Captain Fastbastard Mayhem

100%. But then I'd also not suggest a first timer buy a dedicated XC race bike. Somewhere in the middle - 120 - 140mm suspension, a slack-ish head angle and something with wider bars. You want them to gain confidence, not be scared of going down a piece of singletrack 'cos the bike is skittier than a cat on tik.

Seriously though - Lucid seem to be, from a small google search http://www.lucidbusi...k-reseller.html

Pretty sure they're reachable on 1-800-Starfleet

http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01474/quark_1474470i.jpg

D'OH!!!! Monday brain

LOL. I was providing backup to the Lefty...

Here you go... Best option, IMO. Then either build it over yourself, or get your LBS to rebuild it for you. http://www.superstarcomponents.com/en/switch-evo-front-hub.htm

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, please - but you're going to have to either get a new fork, swap out the hub for a 20mm, convert the hub to a 20mm (if convertible) or get some inserts machined up for you by an engineering shop. And then you're going to have to buy a 15mm maxle. Cheaper just to buy a new 20mm hub and build the wheel across, IMO

And then you get the "expert" LBS salesmen who are like racehorses. Oblivious to everything but what is in front of them.

Jerome "Your Mother" Iwanski. Yeah. He's a bit scarce at the moment.

I actually disagree here... I think it's because most bike shops don't see beyond marathon riding, and force the 29er issue because that's all THEY know and there can't possibly be anything else, can there!?

You clearly haven't seen me with a machete. It's diabolical.

100%. If only people asked the right questions to get to those decisions though...

That's why I qualified my statement with things like it would have to be compared with bikes of the same weight, geometry, gearing (crank and cassette) and so on. If you're comparing pedalling efficiencies of a 26" 150mm AM machine to a 29" XC hardtail then it's a pointless exercise. At the end of the day, wheelsize should be the last consideration. Your chosen discipline should be first, which would dictate geometry, travel, and so on. Then frame size, and then looking at the bikes in that sub-segment, and choosing the one that you think performs best of that lot - regardless of the wheelsize.

Thing is, RTFM - it's true. The wheel on the bike is effectively the final drive ratio, and forms a direct link in the "gearbox" of a bike. The bigger a wheel is (given the same size cassette & chainring etc) the more force (power) you will have to put into the cranks in order to for it to turn a full revolution. That's why it's apples and pears. Yes, a 29er wheel will roll over undulations in the road / gravel more efficiently than a sixer, with the same geometry. But if you're on a flat surface, and you have a 29er and a 26er next to each other - for a given speed, in the same "gear ratio" (ignoring the wheel / final drive element) - say - 42/11 - the 29er rider will have a slower cadence than the 26er rider. That doesn't mean that the 29er is faster, because even though the cadences are different, the power outputs remain constant across the 2 bikes. If you want to go faster, you'll have to crank harder, which means more power and more cadence. If you really wanted to compare attainable speeds on a niner and sixer, you'd have to change the size of the chainrings on one of the bikes to compensate for the difference in wheelsize. BUT - you'd still be expending the same energy as each other if you were going the same speed. The difference comes in with the slight benefit that the larger wheels have ito angle of approach on jeep track - they do roll easier, that's plain physics. But still - it's a slight difference, which would be easily overcome with training or a different gearing on the sixer.

Oh - and the reason for the cross-trail erosion? Record setting rainfall last year and 3 separate landslides on that slope. It used to be under cover of trees (pine plantation) hence a lesser need for erosion control as there was no real exposure to torrential rain and wind.

Thanks, bro - that's why Bennet Nel and Deon de Villiers are there. Trust me, it's covered.

Erm, and how exactly is the 29er attributable to the top 10? That's a GREAT example of anecdotal evidence.

For all intents and purposes, those meridas WERE hardtails. Yoosis, the suspension on those things was almost non existent.

That is quite simply an Argument from incredulity (you don't understand the underlying principle, so you try and discredit it by throwing out something so ridiculous in order to undermine the physics behind the initial argument - IE: You don't understand, it, so it must be wrong) Quite simple, really. A frame large enough to support a grown man / woman, based on 20" rims would not only look ridiculous, it'd have its own inherent handling characteristics that would make it far twitchier and less stable than a 26" bike.

You mean the one that I had? The DHI aka the McTank.

Agreed. Wish it were the case.

Dave, I suppose the difference in our views is that I believe R 45 is still cheap in today's economy. If you don't think it represents value for you, that's fine. But "too steep" is a very subjective term and I for one would far rather spend R 45 for an afternoon of mtb than for a beer. I think the day charge isn't that high when comparing it to other activities. Can we agree to disagree on this matter? Btw - I'd fully support a tier based fee for those less fortunate than us, based on your family income... but that would be subject to abuse, and I'd only support it If upon failure to prove your income you get charged the normal fee. And then you're recorded on that level through your ID number so that once proven you can always get access to that reduced fee. That would also help to open it up to those who aren't as fortunate.

Btw. I still view the activity card as being immense value for money. 450 per year or whatever it is, for unlimited access to the mtb trails during the day and at times during the evening. In a national park. That's less than 10% of the cost of a gym contract. Or 2 coffees per month. One craft beer. For the cost of a SINGLE lunch at groot constantia you've got year round access. Yes, the R 45 per month is disconnected from the annual cost, but no more than the honesty box system at tygerberg or contermans or steilte, to name a few.