tombeej

The guys doing the road race will benefit from being in the TDF as long as possible, esp. the light climbers. It's a long, hard, very hilly course. The 'racing legs' they'll carry through from the TDF should only help them. But the track is a completely different discipline. Cav has to get back to his track-specific preparation. Super hard endurance work will only take him backwards - definitely not what he wants to be doing in the lead-up to the Olympics. He needs to be fine-tuning with the relevant speed work needed for the Omnium events. The TT guys... well it's 50/50 whether to stay or drop out, I guess. Cancellara is an old toppie and these big efforts in very high temperatures just take that much longer to recover from than a youngster like Dumoulin. The ITT is exactly 3 weeks away. I understand that he feels he needs to leave now for a bit of recovery and then to get back into TT-specific training.

So instead of all this whining and weird self-righteous anger at Cav, how about we recognise his achievements in this years TDF (exceptional), what he's singlehandedly done for the Qubeka charity (massive) and the exposure he's given DD (hugely valuable) and his support of cycling in Africa (so appreciated). And how about we recognise that he's got an Olympic Games to prepare for in just a few weeks FFS, that he originally signed up with DDD with this explicit understanding, and that everyone involved in the sport (including us, the supporters) always knew he was never going to get to Paris for this reason.

To start off (and to help you understand a bit better), you need to understand that the Tour de France is a tour of individual races linked together under one larger umbrella event. In other words, each individual stage is recognised as a separate race in its own right, with its own victor who can then claim a 'World Tour race victory', its own UCI world tour points, etc. Getting upset about Cav leaving the TDF 'early' is like getting upset with a mtber for not entering all events in the MTN national mtb series. Or getting upset with Federer for not competing in every single event on the world tennis tour, etc. So imagine you hear someone say that Nino Schurter should have his World Cup XCO series wins taken away from him because he didn't enter the final 5 races in the series calendar, and therefore also lose his UCI points in the process, thereby dropping is world ranking (like some fool said earlier in this thread about Cav). Would that not sound completely laughable to you? This is exactly the same thing.

Here are the merino options on Chain Reaction Cycles: http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/za/en/s?q=merino+base&cat=direct I have a couple of the One Ten's (long and short sleeve). Excellent product and doesn't come with a big price tag either. The Endura range is apparently also very good. Read the customer reviews of those products to see how others back up what I've said about merino. Lastly, here's a local SA manufacturer, Core Merino. Support our local industry and buy from them direct. [OK that's enough from me. Starting to drone on a bit too much ]

What makes Merino so uniquely amazing: For some reason it is completely unable to hold water. So you can sweat and sweat and it will hold none of it near your body. Your outer layers might end up soaked but your inner merino layer remains dry. So you don't get that terrible blast freezer chill when descending after a long bit of climbing. Priceless. In paddling and white water kayaking (which I did a lot of for many years) we'd paddle throughout winter in sub zero temps, running rivers where your feet break through the ice layers on the river bank as you climb into your boat to run the rapids. And the merino insulation stays 'dry'. As I say, this wool has zero ability to absorb/hold water. It's difficult to get people to believe this without seeing it for themselves. The other amazing quality is its inability to hold odour. So with all the sweating you do on your bike, it just doesn't transfer to the merino clothing. I've been on multi day hikes in the Berg in winter, crossing rivers, climbing mountains and camping under the stars without taking my merino base kit off for days, and at the end of it the merino has no smell at all. Nada. Lastly, its Warm! Beautifully warm. But at the same time you don't seem to overheat too much when the sun gets up later in the day. Anyway, since it doesn't hold water and doesn't hold your sweat smell, it doesn't matter, just leave it on and take the top layers off. Simple .

Legendary base layers - I still have two as well (and also more than 5 years old) - they are like gold. They're made from Merino as well, which is why they so so amazing. Merino is by far the most superior base layer material. Knocks the socks off all modern manufactured materials - none of them can hold a candle to merino wool.

Maybe just had enough and walking away from the sport? Often happens (burn out).

Well done Ashleigh ????????????

Oh damn, now I know what my next n + 1 purchase is going to be. Can see the wifie throwing her hands up in despair. Probably the only event these days where a modern helmet is actually properly frowned on!

Will try it out, thanks Wendy

Bonus, this blog of yours has not only been great to read, but I'm actually using it for a bit of my own research. The missus and I have been wanting to leave for some time now, and after our recent holiday in Catalunya we've fallen for the country and have now decided to start making active plans. First thing will be to learn the language. So from next Tuesday I start my Spanish classes . We are looking at the Girona area, but anywhere in the Costa Brava will be perfect. Once we are eventually ready to take the plunge (10 months to 1 year from now) I'd like to get in touch with you and ask your advice on all the steps we'll need to take (permits, legal, financial, etc) if that's ok?

Taking out a water bottle, drinking, then putting it back in its cage, is a much more difficult manoeuvre than taking out and eating a gel/energy bar. If you can drink from your bottle and put it back in its cage while tucked deep in the bunch, then you can certainly put your wrapper back in your pocket. And for those who aren't too sure of their bike handling skills in those situations, then all you do is just drift out to the outside right hand side of the bunch, take your drink or eat your bar, then ease back in when you're done. So simple.

Part 2: The M4 Highway: Once you've bombed down the M19 back into DBN you then go through the very flat industrial area along the river, and finally onto the M4 highway. For cyclists this is a thing of beauty. Brand new black-top. Not a blemish. If you go over a leaf you'll feel it. And it goes on and on. No big climbs - just the climb up from the Umhlanga river heading out to watch out for. And then coming back there's the climb up past Umdloti. Besides that, it's fast and straightforward. Magic, magic conditions for bunch racing. You're racing along the coastline with the warm morning sun on your face and the sound of the waves drowned out only by the whirr of wheels on the peachiest speedway you could ever hope for. And that's not even the best bit.... When you cross the line and you've collected your finishers medal, it's off to the beach across the road - just dive straight into the waves with your kit still on. And then soft serve ice cream on the promenade while the sun dries you off.

As I said, the M7 has a number of spots to rest as you go up. But as Gerald points out, it's all relative. It might be a relatively chilled climb in training, but for the racing bunches it really is full gas. So this is for the racers: Everyone knows that this is the only place (except the small Umdloti climb towards the end of the race) to get rid of wannabes and wheelsuckers. The organisers send off very large bunches of (a couple hundred people in 'A'), so the bunch is still big as you head to the approaches of the climb. Then as you hit that first ramp it all explodes. If you have any intention of racing this thing with a good time, then you have to be in the front there. The okes are will start going full taps as soon as the climb starts and everyone gets strung out in a long line. Before the top of that first ramp there are little groups of 5, 10, 15 riders splitting from the bunch. Some then come together to form larger groups over the next easier bits, but that first ramp basically determines your whole race. For the racers, the M7 climb is fast. It's going to hurt. Just accept it, embrace it, and look forward to it . In 'A' last year two breaks managed to get away. I was in the second break and we arrived in Pinetown with an ave. speed of 33.5 km/h. Don't take that last bump to the top (Otto Volek) for granted. With your jelly legs it can be another little challenge. But to be honest, by then the bunches have already been decided and you shouldn't be dropped there - because guaranteed, all the okes around you are all feeling just as *** as you are .

Part 1: The M7 climb: This is either 11 km or 15.5 km long, depending on where you personally view the climb to end. For me, the climb ends when we reach Pinetown after 11 km. For others, the last 'bump' from the Otto Volek bridge to the top is their summit. I wrote the following piece for last year's thread: To people who have not raced Tour Durban before and are looking at that big climb up the M7 with a bit of trepidation, look at it this way: It's not a solid/sustained climb, more like a series of smaller bumps with lots of opportunity to take a breather in between each one. It really is not as bad as it looks on paper (there are even a couple of little downhill sections). NB: There is one sustained section that you need to plan your race strategy around, and that is the very first 2.5 km of the climb. This section is a steady 6% ramp that doesn't relent. But there's relief at the top with a flat section where you can recover before the next little kick upwards. That's were you need your full focus. That first ramp. Be willing to dig deep to stay with the bunch there and keep telling yourself it's only 2.5 km long and then it's over. If you are still with the bunch there, then 80% of the job is done for the M7. You just need to properly commit to that first ramp, that's it. Yes there are more kickers after that, and the last ramp into Pinetown will hurt, but if you're still in reasonable shape then you should be just fine for the rest of the way.