stratus5

Uhmm, you may have 8000 parts, but I suspect they are all odd sized ball bearings after the months of frustration I have had trying to replace the 2008 (XT 760/ 770?) rear free body. The bit with the ratchet in it that the cassete fits on. The pawls inside broke due to faulty design and after looking on the web, I see I am not alone. There were none in stock in August 2008. They were not even on your stock list according to each of four LBS's I went to. The previous XT version free body cost R180. I was offered the latest part at R1250 at one shop (Bowden) and then Olympic cycles finally managed to source the part for me in December for ~R500. Last one in country supposedly! You can kiss Shimano goodbye the next time I source a hub.

Unless you break the chain inside a cars crank case Its not supposed to be possible, but after loaning the mother-in-laws car (We live in CT and flew into JHB) and heading off to the Kruger for honeymoon thats exactly what happend about 40 km from the Orpen gate. Guess the odds were stacked against me ... it had something to do with a faultly chain tensioner etc etc which had been an ongoing problem. Nissan ducked all responsibility even though they had attempted to fix the problem previously (Out of warranty) The engine was written off Towing and recovering car from Hoedspruit is a nightmare.

Organisers have asked nicely enough, but surely its a matter of self pride as well? Liittering says a lot about a persons culture and upbringing...exactly what it says it up for personal interpretation, but mine has a lot of unprintable words in it. So, to PPA number R745 during the Tour de Winlands, please keep your rubbish to yourself. The tab from your gel may have been accidental, but the casual over the shoulder throw of the empty sachet was not. Sis.

My understanding is that if you keep replacing the chain at .75% wear, then you can put a new chain on without a replacement of the cassette or blades. Of course at some point you will need to do a major upgrade, but that will be in a year or two rather than months, but then eek every last bit out of the current chain and cassette. In your case the LBS has decided that the cassete is too worn to put a new chain on the bike...so why not keep riding until the bitter end? You wont be grounded soon or suddenly. Somebody is pulling a sales job on you. You are most unlikely to have a sudden failure. More you may find a gear jumping or battle with incurable chainsuck. To get to the point where your chain jumps you will need to wear your cassette teeth down to almost nothing. Chainsuck is likely to be the real pain, but you can file hooked teeth to alleviate the problem for a few more months at least So if you accept that the next time you replace the drive chain, it will be chain, cassette and possibly all blades, then you can ride for months more and then start with a brand new setup. If you have an XT or XTR granny gear throw the damn thing away and put a LX spec gear on. Its much harder and lasts longer and only slightly heavier. Mine (XT) wore in four months and by wearing trashed the chain quicker than usual.

Beware the 2008 XT 775 Hub. I have had mine for six months and the Freebody hub has failed. The photo's below are not mine, but the failure is identical. Whilst I appreciate that any equipment can fail, what I really dont enjoy is the fact that there are no replacement parts in South Africa. You have been able to buy the hub for nearly a year, but Shimano SA has no 775 freehub body on their stock sheets and the old 760 does not fit. 775 supposedly available next month. How about a something I can use in the meanwhile? http://www.pvdwiki.com/images/e/e6/XT775-Cassette-Failure-8.jpg http://www.pvdwiki.com/images/2/28/XT775-Cassette-Failure-9.jpg

Did not get licence plates. Think there may be CCTV cameras that cover the street there though. Anybody know how to go about requesting CCTV footage from Cape Town CBD? Think these are the same people who hit the cars at Grabouw (TruCape). Everything was packed back neatly. just the Credit Card and cash was gone as well as the cellphone. If they had been less greedy and left the cell phone and cash, we would never have known the CC was gone, so they are probably not as smart as they would like to think. They rushed to the bottle store in Cape Town on Sunday morning. Cant be many open on a Sunday? Wonder why they choose booze and expensive stuff at that? The blonde was also very good looking. The owner of the store remarked that she had fantastic legs. No cmaera in store and security comapny (ADT) took 15 minutes to respond to their panic button!

Problem is that because of privacy laws and abuse thereof, only in very special cases can anybody request the tracking of calls. Its easy to see who your spouse is phoning, where he or she was on that business weekend away etc, but just one unofficial peek by somebody like me and you get your arse fired if you work for Vodacom. Technically I cant look at my own phone either, but think I might get away with it in this case...unless somebody complains of course. The police can request the data on your behalf, but you could wait years. This is what we have so far: maybe you saw them? The Thieves; White Female Blonde hair, blue eyes 5ft7<?: prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /> Very well dressed. Early 30?s Drove a White Opel Corsa Bakkie Man in a black golf. Both continuously on cell-phones Cashier called ADT but they did not come in 15 minutes and they scarpered. Claimed they needed stock for a restaurant, bought cases of Jagermeister, whiskey.

Hi On Sunday whilst doing the race my car was broken into, along with a few others. My wife lost her Cellphone, credit card, R550 cash and drivers license. The venue was quite secure and marshalls directing the race etc were close by. Anybody looking a bit dodgy or out of place would have been noticed. The only culprit is likely to have been somebody who could blend in, hopefully not family of one of the cyclists taking part etc. The fun thing is my wife and I work for Vodacom, so I know where that phone is, or if its been used with a new SIM. I know who it phoned for example even with a new SIM. Guess the culprit is going to find out just how loyal his friends are. Bummer if it on another network though. Whilst writing this my wife phoned... Her phone was used at 9:45 (Race started at 8:45) to query the cellphone balance. My Wife stopped her card at 10:05 (did 10km route). At 10:40 a white woman tried to buy R7000 worth of liquor at Midmar Liquors in Strand Street. She fled the shop in a black City Golf when the card came up as stolen. Guess we have video footage of her. Will try and get a screenshot and post an image here in case anybody saw her. Just an aside, if any of you are ever in trouble, leave the cellphone on and make a call, SMS etc to any number as often as you can. We can at least track each mast you were connected to etc. Hopefully nobody else had much stolen, but there is a chance that we can nail this filth.

I found the race very hard. A steep climb out of the start always flattens me, although i have noticed that 'how steep' is the key as I get fitter and drop weight. The Wolsely climb was loooong and fairly steep, but I kept up with the group around me (middle bunch) and felt quite good at the top. The Paarl climb was just that much steeper and the middle bunch blew me away in the beginning and I felt k@k. Obviously my power to weight ratio still sucks even if the fitness is improving. Went to bed early, but did not sleep well. That might be the real reason as I often wake up tired after a restless nights sleep. Wide awake at 4am, exhausted at 6am

All the food information available on how to prepare for an event can be a bit overwhelming and contradictory. As a 'fun' cyclist its not that easy to have planned meals on a Friday night especially when you have to go to work functions, friends etc. It's fairly easy to stay off the alchohol, but possibly there are some things that you should not eat? I had a fillet steak (no alchohol) on Friday prior to the Paarl MTB and felt really lousy at the start of the race. No energy at all. Flat and tired. I had all the energy sachets etc at the right times and for short bursts felt like normal, but for the rest ...flat,flat,flat Avoided the hot dogs at the 10 minute stop because I am sure I would have tasted that meal for the next 30km So, I would suggest steak is bad news. Does that sound likely, or could there be other factors (slight cold starting etc)? If food does affect the way you feel next morning... what food makes you feel good, and what do you avoid at all costs? I am sure the picture is way over simplified as I have stated above, but it would be great to feel like the energiser bunny just once before starting a race without resorting to chemical aids

Thanks for all the advice/suggestions Bought the bike from Albert (Probike). I think he weighs 96 Kg and is a strong guy. The crankset may have done the Epic? I weighed 98 when I bought the bike, but now down to 94 and dropping... Fairly strong rider as well, but go downhill over technical sections on my face more often than I care for. Done most of this years PP fun rides including Robertson, which was a mud fest. The wear is not bad, but it is noticable. I think if you are pushing 90 plus kilos up a steep hill you will chainsuck far more than lighter guys given the same trail/and bike conditions. It only sticks when I have to peddle slightly harder than normal, like over a short steep rocky section. Not all teeth are equaly worn. Some are perfect. When I tried filing some of them, it would appear that some are softer than others. Not sure if the XT small blade is hardened (can you harden alu?). Could be one or two areas were not correctly treated. What I have noticed is that the granny seems particulary noisy under load. Admittedly the chain often has sand/mud/snot on it, but it sounds very much like the front deraileur is touching the chain (which it isn't) and grinding away. Previous cranksets I have owned were definitely quieter. Know there were lots of previous threads on chain lube, but i am a bit frustrated in that the wet lubes seem to be sticky and encourage sand to stay on the chain for longer. The dry lubes shed dirt better, but also dont stay around for more than 40 km. Guess if it was too easy, we would all get bored and have nothing to talk about

Could have worded the title a lot better I have a XT (2008) crankset which is fairly new (~1500km) which is chain sucking. It only the granny gear (single gear suck) and happens once the chain is a bit sandy/dirty/wet. I took the granny gear off last night and it does show signs of wear. There are clear notches where the chain has worn into the gear, but its nothing like a cresting wave, just a noticable notched point on the pressure faceof three or four teeth rather than the original smooth profile. Other two blades look like new and chain has about 200km on it. I have seen a web site or two, where they suggest just filing the tooth smooth again, but not happy altering the profile on such a highly loaded gear. I will replace the gear, but hesitant to go the XT route again since this one wore so quickly. Is there a better more wear resistant sprocket I can use instead of the current XT version? I am not worried about a slight increase in weight. I would also like to apologise to Lilo (I think?). I was going up the second very steep climb at Wolsely when she came steaming up behind me (I am faster downhill). As she caught me the granny gear sucked and I called it a 'Bitch!' before I realised there was a pretty girl alonside me. Sorry Lilo I was really swearing at the gear

Took the car in to a workshop today. They will take the head off and see what damage there is. Whilst its apart, will redo the piston rings etc if required. Radiator looks like the frog Shrek blew up, so that needs replacing as its burst. Will need to do water pump as well just to be safe. I feel a little stressed

I had to slow down for a guy in front who was getting off his bike and it was while attempting to slow down that the front wheel got stopped by a raised root. I needed the front brake as the back alone was not slowing me down enough. Could not do the rest slowly with brakes on, so I guess the best is just to hold tight, let go brakes and bomb it as mentioned in earlier posts.

Whats the correct technique for getting down that steep rooty section of the Knysna race just before the finish. I went in too fast and went over the handlebars (hardtail) after using too much front brake I suspect. Recovered, got on the bike, got one foot clipped in and was sliding down hill faster and faster before I could get the other foot clipped. Did a nose wheelie right at the bottom with one leg still unclipped, but recovered before nearly pranging into the obstacle on the right. Not nice of the spectators to laugh

Wife's bike was not the greatest (GT Avalanche 2), but it was the first bike she ever bought etc... We did the Potberg route last year and although she did the shorter route there was lots of unhappiness about the bumpy ride over the grassy stumps. I was looking to get her a better bike, so its not all bad. Not looking for any handouts as there are far more deserving cases, but if anybody knows of a decent deal for a frame and fork (new or second hand) I thought this would be the best place to ask. Thanks.

Uhmm, she's not exactly chuffed , but kind of understands. Will find out next time we have a disagreement for sure. Embarrassing moments like that have a habit of being brought up at the most inopportune times.

As mentioned in a post detailing my trip home from Knysna, I had to stop multiple times and perform running repairs on my car. During one stop in the dark and rain I took the bike rack off containing my wifes MTB and somehow forgot to put it back on. My bike was in the car luckily. I remember a slight bump as I left the parking spot, so probably reversed over it as well Realised to late in the trip to do anything about it and the car was on its last legs at that point. So... I am looking for a replacement. Anybody suggest or know of a decent medium ladies full suss frame, new or second hand? Cash is tight (car will cost a fortune to repair), so I would rather get a halfway decent frame and build it up with some existing decent components that I have for now. Thanks Craig

Had two great races (50km MTB) and 100km road). Decided to come back slowly on Monday to beat the rush etc. Car (Isuzu Double cab with 370 000km) had been overheating intermittently and I was unable to find the cause on some previous trips. This time I got to Knysna without any hassles, but on the way home thinks went from bad to worse. I suspect it is the head gasket that has now gone, and as a result I could only manage about 20 km hops, or the first steep hill before the car boiled. The radiator is now toast as it blew up like a balloon after I tried to increase the pressure it could take before boiling. I resorted to jacking the bonnet open and hoping the rain and cold air would keep it a bit cooler, which it did. At one point near Riviersonderend I took the thermostat out in near darkness. I needed tools out of the back, so unclipped the bike rack and took off my wifes bike. I put the tools back, but with all the stress, rain etc I DID NOT PUT THE DAMN BIKE BACK! Anybody see an orange GT and bike rack lying at the side of the road? To make it worse I think I reversed over the bike as well?? Only discovered this 40 km later when the car packed in again. No way to turn around so bike gone. Aaargh! Eventually I got a friend to meet me in Somereset West and he towed me the rest of the way in. On a short tow rope in rainy conditions I could not see much in the spray behind the car, so it was very stressful. near the R300 turnoff on the N2 all hell broke lose. Suddenly there were flames in the road with cars locked up and skidding everwhere. The locals had decided to protest about building there homes below the water table by trying to kill us (nothing in the news of course). A skidding truck just missed side swiping me and rather than stopping and being forced to face the toyi toying savages we drove through the burning barricade. Luckily no damage since the tyres are semi off-road still with lots of rubber. My wife was severly shocked, but put on a brave face and we eventually made it home after 11 hours on the road. Thanks to the wonderful friends, who came to tow us and then fed us a hot supper and lots of alchohol thing look so much better today...except for the car and bike of course Any suggestions for a good diesel mechanic/shop who can do a head gasket properly?

Seriaaas technical downhill filmed from the following bike. One mistake and its going to hurt, but these guys make it look easy. Big jumps, narrow landings and some quite high elevated wooden footbridges/paths. <?: prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

I did the Greyton ride Saturday and just after the start I had a song I listened to on Friday start looping endlessly in my Head. Same bl@@dy line over and over again. Sadly it was a remix of Rammstein and Tatu Twelve hours later, I managed to change the song, only to have another one start looping. It's going to drive me mad. Anybody got any tips for rebooting a brain when this happens? Even when I concentrate on something else the song is always in the background and is back the moment I relax.

Thanks, but I had a wet specific lube (Finish Line). I suspect there was still some dry lube (White Lightning, wax based) lying around. Wonder if before applying wet lube it helps to remove the dry lube completely first? Still, I think the Robertson conditions would overwhelm just about any lube after a while. In the vineyard regions the soil seems to have more clay (very fine particles). Its the clay that causes most of my problems rather than the more gritty stuff. Foe did you do Robertson? Impressed if you got through that with no problems. Everybody around me seemed to be having hassles.

The Robertson race was an absolute blast! I had mud everywhere But... after about 14 km my chain had lost all its lubrication and the small blade up front started to suck. I am heavy (95 kg), but have to use the same chain and gears as the light race snakes, so unfortunately this means my component loads are higher, normally at the top of each critical little bump or hump in the road New components, so nothing is badly worn, its purely the lubrication disappearing with sticky mud then working its way in everywhere. Anybody able to suggest some possible solutions? Does any particular lubrication last longer, work better in mud etc? I thought of carrying some extra chain lube, but suspect that once the mud has worked its way in, its a waste of time until you clean the chain properly again? Could also use a syringe filled with lube taped to your down tube with thin flexible piping to the front or rear derailleur. Every few minutes give the syringe a push to drip a bit more oil onto the drive train whilst peddling. Thanks.

Have a look about 20 seconds into this video for an example of how not to win a cycle race. Shame! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mlp5INAvV8U

Hi Kevin Tubless conversion is very easy and quick with the Maxxis Crossmarks. They are a bit tricky (side walls leak a bit at first) if you have put some miles on them, but its a cinch if they are new as they seal almost instantly. Normal Crossmark is fine for the front, but at some point consider a UST tyre for the back as the extra sidewall protection is useful even if it is 100g heavier. The only puncture I have had with tubless is when I badly scuffed/tore the sidewall going over rocks. Suggest you go with the Stans or Joes kit the first time. Once comfortable with the setup, then try a cheaper home made option. Its really simple to install with the right stuff. Some tricks... Its a pain putting sealant through the valve. Rather leave about 6 inches of the tyre off the rim. Pour 60-80 ml of sealant through this opening and then rotate tire slowly 180 degrees before pushing final piece of tyre onto rim. A floor pump wont seal the Maxxis no matter how fast you pump the first time. You will need to pop along to the local garage. Some people sacrifice an air bomb, I have a scuba cylinder that does the trick. With a scuba cylinder, remove the hose from your floor pump. Hold it against the opening in the cyclinder as hard as you can, but dont attempt any proper connection. Its far from a perfect seal, but the air goes in quickly and its difficult to put in more than 4 bar. If you could connect to the cylinder properly it would be easy to put in 200 bar in an instant. Dont want to be around when that happens Once converted to tubless you will need to carry an air bomb. Should you tear a sidewall, then a new tube needs to go in, but its also possible to 'burp' the tire by hitting a object that pulls the tyre sidewall away from the rim such that all the air rushes out in an instant. Your hand pump is unlikely to inflate a 'burped' tire, but the bomb should do the trick. I have burped a tyre after having a disageement with an irrigation system in the middle of a citrus orchard after taking that last turn just a little too fast Good luck.