Andymann

Not so sure - there were tons of S-Works and Scotts as well as a few Felts on the trail and some pretty smart kit. We rode 26'er Full Sussers btw - that's all we could get!

So chuffed to see my old Bianchi getting a new lease of life..... it's going to make someone pretty happy. I still think that's a damn sexy sprayjob.....

Just got back from a cycling holiday in Portugal . Mostly MTB. Interesting to see, not one 29'er on the trail.... We saw one new one in a shop, but that was it. Hmmmmmmm.......

And try not to grip the bars at all - I trained years back with the HSBC boys in the Vaal up Ertjiesbult, and one of the biggest tips I got was to relax your grip on the bars when you hit a climb - if you can't wiggle your fingers while climbing, you're holding the bars too tight...

Hmmm - the crank bolt shouldn't have come loose, so I would think that's an assembly issue. The fork leaking oil - difficult to say without some actual photos - any possibility?

Must be honest, I was also a Bianchi fan, and bought a hardtail frame which I built my components over. After 3 hardish rides (the last one being the Emperors MTB race in 2010 - not that technical) the frame cracked. I had to wait for the replacement, so bought a Giant XTC frame as an interim. Needless to say, when the replacment Bianchi frame eventually arrived (6 months!), I sold it. After this year's Sani, I bought a Merida 96 3000D - sure it's a bit porky compared to the Giant, and I'm not sold yet on the Magura fork, but it's damn comfortable, feels like it will last forever, and climbs much better than the XTC (which I thought it wouldn't do.) All I've done so far is an extra set of American Classic wheels for racing, a Thompson seatpost to replace the carbon one it came with, and a set of flat bars, and I changed the Magura levers to incorporate the BAT adjustment - I like a bit more bite in my brakes. So far, it's really been a good buy. I do still lust ater the Italian though ;-)

LOL - thanks. Spacer plan would have worked fine too though. If you have a choice, try and get the ones with the metal shields, not rubber - they seem to last a bit better against dirt.

If it's a Deep Groove ball bearing (although I suspect for suspension it will be a cylindrical roller bearing) SKF make the dimension you need: W63800 - 2Z Deep groove ball bearings, single row, stainless steel, shield on both sides Product information d D B C C0 Pu 10 19 7 1,14 0,57 0,025 80000 38000 0,0074 W 63800-2Z

Agree - we fly to most of the Energades, and there wasn't any Kulula charge when we flew to PE the month previously. We pre-book early to get the best prices, and when we booked on-line in August for CT, there was no mention of the new rules. Sports equipment always was allowed on, so long as it was within the required weight... I wonder if Kulula aren't trying to save handling costs by forcing people just to have carry-on bags?

I wonder if there is any merit in forwarding the link to this thread to their PR department????

http://www.gotravel24.com/southernafrica/city-breaks/kululas-hidden-baggage-costs Watch out for this - My girlfriend and I recently flew to Cape Town for the BSG-Energade race, and were in for a nice bill when our bikes were counted as the "one piece of luggage allowed". Needless to say, all the money we saved by flying with Kulula went out the window. While I'm not a great fan of SAA, at least they are bike friendly, *and* the food is also free.... So, no more Kulula for us.

I'm surprised no-one has mentioned heat. Next time you climb on the brakes, feel how hot the braking surface of your carbon rim gets. That heat radiates to the glue holding on your tubbies, softens it and there is a very real possibility of the tyre rolling off the rim. As tyre technology improves, descending becomes more rapid, and the need for better brakes will become necessary. My guess is that on carbon tubbie wheels, disc brakes will eventually become the norm.

I've had 2 sets of Classics - great wheels, easy to service (I do it myself - don't buy the OEM bearings, you can get the same from your local bearing shop at half the price). They are a touch soft, but I guess not too many rims can survive Fountains and Groenkloof without a few dings! And as a plus, if you are *very* careful, you can bend out the dents again without any harm.

Hi All - Injured my back some time ago, and I need it sorted. I live in Pta (east), but I work in Krugersdorp, so there is no way I can get home in time to see my usual Physio in Pta. Can anyone recommend an alternative in Krugersdorp?

Was riding down Rubenstein drive on the weekend and I wondered why the Nature Reserve where Rademeyers Restaurant is, is not open for MTB? The terrain really looks good, and I bet if they did a similar thing as has been done at Groenkloof, the reserve could easliy generate some extra income.... Has anyone tried to find out why, and if not, what would be the best way to go about asking them to consider it?

To be honest that's what I thought...... Oh well - I'll start from scratch then (after I've gone to the Stan's site!)

Ok - all the question answered - And did I have fun.... And there are two parts to the day... Phoned my LBS - they said take the Yellow rim-strip off the DT swiss rims, and slip on the plastic green strips (they were supplied by my LBS out of the wrappers so I have no idea who made them!) - this I did (I would have left them on - must admit). I had Joe's sealant - not my favourite (prefer Stans), but hey it was a new bottle so why not. Put on the Geax Saguaro tyres and did they seal? NFW.... eventually I got them to bead, but what a mission - had to use a compressor and mix in some no-flats - normally with the American Classics, they beaded with a Foot pump...Anyway, they are still up, but I'm not convinced they will stay that way in a race. It looks like the moulding seam on the bead and the DT Swiss rims aren't great mates... Now part 2 of the story... Took the new Schwalbe Rocket Ron's off the DT Swiss rims put them on the Classics - hey presto - they sealed instantly, without any sealant (which is how it should be!) *but*, the damn things leak through the sidewalls - tiny tiny holes in the tyre - all around the moulding seam. And when you add sealant, it blows out in a fine mist and also doesn't seal. LOL - so two MTB's and I couldn't ride either of them this weekend....

Help! Just bought a set of Wheels with DT Swiss 445 Rims. Going Tubeless, so my LBS supplied a tubeless conversion - 2 plastic bright green rim strips with tubeless valves - unfortunately, no fitting instructions were supplied. Question is - the DT Swiss rims already have quite a tight fitting yellow rim strip already - so - do I need to fit the extra green plastic strips, or can I just stick in the valves?

Thanks - I suppose I'll be the first one then to give feedback.... I haven't quite decided on what to do with the Giant - problem is the sum of the parts are worth more than the whole ;-) Reba Team Fork, Ammerican classics, full X9, Truvativ Noir Seatpost etc, etc, etc -

Just taken the plunge and bought a soft-tail after years of riding hardtail. My trusty Giant XTC had a RockShox Reba team which I fitted about 2 years back. The new Merida has a Magura Durin SL. Didn't see many Magura forks on this years Sani (if any!) - only RockShox and Fox - so the question is - is the Magura a good fork, or do I swap the Reba over to the Merida and sell the Giant with the Magura fork.......