davidlangebaan

Sorry, but it's cheaper to pay the courier fees than to pay for 2 saddles and not get them!

I found this pic, taken 3 years ago when things were still better at SAPO. https://www.sapromo.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/sa_post_office_2.jpg This dude strolled into the JIMC to try find his missing parcel. This is what he found. No staff, no organisation and a small backlog.

I know this has probably been thrashed to death, but does anyone know what the current time frame is for international deliveries that have the misfortune of moving via the SA Post Office? I ordered some saddles from a UK based company on 15 May. The parcel left Sweden for SA on the 21st. As I understand it then must be scanned at the Johannesburg International Mail Centre before local tracking is available.This appears to be where things go tits up. The boys and girls at SAPO are about as sharp as marbles.They do not reply to emails; the SMS query option responds to say that the item is not yet captured in the system (l know that); and the call centre (yes they answer if you can spend 30 minutes on hold) provides the same info with the added euphemism that there is a "backlog" at the JIMC. Please try again later.... Btw, I have advised the selling company, who only offered a tracked mail delivery to SA, and they will in future bypass our stellar state entity and only offer a courier option to SA.

I enjoy racing. I enjoy riding. I don't enjoy racing when I'm just riding. I have mates who want to make every ride a race. I don't ride with those mates very often, but when we race they're normally behind.

You also need to consider whether you are physically able to stay in the low aero position that a tri bike will promote for 6 hours. This requires some conditioning to achieve. A road bike with aero-bars and your seat moved forward will give a less aggressive but easier to maintain position than a tri bike. You can alter your standard road bike position substantially by getting a saddle like an Adamo and slamming it all the way forward. I move my saddle on my road bike about 6-7cm forward for IM. If necessary an forward-angled seat post can put you even further forward. From what I have read and heard I think that the effect of your bike position on the run may be over exaggerated but here are a couple of links to look through that refernece this. http://www.tri-ecoach.com/art7.htm http://www.bikesplit.com/bsa3.htm

You can adjust the fit to a certain extent with different stems, etc. But be aware that the calculator you linked to gives you a recommended seat tube length, a sizing method which is outdated. Most bike sizing now days is done with top tube length being the critical frame size measurement. I am 1,81m with 86,5cm inseam and ride a 56cm (top tube!) road bike and a large MTB (61cm top tube).

While most of us seem to feel that CSA are a waste of time - and its the same with the governing bodies of other sports such as running, triathlon, canoeing, etc - and that we should just ignore these bodies and leave them out of event organisation, the problem as I understand it is that in 2010 the government gazetted the "Safety at Sports and Recreational Events Act". And this Act basically makes it impossible and illegal for any organisation or individual to stage any event other than under the auspices of their governing body. There was a local, fun triathlon event running for about 10 years in our town. All ages form 8 to 80 participated in a well organised event. Then Triathlon SA got wind of it and, citing the Act, told the organisers to either get TSA on board, which of course means pay them, or shut it down. No pretense of trying to promote and grow the sport, simply a blunt attempt to collect more cash. Front-pullers!

Okay some constructive advice! I haven't had the same issues as you but I have had repeated prostatitis from riding a bike. At one point a few years ago I had to stop riding altogether. Then I got an Adamo saddle. Since then I have been able to ride again (although I still can't spend too much time on the bike without a mild recurrence) up to six hours a week or so. I can almost guarantee no numbness or compressed urethra if you set these saddles up correctly.

I ride Adamo's both on my road and mountain bikes. They took a while to get used to. Your weight is taken on your sit bones rather than on your soft tissue, so initially my sit bones felt like they were bruised for a while. Their website says up to about & 7 rides. I found it took about 3 months of riding 3 times a week for the tenderness to disappear completely. But then I was doing some fairly long rides training for IM at the time. Apparently its the muscle covering the bones that feels bruised and tender rather than the bones themselves. However, I recommend them and would now not ride any other saddle. I have the Adamo "Road" (I had the "Race" first but found it too hard) on my road bike and the Adamo "Peak" on my mtb. The Peak has slightly more cushioning.

Well I ride 3 times a week for a bit more time than you and I have worse seeding but I only weigh 75kg. i have no issues with my wife so clearly the problem is not the riding or your performance. You're just too fat!

I have owned 4 Polars and 2 Garmins. I find the Garmin's much simpler and more intuitive to use. I do have some issues with uploading data from my Garmin to my PC though. But I had constant hassles with Polars not picking up my heart rate.

I have an issue with some of the holier than thou TH and LA bashers. Some mates of mines where ranting about how dishonest and awful Lance was after reading TH's book. Turns out they (dishonestly!) read an illegal and unpaid for copy of the ebook. They had no answer when I raised the issue with them. So where do you draw the line? Driving over the speed limit, not stopping at a stop street properly - with bike or car - is wrong. Ever copied some copyrighted music? That said I don't condone doping in any way. In fact I believe life bans are the solution. I just don't know if I am in a position to pass judgement on those who do it.

The ISM saddles must be set up properly to get the benefit of their design. The rails (NOT the top of the saddle) must be set level. It looks like you'll slide forward but you won't. And there should be about 5 cm of saddle sticking out behind his backside when he's seated in the correct position. To compensate for the short nose the saddle will probably have to be setback an additional 6 cm (measured from the crank axis) when compared to a normal saddle. If you've got all that right (as per the video on their website) and it still not working I see that Specialized have just released something similar that looks a little narrower in the nose, called the Sitero. But I haven't located one locally yet.

Mark Allen recommends that you use the Maffetone method until you reach a plateau in you training, then go to intervals until you stop improving there, then back to Maffetone and so on. See his article on this here: http://www.markallenonline.com/maoArticles.aspx?AID=2

I tried it and for long endurance events like Ironman it works! I trained for and raced IM at Maffetone intensity. It will probably work out at around 75% of your max, or close to Joe Friel's zone 2. Advantages: I don't think the average oke can sustain higher than 75% of Max HR over 12 hours of racing so you are training in your racing zone. You are much less likely to get injured at lower intensities You build a massive aerobic base if you put in the hours - if you're only training and hour a day I wouldn't bother - it's for endurance training Add some intervals (for shorter events) after 3 months of Maffetone work and you will be amazed at how high a peak you reach Buy the Big Book of Endurance Training and Racing. Be aware that Maffetone also recommends an LCHF diet, which he also descibes in some detail, along with this type of training to get the most out of it.

I had a 305 that packed up out of warranty. It was not repairable so Garmin SA offered me a trade in on a 310XT at a very good price. Send it in to them and see what they say.

I went from a 26" Trance to an Anthem 29er. After hitting the pedals a bit on the first few rides I measured the relative BB heights and the 29er's BB is lower. Which explains it. But I learned to adapt to it as the pros of the 29er outweigh the cons IMO.

Send it in to Garmin themselves. If they can't repair it they may offer you a great deal on a replacement. They did when my 305 died.

I was one of those. Went from an old 4" travel Trance to a 96 and it was like being on a hardtail.

I did the Ergomax setup with Renay. And yes I think it is worth it.

The UCI and others need to stop pussy-footing around with 1 and 2 year bans for doping. For the amount of money the top pro's seem to be making it's almost worth the risk for them to be out the sport for "only" 2 years. If you're caught you should be banned FOR LIFE!!!

get an Adamo...

I use an Adamo. Started getting repeated prostate infections/irritation every time I got on a bike. It sorted those issues out by relieving the pressure on the soft tissues. But it puts more pressure on your sit bones. They say it will take a couple of weeks to adjust.Took me 3 months. They also reckon its muscle soreness that causes the pain - the muscles that cover the sit bones - and they need to be conditioned. (like the muscle soreness you get after your first few visits to the gym).

Ergofit +1. it will save you money and pain in the long run. Your height is only one part of the equation. Compare my numbers with MCipollini. He is 185, I'm 181. You'd think he would use a longer reach than me but he doesn't. He rides a 55.5 TT with a 100 stem. I ride a 56 TT with a 115 stem. We are all assembled differently.

I use a flat bar simply to get the front end of my 29er low enough. The taller you are the less of a problem this would be,