Grogs

At the risk of “moralising” - just look at the Rands and cents. If I get a Wesbank loan to pay for a 30k bike over 2 years, I’ll get an interest rate of 24.5%. Initiation fee of R1200. So my principal debt is R31200. Monthly repayments on that are around R1700 (don’t have my HP12C handy, but sounds about right). That’s what they’ll quote you. But they’ll add to that a monthly management fee of about R70, as well as group life insurance of about R110. That pushes the repayment up to around R1900. Sure, you can make extra repayments that will reduce the capital (and therefore interest) and the term of the loan. But just remember that even if you do, the monthly fixed fees (the management fee and group life insurance) will not be reduced. And that’s how they nail you by way of an early penalty. So if I get the bike now with finance, and pay it off within 3 months for example, my finance charges (interest, initiation fees, monthly admin fees and GL insurance) will probably effectively be the same as paying an annualised 60% interest rate on the debt for those three months. I also hate the feeling of being shafted by large financial institutions. Again, I’d rather buy something cheap and nasty and save by upgrading components every couple of months. Before you know it, you’ll probably have upgraded every single component on your bike. You’ll appreciate every upgrade, and really make your bike your own by choosing every bit and piece that goes into it, and save a crap load of money. A lot more fun than having a new flash bike one day and then being a slave to a financial institution for the next two years.

Rather save up. Interest rates and financing charges on financing a bike are crazy stupid. Take whatever you would like to spend on a monthly instalment and put it into your bond for 6 months. Then take the savings on your bond repayments and what you put into the bond and buy a bike. That will probably be a year of instalments on a financed bike. Been there and done that, and I would rather have ridden my Raleigh RC6000 for a year longer than be put through the pain of a 24% interest rate + R1200 initiation fee + monthly account fee + monthly life insurance premiums on the debt. You end up paying double for your bike.

Edit - duplicate post.

Was also surprised. Discovery Insure.

Check out DC Rainmaker on YouTube. He has all sorts of comparisons between the Apple Watch and other watches. All depends on what YOU want from a smart/sports watch.

Dropped my Apple Watch 5 and cracked the screen. Insurance paid me out in Takealot vouchers. So I used them to buy a Fenix 6. So much happier with everything, except for swimming (especially open water). DC Rainmaker actually rates the Apple Watch as the best watch for open water swimming - far more accurate GPS than anything else, and pool swimming with the Apple Watch is also fantastic. Seriously considering getting an Apple Watch on Discovery just for swimming. Moving to Ireland shortly though, so will need to keep my Vitality (life insurance) alive to avoid paying for it.

Their tour from Clarens to CT is on their Facebook page - diary for each day.

GCT (Global Cycling Tours) did this in 2019 (at least they did it from Clarens to CT). There were only 2 or 3 people on the tour. I believe they did it to try to generate interest in something similar to the annual Amashova tours, but for the Cap Town Cycle Tour. There wasn’t much interest in 2020, so it didn’t happen. Maybe give them a call. It looked like an epic trip

Excellent post Mamil. There aren’t that many knuckle draggers on this forum after all.

Re the debate around whether having a lower bone density (which could have contributed to the ease or difficulty involved in breaking Nic’s arm) - it makes absolutely no difference. The “thin skull” rule would apply (legal principle established from SA case law that uses the analogy of an assailant hitting someone over the head who has a thin skull and subsequently dies. The fact that the victim has a thin skull will make no difference in determining the assailant committed murder or not). So if Nic has low bone density - applying the “thin skull” principle - that fact has no bearing on the determination of whether there was an assault GBH.

Anyone in Cape Town can go and lay criminal charges. I’d do it, but I’m in Johannesburg.

Russell Pollitt:

If you ghouls want to moan about someone not getting a permit, go and start a separate thread about people who don’t get permits when they go to parks. I hope you also condemn people who don’t pay their etolls in that thread This thread is about a vicious assault (and possibly an attempted murder) of an unarmed citizen who posed no immediate threat to anybody. Again, Nic’s having or not having a permit is totally and completely irrelevant in condemning the actions of the thugs who assaulted him.

So when a SANRAL official breaks my arm after I refuse to pay my e-tolls or get an e-tag, both of us “behaved terribly”? This false equivalence argument is ridiculous.

Another fee for use that comes to mind is e-tolls. I trust that the entire “if Nic had obeyed the law, this wouldn’t have happened” brigade pays their e-tolls and has an e-tag. Don’t bitch and moan when a SANRAL official breaks your humerus for not having an e-tag while driving on the M1 in Johannesburg. But the moral of the story here is comply, isn’t it?