RobynE 🚵‍♀️

Sorry my bad - mine are 40

I have an Extreme Light as well as a bunch of other external battery lights, but wanted something for road use - I always ride with a flashing light and my daughter too (she’s 9). Sometimes we head out for a ride and stop for coffee/hot chocolate and it’s dark by the time we get home. So I have lights mounted on the bikes permanently, just in case. I have gone through a number of different budget-friendly small lights for this purpose. Bought two of these a few months ago and they are incredible lights for the money. The battery lasts amazingly well, the light is crisp and clear and the mount is solid. Button shows state of charge (green ring that diminishes as the batteries deplete) and it has a side red light for cars to see you from the side. Charges with USB-C. Various modes. Very small money for what you get and I highly recommend. Extremely happy with them. They are not super lightweight but I don’t care - they work. https://www.rookiesports.co.za/product/fluir-elite-1000lm-front-bicycle-light-usb-c-rechargeable/

Absolutely love my Cinturato Ms - mine are 42 so maybe give that a try. NEVER lost traction in them - best tyres I’ve ever had. Even did Mabalingwe Lion Man 😂 (in hindsight I do not recommend gravel-anything for Lion Man lol)

I would pose the question to Titan and see if any of it is considered a warranty item (based on service intervals etc being correct)

I have this exact one and it works like a bomb. Use it for cycling and hiking. Didn’t buy it from Temu but the exact same one and I’ve had it for a year now. With full 2L bladder in it I can still fit 5 naartjies in the main pocket. Gummies and other small bits in the front strap pocket. My iPhone 14 Pro can also fit in the front strap pocket. Doesn’t come with a bladder. I actually forget I’m wearing it. https://share.temu.com/g3xlhd5CjtA

Aaargh the brazenness of it really gets me down. Hopefully someone recognises this guy.

Super sh*tty to have it stolen like that outside your coffee shop. Did they just walk up and take the bikes? Load them or ride them away? I was at my local Seattle not far from there today and a whole bunch of guys were sitting with their backs to their bikes and I thought, “probably wouldn’t be too hard for someone to steal them” - obvs not the same Seattle but still.

That is super smart!

Happy new bike day! It looks like a winner!

NB in the links posted by Jay, the GT Avalanche is NOT the same as the Avalanche brand. The GT he has posted is really good bang for small buck, too and as he said, adjusting your budget by R500-R5000 really puts you in another world in terms of new bikes at this price point.

Avalanche is a budget brand. You will be in and out the shop often tweaking gears, brakes, etc. Had a Reflex for a very short time. While it was better than a Makro bike, it wasn’t by much. It didn’t like bumps and the brakes were iffy which is the last thing my wife needed on downhills. It was heavy. It was hard to ride. It’s now owned by a local gardener and he loves it for commuting. You will lose 75% of the value of the bike if you want to sell. You are unfortunately very likely to shoot yourself in the foot wanting a new bike with entry-level components and expecting it is the safer bet. Companies like SRAM, Shimano, Rockshox and Fox will always win second-hand over “nameless” new and LTwoo (which is the only branded component on the Reflex Pro). I entered the bike scene much like you. Family wanted to ride. Ironically my first post on the Hub was about buying the Avalanche and the advice given to me was the same as the advice given to you. I didn’t want to listen though. My Avalanche is now school fees. But my two second-hand bikes (Trek and Giant) bought from Robert Whitehead who is mentioned above are absolutely bulletproof and have not needed any tweaks or repairs since I bought them and they were R11k and R14k respectively in 2023. In terms of matching bikes - they really don’t ride the same for every person and I would really suggest that you try bikes out before buying them. One man’s Rolls Royce is another’s golf cart. Your choice at the end of the day. If you really want new, consider the Rockrider range at Decathlon. The XC100 is 1x11 Shimano Deore with Tektro hydraulic brakes and Manitou Markhor fork, with tubeless-ready Hutchinson tyres at a retail price of R14,999. These parts are all considered “serviceable” at bike shops. Their frames have a lifetime warranty and moving parts 2 years (vs Avalanche 3 for frame and 1 for moving parts). It’s a “proper” bike compared to the Avalanche. You’ll still sit with an awful resale value but you won’t have nearly the amount of niggles and tweaks and creaks while you own it. Decathlon has good bikes. Their R8k bike (the Explore 500) is still better than the Avalanche with Microshift and Suntour components. The red bike with SRAM GX mentioned in a post above is a Small and the last one they have of the range, plus it has some scuffs from being a shop demo for so long, hence the very low price. I have been considering it for my daughter for quite some time. The red bike will be too small for your wife but it’s a great bike.

I would also look second hand. You’ll get more bike for your money if you buy second hand and the bike will retain its value better. The Avalanche won’t we worth 4K from the moment you walk out the store with it, sadly. Have a look through the ads on here and post links to the bikes on this post and people can give you their input. In terms of frame size you’ll need a medium for your wife and a large for you, but it also depends on the bike geometry and just the feel you get from the bike. The best-specced, best-priced bike may not feel like “your” bike when you ride it. I bought a Signal Skye S920 new in 2022, for R10,500.00. 1x10, decent components for a starter bike, still within warranty. It’s done less than 200km in total, been maintained perfectly, brand new tyres with tubeless conversion, and I have no bites on even R7k trying to sell it now 😔 Conversely I would get the money I spent on my (2014 model) Giant and (2020) Trek bikes that I bought second-hand in 2022 and 2023 back, with no issue.

My kiddo has the Titan. Got it for her 8th birthday in September 2022. It served her very well in stock form. Very reliable and easy to ride. We started to have an issue with the chain slipping off the chain ring after about 16 months. LBS did some adjustments, fine for a few days, started again. New chain, same story. Chain guard, same story. I did a post on here asking for advice. Droo suggested it was because the Microshift der doesn’t have a clutch. I think he was on point. It did start to affect her confidence going downhill over bumps as the chain would jump off every.single.time and it was stoppage after stoppage to put it back. I didn’t love it either lol. It could have been a warranty thing but I found she was also running out of steam with the 1x8 setup. Furthermore I did not love the Tektro brakes and despite LBS adjustments etc they just weren’t sharp enough as her skill level and confidence was increasing. So, @RobertWhitehead fitted a SRAM GX 1x10 groupset, oval chainring, new press fit BB and new crankset with longer cranks. While at Robert’s place I got a little overexcited and a Rockshox Sid WC fork fell onto the bike as well. I’d already stumbled over some tubeless DT Swiss wheels with hubs here on the Hub. Oops, also tripped over some Avid Elixir brakes at Rob’s place. As you can tell I’m very clumsy. So the GX has *never* dropped a chain and she flies over any and all surfaces now. The bike is extremely light and agile and pretty bulletproof I’d say. Total cost all in for the bike as it is now is about 13k from purchase to today. It didn’t make sense to sell it and buy another bike - I wouldn’t have gotten the same quality of components on a new bike for that price. She did a bike fit the other day and bike fit dude reckons she still has another 2 years on the bike. She’s now 144cm and turning 10 in September. For 13k she’ll have a bike that has lasted 4 years which I think is pretty good for a growing kid. In stock form the bike was very rideable. Downsides for me were the not-very-stoppy Tektro brakes, the weak sidewalls in the stock tyres, the chain slipping. Plus points are the frame weight, geometry and it’s a nice-looking bike. All components are decent for the price you pay. NB nothing wrong with the stock fork but as a coil fork it was heavy. It was a bit clunky over the slightly bigger bumps and jumps she was doing but it performed well and gave no issues. I have seen the Skid and must say I prefer the overall look of the Titan. Just feels like better quality to me. But that’s just visual. Pics of the bike as stock (but with better tyres) and then after Robert’s magic.

PS number used is 0782186828 which comes up as Hlulisani Ngo on Truecaller. May use other numbers as well.

Spidey senses and a fake (but admittedly pretty good) SMS POP from ABSA made me turn left instead of right today when going to deliver a bike I’m selling. He reached out through Marketplace. Was supposed to be instant pay Nedbank to Nedbank, guy spoke and wrote English well, knew the words “clipless” and “flats” (not in my ad). The instant pay of course wasn’t instant and I ghosted him the moment I received the POP (his “wife” was doing the payment). A few red flags eg saying to me to not worry to wash the bike first, but by and large felt pretty solid - no GLARINGLY red flags. Kudos to CAP Security who has nothing to do with me and isn’t even in my area, but is in the area the seller gave me and very kindly arranged a vehicle to stand off outside the address I’d been given before I got there (arranged before I got the fake POP). Came home with my bike - not sure if it would have been an attempt to bully me into handing it over based on “money” having been “paid”, or if I’d just have been robbed blind when arriving at the address 🤷‍♀️ Dude is pretty well-spoken and if I was to guess, he’s Zimbabwean. Sounds humble and soft-spoken. He was happy to speak telephonically etc - not the usual 419-scam messaging only. Shortly after receiving the POP he called me and his tone had changed substantially - shorter, more aggressive. But sweet as pie leading up to that moment! Eyes open, folks!

Ja that bruising is HECTIC. And lots of organs in that area to take even more of a hit.

As someone who suffered chronic back issues for 10+ years - Go and have an MRI and see what you’re dealing with. I had never done chiro and luckily not as I had impingement on my spinal cord from a collapsed disc - clearly visible on MRI. Could well have ended up incontinent or worse if I’d done chiro. NB I had zero pain at the site of impingement - my issues were recurring shoulder spasms and neurological fallout (sound of water rushing in my ears, seeing flashes of light, etc) when I finally sucked it up and went to the neuro. Getting to that point had been a steady onset of frustrating “small” symptoms - it wasn’t an overnight thing. I just kept treating the symptoms with meds, physio, dry needling, etc. One day I realised that I couldn’t even go for a game drive or do more than sit on my horse at a walk without needing an anti-inflammatory. I realised it was absolutely ruining my life. Two surgeries (2021 and 2022) later and I have three prosthetic discs in two different sites and haven’t had a single back ache, spasm, neuro event since, live a totally full and unguarded life, no medication or supplements, like nothing was ever wrong. For 5 years it was a daily struggle and I lived on painkillers and nerve blockers. I was about to turn 41 when I had my first surgery. I still have osteoarthritis in different sites but it doesn’t impact me. My discs were the problem (partly genetic, partly hooliganism). My surgeon is Dr. Louis Nel (Jnr) from Spine Africa in Pretoria. Not sure who to recommend in the Cape but I’d suggest giving Spine Africa a call to ask for their recommendation. Do not go ortho (trust me - ward speak taught me a lot about how often this goes badly wrong), do not go chiro. Go neuro and get an MRI. Arrange in advance with your med aid; mine gives one free MRI a year but it must be pre-authed.

There’s been a few Santa Cruz scams on Marketplace this past week all over SA - I’ve just been hitting the Report Listing - Scam button.

I second a bike fit, if you haven’t done one already. Can make the world of difference to your comfort, confidence and enjoyment, it does for me.

I can’t say if it’s safe or not, but I live nearby and see a lot of people cycling solo in the week.

As one of the few (or maybe the only) women on this thread, thanks for this. I just feel like there’s an awful lot of men saying what should have been done and to be quite honest barring a few comments most really seem to be leaning towards SNB and how he should have enjoyed a “softer” outcome. This is a really difficult thread to read and digest. As a woman, and mother of a girl child, there are many things I teach her and coach her in. Life stuff, mainly. I can’t coach her in cycling (or any other sport). I rely on ethical, stand-up people to do this. Sadly, I rely on my relationship with my daughter to let me know if things go weird, because the reality is you really can’t trust anyone outright. I am thankful that the custodians of the victims in this case had enough wherewithal to believe their wards and come forward with the information. As a woman I cannot stress enough how hard it is to be taken seriously about this kind of thing. Even when you are speaking out to another female. What SNB did is disgusting, immoral and despicable. He deserves his lot. His misconduct has been proven, and wherever this may lead, I’m proud of those kids and their custodians, and find myself thinking about those who perhaps weren’t believed or whose custodians didn’t want to act on it for whatever reason, or who brushed it off as some sort of “misunderstanding” or imagined scenario.

I would recommend the 25km - it’s still pretty tough out there!

Well I don’t know much about 27.5 other than you have a more limited tyre and fork selection - that being said, slowly stocks are dwindling on 26er parts as well except for the more hardcore downhill/enduro type stuff, and the kids bike stuff. But if the deal is decent why not - Merida are decent bikes and the 27.5 will give him a little more reward for his efforts than a 26er, and if the disk brakes are 💩 you can always upgrade them without too much cost (often see sets for sale anywhere from R1000 to R6000). The bike should last him a decent amount of time. Depends on the price of course. You could also look at a small or medium (depending on his height) 29er and then you’ll never have to worry about tyres, forks or anything else as 29” is definitely the most popular size. However it is a BIG jump from a 26er even in a smaller frame size and if the bike is too big for him he’s probably not going to enjoy it. All that being said those Decathlon pads are very cool and will most certainly give him some stoppage once bedded in and the brake system adjusted properly. Probably a good place to start! Edit: just saw that he is 16, so a 29er may be the way to go depending on his height. Not sure if you’ve ridden a 29er but it’s a totally different ride to a 26er and the 27.5 sits squarely in the middle. At the end of the day you have to like your bike, and that’s something to consider.

PS the Giant also gets serviced but not because it “needs” it ie there’s something wrong or I’m struggling with something and not enjoying the ride. I just service it when I have some money in my pocket 😂

No, the Avalanche got plenty servicing. At least once a month. More than my current bike. That’s what I’m trying to say 😊 The Avalanche was still finicky even though it got serviced so regularly.