Furbz

Better battery life is always a win. And touch screen is a serious upgrade

https://geometrygeeks.bike/compare/scott-spark-900-rc-2017-m,scott-scott-spark-rc-900-world-cup-bike-2018-m,scott-spark-rc-900-team-issue-axs-bike-2020-m/

I threw a set of these in the bin after 10 rides - i had 10 separate punctures in the cradle area in that time. i was running tubes at the time. but glad they have found a good team!

amateur. i'm so confident i have already stripped my bike in anticipation!

Sounds like the type of guy who would love the bike no matter what it is just because it was bought for him by his family

Have to tried orangeseal? Both teams Bora Hansgrohe and Israel startup nation use it. It is the best out there

oh leaf it alone already. sheesh!

I read the title and immediately knew this was Garmin related

saved me R5k. absolutely worth it safe and effective

the extra travel makes a world of difference. if your bike can handle it - do it

Not bad. I just have no need for anything of that kind at this point

Legit Question: is Vitality worth it anymore? the discounts i used to get on car hire and flights were great, but now with travel no longer happening i am struggling to see any benefit with keeping up with the Platinum status.

I need a super cheapy rim brake set of wheels for a budget build. Shimano 11 speed

if they opened up training at the track again i'd be a very happy man

Don't come here and argue with sound logic and a level head. We don't do that here... (READ - well put)

I'm gob smacked and really feel for Emma. That takes not fair to a whole other level. Anyone keen to start a petition? CSA cocked up. not the rider. They should at the very least stump her the lost cash prize.

Anyone else find the route lacklustre? its all highway riding in the crappiest of places in JHB. i'll admit i enjoyed the race track part - felt like i was competing in a crit but the rest was just so meh. the organisers really have so much they could offer to show off JHB and yet they choose to show off the highway. i think if they rename the race and drop the "ride jhb" part it would be more apt. i get they have issues with what roads they can close, but come on. that way an enormously boring route. By way of comparison, think back to how awesome the initial 94.7 routes were

bang on! Obviously if you place your order before Black Friday we can chat about a special Black Friday price

I have to give it to Aurum, it was fun to unpack this bike. The Aurum Experience Box And a few really nice touches. A hand signed thank you from the Ivan Basso and Alberto Contador. A quick assembly guide And a few pics of the clever packaging A sneak peak into the Aurum Experience Bag. Including a 6nm torque wrench, Assembly paste, all the Mavic parts including the bits to convert to with wheels to tubeless, frame armour stickers and other spare frame parts I opted to change the Standard Rubino Pro 25mm tires out for some tubeless 28mm GP 5000 tires - of course fill with the brilliant regular orangeseal! This change gave me the opportunity to have a good look at the new Mavic hoops, and they are damn impressive! visually they are stunning to behold. the finishings are right up there. And finally the obligatory full bike shot in front of the wine room Final build weight with this spec on a 52 frameset. 7.345kgs ex pedals and bottle cages in standard trim. i have yet to ride the bike, but gave it to my father to test (ex SA champ). His initial impression are its a better race bike than than the 2020 Madone SLR! A big statement as its my favourite race bike. I will put the bike through its paces and this weekend and revert back with extra pics and info. The current lot of pictures really do no justice to this paint job. its nothing short of jaw dropping!

Like this?

Ok so nobody told me having a baby means very little time to enjoy writing up my amateur reviews! Wow how time flies! due to a lack of time i will make this review a bit briefer than usual. and try touch on the important bits. Not long after this bike build we took the opportunity to do a back to back test against this beauty! a Mason Bokeh Ti at 3600GBP for the frameset it about as good as you can get when in comes to a Ti frame the Mason was fitted with Force AXS and a higher end set of Hunt Gravel aluminium wheels. To make sure we put the bikes through there paces we did not mess around with the route! following a few MTB paths below table mountain. https://www.strava.com/activities/5747786521 We then did a more sedate road commute ride https://www.strava.com/activities/5758770063 Two things became immediately clear straight out the gate. 1. The Chebacco feels light and nimble when compared to any other gravel bike i have ever ridden. it has a road bike feel to it in the way it responds to input. its an intoxicating feeling to have on a gravel bike! 2. The Ride Quality of the Chebacco made the Mason Bokeh Ti feel like a Makro special. It was markedly lighter, more compliant, forgiving and overall gave the Ti bike an outright hiding to none. The ride quality of the Chebacco was so much better than the Bokeh Ti that the owner was left feeling rather upset after the rides. and when i say ride quality, we are talking truely staggering levels of compliance. i have nothing i can compare it to. it makes anything else i have ridden feel harsh. So some brainstorming later, we swapped the Hunt wheels from the Bokeh Ti over to the Chebacco and the ENVE AG25 wheels from the Chebacco over to the Mason. BOOM. there was a large part of the difference. Instantly the Bokeh Ti was a far more sophisticated machine. it was unreal how much the wheelsets influence the bikes ride quality and handling characteristics. the Bokeh was now transformed into a stunning shock absorbing pillow of a ride when compared to itself on the HUNT wheels. In the same breathe the Chebacco became harsher and less forgiving than it had previously been when ridden on the Hunt wheels. One big breathe out and a much happier Bokeh Ti owner later we sat down to discuss our overall feelings on the bikes. WHEELS MAKE A MASSIVE DIFFERENCE. especially on a gravel bike. The key words you should be looking for is VERTICAL COMPLIANCE. And this is something ENVE has absolutely aced with their AG25 gravel specific wheels. so much so that the owner of the Bokeh Ti is now sourcing his own set of ENVE AG25's. (As a side i am also really tempted to try Zipps 101 XPLR wheels. they are slightly heavier by comparison but i feel that design must lend itself to a very compliant ride!) https://www.sram.com/en/zipp/models/wh-101-xplr-a1 Back to the ENVE/Hunt Chebacco/Bokeh Ti debate. Both wheelsets were roughly the same weight. the difference with the ENVE wheels being +-95g lighter. Both had identical inner widths of 25mm. We did not swap the tires out. The Chebacco had 38's and the Bokeh had 45's. I concede that this could also be a massive influencer when it comes to the feel of the bike, but time was against us - and come on 38's feeling nicer than 45's? yes we also checked tire pressures were correct. So over a coffee and a few beers our testers all agreed that the Chebacco was the out and out winner here. it was out and out still a more compliant and comfortable bike vs the Bokeh Ti kitted with the same wheelset. i know is sounds like i am blowing smoke up my **** here but what Parlee have achieved with the Chebacco is some form of black magic. the bike rides like an absolute dream. i wish i had something i could compare it to, but everything else really pales in comparison. It's no wonder the Chebacco is their number 1 selling bike. my only gripe? This frames colour scheme is not really for me. But for the ride quality i can happy overlook this and say without hesitation this is one of the best bikes i have ever ridden. And now with the new 2022 colours having some awesome options i may well sell this as a demo and grab the new black to green fade version.

are people ok with the amount of pavement riding on the course?

i recently started on Creatine, Beta Alanine, Omega 3 (Dr for my eyes post lasik), L Glutamine, CLA 3000 and BCAA's. all with a protein shake after a hard ride. i can tell you i take 1/4th the recommended dose of all the above and its still something like 12 tablets. it would be insane trying to keep up with the recommended dosage! my take is that i just want to fill any gap that my diet may be missing. do i think it helps? - yes. i believe it helped me recover faster in a period of hard training. i doubt it would make any difference if you are not in a difficult phase of structured training. but i totally get his view, if riders are taking the full dosages they would be popping handfuls of pills like smarties. and i am certain they are taking way more than what i listed above.

They are checking at registration. i think that there is even a test centre at registration - but phone and confirm first as i saw the tent but never asked if they were indeed testing.

I had such fun at the Chardonnay event. the route is awesome! just be aware that the distances on the stickers given to us were miles out! - many riders blew aiming for the specified distances I see they have since updated the online figures to be correct. hopefully new stickers are made for the next 2 events. Day 1 (66km) - actual 73km https://www.strava.com/activities/6214077872 Day 2 (63km) - actual 67km https://www.strava.com/activities/6218140863 Day 3 (62km) - actual 70km https://www.strava.com/activities/6223007133