Velouria

"Luxavia was formed in 1971 by Trek Airways of South Africa. Trek feared, and rightly so, that South African aircraft, due to the country's apartheid policy, would be banned from flying over African countries. Luxavia took over Trek's licenses and were handed the Luxembourg landing rights in South Africa, thus being able to continue the flights between Luxembourg and Johannesburg. Cooperating with Luxair, aircraft were painted in Luxair colours and registered with that airline. Eventually, Trek titles were again to be seen on the timetables alongside Luxavia's. Luxavia/Trek ceased operations in 1994, after Trek's new venture, Flitestar, had failed to compete successfully with South African Airways on domestic routes." http://www.timetableimages.com/ttimages/luxavia.htm

I'm never sure if I am getting old, getting wise (or both), but the appeal of having fun on bikes is starting win over racing and doing well. I look at my kid riding his bike, and the only thing that determines when, where and for how long he rides, is whether he is having a good time. I think we could all learn something from him...

@fanievb - sometimes **** just happens. You can be in the shape of your life but your body and mind just have a k@k day out. Like you said - I know loads of okes who bailed, so you're not alone. Don't over analyse. Don't beat yourself up. Learn to love your bike again. Set some new goals. And move on.

It took me a while, but here it is: https://www.velotales.com/2019/03/the-bigdayout-2019.html

The random fact I can't forget about the SP - its tail was over a metre taller than any other 747 variant. (And why, to compensate for the reduced moment arm with the shorter fuselage). I hated the look of the SP. The lines of the 747-200 (and the later 747-400) were just so much easier on the eye.

I have the e*thirteen cassette on an XT setup, and I can't really complain. Are there crisper shifting setups out there? Probably. But I push the lever, hear the click at the back, and I'm good to go. Durability wise, I can't fault the cassette. While I don't ride my MTB a lot, I've put it through some rather punishing events, and it's still good to go. Certainly no worse than anything else I've ridden. I'm a low cadence, big blade, grind-it-out type of rider - I suspect that if you're an easy gear spin-like-mad kind of rider, you'll get even better durability. And for riders like me, that little 9 tooth cog makes the whole cassette worth it! (I never know whether "high" and "top end" refer to the big 46t gear, or the little 9t gear )

I've yet to replace the cassette (or parts of it) after 2 years of riding...

The general preference is for them to be in hand luggage, and not in the hold because if there is a problem, they can deal with it in the cabin. Not so easy in the hold.

This is my mate's route into Technopark from Protea Hoogte:

I solve the spinning out problem by going for a 9-46 at the back, 38-28 at the front. And with the e*thirteen cassette, you can replace half of it at a time

Another interesting tidbit - there was a deal between SAA and Safair - the owners of the planes that Sun Air leased - that prevented them from leasing the planes in the Southern African Development Community. At the time the all Boeing decision reeked of cronyism - Andrews giving his US buddies business, when Airbus would probably have been a better idea. At least as a replacement for the aging 737 fleet that he got rid of and replaced with 737-800s.

Exactly! This same thing (except with cars and SUVs and not 18 wheelers) happens to me on a daily basis. Car passes me, then turns, and gets an indignant fright when I lose my sh!t. Generally, situational awareness of motorists in traffic is limited to what they see in front of them and doesn't extend the 360 degrees around them as it should.

I just reread some stuff about Coleman Andrews. The thing that I found interesting was that he was hired to turn SAA around so that the Government could sell it. In the process, he destroyed Sun Air by lowering SAA fees to levels that Sun Air couldn't afford. The irony being that Sun Air was the government's first successful effort at brokering a deal to create a viable, black-owned company. And here we are, 20 years later with an airline that is still not profitable...

I think he should follow Switzerland's example with Swissair. Ironically, Swissair held 20% of SAA stock at the time of the bankruptcy. The things we could learn from others...

Oh dear - I've slipped down a rabbit hole. This was the next video on autoplay

I saw this on Reddit the other night, and thought it deserved a repost:

I ride from Somerset West - R44 to Technopark. I have a mate who commutes from that side, and goes through the Bottlery Conservancy on his MTB - avoids Kayamandi completely. Another alternative is to ride towards Kuilsriver, and then go over Polkadraai into Stellenbosch that way (I have a weird love relationship with Polkadraai). Devon Valley is also an option - and probably the quickest route in. You also get some good hill training every morning and afternoon!

Saw them again this morning, going the other way. I feel we're now commuting buddies as they even gave me a wave from across the R44. Two Bulls and a lady.

I love commuting at this time of year, particularly because I work in Stellenbosch. You're never quite sure who you'll bump into on the road. This morning I caught 3 mountain bikers (eventually), and as I got closer I could see a lot of flags and stripes on their sleeves. The Team Bulls trio of Alban Lekata, Urs Huber and Simon Stiebjahn. I did my best "breathe through my nose while giving a cool but friendly wave" as I cruised past them sitting at threshold, my legs and lungs burning!

Yeah, we were the three guys laughing at the commuters battling into the wind. Seventeen hours later and the South Easter had wiped the smiles from our faces.

What problem?

(speaking as a cyclist) Wind Fitness Shower facilities A place to park my bike The dodgy sections of the bike path (speaking as a car owner) I have to take my kids to school My car is warm/cool and dry I spent hundreds of thousands of rands on my car - I WILL DRIVE IT Safety Wind

I always hear how bad the traffic is out in Tableview, but I don't think I ever really appreciated just how bad it is. At 7 am on a Wednesday morning, that whole area is like one giant parking lot. Car after car after car, for as far as one can see! It was quite encouraging seeing the number of commuters riding into the city, even with a howling South Easter. If I was a non-cyclist living out there, I would buy an E-bike in the blink of an eye! (Given that South Easter, even as a cyclist, I would consider buying an E-bike)