Charlie600

This is a brilliant setup, absolutely bullet proof with tons of grips although not the fastest rolling. Magic Mary at the front (super trail version) with the Big Betty (super gravity version) at the rear - you will love it whilst losing your fear for punctures and sidewall cuts in general, which is great for one's confidence. Whilst I don't expect them to last super long, they still look realtively new after 400km of fairly intense riding.

A nice autumn day out, temperatures are rapidly decreasing which also means super fun whilst navigating some of the "downhill" sections being covered completely by the leaves. It's sometimes a borderline Russian roulette exercise in that never know when you might hit a rut or something similar (which is fortunately very seldom).

The obligatory new bike pic on her first ride this morning...It was AWESOME!

Another beautiful day in Belgium, although I was k@kking in the heat - I seemingly became a "heat pissie" the past couple of years!

New Balance 880 / Brooks Ghost / Brooks always rock my world. I usually buy the 3x pairs at once, after which it's great for rotation whilst they provide endless love and joy.

Electronic products (whether it be a Fenix, iPhone or washing machine) are by default covered by a 24 month warranty in the majority of European countries My iPhone recently went bust after 14 months of ownership and needless to say that it was replaced on a no questions asked basis. This however made me realise how often I've historically had to fork out for a replacement product (yes Garmin, looking at you for all those heart rate monitors) when the exact same product is in fact covered for twice as long in Europe. I'm no expert regarding the legislative requirements that forced the manufacturers into this 2 year warranty period but the SA politicians should implement something similar from a consumer protection perspective, given that it can clearly be done (similar to some countries that forced apple to provide chargers with their phones in the event of wanting to sell the product within the said market etc.).

Although the winter weather means that (for me at least) no weekend rides commence before sunrise at around 08h, the trails remain incredibly beautiful! I've also discovered a WW2 bunker on today's route which was pretty cool.

One can always rationalize what you believe is the best for yourself (especially so if you've already purchased the item) so just ride whatever makes you happy. Although I for example also had a Trek Checkpoint and did love the bike, I clearly did not NOT utilise the bike's full range of capabilities, based on what is clearly possible as per the below video. Probably yet again a case of a bike can only be as great and enjoyable as one's skillset allows????? Nonetheless, a gravel bike remain an incredible versatile bike and I will most definitely again acquire one in the event of only being able (allowed!) to own one bike.

Smeysberg is an ugly beast en jy k@k altyd af, selfs met 'n 10-52 kasset op die MTB!

The teams are currently busy with their practice/exploratory rides and seem to take it really easy and relaxed - here are a couple of the guys appreciating the scenery in front of our house (at the start of the Smeysberg climb).

Although I played around in the gravel bike world with a lovely Trek Checkpoint SL6, my personal take on it is that it is indeed the perfect type of bike if you ONLY have one bike. I've subsequently sold it after getting a decent MTB and will in future purchase a decent road bike - a gravel bike is a great all rounder though and also perfectly suited for commuting etc. However, not as comfortable as the MTB nor as fast as the roadbike - a great bike yet a good example of a horses for courses approach. Also, are there really as many spots (other than the Karoo etc.) where you can truly exploit the true potential of the gravel bike on a frequent basis?

So just some feedback...I hate all of your that raved about the greatness of this setup, given that all of you forced me to pull the trigger on the AXS upgrade kit. And honestly, this is AMAZING and so much better than I ever though it would be! Absolutely loving it, the crisp shifts together with the overall awesomeness as well as geeky app and Garmin integration for additional data is epic!

I'm sorry to hear about this. At the same time, this is one of the funniest incident descriptions in a long time ("when he took off i shouted " jou stuk p*%#")! Hope your bike can be recovered or alternatively, that the insurance payout will be without hassle.

After browsing through this topic, my life (and even my wife) suddenly seems to be super uncomplicated...Thank you as such for the insight and bringing about fresh perspectives.

Dear hubbers, I'm currently looking at the Trek Domane SL7, although I truly love the black and silver look of the SLR 7 as well! Although I realise that the road bike variety in SA is slightly limited in comparison to Europe, I was really surprised to see the limited options from a Domane specific perspective (notwithstanding the Covid induced stock shortages. In Belgium for example, there are 19x different Domane models in addition to the 5x frame options. In SA however, there is literally only one (e-bike) variant. Do you reckon it's a case of the Domane simply being unpopular despite being Trek's best selling road bike in the rest of the world? Really keen to hear your take on this, given that I was expecting it to be a superb bike for the majority of SA's tar road surfaces!?

I so don't need this...But oh sooooo badly want to do the upgrade My current mechanical GX ain't bad bad although I was considering transitioning to the M8100 XT setup for shift crispness however, this seems to be a total game changer...Damn you SRAM for tempting us with this!

You will love it if you can find a supplier in SA, I use mine all the time!

Out of curiosity, what was ultimately the outcome? Was it your shoes, pedals, bike fit or a combination of them all etc.?

Especially with the accompanying reduction in pressure requirements - even the suspension seem to benefit from this!

I started using this combo in 2.35 format during last year's summer, an absolutely amazing package, super fast rolling and surprisingly grippy - especially so when considered from my real-world XC requirement perspective. Needless to say, I've not had a puncture/sidewall tear issue to date, despite some gnarly conditions in the woods. During winter I've switched to the nobbly nic setup in 2.35 - a very sturdy option with fantastic grip in the wet and even more so when bombing through tree roots, mud etc. - also haven't experienced any issues with them although one can definitely feel the additional drag when riding with a fast bunch. It's however a super small price to pay for the added grip and durability - this also shouldn't be a a factor as soon as I'm less dik.

Red Barn is a great way for your wife to develop the love for MTB'ing! When my wife started out (we also stayed in the Centurion/Midstream area) we alternated between Red barn, Rietvlei Zoo Farm (slightly further out but awesome) as well as Northern farms - the combination worked really well for her.

Both climbs within 3km of our home (Belgium), these are 2x of the gnarliest climbs that I have ever encountered. They're always incorporated into the Flanders Classics races and the Moskesstraat climb is the climb where Matthieu van der Poel truly showed the world in 2019 exactly how devastating he can be. See below some of the climb profiles - do yourself a favour and google both as well to see what ugly (yet incredible) suffer fest they both provide, especially the Moskesstraat climb that is horrible and super slippery cobblestones. The smeysberg climb reaches a max gradient of 17% - absolutely atrocious yet such an incredible feeling every time.

I suffered from the same issues as the OP. In addition to that, I made the atrocious "size up" mistake to try and eradicate the width issue however, we all know the terrible outcome that this brings about... Subsequently had some measurements taken at a Lake agent and since purchasing a pair of CX 332's for the road and MX 332's for MTB, never looked back. To be fair, I initially thought the shoes are k@k expensive however, not having to go for frequent feet check ups / treatment meant the shoes paid for themselves in less than a year and above all, my love for cycling was properly rekindled as well! Lake offer a wide array of shoes to cater for all feet and budgets - give it a try!

Have a look at the Topeak Dual Touch setup - works like an absolute charm whilst allowing the vehicle to remain in the garage and avoid the ice and snow this time of year.

So just for some feedback...The edge 830 (mtb bundle) is freaken awesome!! I'm actually truly enjoying the smaller screen real estate whilst the enhanced touch screen sensitivity together with faster processed compared to my (non plus) 1030 is superb. #LovingmyEDGE830