Alliante - lighter and way more comfy The SID RL front shock is great and now working well with the rear The bikes are not cheap ( 40K but full XT, XO FD and formula R1 brakes, Stans Arch wheels and KCNC bits Fizik saddle ) rear end that has very little bob so great for climbing This bike has the potential to be sub 11 Kg, I mde a XC route a did a few laps and seems good and responsive when things get tight and technical up or down Well that it from me things to be carefull of is the spacing for rear tyre size quite tight and had to get a buzz rack bar to still use my holdfast bike rack

In Cape Town loads of places Complete Cyclist up your end should stock them

looks aside this Bike is a performer, with the slightly slacker head angle so much more predictable compared to my Anthem

Why would you buy a wheel that is so soft, I had a set of AMC for my 26" and it was the same, great wheels but way to soft and then you can have problems seating them if the dent is to big ... seems like a waste of money for the sake of light wheels

Just remember no use getting light wheels and then putting heavy tyres on 2x Geax Saguaro 1540 g without Stans 2x Spez Fast Trak s-works 1100g big diff 2x Spez Fast Trak Control 1260g If I were you go for the Arch EX what you dont hear about all these brands is that the back-up if you break a spoke or Hub Stans parts easily available, so if anything goes easy to repair like at a stage race etc All the other brands can be a struggle- Easton, Mavic etc, I have a set of Eastons and shudder to think if anything breaks on them

This is it after the first ride, Tokai was pretty wet and muddy, but couldn't resist and it was a good exercise, she cleans up pretty good .. My Large Anthem was sitting at just on 12 KG The tyres on the new bike are the Spez fast Trak S-Works superlight at 510g and so far was pretty impressed with them, not the best over the roots but grippy over the Boulders route and great down the Vasbyt track I must say using Formula R1 brakes and they are really something special, even with a 160mm Rotor in front

Here she is, sitting at 11.7 kg very sedate looking and I suppose could be pimped a bit more but man what a pleasure to ride An awesome climber and excellent in the turn and very agile down the single track I'll have to get used to the 2x10 For the racing snakes you could easily get this bike to sub 11 KG

Doing a bit of stock take in the garage I realise that the collective value of my Kit is climbing steeply My main bikes are insured, my question is do you guys lock your bikes to a fixed point aswell in the garage or do they sleep inside I'm sure my Insurance stipulates this

Be carefull with the Easton only the M1 hub can be converted, I bought the EA 70 XCT a few months back great wheels make no mistake but you have to buy in the correct config As opposed to the M1 hub on the EA 90 which can be converted but Omnico have no stock and dont know when they will have Also with Easton as was told to me if the Hub packs in you cant get a replacement, so not the best wheel to buy second hand and also 24 spoke so not many if any other hubs to replace with. Given the type of riding done seems silly not to be able to get replacement hubs

I finally have started the build and weighed the frame 2.96-2,98 KG putting Arch EX wheels with KCNC bits, XT group with Formula brakes and a SID shock S-works fast-trak tyres Should be up and riding by Friday yeeha

I have a set of mtb Easton wheels EA 70 XCT and want to convert the hub to 142x 12 According to the info I was told it should be able to to convert to 142x12 by replacing the end caps and I suppose changing the axle, much like the stans hubs I assume Has anyone done this or have any guidance on the way forward

Does Anyone know if the DT swiss hub ( 350 hub) on the Giant wheel can be converted to rear axle 142 x 12 i think, without changing the hub Otherwise I suppose will have to change the hub. Thanks in advance

I was on a standard crank 175mm 53/39 then to a compact 50/34 172.5mm Now back to a 172.5mm 52/38 it will make a big difference going from compact to a Standard crank and you will feel it on the climbs generally you can get away with the 172.5mm where less leverage is required as opposed to mtb where cadence isnt as smooth its better to have that extra 2.5 mm leverage as explained by Jeroen Swart on Supercycling

I will when I get the Frame but it is heavier than the Giant Anthem 1, but very efficient on the climb, I was lucky enough to have a good trial with it

Pivot Mach 429 Frame and front shock now to spend on all the other bits and pieces

The comparative weight was 7.77kg frame with all the bits minus saddle and seatpost for the pivot (m) and no wheels 7.49kg for the Anthem( L) so about 280-300g weight difference but as previously said the bike can be brought down to a great weight, but I can tell you the bike is super efficient on the climb and very stiff/tight in the twisties Personally i think this bike should be compared to the Pyga 129

Well had my first ride and it was quite impressive It climbs really well even on suspension mode, during the setup mode I had to drop the rear shck pressure by 30psi compared to my Anthem just to get the sag right and even yesterday only used half the travel down Vasbyt This is the first time I have felt what rear end stiffness feels like so it scores well there My disappointment was with the 2x10 as on the big ring front and back there was irritating FD rub having never used this setup it seems to defeat the object that in fact you dont have full range of gears ???? It may have been a setup issue as it was the bikes first real ride as far as I know The Bike tracks really well, aim and go, the tyres were crossmark which i dont like and maybe were a bit to hard for my liking as they werent very sure footed The bike had SLX brakes which were fantastic albeit on the wrong sides for me On the downside the cable routing may need a look at but its is also a good indicator of the difference between open and propedal as you can see the slight bob totally disappear when flicked to propedal, I can honestly say that there is no need to 'lockout" there is that little bob Next ride will drop rear pressure and get the tyre pressure right for the 'Wapad" All in all a great DS

I have finally got a demo 429 for a few days took it home yesterday to set up for my size I'll be comparing it to my Anthem 29 I have managed to get the Medium which sets up almost identical to my Anthem Large The 429 is sitting at just over 12 KG but plenty of 'fat' on it will post over the next few days

Not sure I agree withe spinning bike part sounds like increasing strength, to climb you need to increase power and the best way is cardiac capacity and keeping your cadence up. the rowing machine is great for this whatever you try, you need to get the lungs efficient so any cross training you do should involve cardio, conditioning the core, keeping the weight down and flexibilty In simple terms if you put out 300w at 100kg, then if you can drop a few kilos, you up your power to weight and you WILL IMPROVE on the climbs I am a big cyclist 100Kg and all my gym is light weights and cardio with a big component of that being interval based The rowing machine is excellent for this, I work offshore so have limited training equipment yet with a rowing machine and a crap spinning bike I come home after 60 days, straight on the bike best climbing times up the Wapad, Silvermine ..why drop in weight ( 5kg) and increased cardiac capacity I really rate the Rowing machine try this 3 x 15-20 min blocks at 2:10 / 500m stop in between 3 times a week I was at about 120-130 BPM Then try 1 x 10 mins flat out.. and I mean flat out I was at 1:54 / 500m, my HR was averaging 160 my max got to 170 BPM we had a compo going to break 2500 m under 10 mins maybe 2x week I was eventually at 2680m for the 10 min I reckon 20 years ago it would easily be do-able but at 42 not that easy I started this from doing 0 so achieved that over about 9 weeks, it was amazing to see building the base helping with the top end cardio Ultimately that helped improve my climbing even though still a long way to go .. but not to blow my own trumpet not many guys my size climb with me Oh and climb some more

still sound s a little emotional 26 to 29 er was different but not WOW ..I only imagine 2 features lighter and snappier in the turns I cant imagine it climbing better and definitely no better down single track except maybe in the switchbacks Agree NSBB..

I've tried Evox and didnt rate it I've used USN and dont agree that it doesnt work, I use a protein shake more for peace of mind when at home I eat fairly normally and use L-glutamine and maybe a shake after gym drinks wise 32GI or hammer perpetuem and Enduren bars on the bike Protein wise I rate USN, I have also tried a few others, but USN seem to get a good texture and I have to say it does seem to give you that full feeling for an hour or two after a good session

My diet isnt great due to circumstance as I work offshore so you take what they give you ..sort of But I do take a Protein shake - IGF-1 after a heavy riding or weight session, also taking CLA and Arthroguard and VIT C Just didnt have space for the L-Glutamine I took a day off with no exercise and the difference was amazing my legs felt strong HR was like an F1 engine up and down through the range Busy trying to train for the Cape Pioneer under very different circumstances, so getting to know the body and what it needs ...rest rest

Hey Thanks for the feedback my biggest killer will be endurance, I ll be home for a week soon and will do a high mileage/time week before heading off again When I get home I have a 6-7 week run where my first 3-4 weeks I'll put those long rides and then build in a taper I have a certain amount of base and out here I have been concentrating on getting the riding hours in with 2 gym sessions per week already I can see the improvement i manage to get in 4 rides that give me 5 hrs with one ride a 45 min push and then a long ride, the thing is the resistance, it really takes it out of you. My mental strength has definitely improved just from having a goal, I wont have a problem getting in 12 hrs a week if I can sit on that piece of s..t that I'm on out here... he he he Was feeling a bit flat this week but just one full day rest made a massive difference My main goal offshore is to maintain the discipline, I have been logging everything and the numbers are improving all the time I reckon I'll be flying up the wapad to the mast as my Zwartberg Pass test when I get home My goal is to finish thats it once thats in the bag I'll look at other goals or look to try again next year. When are you home maybe we can do a ride or two I should be home 1 Aug

WRT cycling is a rest day just for the legs I find after 3-4 days riding that the legs just dont wanna go but also the HR doesnt want to rev up what I want to know is should you also avoid doing gym work on a rest day been doing plenty time on an exercise bike where the resistance is quite high so a very different feeling to a spinner Yesterday maintaining 60% HR but struggled to get to 75% had strength to crank up resistance but no power to get the cadence up and keep it there I would say that if I wasnt looking at HR i would have thought it was much higher So on rest days should I just stay away from everything and REST training towards Pioneer so have a goal

I should have about 6 weeks before the race where I'll be at home to get some long rides in Agreed mental toughness will be a big factor and believe me thats what it takes to train on the trainer that I'm using at the moment I'm interested if there are guys tha have done this type of thing, I dont want to cram a massive amount of training in near the end either, but my taper might be a bit shorter