MarcW

Been following this thread most of the morning... What bothered me was some guys saying that you will get a criminal record if you pay your admission of guilt fine. I struggled to believe how this could be true, so I tried to contact someone at SANParks to get some clarity on this. Eventually I got a call back from Hilton who manages the security for SANParks in this area - i.e. He is responsible for sending the rangers to patrol certain spots - he assured me that you will not receive a criminal record if you pay your fines before the court date, you may also go to court and contest it , or avoid doing anything if you like (and face the consequences what ever they might be). But the point is you WILL NOT get a criminal record for paying the admission of guilt fine. Although I don't agree at all with how heavy the fines are, or the way they are handled by SANParks. Hilton stressed the point to me a few times that SANParks aren't intentionally trying to push cyclists away, they are trying to accommodate and keep everyone happy, which is not an easy task. I can only hold thumbs they officially open Cecilia and the greenbelts for us to ride soon !

This past weekend a few of the A-Z trails were closed due to felling of tree's affected by the fires earlier in the year. I doubt they will be cleared by the 13th ?

Are you saying that people have received refunds ?

PM sent

The Jonkershoek Cafe is its own worse enemy to begin with, poor quality food at tourist prices and marginal service at best.. On my last outing there 2 months ago I noticed they had a couple grey specialized epics on their racks, which I assume are also rental bikes - didn't notice any scotts - Makes you wonder.

Hey Rolf I was the guy up there with you on the White Stumpjumper. I'm shocked to hear the extent of your dads injuries, and glad at the same time that it was not worse. He is definitely no ordinary 60 year old - even cracking one or two jokes while we were waiting for the ambulance. Credit to the fire and rescue crew who were first to arrive and attend to your dad, they did a great job stabilizing him. He fell in the middle of mamba on that rock drop section which has become quite dangerous and sandy of late, with new rocks becoming exposed under the sand. All the best to your dad and keep us updated on his recovery. -Marc