Paul Ruinaard

also had this problem and TBH many forums say its beacuse of the chemical products like sunvlock etc. Which is pretty acceptable if you understand how thin that film is. Use cheaper glasses IMO - Oakleys are nice but its just about the label. You get almost the same for a lot less.

FYI - you are all thinking about the problem incorrectly. At a certain level of wealth you need to understand that people buy it precsiely because of the R 400k sticker. For them, if you can afford anything, then everything is value less. Therefore anything that is ridiculously costly is appealing. The motivation is therefore because its so expensive. Prestige is the motivation. FYI : The best close line I learned and have used is to tell the prospective customer who is looking at the high end unaffordable item, that the solution they are looking at is likely too complex, too expensive or especially too advanced for him. If they are serious and have the money they will immediately counter and tell you whay they can afford it and watch him qualify in why he needs it, has the budget and is capable of running/driving/riding it. This technique is a sales technique called stripping line. When the fish initially bites, you don't strike - you give him more line. That way he swallows the lure whole and you hook him completely. If he hasnt got the money and is just kicking the tyres he will walk away. But you lost nothing. If he has you have likely got a deal - might as well hand him the keys. In this case the lure is the R 400k price tag.

So whats the weather going to be like? Long range forecast models are needed :-). Its on my wife's birthday - always falls close to or on her birthday so if I ride there will be some negotiation needed... Did it once on a tandem on her birthday when it was shortened to 57kms. She had a big sign on saying "it's my birthday" It was a long day in the sun for me whilst she had the best day ever on the back talking to all the passing crowds....

Also to throw the cat amongst the pigoens on this here is something i am seeing some merit in: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005009033963309.html?ug_edm_item_id=1005009033963309&edm_click_module=alg_product_3_5104353840&creative_img_ind=22&edm_log_data=gmod-edm-item-list-three-columns.track-edm-item-list-three-columns-log-link&tracelog=rowan&rowan_id1=aeug_edm_23867_1_en_US_2025-09-17&rowan_msg_id=paulCOWS_23867_$3d5ee92f95934c8c80ceceb7fb440a85&ck=in_edm_other&mem_info=wAOerSCDP0Uou9vG/fmKeA==-100003-aeug_edm_23867-1k8eaB0jrr35Qa1V8TSmPJUT+qvFT/RJeE24294zx4k= on this sort of solution you would i am sure be completely on your own when it come to support and not sure about the landed costs of this but maybe signifcnatly cheaper.

Thanks for the detail however i think the issue is maybe related to an issue of support in the local market. I will forward you the mails from both bicycle power locally and then with Favero support directly where i raised these issues with them many times if you would like and you can see what unfolded. As background I have owned both pedals - Garmin and Favero. I had the Garmins since approx 2019 and they did develop an issue in about 2021 and go faulty and as a result i had them swapped out under warranty. I think i paid R 7k for th swap out as per Garmins local policy and they were replaced with a new set. However at the time I heard of the rave reviews for Favero so decided to buy them - it was from Mellow Velo, and then sell the Gamrins on the hub here as new, which i did. they worked great initially and the recharge functionality was great, or so it seemed. Wind on about 4 years with the Favero's being used - initially a lot and then not so much (maybe less use of the road bike) and in summary they refuse to hold charge - eventually disconnecting straight after being recharged - so their internal batteries are completely knackered. Now with Garmin you replaced the batteries every 30 hours or so. With favero it's not so simple - they whole spindle needs to be replaced. I logged calls with bicycle power locally, did long investigations wrt potentially opening them myself and eventually contacted Favero directly on their support alias and interacted with them there. In summary my statement wrt Favero and their support and warranty is based on these interactions. Whilst they are both great products whilst working the difference is in the serviceability and ultimately support in the local market, where Garmin is much better. With Favero once out of warranty they are not serviceable and any repairs you need to do yourself when you get the spares or you need to get bicycle power to do them at approx R 6500 per pedal. Simply put what transpired on the Favero's' which I had which would not hold charge at all the feedback from local agents, Bicycle power, and Favero support directly was as follows: - Favero warranty is 2 years from date of purchase for original owner. Garmin is similar but they aren't only for the original owner FYI. - Batteries are not serviceable or their ability to hold charge decays as they age so likely this will occur after some use in year 2 onwards depending on many factors but you are guaranteed that eventually batteries will fail. Garmins you can just replace. Favero - not so easy. - at that stage they need to replace the whole spindle - it cannot be repaired, and is not serviceable. Therein lies the rub. As the batteries are in the spindle. - After much to and fro to get them to accept the pedals were faulty - it came down to them agreeing that they were faulty and offering an outside of warranty swap out. However this costs 286 euros per pedal pus transport costs or a special offer was made for ONE pedal of 196 Euros plus transport costs for ONE of the pedals. The other which was also faulty would be at full list. So approx 480 Euros for the new spindle which I would need to fit myself (FYI the one pedal was definitely faulty so they offered me a discount off the 286 Euros) these prices were excluding shipping and duties, which i assume would be 10 to 15% more. - you would need to fit these spindles yourself. Additionally they would not have any warranty other than on the spares. Or get bicycle power to do it. I don't have accurate costs on that but i recall about R 6500 per pedal. Simply put the Garmin's are better value because of their swap out policy on all their units. Even if after 4 years your Garmins fail you will get an opportunity to swap out the Garmins for a new set with full warranty from date of warranty swap out. Garmin has many sins locally but this alone keeps me coming back to them - their backup of their products in the market means even my old knackered garmin 820 which was 7 years old was able to be swapped out for an 840 with a cash injection. Brand new. I think i paid R 3k for it new and probably got the R 3k back in discount on the same products. I did point this out to Favero and the message fell on deaf ears. The issue was that they offered to replace the one spindle at a reduced cost but as the other spindle wasn't in their eyes faulty the total to replace the spindle was 286 euros plus shipping and duties. So no recognition of value of the products nor that they are competing against Garmin in the market. See below the replies wrt the warranty period on Favero from Bicycle Power. I can add the replies from Favero support which covers all the above if need be. In summary the backup and support is what matters as these aren't cheap things to buy and you use them for long periods. Owing to their nature they are prone to becoming faulty. When that happens Garmin wins that discussion and in the longer term, is cheaper to own and run. BTW i have a nice set of ex power pedals for anyone who is looking -

Assioma have an issue with batteyr lifespan and canot be repaired . I have a dead set of road pedals in the garage if you are interested - R 6500 per pedal to fix and repair. lasts for 3 years max. If you use them for five years Garmin is a better bet, and yes i changed fro Gramin to Assioma - the Garmin maybe a pain with the batteries but after 5 years they are still working. Just FYI, and as a resul I am no longer an Assioma fan

yep have one in my camelbak. Used it last weekend. Same as the expensive brands but half the price and they work well. Temu for the win - dont need the brand names as they all ship from China anywya.

The photography on this string is enough to inspire anyone to gte on a bike. One of my favourite places to go before and after a weekend. Some great pictures here. I would destroy my phone or crash the bike if i took some of these shots.

Yes it works well. even better if you are uinsg the Aple TV 4K. I have both my profule and my wife's loaded. Remote control can be a little tricky to gte used to but it works nicely.

its also been found tp be the casual workers who work for the people who pu out firees. No fires = no pay. Go figure

FYI I have one of these for the motorbike - also a LOT more expensive than the temu version: https://www.amazon.co.za/CYCPLUS-Inflator-Portable-Compressor-Motorcycle/dp/B095YCKBWJ/ref=sr_1_2?adgrpid=163299009970&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.6ppbJjg4m_Ks8w_1PDVenriipPyqvJPTmXbs2QOSDvflEGfvpNl_GhvP1_hIEAFGg2hpBuV062qNNVx4WiDzjzCIGcuWaDU1MJyRFx-dzRc.PQrVKVAvLEVCM_cBCN2vG4EaKpkRv91Lz5MvbHJ6SVs&dib_tag=se&gad_source=1&hvadid=715278462878&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=9221490&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=2995516062490231912&hvtargid=kwd-2010352768981&hydadcr=28314_2530109&keywords=cycplus%2Btiny%2Bpump&mcid=79124602877c3f38904bb21076829fca&qid=1745570451&sr=8-2&th=1

let me review when it comes in - i went Let me check and review when it comes in - i went for one of the small ones for cycling. https://www.temu.com/goods.html?_bg_fs=1&goods_id=601099896476953&parent_order_sn=PO-184-20853878820392788&add_order=1&sku_id=17593794346637&top_gallery_url=https%3A%2F%2Fimg.kwcdn.com%2Fproduct%2Ffancy%2Fb115ce93-785c-4a0a-85b8-9de1bd333690.jpg&_x_sessn_id=wohupxf4k4&refer_page_name=bgt_order_detail&refer_page_id=10045_1745569836096_cx8mz47798&refer_page_sn=10045 there are bigger ones which are better for motorbikes. I have one I used to use on my motorbike which worked fine - needs a bigger battery and more volume as cycling tyres much smaller but it worked okay.

yeah but if you look at the demos it makes a lot of sense rather than CO2 bombs which are always a lottery. I saw a video and as we had some punctures last weekend which were multiple CO2 bombs and pumps etc this would. have solved a ton of issues. Decided to pull the trigger on one.

Have ordered some of the Bibs and a gillet vest from them plus some other tat base don the reviews on tis site. At the price the shorts are great for the IDT in winter and Zwifting - as long as they are half decent i can get 3 pairs for every one Ciovita . lets see. Anyone order the new pocket infkators that seem to be all the rage - much niftier than CO2. if so which ones are the best?

All of this wrt technical skills goes back to the discussion around dropping hundreds of thousands Zars on your dream race and then only to have a day 1 or 2 crash whilst going down a technical section. Break something and it ends your race, your partners race and there is no asking for a refund. So you become super conservative about the stuff you know you could probably ride or may think is a bit technical and then rather walk it, because you want to finish it. Honestly it screws up the fun you would have normally had IMO. Also mismatch in partners abilities - you dont want to force the weaker technical rider in to a mistake and then end the race that way. You think differently in the Epic. You are running a long game with all aspects focuse don a longer term horizon. Even Anika walked the one descent in the prologue, but having said that its super sketchy and i probably think about 50% of the field would also have walked it.

Good article IMO and the race has changed. it is going to fracxture IMO in to a pro race and a Letape type race for the amateurs in the not so distant future. Thats the only way forwrd when the levels keep increasing. That or more rigid qualification criteria than the size of your wallet and ambition.

https://www.bikeradar.com/news/garmin-connect-plus I see this on Bike Radar. It was only a matter of time before this started to become a service. I think we will see more of this and its going to be very interesting as the tech matures. FWIW i have seen on F 1 sites AI connected virtual driving rigs that take pro drivers and materially improve their lap times. there is no reason this cant or wont happen in cycling. Imagine live real time copilot functionality on your head unit monitoring your perfromance and coaching you.

Yep agreed. I have been through 2 x motors and 2 x batteries on a Specialized levo - one was during lockdown so replacement batteries were like hens teeth. I had the original invoices so got a discount on the motor. Batteries - good luck. And when they fail they are catastrophic. I have tried to get them repaired but no one can reset the Battery Management Software (BMS) that Specialized uses so good luck with repairs. Having said that at least with Specialized you can get spares and repairs done. Some bikes are so niche i dont know how to source spares. In general with ebikes there is a need to stick to known brands as the motors fail and so do the batteries. FYI the last thing i had that popped was the Specialized range extender i so dearly love as it removes range anxiety on my Turbo Levo SL - i have a R 11k paper weight right now as no one can repair it.

Again amongst other things I can think of is the need to find like minded people who are enduring your pain and spending as much time on their training and journey as you are for your big event . Peer groups really help to pull you through and keep you motivated, other than your partner. If you train in a large city you can find people who are training for your events and ride with them as the length of some of the base rides is sometimes way above what your regular riding groups would be willing to commit to. When you are fit and doing base rides of 5 1/2 hours at 30 kmh on a road bike you cover a massive distance. I still have memories of places i never thought i would ride to on a bike. Your normal Saturday riding buddies aren't going to be willing to ride as slow or as far as you may need to. That makes it very tough and easy to just do the group ride or race which is what you normally do. You need mates who are in the same boat and mates other than your partner. You get to know each other very well and get in to a bit of a bubble. Very unusual experience.

I think a dicussion on budget for "hardware" is essential given the training volume you have to make plus the need to ensure your chosen steed is race ready and reliable implies many chains, clusters brake pads and tyres as well, some of which will be used in training alone and in the race then be prepared for servicing costs, massages and the like as well as daily kit changes, nutritional plans etc. This all adds up execptionally fast. Also to be honest probably start with new brake pads plus three to four sets spare, new tyres and spares, new chains and clusters plus spares and then depending on hardwrae batteries etc. Plus mechanics to fit them and ensure the bike is repaired as if you are at the back you are knackered.

As they all said the lowest cost option is maintain and ride it if its in reasoable condition. Clusters, chains, etc are all available. Unless you are doing some radical stuff and are pro level the bike is probably more competent than the rider (i dont know you) and when you get to the point you are being held back by the bike then you are probably ready for a new bike. Sticker prices are falling in bike land, so maybe somehting you see makes sense. Unless you have cash burning holes in your pockets and an urge to go N+1. Thats a different discussion.

https://en.brujulabike.com/tragedy-at-the-absa-cape-epic-2025-a-rider-dies-during-the-competition/ Not sure if it has been discussed but if it has sorry for the re-post however here is some details of the fatality that was rumoured but now confirmed. RIP the rider. Very sad.

You need to understand how the camera flattens those ascents and descents. They are crazy steep and super cambered with gravel and everything trying to push you off line. Very tough and very risky. Also get in to the mindset of an epic rider. The costs, effort and sacrifices you have made are monumental. Anything that causes you to fall or is a risk you avoid. So that stuff you would normally ride you walk because if you take a risk and screw it up you take your team out and potentially end both of your races. I can tell you, you start to think and ride very differently and worry more about the long game than acing a technical section.

At my house in Paarl today in the sun at 13:14. You could see then it was very dangerous then. . I saw 41,5 in the car at the same time

so just checking whether the stage has officially been stopped. Where can we see that and what happens to those that were still out on the course?