Charlie600

Indeed, a couple of broken egos also lying around the tree!

A "quickie" to clear my mind in-between all the videoconferencing!

I'm currently using Schwalbe Nobby Nic's 2.35 front and rear given that they came with my new MTB. Although the grip is phenomenal, the rolling resistance is super high and my plan will be to use them during winter. I'm as such looking at utilising either a Vittoria Barzo / Mezcal III combo or alternatively, the new Schwalbe Racing Ray / Racing Ralph combo, both setups in 2.35 sizing. Any opinions or experiences with these specific tyres - I'm mostly riding XC type of routes with the odd light trail excursion madness thrown in to keep things excited. Given that most of the riding is done in the forest, there are the odd tree roots and rocks as well.

Ke nako, feel it is here! - absolutely loving the start to the European summer! Although I do miss ripping it up at SA's beautiful trails, this is now our life (at least for another 2-3 years or so)!

Had an epic 35km afk@k session, doing mostly gnarly hills - because them Belgians are seemingly extremely law abiding and adhering to the required rules and regulations, we're still allowed to run, cycle, take the pooches for a walk etc. (in fact, it is encouraged by the government to retain some sort of psychological sanity). Albeit only with family members, residing under the same roof. ps: For those who said to me that Belgium is as flat as the Netherlands, I made a BIG mistake believing you!

Another lovely ride, appreciating the scenery and cycle paths in Belgium.

Another truly epic day in the Sonien Forest!

Dear fellow hubbers. I've set my sights on a Jura S8 and want to order on Monday so that it can be delivered on Tuesday. I've been threatening to pull the trigger on a good automatic machine for the past couple of years already and ultimately narrowed it down to the Jura E8, however decided the S8 might be an even nice option. Any comments (good, bad & ugly) in this regard, together with possible other recommendations in the same price range or for less?

I had Racing Ralphs front and rear - the grip with the Barzo upfront compared to the RR's aren't even comparable.

I took my new tyres (Vittoria Saguaro at the back and Vittoria Barzo at the front) for a 45km ride during yesterday. Although it doesn't feel as fast rolling when compared to the previous racing ralphs the grip upfront was hugely confidence inspiring - best tyres/combo that I've ever had and very chuffed with Vittoria.

This is absolutely insane...but freaken awesome!!

And i have a 180mm rotor on the front rime and a 160mm rotor on the rear for what it's worth.

Good morning fellow hubbers! I trust that all is well and that you're ready to rock the weekend. I currently ride a 2012 Giant Anthem 29er X0 and I'm looking for an additional set of rims (that won't break the bank) in order to use for 94.7/Argus etc seeing that I'm clearly not as hardcore as the fixies with knobblies riding there like there's no tomorrow during these races/"fun events". I have a possible two fold appraoch in that I will use this additional set as my MTB'ing rims if it's better than my current rims (standard Giant PXC 2's) and use my current stock rims for the slicks and road riding, or alternatively use the additional set for road roading should it be "less equal" than my current rims. As such I'm looking for (a) the expert advice of my fellow hubbers insofar the various options are concerned and (B) hoping to find someone that might possibly have some suitable rims to smous. For technical comparisons, I'm 1.9m in my sokkies and weigh in at a Wimpy healthy 105kg's, Herewith a description of my current setup and hubs: Rims Giant P-XC29-2 Hubs [F] Giant Tracker Sealed/CNC w/ 15mm Axle, [R] Giant Tracker Performance, 32h Spokes DT Swiss Competition

Most definitely, if I had the choice i WOULD NOT have taken the Elixer 9's that came with my Giant Anthem - Shimano and especially XT seems to work much better and squeal much less!

Here is our little beloved terrorist called Harvey. I was never a fan of the small/toy breeds but my wife managed to convince to at least just buy her a Chihuahua - I have never had such a crazy fun loving little ball of fur and is crazy about him, especially with all the hours of entertainment that he provides.

Thule euroway is the shizzles and you can very easily fit 2 bikes on the 2 bike version - I will never use anything else seeing that you get what you pay for.

Awesome, thanks for all the input from everyone! Have a good weekend

Howzit fellow hubbers! I trust that you're having a great week thus far! The wife and I will be heading to the coast for a week or so in order to have some rest and recovery seeing that 2012 is getting a bit long in the tooth. I do however want to take the bikes with but I'm not too sure about any Mtb trails etc. in and around Ballito? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Regards,

Hi guys, I trust that everyone experienced a fantastic weekend! Even though I only recently joined the MTB community I entered the cycle challenge last week (what is life without a challenge)? To be ready for 97km in 6 week's time is going to be a tough one but I started spinning like a mofo in the mornings (3x per week) and also do a bit of road riding now. Problem is that I'm however not too sure what my tyre pressure need to be, my racing ralphs are running at 1.8 bar for off-road use (1.90m, 100kg) but not sure what it need to be for the cycle challenge. 2.5, 3 even? And then lastly, should I go for a complete fork & shock lockout or can I leave it in the semi open position to save my butt (SID RCT3 at the front and Monarch rt3 at the back)?

Hi guys. Who is the slowest? i want to join and bring me wifey with. She is however new to mtb and as such not that fit and fast as of yet.

Good afternoon everyone, I trust that all is well and that you're having a great day thus far. I did read through all the various discussions regarding this topic but even though I realise going tubeless will make a decent difference, I'm not sure as to whether it's worth the R700 that it will set me back for my 29er seeing that it's a lot of money for in essence getting rid of the tubes? I'm 1.9m and weigh in at 100kg's, what would then also be the ideal pressure to utilise for the front and rear respectively? (I have a 2.1 racing ralph on the front and a 2.25 racing ralph at the back). As always, thank for all the great tips and advice from you guys.

I wouldn't mind spending the money on a program like this given the possible result that you might achieve (and yes, I realise the first comment will be something like "you can finish well without a program like this")... I would be the first to agree that completing the Epic is a HUGE accomplishment in itself but most people have some sort of competitive streak in them that imply that they don't just "want to finish" When I (hopefully) do the epic in 2014 I never want to ask myself afterwards whether I really gave it my all, not only via the end result but also in terms of giving myself the ultimate chance of (increased) success by means of pre-race training and preparation. Once again, different strokes for different folks.

I bought a Scott Aspect 10 for my wife (also a MTB newbie) and we're extremely happy with it. It's decently equipped with an nice fork and you can't go wrong with it (it even has the same XT rear derailleur as my Anthem 29er X0). This together with the light weight (compared to the other bikes that we tested for her) gave it the nod. Needless to say any of the mentioned bikes are decent, just remember to never take a loan in order to buy a bicycle seeing that it depreciates quickly and you might want to upgrade to another bike once you're gaining more and more confidence and skills within a year or two. Welcome to the awesome world of MTB and may you experience many years of happy riding!!

Good morning everyone, We're visiting the in-laws this weekend (in Potch) and I was wondering whether there are any MTB routes in and around the Potch/Parys side? Any help would be greatly appreciated! Have a great day!

Hi guys, I've used a similar system (Scalarider G4) on my motorcycle and it's awesome I but can't believe they're actually making it for bicycles as well. My G4 set me back a couple of grand and as such I can't see that this will be less than R2000-R3000. Would you buy something like this? If you cycle alone, then you can give this article a miss. Otherwise, the Cardo BK-1 ought to make for an essential tool for those who cycle in groups. Thanks to Cardo Systems, their latest release, the Cardo BK-1, is a Bluetooth communications and entertainment system that was specially developed for bicycle helmets. Obviously when you are up and about on your bike, you can expect to sweat a whole lot, not to mention getting caught in the rain during some unexpected moments. Good thing the Cardo BK-1 is waterproof, in addition to its other twin qualities of being lightweight and aerodynamic. Capable of fitting into just about all helmets out there in the market, it delivers high-quality audio along the way, paving the way for simultaneous intercom communication between 3 cyclists at distances up to 1,640 feet (500 meters). If you have a Bluetooth-enabled smartphone, the Cardo BK-1 will also work iwth that, letting you accept or reject incoming calls. Perfect for talking to your mates while maintaining eye contact on the road ahead. http://www.ubergizmo.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/cardo.jpg