Gunston

So what's the story.... what do you have to do to get into the ABSA VIP tent / become an ABSA rider?

Having serious envy during the race for the fancy treatment the guys received in the ABSA VIP tents… whats the trick, how does one get in on that action?

I want to enter the upcoming Cape Pioneer Trek but have some logistical challenges - hoping that someone here has been through this before and can give some guidance (I have mailed Dryland a set of questions with no response - so hopefully someone here can help....) With no flights or direct bike transport from King Shaka to George, I'll have to fly via King Shaka to JHB to George, this somewhat complicates things I'll be flying my bike in a bike bag, will the shuttle service be able to take my bike also? I assume that if they do, they will also transport my bike bag to the finish and then back to the airport again? with the shuttle service running the day before and the day after the event also, does that mean the tented accommodation will be available those days also? For anyone that has done this race before on their own - any comments or recommendations on the logistics? what worked well? What didn't? Would love to do it but so far just getting there and back feels like a bigger challenge than the actual event.

Hi Jaco..... any chance this entry is still available?

Does anyone know if the Tankwa Trek is still happening as planned on 4 - 7 Feb 2021? I'm either missing all the comms from their side or there is none...as per the website, it still says all is good to go but the COVID update has been the same for months now...

thanks all!

I'll be in Cape Town early December for a couple of days and would like to spend as much time on the trails we will be riding for Epic (or as close to it as I can get) while there. Any recommendations on where to stay (was planning on Paarl somewhere) and where to ride while in town? thanks!

thanks Graham!

Anyone here from Ballito? We are new in the area and I would love to connect with training groups in the area to join on any organized rides / runs / ocean swims.

We are new in the Ballito area and I would love to join a road riding group - I heard about a group that rides / used to ride from the BP near the mall over weekends. Does anyone have info on whether this is still happening? Saturdays or Sunday or both? What time? Pace? etc... thanks!

If anyone can recommend a dietician that fits this description in the greater JHB area that would also be great....?

This sounds super cool. I hate waiting /sharing a lane at the gym pool so will definitely be checking out the endless pool option. I have been in one once before for stroke correction and it was really cool. Will you guys also be doing the virtual training on the cycleopps bikes? Would be nice to "cycle" the ironman route a few times before the big day.

I have recently moved from Fourways to Centurion and miss having the Cradle on my doorstep. Where do the roadies in the Centurion area go for a ride? Any organised group rides I can join?

I'm getting a bit gatvol of the cradle and want to wander out to a different route for a change of scenery. Never been to Suikerbosrand and would love to give the hills a go. How does it work out there- rock up and ride? Is it safe to ride alone? Anything special to know? and also.... How do I get there from Fourways? Thanks. Any other good sugestions of alternative routes in GP would also be welcomed.

Awesome! After not being able to get an entry for Challenge Roth I settles for IM Zurich so will see you there. The wife is also doing the 5150 the day before so its going to be a great weekend all round. Switzerland is super expensive and the exchange rate is not helping - start saving now!

According to my Garmin: - Distance: 86.64km - Elevation gain: 892m with elevation correction; 1207m without elevation correction (whatever that means)

I think the bike course is easier than EL (~10mins quicker). I did however find that it was more difficult to pace yourself on the Midlands bike due to the many smaller ups and downs. You could have easily overcooked things to end up with no legs on what was also a not so flat run course

It was a really good race and apart from the bit of rain I had on the last loop of the bike course, perfect triathlon weather. The only improvement like everyone else said - the traffic on the bike course was really bad. Had a few very close calls with frustrated/incompetent drivers with no regard for cyclist on the road.

If you think that pedigree is impressive, have a look at what Cervelo (especially the P3) has done over the past few years....

I wouldnt touch the Argon with a 10ft pole. Went all out and got an E118 a year ago and had so many issue with the bike (slipping seatpost, swiveling base bar, drop outs on the forks being skew etc etc) I took it back for a full refund. Check out the new Cervelo P2s, they are also in that price bracket and you cant go wrong with them.

They dont make Cervelo's in red so this cant be true....

It definitely is a race with lots of potential. Organization just sucked big time! Chaos started with transition bags and timing chips not being there at registration and most only got their timing chips the night before at race briefing or on the morning of the race. Transition bags where handed out on race day morning and you received a refuse bag for T1 and a large Zip lock bag for T2. Volunteers where useless. Nutrition and aid stations on both bike and run not up to standard. I had such a laugh when I saw they gave out 500ml screw top water bottles on the bike course. I'll give it a miss next year to first find out if they sorted out their issues, if all goes well then, I'll definitely be back in 2015. Or they can drop the entry fee and I'll make peace with the poor organization but given what I paid to enter, I expect a top notch race experience.

If you ride a Cervelo I have a dual bottle cage X-Lab setup we can chat about that came of my old P3.

I hope I have better luck with this one than I had with trying to get an Epic entry this year....

They say its the toughest Ironman in the world - It truly is. The swim was awesome in a perfectly flat sea with crystal clear water. The problem comes when you get on the bike and have to cycle some of the worst hills I have ever seen in wind that made PE 2012 look like like a breeze. By the time you get to the run its a survival game on a route that is mind numbing, wind again, and little rolling hills that feels like you're going up bunkers by the time you get to them. What got to me the worst during this race the lack of nutrition and poor volunteers on route. On the bike you had the option of red bull, water and power bar bars. On the run it was water, red bull and power bar drink with gels if at every other aid station if you're lucky. Volunteers standing with a smoke in hand feeding you red bull isnt the best way to a good marathon time. Overall poorly organized in comparison to SA but still definitely worth doing even if its just for the bragging rights that come with it.