kandui

Come to Deer Park on Sunday morning , 9am. Is much safer than Tokai and you get coffee on the trail.

Seems like the Scum are looking for easy smash & grab targets. What is San Park's responsibility here, and is it fair for for privateers to pay for security? I thank T&T for their initiative , but at the same time I feel like this is something which could well be paid for from the Activity Card and Day Permit revenue. I copied and pasted this from the Trail and Tar Newsletter I received this morning: "Just to keep you all up to date, on Wednesday 3rd October, after the Trail and Tar trail run, we arrived back at the Arboretum to find that 6 of our cars had been broken into. This coupled with the mountain bike attack last week, is a huge concern for us at Trail and Tar, as we regard everyone who uses the forest for cycling and running, as a customer or potential client of ours, and that we cannot simply stand back and wait for someone else to take responsibility for nipping this thing in the bud A.S.A.P. With the above in mind, Trail and Tar has undertaken to pay for two security guards to man the car park from Monday to Thursday from 17h00 to 19h00. The SAN PARKS staff have had their hours reduced, and now leave their post at 17h00. I know that this does not give 100% coverage, but we feel that it would cover the busy period for all those who enjoy a quick ride/run after work. Please note that the guards will be paid well, and will not be reliant on tips for their time, however, if you are wanting to contribute, we will have a collection box at Trail and Tar, which will be used to help us carry the financial burden, and possibly extend their hours to include weekends at a later stage. Guys, we are passionate about our little paradise that we share on our doorstep, and I for one, am not going to sit back and be a victim to a few sons of B^%$es who want to spoil my fun. I will be talking to Mountain Men Security for a possible long term plan, but will keep you all in the loop with any news. Be safe, and lets nip this sh*%t in the bud before it gets out of hand."

Will it be on live streaming ? Can you give me a decent web address without porn ads every couple of minutes?

can you believe the flipping weather is closing in again over the weekend! No cancellation on Sunday this time.

Got to ride, so if there is any chance of a dry spell after 4pm, I am going out.

If there's rain there's always another dry Thursday around the corner.

riding on Thursday.

Taken with my iPhone. Wasa Museum, Stockholm.

Cool Commuter Wheels

I have been out on a lot of Neighbourhood Watch patrols in Tamboerskloof and we never go out with the intention of becoming violent towards anyone. One afternoon we saw a Charlie male (Charlie = Coloured, Whiskey= White and Bravo = Black) climb over a wall into a property we knew the owners were out. Followed him and he made a run for it. We eventually caught him on the roof of a neighbouring house. He was was a small, lanky guy and the 3 of us were all over 1,8m tall. The guy fought like a demon to get away, even with 3 of us all over him. In the end , the only thing that helped us get him off the roof was to "soften him up". I have caught a guy who broke into my garage and was hiding there. I bolted the garage shut and he kicked his way out , through the wooden slats with me pounding him as he made his escape. He was also a lanky guy, but the adrenalin gives these guys superhuman powers. Add to the that the "I feel F all" attitude of a criminal and you are often left with no choice. Why do I mention this ? I was not a witness to the incident, but I can be 99% sure that this guy was not keen to miss his ride on the back of the bakkie and would have fought tooth and nail to get out of the clutches of our Good Samaritan. Armed or Unarmed, these guys value their freedom and don't have the moral threshold you and I might have. They feel nothing to tear you apart ,just to get away with a wallet or a car radio.

I am driving up on the 13th from Cape Town and back on the 20th , after the final stage. Anybody want to split diesel and come up with me? Can take 2 more bikes and so 2 more people. 083 6319796. Sorted. Car is full.

Coming in late here, but 2 things I can mention. Join the weekly ride on a Thursday afternoon. At the moment the group is tiny, but we adjust to speed of the slowest rider. Then there is the group ride on the 7th from Deer Park where you can meet other riders and perhaps arrange a ride with someone. Table Mountain is not technically difficult, bar for one or two sections. It is however a "mainly uphill" riding area. A moderate to good level of fitness is required to enjoy the experience properly.

Please note that more information is pending and will be posted as soon as it becomes available. This information was provided in the interest of safety and was placed in this Forum as it comes from a trusted source.I would like to encourage a measure of objectiveness until the gaps have been filled. I will defer to Pain or Shine for updates as he is closer to the sources of information than I am. Thank you.

Please read and be aware! No exact date provided. Date and Time: 2012/09/27 07:30:00 PM (Date of the Report logged, not when it happened) Location: Outside Constantia Hills, Zone: 1 Incident Text: Cyclist Attacked and Robbed near Arboretum Resident was attacked in the Tokai Arboretum parking area on a recent Thursday evening. Resident was riding fast through the parking lot in the dark when he was suddenly hit in the face. As he staggered, not knowing what had happened, two coloured males accosted him and took his bike. They both jumped on the bike and rode off down the road past the Manor House. Resident stopped a car that was driving up the road and the driver quickly agreed to give chase past the picnic area, but the thieves had already disappeared. Resident then went back to the security gate at Chrysalis Academy and with their help, alerted the police, armed response and the neighborhood watch. The security guards reported that they had spotted these 2 guys walking up the road and had been monitoring them due to their suspicious demeanour, but the point of the attack was beyond their range of view. On subsequent inspections of the area, resident has found a thick, solid branch about 2.5m long and believes thieves could have been hiding behind the first big tree on the left as he come down through the gate and then whacked him with that branch. Apart from 4 stitches on his chin, resident is fine and understands that SAN Parks want to write a full report. For what it is worth, for all the eyes out there, the bike was a White Giant Anthem 29er MTB. There are very few of those white ones in the country so it will always be easy to identify. If anyone has seen a bike matching this description, please reply to this email. Forwarded to resident and tenants by the committee of the Constantia Hills Neighbourhood Watch.

Can we just focus on the positive outcome of this decision? We have City fathers who seem to be keen to promote cycling and that's a good thing. The tax debate and who is entitled to benefit from the spend is another debate and not relevant here.

Good News, great to hear that there is a realisation that cyclists and pedestrians can use the same spaces. Hopefully this thinking can be taken up on to the mountain.

See you guys next week

BTW. When I get back from the land of the Vikings I will have come off 2 weeks of zero pedaling and will start training in earnest. You're welcome to join in. My partner did a 97km ride in Grabouw with 2000m of climbing this weekend. I'd better shape up, otherwise she is going to kick my ass!

How much what?

If it won't end, let's take it here: Anybody got some intel about the route for next year? I hear that Oak Valley is out.

where are you watching this? I need a good live stream channel please. sitting on an island in the Baltic.

I'll be back to ride on the 4th.

Hi Stefan I am in Sweden and the rides usually hinge on me being there. I am back on the 30th.

Thanks for the heads up, I wish you all the best with the store and I'll pop in soon.

A big Thank you to William at William SImpson Nissan and Jon at eNetworks for sponsoring the Table Mountain MTB Trail signage. They have come together to foot the bill as well make a contingency budget available for extra signage needed to replace vandalised ones. Both companies volunteered their support without a big sales pitch from my side , which shows their commitment to Mountain Biking and Table Mountain. Support William Simpson and eNetworks, here are keen mountain bikers running both businesses, so they understand us. A call for hands to put signage up will come in October.