rudi-h

alberts farm, emarentia, delta park loop. pm me for details. you can do about 1.5 hours and more if your willing to do a loop or two

my 2.5c many literature warns about going too hard, overtraining and preach about taking it slow and doing the base miles. here's the deal, I did both. When I started out, I did everything at 110%, resulting in injuries and poor performance as the literature predicts. Then I did it super slow (60-70%) while training for Ironman, because everybody said I should klap the base miles and not worry about speed / intervals / hills / strength. After going both routes, I'm somewhere inbetween now. Train hard at times, but give yourself a rest afterwards, but IMO there's not real point in doing 6hr rides at 60%. That's just a waste of time. So dont care about HR too much, ride hard at times, but rest properly afterwards or do intervals. Not necessarily based on time, but maybe hit the hills hard and take it easy on the flats. If you klap it hard for a long time too often, you will suffer fatigue and overtraining symptoms. After doing that for some time you will know what HR is sustainable for what duration of time.

i ride a loop starting in linden, riding to delta park for a lap, then to emmarentia for a lap, through to alberts farm for a few rocky hills and then head up the koppie for the sunset. Depending on the route it can take anything from 1 - 2 hrs. Great ride. pm me if your interrested, i might joint you one evening!!!

Never heard the reason. Why did impey only do 1 year for the shack? Don't they normally sign for at least 2?

I often drink a glass of energy drink before heading out on a race / stage race after a good breakfast. Reason being, that it increases my energy levels for the first few km's, as the energy from the oats only kicks in a little while later when your body has digested it. I also seem to be better hydrated as I start off, not having to to drink much in the first hour, so my water bottles also last a little longer. I know the nutrition police will kill me for saying this, but I use stock standard "game". I think its the best stuff since sliced bread, and its by far the cheapest energy drink that money can buy if you buy it in the 720g packs.

clean stuff works better and lasts longer. full stop!

I don't know all the physiological reasons, but from a bit of reading on the subject, I understand it this way. You put in some serious hard sessions as preparation for an event and as a result, serious strain on your muscles. Your body also uses a lot of glycogen, electrolytes etc. during this proces. It is then during the recovery process that your muscles become stronger and your body "stores" glycogen, electrolytes etc. Tapering is just a way to ensure that your body has recovered from the sessions before so that your muscles are as strong as possible for an event. I do however think that many "casual" sportsmen take this too far by tapering down for 3 - 5 weeks in advance. I think a few days or a week should be good enough. My 2C -

I cannot employ somebody, but I have some steel fabrication work that I need done. Anybody know of a welder / boilermaker looking for a job that will last about 2 - 4 weeks? I'm trying to develop a product and want to manufacture a test run of about 20 units. It would be preferred if the person has own workshop / tools.

Mineral oil and synthetic oil applications are not compatible, because the seal materials can either withstand one or the other. So if it says mineral oil, DO NOT put synthetic oil in. Mineral oil should be dirt cheap (as in R20 per litre), if not, find out the viscosity and buy standard hydraulic oil. Something like ISO VG 68, where the 68 is a reference to the viscocity

Mineral oil and synthetic oil applications are not compatible, because the seal materials can either withstand one or the other. So if it says mineral oil, DO NOT put synthetic oil in. Mineral oil should be dirt cheap (as in R140 per 5litre), if not, find out the viscosity and buy standard hydraulic oil. Something like ISO VG 68, where the 68 is a reference to the viscocity

numbers schnumbers... you're body fat is right when you feel good about yourself. You will allways be able to "improve" on your condition, but you get to a point where you are comfortable with what you look like, as well as your performance, whether on a bicycle, running etc. If you get into the "numbers" game, then you might become like the body builder charnas. They start off rationally with the aim to improve strength and fitness. Then they inject some strange substance which messes with their head, so they end up with ugly muscles and veins popping out everywhere, and if you ask them, they'll still say that they want to gain another 3 kg's... BMI is a joke. According to BMI, i classify as "obese".

one more nerdy comment: 1) All pads generate the exact same amount of heat 2) Sintered pads (due to the metal component) is a better conductor of heat, therefore the heat is transferred to the fluid more rapidly than with organic pads. Therefore, all things equal, you are more likely to "boil" your hydraulic oil (fluid fade) with sintered pads than with resin pads. Thus not recommended for downhill or for heavy brakers!!!! The reason why they say its not ideal for dry conditions, is a marketing reason, because then they can sell you resin pads, and after a rainy ride of 30km, you will have to replace the breakpads and therefore more money for the brake-pad manufacturer. But yes, in dry conditions resin pads work better. Short Answer: For XC / Trail riding - buy sintered ALLWAYS!!! unless you're sponsored, or dont mind changing pads depending on the weather.

Mornings are more predictable, meaning that nothing happens 5 o clock in the morning that can stop you from training if you have the self discipline to lift ze bum. In the afternoons however, a buddy can call you for a beer or you want to watch a movie with the girl etc. then you generally end up missing your session one in every 4 days or so. For me, I'm a afternoon guy, not so much because of stuggling to get up early, I just dont live the type of lifestyle that allows me to get into bed at 8:30 PM every night, which I assume is needed for 4 AM starts.

granny isn't allways the best gear to go steep... sometimes the second or third easiest gear is better, even ons steep hills because you have more momentum. Sometimes you can even gooi your middle chainring on not-as-steep rocky terrain, but for those Zombie hills i'd stick to the small chainring. You also have better balance when you go faster, which makes that you don't moer over sideways when you're 95% up the climb and lose a bit of leg speed. my 2c

Just ride and step up the distance. The worst that can happen is that you attempt something too long, then you'll have a hard day in the saddle which will all be forgotten after the cold beer. Then you'll know your limits

Nobody ever said that "nothing could happen". But I'm willing to take the risk for it, so let ME decide on that. I ride that trail about every sunday afternoon every week for the last couple of years without ever having the slightest glimpse of a loss of balance. If I should fall one day, its likely to be on soft grass at no more than 20km /hr. Thus I have assessed the risks and I'm willing to take them, so please let me and don't shout "WHERE'S YOUR HELMET" when you cycle past me. I ride with a helmet 95% of the time, so i'm not against it. Just saying that its not such a big deal to rant and moan and bitch about every guy you see who "dares" not to abide.

get over it... let everybody decide for themselves, we're all grown-ups. riding without a helmet is not a death sentence. i've given my opinion on a thread before, but surely skill, concentration and choice of roads / trails are just as or more important than helmets in most cases. Racing in general, and commuting on busy roads is an obvious exception and for that helmets are necessary. If i do my sunday afternoon ride slowly around emarentia dam, without anything like an ipod to distract me, what risk would there possibly be to ride without a helmet. Quick answer: NOTHING!

just bought a soft carry bag from sportsmans warehouse for R1k... i might put some cardboard inside to get some stiffness, but as my roadbike is a cheapie and my MTB has a pretty tough ALU frame, I don't think its worth while to fork out the quoted R3-4k for a hardcase... Anyway, I hope it will work better than to scrounge for a box every time I attempt a future trip. Thanks for the info!!!

Wow, I hoped that i could buy something for about R1k... I had to buy a cardboard box for Argus (R60) and it was virtually disintegrated by the time I got back, which got me thinking along these lines. I also happen to fly my bike somewhere at least once a year, so maybe its a worthwhile investment @cervelo: are there special arrangements for bike transport to IM as the case is with Argus? or do you just rock up with your bike and hop on?

I'm tired of sukkeling along with cardboard boxed for flying my bike around. I'm willing to pay a couple of bucks for a decent carrying bag / box that I can use to transport my bikes wherever. Any suggested brands or types? Where can I find it? How much can I expect to pay? Thanks

looked on my watch last night 20:45, hoping that i'd be done by then in a weeks time

I think the only reason why you only see it on a trainer is because its impossible to look at the "movement" while you're riding normally. Take the example of doing a tailslide and then you hit a rock / root / curb with your rear wheel to the extent that your rear wheel stops dead and you fly over the bike. It's a huge impact, plus the force is applied to the outer diameter of the wheel, which amplifies that force on the rear stays with a factor of up to 2.3X, depending on the angle that you lean into the slide. It may not happen all the time, but I think your bike takes a lot more hammering every now and then while riding. As I've said, I don't think that anybody that doesn't design bikes for a living will be able to provide solid evidende, but i don't think its an issue worth worrying about

true, but with a free wheel also hits potholes @40km/hr and is exposed to seriaaaaas vibration and impacts on shite roads that a bike on a trainer is not exposed to. I'd be surprised if anybody on the hub can give you an accurate force comparison, but as the other guy said, the manufacturer would state clearly if the bike is not suitable for trainer use.

don't think I fall into either of the categories above (brave, very fit or bright), but I'd like to join in! all depends on my transport arrangements!!!

don't know if it makes you slower, but you're likely to live longer by staying off the roads!!!