Trackmonster

I have raced at Paarl Boxing day and can say without doubt that it is the most exciting atmosphere I have ever experienced in SA cycling. The crowd get seriously revved up and you just gotta love it. It puts a great big smile on your face as spectators lean over the fence trying to high five riders, throwing hilarious chirps at the riders and other spectators, cheering for their champions, simply enjoying the "spirit of the bike" and all the excitement and fun it brings. Crazy track to race on though as its got no real banking as you go around the corners trying not slide out and the surface is seriously rough. Seen some radical crashes. Trashed a brand new tubbie in one sprint race. Temperature was 45 degrees plus and we would hide in the stands tunnels to avoid sun stroke and exhaustion between races. I will be there in the grand stands to join in the amazing vibe this December.

Oh hell, I'd better throw my new Spez frame in the bin then. Its already outdated! Will manufacturers please make up their minds! I have wider rims and bigger volume tyres on my 29er, does that make me the latest innovator!

Wide lightenings maximum recommended weight is 90-100kg. Arch Flow ex are wide and strong. Go at least 30mm wide. Much better.

Bought some items from them and arrived within 2 weeks. No import duties just vat. They have the best prices for group sets.

So, with a race known for extreme corrugations, fast dirt roads and some technical rocky climbing, whats the best shock setting. Particularly for the corrugations. Should the pressure be dropped a little to handle the corrugations but then its too soft for the roads and climbs? The rebound may be better set at fast instead of slow or visa versa. Then add tyre pressure to the equation. Softer for the corrugations and rocky climbs will help but on the fast road sections, softer is not best. Whats your set up for this race?

There goes any Momsen order I was considering. I can vouch for the Merida service mentioned. They were excellent. Either go for the Merida or a Titan which is an amazing bike and distributed by Merida.

Those are Cinelli Ram bars from China. Very nice and very cool. I have a similar set. You just wrap your bar tape up past the levers to the corners. About a centimetre or more away from the "R" on the word Rammer. No bar tape on the main top cross sections. Very comfortable.

I have a Look track bike and its the most amazing ride imaginable. The ergostem has such a cool responsive feel and every pedal rotation shoots the bike forward. I love the new Look bike. At least they are truly pushing bike design. Unfortunately I will never fork out that kind of money for a bicycle.

Flows bro. Go wide. Tiny bit heavier.

Was possibly the best cyclist SA ever had. Unbelievable. RIP.

Arch are not as wide as the Flows. Wide lightening rider weight limit is 225lbs. I went through all these options. Wanted the Wide lightenings but too heavy for them so my choice for a nice wide, strong rim and wheel is Flow rims on hope hubs. Wide rims are much better in my opinion. I have tried them all.

Bro, I run 1x10 with a 36t narrow wide Rapide chainring upfront. ITs perfect and I don't need anymore gears. I used to stay in my big chainring a lot just like you do, but if you use the right ratio on the single chainring then you will never miss all the gears. I will never go back to a front derailer and 2x10 or 3x10. If you ever need a lighter gear then buy a rear cassette adaptor 40t or 42t, remove the 15t or 17t from the cassette and run it that way. I will never use such a small gear even up the mast in CT or much steeper climbs. Anyway I run XT and am an XT fan so blowing thousands on 1x11 isn't going to make any difference to me with one extra gear I don't really need. Go buy a narrow wide chainring, put it on and give it a go. My Narrow wide cost R500 so its not a financial risk worth worrying about.

some suggestions: 1 leg curl supersetted with 1 leg extension 1 leg squat- put your one foot on the ground and the other up on a bench behind you. Hold dumbells in your hand. Squat down on your one leg to parallel and back up. Alternate legs each time but do double the reps on your lazy leg and don't use weights for your strong leg. Superset this with one legged plyometric jumps- stand up on the leg you just squatted with and do 6 jumps as high as you can, as quickly as you can each time. (these are killer!) Scissor lunges- one foot forward and one foot back. hold dumbells in your hands. Go down to parallel on your front leg and then back up but keep your legs apart at all times. (don't bring your feet together) Alternate legs each time front and back. As you do these more and get stronger, increase the distance between your legs so you are more stretched out. Finish off with one leg calf raises. Alternate your legs but do less reps and less weight on your stronger leg. Cheers...enjoy.

I will never fly SAA or hand my bike to them. Anyone who has trained for months for an international event and then spent a fortune getting there, only to be greeted by a bunch of useless thieves and even more useless airline staff deserves a medal just for dealing with this rubbish. If it was me I would be throwing punches at the airline staff and looking to do anything in my power to claim damages beyond the mere cost of the bike. Sue them bro!

Im 115kg serious cyclist (Trackie). On a duel if you don't have the correct frame and rear shock the bobbing or fishtailing can make steep climbs very difficult. The only shock that can handle my weight on the climbs is the Spez brain shock because if set right it does not bob. I had a Spez epic duel and it was ok on the climbs but still flexed in the rear stays and was not great for very steep climbs. If you stand on the hills you can also get fishtailing where the rear stays move slightly from side to side and this makes climbs more difficult. I ride a 9.8kg rigid bike now and its perfect. Problem is a duel will be faster downhill on technical terrain. I'm searching for a duel frame and shock that may be able to give me a decent uphill ride but haven't found one yet.