Spinnaroonie

On a recent Australian cycling podcast hosted by two competitive riders, they were debating whether cycling has shifted more toward being a social sport. Participation in the CAT racing they usually compet in is dwindling, while mass participation style “fun rides” are growing. They even suggested that KOM chasing is largely a thing of the past. At least for now, fewer people seem to care. So this might not be uniquely a South African issue. It could be that the sport is going through a bit of a reset (rebuilding its image and participation base after taking a knock). Hopefully it's like a pipeline whereby growing interest on the social side could, over time, feed back into stronger compettive structures and hopefully more WT level talent and broader public interest.

@FranE

Curious if anyone knows of a record book of sorts for the more “fun” categories? Things like fastest BMX, steel or aluminum bike, unicycle, tandem or recumbent. Would be really interesting to see what times people have managed.

Thoroughly enjoyed the whole weekend too. The racing was top draw with plenty of passing. Overall results says alot but also leave more question marks now, about everyone and everything. So many factors and combinations are at play. We get to see how it unfolds. Still very early days and the season is long but wow I didn't expect Ducati to take such a beating. Personally, I love the little Noale factory, so this moment is sweet!

Swapped for a street-circuit of all things. Crazy business on so many levels but also intriguing. I'm struggling to get hyped for WSBK. Dorna has also been renamed to 'MotoGP Sports Entertainment'....so uhhh...what about SBK?? I actually hope it gets bought by another entity that actually cares about making it more appealing again. Modern Superbikes and 600s are so advanced and expensive these days, that WSBK should just be a proper Superstock series. Proper showroom-spec racing. That could dramatically lower costs and open the door for local racers around the world to enter when the series comes to town and actually be competitive. Participation would increase. Grids would grow. The racing would become less predictable. And the entertainment value would likely go up as well.

Pretty normal. Go ahead and make the payment.

Meanwhile GFS are still out delivering my November '25 order...

One thing to note is that if you go the Garmin replacement route, the warranty is only 6 months. So, if you can find a similar deal at a retailer, it might be better to go that route for a full warranty.

The lies I tell myself to make up for the lack of elevation gain... Speaking of which, all the abovementioned info is sound advice. If you're also looking for decent elevation gain, you will need to head towards Durbanville via Plattekloof Rd or Bosmansdam Rd.

It's difficult to say exactly, as evidently, Garmin itself can't tell you exactly. I called them well before sending my watch in to get a sense of turnaround times and cost. They said it would likely be 20-30% discount. I saved up and sent my watch to them in December and was offered a present day equivalent replacement at 48% retail price in the same week, so the turnaround time was significantly less than quoted too. The person I spoke to over the phone, was also the person who handled the actual claim, so I'm not sure why the mis-match in quote vs reality. Could be that they under promise and over deliver (which is refreshing), could be that I sent the watch in its original packaging with proof of original purchase.

@NC_lurker unfortunately for your sake, they're equally loud.

@NC_lurker+1 for me. Mine are still chugging along nicely. I actually prefer these wheels over my Hunt's in terms of comfort. They have picked up some galvanic corrosion on the spoke nipples but that's my fault mostly.

Ya I've never had issues with deliveries before. In fact, I've also been impressed with how quickly the items arrive but this is the first order that goes through GFS. Thanks @BuffsVintageBikes

Has anyone had their package delivered on time by the new courier provider GFS Express? I ordered a batch of items in November with an estimated delivery date of 8 December. I've received no less than 8 'out for delivery' notifications since then but no package and when I follow up, GFS gives me a proper run-around with various excuses and frankly, blatant lies. Temu has refunded the full value of items, which is great but I'm wondering if there's even a point in ordering again if it's just going to add to the GFS backlog.

At the start of December, I was out on a solo ride with the intention of riding into the southern suburbs via the M5 Paarden Eiland interchange. However, just before the Shell garage on the R27 service road, 3 cyclists whizzed past me. Now, I've been seeing a ton of cyclists on my strava and in-person taking the N1 again, so my hearts been longing for the ol' seaboard ride but my gut always said just leave it. Well...this time I sat on with the 3 other guys thinking I'd have a safer passage into the CBD but I kid you not, as soon as we emptied onto the N1 by the Womag, 3 guys approached us aggressively with one scurrying to get something out of this hoodie. Thankfully, the cyclist at the front made him muk with a headbutt gesture and the perp fumbled. After not going that route for well over a year, I couldn't believe the odds and brazenness.

Can’t help but think it’s due to one of our nation’s more troubling festive season cultural habits, combined with poor governance.

This picture says a lot. Condolences to his family and friends. What a horrible slap of reality for us cyclists. Infuriating, immense sadness and trepidation.

That looks sooooo good!

Yip, you're right, it was wishful thinking of me. Especially considering it's mostly their off-season too. Nonetheless, I'm excited to see ACTUAL supercross racing.

I I've been on the fence for a while now. The rider lineup wasn't terrible initially but still lacked a tad. It seems more stacked now, so I bought a couple of tickets. Thanks for the reminder!

Excuse my ignorance but wouldn't one of these work? They look really simple to make if you want to do it cheaply. I see them outside a few coffee shops but have never used one, so I can't comment on whether they damage saddle rails but nothing some foam can't fix.

oh yaaaa with the yellow BMC lettering. You give me FOMO every time. Stylin'

You wouldn't happen to be the guy on the Giant Revolt?

I used to cycle commute very regularly from blouberg into town but dont feel it's worth it currently. I've tried the Koeberg interchange > AWS > Old Biscuit Mill > Castle route but that also feels like too much of a gauntlet. Although if I had to, I would take this route any day over the N1 but I'm not on an MTB or GB.

Spot on. I follow someone on Strava who's been commuting throughout this rough spell and he takes the route explained. I see a few others daily as well. Unfortunately just 3 weeks ago, a colleague witnessed an attack on the inbound side at the settlement. It was a pedestrian?? walking along the highway when 2 knife-wielding guys robbed him and took off. Ironically, a cyclist was basically right behind the ordeal but it just goes to show it's pure opportunistic attacks.