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18 hours ago, W@nted said:The weather was great. Umkomaas drop was amazing. Would not be possible to finish without a great backup driver.
For now, I never want to see a bicycle again.
I was going to offer you my bicycle.
It was a lekker event though, but echoing your comments I underestimated the effect that the +/-80kms of single track would have on the body.
The last 15kms seemed unnecessary at the time, but time erodes bad memories and I will be back next year.
I have the Panaracer Gravelking tyres on my bike and they are great all round tyres.
Definitely worth the money! I fitted them on day one with no issues, and besides having to pump them up and occasionally add some sealant, they were "fit and forget".
They are also wearing very well after several thousand kms.
This is definitely the consensus from all of the gravel forums that I have read. The skin-wall colour is on point too.
Hmmm, this kind of topic normally elicits subjective responses, but here is my 2c from my own experiences:
- I've run the slick Panaracers in 42c, which were crap unless on paved roads
- I currently run the WTB resolute 42c which are incredibly grippy on all surfaces, but I'd say the sacrifice here is that the soft compound wears quickly - Needless to say I just ordered my second set
- A friend of mine is running the Maxxis Ramblers in 40c (these measure out at 42c with a vernier) and seem to be great all-round tyres that wear very well. No skin-wall option in SA.
- Did some research last week before ordering my Resolutes and the Panaracer Gravelkings still seem to rain supreme on all of the reviews and forums, I just don't quite like the look of them myself.
Hope this helps rather than confuses.
Happy to report to those interested that I have now run this setup on my Slate for over 1,000km with no issues whatsoever and no signs of any sort of unusual wear.
The setup works perfectly on 11 through to 40 on both 36 and 52 chain rings. If you were tentative about such an upgrade, I say fear not. The only thing that I stress is that you consider chainstay length.
Beware of the lions!!!!
In my housing estate yesterday - Cookin'!
4
You'll be fine.
Humans are weird.
Very cool thread though, thanks for taking the time to post.
3
Biggest damp squid of the year. Mr. Third Man has been an open secret for some time now. I'm glad it's official.
So we have some new SA champs and medal winners that will never get their podium time thanks to this cheating twat.
And corporate sponsorship that will never return after being burnt but the doping mountain bikers of this era.
Running a MTB cassette with a road derailleur is also a hack, the Roadlink just relieves the stress off the derailleur.
Yes, indeed. Not sure about the stress on the derailleur, but an aftermarket appendage didn't appeal to me.
Time will tell if my setup works in the long term.
Thanks for this! It's far simpler to spin fast and go slowly up a monster climb than grind up painfully. and still go slowly...
I'm still working on upgrading my legs, but this will be a good option too.
FWIW, I've looked into the Goatlink-thingy that extends the hanger, but will have a crack at the cassette on its own first
I looked into the aftermarket Roadlink, but part of me felt that this was a hack. I was intent on finding an off-the-shelf solution.
Just realised that we are discussing mechanical and not di2 so my original comment was invalid.
Any idea if a XT or XTR derailleur would have worked? Or does it have a different pull ratio to a road shifter?
Unfortunately it has a different pull ratio.
Based on the findings of a guy that posted his video on Youtube, it gave me the confidence to change the short cage Ultegra derailleur to a long cage RX version on my Cannondale Slate, and slap on a 40 SLX cassette.
The maximum cassette size stipulated by Shimano for Ultegra is a 34 (Ultegra).
I desperately needed this conversion to work - the standard cassette that came with the bike was a 28 which combined with 52/36 chain rings offered many ratios, but none favourable for the type of climbing and distance which I have in mind. My local gravel route has many 20% plus gradients.
Thankfully the conversion seems to be a success, with no issues when changing up and down through the cassette under any circumstances. The setup also works perfectly under load.
The biggest surprise perhaps is that the chain length required still allows me to run small/small and big/big combinations. Time will tell if any flaws show when the setup is worn, but honestly its hard to see why it shouldn't wear and function normally.
My only alternative to this would have been a full groupset change to Sram Force which would have been monumentally expensive, and would not have given me the best of both worlds in terms of ratios - I ride on the road quite a bit with the bike.
Hopefully this post helps out those either stuck with a Shimano setup on their gravel bike, or those looking for more ratios on their current Ultegra / 105 setup. I would be cautious though, I think that this setup may be sensitive to chain stay length - This is only 405mm on my large Slate.
Here is a link to the video for reference -
I can post pics if anyone wants to see the finished product - It looks quite OEM
self import or using their new online ship to ZA offering?
Canyon instantly took kids bikes really seriously with this move! (a custom bike for team rider Fabian Barel's son)
I had to bring it in via a friend. Canyon would not supply the kids bikes to SA because of some sort of trade embargo - Go figure.
I recently imported the Canyon Offspring 16' for my boy after doing much research.
The Offspring range caught my attention for three reasons:
- The cockpit is specifically engineered for children
- The components are proper - for example the bike came equipped with Sram Level brakes, also has a two speed Sram auto hub
- The bikes are height specific - I thought this was an intelligent approach
They have a 20' option that will be his next bike for sure
https://www.canyon.com/en/kids/
Check it out
Sunday problems. Which bike?
I had weird heart issue last year which precipitated a few days in hospital to investigate.
My only advice is that you see a cardiologist that has experience with athletes, I suffered a few frustrations with this and my cardio was quite old school.
Dude, you really need to ascertain the amount of stress in your life. You booked it straight over a zebra crossing, swerving around some young children in the process, whilst the juniors were holding up the STOP TRAFFIC lollipop signs. You have no idea how many demerit points those kids get if another pre-schooler is run over on their watch.
Sure, it could have been a mistake in a moment of panicked confusion as you glanced at your Garmin for a Strava Live update, but that doesn't explain why you spat a loud "****YOU!" at the mother who was stopped, waiting for the kids to cross and who brazenly offended your very precious sensibilities by putting her arms in the air. An action we can all agree is far more perilous to society than nearly ending the terms of a group of 7-year-olds.
The worst part of it was that your buddy was still about 20 metres behind you and had to meekly negotiate the thick cloud of hatred towards cyclists that you left in your wake. Honestly, who does that to a riding partner?
Get home tonight, sit on the couch, have a beer, listen to some calming music and try and be a better person tomorrow because by 7:30 this morning you managed to wreck any hope of achieving that today.
Not so surprised by the suave wanker on his Specialized.
I am surprised however at such eloquence on Bikehub.
He needs to receive a punch to the kidneys that Chuck Norris advocates in his self help videos. I think I still have a copy on VHS, will watch and practice.
Myself and another mate both had issues with our first GX derailleurs, tried multiple hangers to solve it to no avail.
Eventually changed the derailleur in desperation for a new one on stage 3 of Epic which solved the problem entirely.
My LBS returned the old derailleur to the supplier for a full refund. They had also made other such returns, XO affected too from what i'm told.
My girlfriend took her bike in for a service. CWCycles noticed the crack/s and informed her immediately. When she picked it up that afternoon the new rim was on.
No ifs or buts
Only to happen again and again by my experience.
I'm 65kg and cracked both of the Mk3 Crests on my Scalpel Si 3. I have had the rear rim replaced thrice.
I replaced the rear two days before Epic, had to replace it the week after Epic. Recent inspection concluded that it needs to be replaced again.
Never, ever again - Carbon hoops next.
Easiest way to get a bike from Cape Town to JHB?
in The Bike Room
Posted
Ride it.