Cranky

As a Gauteng-based mountain biker I'd only get a discount of "up to 25%" at one mountain bike race (Babbas Lodge) in 2015. Country-wide there are only four mountain bike races on offer at a discount. A really poor initiative!

Sondela 3 day Family Stage Race, 5 and 6 Dec (only two days listed on their events calendar!)

We stayed, a few years ago, at the Beecatcher Guest Farm. Very pleasant.

I got the MJ 880 from Magicshine in SA. Great light, great price and service from Magicshine with delivery next day. Runs just over 2 hours on full power, which is incredibly bright. Can easily run it on 50-70 percent max and get much longer duration.

If you're near Norwood Mall, you're only about 15-20 min from Modderfontein. You can ride there till late on Wednesdays. The KIA Over the Moon night race on the first Wednesday of every month is great value and fun.

We bought a Thule trailer with 4 Thule bike racks fixed above on a frame, second-hand. Thule racks are great because they can be locked and bike wheels don't have to be removed. A normal trailer is better than a flatbed because you can pop in a lot more for holidays, even camping gear.

Thanks. Really pleased about the postponement. Its far too wet.

I have this on my to-do list for 2015 too. I am organising a conference this year at that time. Looks incredible.

Loved the last one. Entered too. Bargain price for a great event. Bit of rain forecast over next week. Hope the muddy bits are not too churned up.

You would need to give us the links to the adverts but the Giant should be much better. I searched gumtree and only found a 12 inch Giant Animator.

The night race on Wednesday was fine despite heavy rain on Monday. Some short muddy sections but easy to bypass on grass on side or middle of track, even in the dark. It was great to ride on some of the newly cut trails. We bypassed the section by the river and reeds. Hopefully USN race does too.

Such good fun. Mud not too bad, great route, great organization. At R60 an entry with a boerie roll and beer, a bargain!

This issue has been discussed here before. There also was a Business Day report some time back arguing that the whole Chinese deal could still fall through. The Chinese company that plans to but the land (they haven't paid a cent yet) is smaller than the company here developing Waterall Estate. Modderfontein will be developed eventually, but we're likely to have the trails for at least 5 years more, and probably much longer. There are lots of good plans for the trails, as per the other posts, so keep enjoying.

I rode a whole race with a big fever tree thorn in my front tyre. Rather disconcerting but no problem. When I pulled it out at the end I had major problems stopping the leak.

For 1.5 K more I'd take the 2013 Advanced. Haven't ridden it but love my carbon Epic with Reba shock. Extra stiffness in front triangle should make the bike more responsive. Might be useful in moving from 26er to 29er.

I would look at Momsen too. They have some great clearance sales now e.g. Momsen SL629 for R12995. Check out their Facebook page.

Test ride them and choose. The Scott has a better shock, the Merida better wheels. I think the Merida may be lighter too. But as discussed on the hub before, the Scott was MBR's hardtail of the year in 2013. "The Scott Scale 960 has a parts package that can be beaten, but the ride quality is superb — and that’s why it came out top in MBR’s Hardtail of the Year competition. Read more at http://www.mbr.co.uk/news/scott-scale-960-review-999-2013/#dYpFjQUOwP3H5x48.99"

You"re the marketing guy who told us to check out the "amazing" store, Wez-O! I didn't see any post about a launch party later on. I just gave an honest impression of what was there today. I too hope it will be a huge success. It worried me to see the shop so quiet (hence my suggestion to move the "opening soon" sign away). And I wasn't happy to be forced to spend my money around the corner, so yeah, I was a bit cranky. Will certainly check it out in Jan, Gooner101, when my bike will need a service.

I went in today and was a bit disappointed. Shop looks good but has little stock. Mainly 29er and some kids bikes. Titan, GT, Cube, Merida. Very little in terms of parts and accessories. No sign of any specials. Maybe a rushed opening to catch late Christmas shoppers? I had to go to Sportsman's Warehouse round the corner to get the bits I wanted. Hopefully the shop gets more stock and variety soon. Would be great to have a good LBS in the area, with good bike servicing. The big trailer parked outside the shop still says "opening soon", so I reckon many will have driven past without knowing the shop is open.

For bikes in this price range, you can save a fair bit by going to a bigger store like Cajees, Westdene Cycles or Sportsman's Warehouse, rather than your LBS (you can go there later for services and parts). We got my son a Scott Aspect MTB at Cajees Fourways, with slightly better spec than the Titan you are looking at and at a similar price. The advantage there is that they have a huge range (all sizes in stock, so you can test ride) and they are willing to give a good price. Sportsman's Warehouse in Fourways has a huge bike section, so it might be worth the trip to Fourways for you to look at bikes in a few shops (the new Cyclelab Warehouse is there too), and test ride a 26er and 29er.

Heartland have always had plans to develop the Modderfontein North area where we ride. Was supposed to be a golf estate with MTB trail on perimeter. But now I guess the Chinese will decide how to develop it. The 275 ha reserve is likely to be off limits to cyclists. Already the birders, runners etc are annoyed by cyclists who ignore signage to stay off walking trails. And it's too small an area for MTB. So we should enjoy Modderfontein while we can.

True, but it should be fun to hear him in person.

Tim Noakes is speaking at Wits Med School on 30 Oct at lunch time. Talk is open to all. No booking, no charge. See this page for details: http://www.royalsocietysa.org.za/

Bayticol works brilliantly, sprayed on shoes or clothes. Guys who work in Kruger use it every time they are out in the bush. I

Thanks Uni