Skubarra

Just to add - I would suggest entering the Cat where you can have fun ie be in the mix, be part of the tactics and maybe dish out a little hurt to the others as opposed to hanging on for dear life to riders generally better than you until you inevitably get dropped. There are no seedings to chase or improve so just ride where you will likely enjoy it the most.

^This - Cat 2 can be very difficult with the attacks and surges, and if you are caught napping suddenly its a long TT - very different dynamics compared to the PPA funrides. That said, the route for the Philadelphia race is quite flat and given that the distance is long, last time I did that loop in a league race the 1st lap was fairly mundane and only on the rollers in the 2nd did the real attacks came But I would actually suggest Cat 3 for a 1st attempt at league racing, although you will probably be fine in Cat 2

As I have it you are allowed to cycle on the section of the N1 until the Marine drive turn-off, after that it becomes a freeway and you are not allowed to cycle further onwards. Also the reason people cycle on that section of the N1 is not because its fun dodging heavy traffic, it is because they get robbed on the alternative routes and until recently the N1 was the only "save-ish" option, so banning people from cycling on that part of the N1 is not going to reduce the attacks.

Also sad that the finish through D'Urbanvale and Odendaal has been taken out, its the one aspect of the race that was unique compared to the other northern suburbs races, but I get why - traffic congestion a big headache in the northern suburbs with the town expanding (Clara Anna etc). I do hope at one point the roads will be fixed to the extent that they can bring back Vissershok and Van Schoorsdrift, the Malmesbury out and back not particularly exciting imo.

A personal preference & unexpected feature of the gravel bike I found - training rides with a gravel bike on the road = fun & fast + training ride which is a combination of tar & gravel even more fun & fast. MTB on road = boring, that is why I would opt for gravel bike over a hardtail as a 2nd bike

See the entries are sold out, very glad for the organisers. Might give it a go next year

The way I see it for many people gravel bikes will eventually replace their road bikes, swap out the gravel wheels for road wheels and instantly you have a capable road bike for your occasional road ride. Rest of the time it's faster and more fun than your mtb on gravel roads so you will end up using your mtb for trails only and the rest all gravel bike.

Tongue-in-the-cheek Robbie... Certainly not suggesting its acceptable to call for violence online But at the same token very sceptic that this is the type of thing that will actually get you prosecuted (unless you add a few racist slurs for flavour) Anyway, lets not digress - @Robbie Grant very frustrating and angry to hear about your experience and the indifference of politicians, seems the only thing that will get some reaction is more people dying on that spot 😢

You mean to say in SA people can get prosecuted for crimes? That is welcome news to me!

Guess it depends on how you define the "next big thing" - Just on gravel burn they clearly are not going for the big numbers, I reckon they bank on the idea that money can be made of a relatively few riders doing luxury giving the organisers decent margins to profit on. For me the 100 miler events will be where the "masses" will ride, but the competition is strong and riders fickle so I expect a few events to fall by the wayside.

Thank You Cuba! Awesome news! Definitely an option for me to do this event now - will take a look

Supposed to be sent to the team captain, I know a few teams have got theirs while others are also still waiting

2021 they changed the starting order from fastest to slowest due to covid rules and the drafting problems were instantly solved. Event felt like an actual team TT, there was almost no drafting and where it happened occasionally it was easy for marshals to step in. Problem is that starting order was murderous on the social/corporate teams riding in the heat & wind later in the day and will kill off the event within a few years. With the current format I don't really see the point of NOT drafting faster teams passing you, majority of teams do it, maybe something that can be policed for podium contenders but impossible to police otherwise so most people just go with it. Just on the rest stops, I did the race when we only had the neutral zone in Ashton and then support cars were allowed between Robertson and the finish, traffic was absolutely chaos and how no one was killed in a car accident during that period is a minor miracle, the 2nd neutral zone was a great idea to ease the congestion.

haha! must remember that one!

For me its always somewhere after Bonnievale - so I hook some fast teams on the flats & crawl up the 3 bit%hes trying not to cramp. Very aware of the "banter" from mates in the social teams I will be at the receiving end off if they catch up to me so I still try to get to finish as fast as possible.

I'm more of a "time over team, lets see if we can get 6 to the finishline" type of rider, makes for far more entertaining war stories. Problem is I haven't been in the front 6 of a team since 2019, its getting embarrassing 🙈!

I'm skipping next year, so the weather should be perfect

You guys need to get in early and do this race while its still affordable 👍

Kirmack (Team 286)

Yes - a good seeding doesn't actually does not help for anything other than boosting your ego. Would have preferred an "average" seeding for us.

Thank You!!

weird, wonder if it is done on purpose... Also - it seems there are more teams than last year? Or at least the team numbers go higher.

Not bothering to create a new thread for this year.... But does anyone know whats going on with the seeding? Seems they updated about 80% of the teams yesterday and then got bored or distracted.... 🤷‍♂️ https://doublecentury.co.za/race-information-centre/race-day-event/team-seeding-and-start-order/

True - it might buy you a few moments to react but if the attack is planned... I mentioned this few months back on this thread, but I was riding 30km/h+ when I saw mr bad news standing next to the street, I crossed over to the other side and sped up. As I went bye oke flung a massive rock my way which hit & bent my back wheel. Probably helped a bit that with the distance from him the rock lost some momentum before it hit my bike, but being on the other side of the road did not "save" me.

Have to agree with you - other side is not going to be of any help, especially on a climb like Hels. Best to turn around and wait for others if you really have to cycle that way. Or even better join a group and dont cycle alone. If nothing else it will improve your odds...