The Bull Shark

And not a peep from our local media and news outlets. But we understand who controls the media.

I have to eat my words. Well done Tristan, you proved me wrong. You must have eaten your fair share of cement and still came up tops. Me, my wife and son was at the bottom of G-Spot and saw them coming through, counted the gap and knew they had it in the bag. I hope they stay as a team for next year's race.

Yes. Luke is also not the corporate type of rider. He likes to do things his way.

I cannot see Beers and Tristan catching up on lost time unless the other teams have their share of mechanicals and crashes. And it will be unfair of us to expect so much from Tristan so early in his career. It might have been different if he was Beer's partner from the outset so that they could train together for a year.

Does not look so cool and white after today.

I just watched the live feed with the wife (skipped here and there where they just talked k@k). Dammit, some of those trails today were proper. Off camber and rocky. And then tomorrow they are doing Ouberg Pas. That is going to be epic.

I see you are new around here.

I think the organisers and broadcasters are starting to scrape the barrel because of budget contraints.

Doing the Epic is a huge commitment, not just from the rider, but also from the rider's family. One can understand when the rider puts a higher priority on his or her's family. My cousin did the Epic a few years ago. I asked him afterwards if he would do it again, and his answer was no. He said the commitment to training regularly hit his family too hard.

Seems the Epic is losing it's attraction.

It is going to be around 35 on Sunday, so maybe more than usual will walk.

Let us hope the sun does it's worst this coming week only and that it cools off from next week on else it is going to be a war zone in Montagu and Greyton with many ending up in MediClinic with kidney failures. Looking at lower 40s this coming week in the Boland and surrounds.

Me and the misses are celebrating our 30th this year, so at least it was worth it :-) And she loves cycling with me. If I do not go, she will not go.

How was the heat for the mid bunches? Me and the wife have serious FOMO today. I crapped on junior because he did not go and he is in the best shape of his life. Just muscle and bone and no fat. I told him these are the years that he has to pile on those sub 3s. But he has women fever at the moment. No cure for that.

Good luck to all Hubbers riding tomorrow. Sitting out this year with my lower back injury. Will be back next year for my 12th.

Now I know why I do not actively engage on these forums anymore. Everybody gets personally attacked left right and centre. Cheers.

Just maybe soft drizzle. Not enough to make mud. In Strand and most parts of Somerset West it is still bone dry.

Having ridden at Rheebokskloof I know how flippen hard it is. And I ride Helderberg regularly and have done one Piket Bo-Berg. It is a step above Bo-Berg.

Well, we will soon know the truth. Doctors talk to each other, and my wife's boss is riding, and he is a physician working at Vergelegen Medi-Clinic in Somerset West.

I see Speed Company is not so speedy anymore. And Beers & partner is bleeding time. I think his Epic podium has long took flight. Really impressed by the SA youngsters. All those Spur school races of years back starting to realise results. Pity it went tits up.

Few years ago I was planning to do the Duzi. Before you can do the Duzi you have to complete the Fish (B grade race I think), and before you can do the Fish you have to complete a few C grade races, and before you can do that you have to pass a competency test, both theoretical and practical. Surely for such high stakes events they can implement the same. It is time that the UCI step in and demand the same or else the Epic lose their UCI status.

Any decent investigative journalist will be able to fish out the truth. We know what our mates riding the Epic reported back, and we have no reason not to believe them.

I would like to add that this armchair meteorologist and part time cyclist with no claims of ever being able to become an Amabubesi, have just being MTBing in the Western Cape for long enough to "know" that shyte was about to hit the fan.

I think they are already stuffed as they cannot control info coming from riders and that it is already well known that they did not prepare well for today given the weather predictions. Running out of water is not excusable for such a high profile event, and they can expect a case against them at least from the family of the rider that passed away, if not more. Just asking people to sign waivers aint going to cut it when they could have implemented mitigation against casualties.

Not that I am aware of. Only stage shortening or extension of cut-off times.