Grogs

Don't know why they bother with the "early bird" entries. Getting an entry at 15h00 when they're all gone in seconds is a lottery anyway.

Early Bird entries are now closed. Didn't even get to the form!!!

Yay! With DD involved, maybe we'll have an iStore app for next year's tour - Skoda has been doing it sinc I can remember, and it's never been available in SA.

Anybody had a look at/have experience of the FM208 from Dengfu? Looks like it's been modelled around the Tarmac.

[Duplicate post deleted]

Has anyone bought only rims and then done their own build with their chosen spokes and hubs? Also, has anyone bought wheels/rims from OEM-carbon (www.oem-carbon.com)?

I know this has been asked somewhere in this thread, but it is still unanswered - has anyone bought from OEM-Carbon (www.oem-carbon.com)? Looking at some wheels, and it looks like they can pretty much make to spec.

Criminal: Stander’s GPS data ruled admissible The reliability of the GPS data retrieved from the device mounted on Olympian Burry Stander’s bicycle took centre stage yesterday during the culpable homicide trial of taxi driver Njabulo Nyawose, notes a report in The Mercury. Nyawose’s attorney, Xolile Ntshulana, yesterday argued that evidence provided by Peter Jurgen Smith – a GPS tracking device technician – when he was cross-examined in court last month could not be ‘rendered admissible’ as the manner in which the data was obtained was unreliable. This, he said, was because there was no trail of how the evidence was stored by police prior to it being retrieved by the device manufacturers. However, the state prosecutor urged the court to admit the data. She said ‘the device could not be manipulated without leaving a trace or a footprint in the form of a new date and time stamp which the computer would automatically assign to the manipulated data’. Ntshulana argued that: ‘The evidence indicates it is highly unsafe to rely on this piece of evidential material… the court ought to attach very little or no weight at all in the evidence of video.’ The report adds the claims were dismissed by Magistrate Charmaine Barnard who ruled that the retrieved GPS data could be used. She said it was only possible to edit the data once downloaded on to a computer. Barnard said it was therefore ‘immaterial’ how many hands handled the device before the data was generated. Full report in The Mercury (subscription needed)

Not sure why your time for the Lost City is duplicated, but regarding the other issues (i.e. the different winning times for the Dis-Chem and the Serengeti), this might be a result of how Pedal Power does the calculations. From the PPA website: "There are 5 steps involved in the seeding process: 1. Choosing the weightings of the different rides 2. Establishing a base event 3. For each ride, adjusting the winner’s time and calculating its difficulty relative to the base event 4. Calculating an index for each rider 5. Calculating a weighted average for each cyclist 6. If your weighted average index is better than the lower limit of your current seeded group, then you are eligible to move to a better group." So, as I understand it, if a race is regarded as easier (or the field wasn't as strong) as the "base event" (which is usually the Argus), the winner's time for the race (in this case the Dis-Chem and the Serengeti) will be adjusted. The above having been stated, an adjustment to the winner's time for the Dis-Chem of almost 30 minutes is a bit excessive - it is one of the tougher races, and usually has quite a strong field.

Really does look like road racing is dying a very rapid death - entries extended until 31 August - which probably means that there were not as many entries as anticipated before last night's deadline ...

The fact that the OP even started this topic says a lot about his attitude on the roads ...

Agree that neutral zones are a myth. I'm going to coast down the hill (way behind my start group), and then wait for the next group to come through.

Raised some of the above concerns with the organisers, and received the following in an e-mail: "It will be a neutral zone till the bottom. Route has more left turns instead of right and we pass and clear the busy roads earlier."

That stretch definitely was a problem - a lot of very grumpy motorists waiting for ages at the intersection. Still, there must be some other way of dealing with this (that doesn't involve endangering the safety of competitors at the start).

The downhill start is just plain stupid and dangerous. Big groups of people with fresh legs full of testosterone burning it hard down that hill is a recipe for disaster ...

If only ... I sit between a 52 and a 54 ...

They're both "chinese" frames ... (both are made in Taiwan).

I'm not a brand person. Simply want the best value. Change my frame every 4 - 5 years, and my Raleigh RC6000C is getting a bit flexy now after 4 years, so time to look at something new. Mileage per week: 150 - 250 km on my bike (depending on the time of the year). 02h55 94.7 and 03h20 Argus. Currently have Ultegra groupset, Easton EA50 Aero wheelset. Trek Madone 3.1: - Lifetime warranty - 1.2 kg (frame only) - UCI approved Edge Design Airy SL (see classifieds under Road Frames for more details): - 2 year warranty - 0.85 g (frame only) - UCI approved. The other alternative is to go 2nd hand, but have been burnt before with a used carbon frame (so would prefer new).

Good stuff - had my bike last year, but no-one to ride with. Riding down from Johannesbog on Sunday and will be in Umhlanga on Wed - will need to take a day or two off but will be up again on Friday/Saturday.

I'm very keen - will be there between 18 and 24 December. Who/which club organises it? Is it every day? How fast is it?

One thing on the indemnity - it is a well established legal principle that one cannot contract out of one's own negligence, and I believe that there was indeed negligence on the organisers' part here. I'm pretty sure that if you fought this (by way of legal action) you'd win it (obviously depending on the evidence (i.e. witnesses, etc) that you put together).

Have come down from Johannesbog to do the annual family thing. Last year I didn't have this pesky cycling obsession, so didn't have the need to hook up with anyone for a ride - anyone know of any group rides around Durbs this time of year?

Did you know ... That if you fill your mouth up with cheese curls, chew them up, and then open your mouth wide and breathe heavily for two minutes (keeping your mouth open the whole time), you get hard orange bits stuck on your teeth that are really hard to get off?

What's with all the questions? F. Promised myself that if I do a sub 3 this year for the 94.7 that I would invest in a proper bike. I'm going shopping tomorrow ...

Last year 3h45, this year 2h45 ...