Sir Fed

Very true BaieSukkel, the swim amounts to around 10% of the race and it would take years of training for a non-swimmer to become proficient enough (swimming is an extremely technical sport) to put up a good time. The cycling leg constitutes about 50% of your race time and you can certainly make good gains on this leg if you are a strong rider BUT beware the monster at the end. Running is hard enough as it is, add 3,8km of swimming and 180km of biking and you are starting on very tired legs. Good runners will still manage on or just under 5min/km whereas the swimmers and bikers can barely hang onto 6min/km. That can be a difference of an hour or more over the course of the 42km's. Like you say, running - cycling - swimming in that order. Dont completely neglect the swimming, 3,8km is still a long way but if your weekly mileage is around 10% of your total then you are probably on track (give or take one or two long swims just before the event to sharpen up). As for the family/wife, thats harder than the training but maybe the promise of a week in PE can sweeten the deal. She is bound to have as much fun as you but make sure you get her onto the spectators program because 12 hours is a long time to stand by the side of the road.

I have been thinking about switching from long distance to sprint & standard after IM next year. There are so many more races and the training places less demand on your time. Of course I will be singing another tune come March next year and I really want to do Lanzarote (and Kona) at least once.

He's still in hiding but I will drag him out. If you are serious about one of those carbon-steel frames then we must talk because that was on my wish list too. The only problem was the cost of the carve rear end and fork (there are much cheaper alternatives) and I dont really need a road bike at this point.

getting an early start there cervelo, be careful not to burn out before the big day. gasant112, we covered this one before but cyclists tend to run on their toes to start with and are fairly tense. This results in shin splints and ankle/knee pain. Try get someone who knows what they are doing to give you some advice and to watch your gait and stride pattern.

I would say that unless you are currently running then 2007 is probably too soon. You can turn a runner into a triathlete very quickly but its much harder to come from one of the other disciplines. You mention someone having done 12hrs, thats a good time and will put you in the top 20%. Most people finish between 14 and 16hrs and only the very best get under 10hrs. If you can afford the time, get down to PE next year (I know you have other reasons to visit PE too) and watch the race. It's an amazing spectacle that cannot be compared. It makes the Argus, Comrades and any other sporting event pale in comparison and every athlete is made to feel as though they are stepping out at Ellis Park for the 95 RWC final.

Thanks for all the positive comments, I will be sure to pass them on to the person that really deserves them.

I am not sure he is ready to disclose his name but if enough people were interested I am sure I could convince him to take this building more seriously. As for the ride, having now had a chance to settle into the bike I can say that it is an awesome ride. Very solid with great power transfer and an a much quicker pickup than any alu frame I have ridden. Takes a bit of getting used to steel again but I will wring its neck tomorrow and get a good idea of how fast it really is.

Bikemax, please can you provide the supporting info for the table so that we can see exactly what the various columns mean. It would also be interesting to see where top end clinchers fit in.

A regular marathon rarely translates well into a good IM marathon but we all know Lance is a former triathlete and a great swimmer. His cycling is beyond discussion and if he can put together a decent marathon he might well do a good IM. Problem is that the top IM athletes will still give him a hiding. Most these guys are capable of sub 50min swims, just over 4hrs on the bike and sub 3hr marathons during the course of an event. I think Lance has acknowledged this and its part of the reason he has said that unless he comitted himself to being a professional athlete for another two years (something he refuses to do) he would never win an IM.

I have ridden Vittoria Corsa CX's for over 20 years, first exclusively and more recently only for racing. These are probably the most commonly used tub in the peleton with most riders just scrubbing the name off the sidewall in order not to upset the team sponsors. A friend has offered me a well matured set of Conti Podiums and looking at BikeMax's table I think I may take him up on the offer. They seem to compare favourably to the CX's

Head tube - 120mm 72deg Top tube - 550mm Seat tube - 700mm (c-t) 560 (c-c) 76deg Chainstay - 410mm (rear facing dropouts) BB drop - 68mm

Haven't weighed it yet Swiss, too scared too. It wont be light but I am guessing around 9kg's which is pretty good for a tri bike when you consider all the crap on it. Since most our races are on relatively flat courses its also not that big a deal. Tubing is Columbus Spirit. We could have shaved a few grams by using Life tubes but it wasn't worth the extra cost for a trial run.

Cost was free, the frame builder is a friend but its unlikely to be cheaper than the mass produced alu frames out there. As for the chain, yeah, I saw that when I downloaded the photos. I stuck the disc in for the pic and forgot to turn the cranks so that the chain was on properly. Glad to know that you are paying attention to the details though.

My latest ride, a custom built STEEL TT frame with carbon fork. Raised a few eyebrows with my choice of steel but those that have ridden a hand built steel frame will know the feel and power transfer that it gives. As for aerodynamics, its plenty aero enough as can be seen from the rear view.

Perhaps you can share your height and inseam measurements with us because the modern geometry's have made conventional bike sizing redundant. I remember the days when I rode a 61cm and now I comfortably ride a 56cm so dont become too attached to the length of the seat tube, look for a bike that fits.

Fat Bottomed Girls were riding bicycles and the song was released in 7 single format along with Bicycle Race after originally being released on the album Jazz. Interesting there was no B-side on this 7 single and both songs were given an A-side listing.

Basically doing lots of gym work will make you good in the gym, not on the bike. If you have limited time, as most of us do, then the best exercise for cycling is cycling. You can build low down power by doing hill intervals in a big gear (watch your knees) or explosive power by doing sprints. Two good exercises for this are: - find a hill about a km long with a good gradient, I used to use the front of Ou Kaapse Weg. Pick a gear that gives you a cadence of 40rpm at 80% and then do it 10 times, roll through at the top and go back down as well as at the bottom to give yourself time to get the gear rolling. - find a predominantly flat section of road that has a slight downhill at the beginning, again I used Ladies Mile. Use a biggish gear and indentify a starting point. When you reach it, jump from the saddle and sprint until you have spun it out (should be 200-300m, aim for at least 120rpm before sitting down). Of course if you have a lot of spare time, by all means go to gym and work out but be careful of what advice you are given as muscle comes with a weight penalty and if you are a road rider the gain in power might just be offset by the gain in weight (the all too important power-weight ratio).

Does anyone have any photos of the topless supporters at the Argus. I always miss them because they stand in places where the racing is hot and I keep promising myself that I will take a slow ride round one year just to take in the 'scenery'

Yup but thems also the rules of the road in the country and how many commuters do you see wearing a helmet? Making rules for the sake of making them is not productive. If you cant police them then dont make them. Sir Fed2006-09-07 01:23:26

I dont get it with all the helmet police out there. If the guy wants to ride without a helmet he is not endangering you, it might be a stupid thing to do but why make a big issue out of it?

Good rim liners are hard to find these days and most the plastic ones will become brittle and crack eventually. These rather than the tubes are what needs to be replaced (unless of course the tubes are already worn like your friends). Even the worst ones should last as long as a set of tires, so I would just check them out everytime you put a new tire on.

I think its more a statistical related question so that they can show the change in demographics but there should be a better way of approaching it. I have always answered that one with 'South African' or left it blank, including on my ID and passport applications and no-one has ever complained. They may have checked the right box after I left but not in front of me.

One medal is the AWAD (disabled athletes) section for Chris Wagner. Mention must also be made of Lizelle Smit, 5th in the 18-19 women and Anel Stewart, 4th in the 25-29 women's category. Today is the U23 and Elite's where Erhardt and Hendrik are competing respectively.

I saw a guy riding a Giant with these on near Irene. He said they didn't have the stopping power of the Shimano Dura-Ace calipers but did the job. Still can't touch these though http://www.zerogravitybike.com/UPDATES_MATT/GUI/brakes_image.jpg

For those of you with the bandwidth over the weekend, do yourself a favour and watch the mens race on www.triathlon.org. Hendrik is one of the top contenders after his win in the London Triathlon a few weeks back and has a good chance of a medal. Haven't heard if Andrea Horak is competing but she finished 2nd at the U23 World Duathlon Champs and would definitely be up there. Jaco Muller won the 18-19 men World Duathlon Champs and usually these guys compete in both disciplines so there is another potential victor. Things are looking good in multisport.