Charlie600

Purchased the Venu (non SQ) for my wife during April - absolutely brilliant piece of tech, whilst being reasonable value for money. Also, the quality of the screen is absolutely brilliant and I can only but hope that the next Fenix series will have a screen equally brilliant!

Dear hubbers. I would like to introduce myself as the "domste drol" for November, after managing to lose my Edge 1030 during last week...#facepalm After canvassing the route about 10x and also posting everywhere, I have now made peace with the fact that my beloved Edge is no more (for me at least). However with that being said and after dealing with all the conscious and subconscious frustrations and annoyance, I've decided to suck it up and move forward, especially given that I extensively use the function whereby the Edge manage my Bontrager lights during rides and commuting etc.(especially now that winter arrived here in Belgium). So the questions is, do I again purchase a 1030 due to being on good deals following the arrival of the 1030+ or do I get the 830 which is faster etc. whilst the slightly bigger screen of the 1030 is a nice to have and definitely not a must have for me. Really looking forward to your input and contributions, whether in scientific or non scientific format.

Although I previously despised of e-bike riders, I've seen the light and now commute to the office on an e-bike. Not only do you get a reasonable workout, without sweating (much), no more need for additional clothes, shower at the office etc. Haters be hating, including me when I'm on my mtb or roadbike but for every commute, e-bike FTW!

Still absolutely loving my Fenix 3 after 4.5 years of "hard labour", whilst the battery is still good for a week or so at worst. For me the Fenix 3 is like the Land Cruiser on the farm, one of very, very few items that are simply indestructible!

I use these Bontrager mudguards during the winter months on my trek checkpoint - works like a charm! https://www.trekbikes.com/us/en_US/equipment/bike-accessories/bike-racks-fenders-locks/bike-fenders-accessories/bike-fenders/bontrager-ncs-fender-set/p/21832/

An amazing "quickie" in-between all the silly conference calls!

Another beaut of a riding day in Belgium! Although I'm (masochistically?) longing for a Thaba trails session, despite some of these gnarly forest climbs!

Haha, good shout - indeed mother in law and my mom. I would physically die trying to raise a 19 month old & 5 week old on my own - single parents are in my view the true superheroes in this world!

Look, the simple reality is that one can simply never never have too many entry level / mid range and or top of the range bicycles! I've managed to continue riding & upgrading etc. when our son was born during Feb 2019 however since our daughter's birth in July this year, the real issue is actually finding time to ride. With the Belgium borders not open to Saffas to visit for soscial purposes until probably end of the year if not later, I will seemingly only start clocking the hours and miles in the saddle again once the (grand)mothers arrive to spend 3-4 weeks with us at a time. Although creche is freakishly expensive they've reopened following the summer holidays so I probably in the interim also need to become hyper creative with my (home)work schedule that is in place until December, to ensure I squeeze in 2-3 rides per week whilst still over delivering at work. With that being said, huge respect to all of you that are parents and also to those of you that aren't - until 3 years ago i thought I will never be able to become a dad so the realization since then is that we all have our unique path carved out in life and as long as we keep on riding (the bike!) all will work out at the end of the day.

I hope this counts, given that I truly did push my bike out of the garage onto the driveway in order to share in the vibe. Mathieu van der Poel and friends came past a couple of times during the 192km Druivenkoers race in Belgium.

I had a similar predicament when I received my bike. As such currently using the racing ray/racing ralph combo in 2.35 format during the summer (which is working really well with no punctures in 1500km), with a 2.3 nobby nic setup for the winter times.

Fully agree with you in this regard, I absolutely love my gravelbike (Checkpoint SL6) but my "chassis sensitivity" took some time to adjust to the bumps etc., especially after only being used to my mountainbike...

South Africa is seemingly simply considering legislation similar to that what's already been in place within most of the EU etc. for a number of years. In general an e-bike that provide assistance (i.e. you have to pedal) up to 25km/h is categorised as a bicycle like any other. Some market such as the US allow up to 32km/h but for most the max is 25km/h whilst these e-bikes are usually called "pedelecs" where we live. The moment that the assistance provide support up to a maximum of 45 km/h it is indeed classified under moped (scooter) legislation and called a speed pedelec, so insurance, helmet, moped licence together with a number plate is is mandatory and also policed fairly strict. Also, you're not allowed to have any kiddies seat on a speed pedelec. The downside if you for example use the speed pedelec for commuting purposes is that you're not allowed to use combined pedestrian / cycle way paths which makes up most of Brussels, in which instance you need to share the road with all other users such as cars, busses and trams which can be a bit gnarly and the main benefit for me personally would be when using it outside of the city (in which case a car might just be easier). Also, e-bikes that provide assistance by way of a throttle/button or anything similar is not allowed - it may only provide assistance whilst pedalling. Without going into the e-bike debate, my wife's e-bike with thule child-seat at the rear is truly awesome and a great addition to the N+1 principle. Although she was never keen on cycling, she's suddenly loving it and we make it a family outing, whilst she is naturally thrilled to kick my ass during serious climbing sessions.

Moral of the story - the Racing Ray / Racing ralph combo in tubeless format is a damn fine combination!

"summa summa" is here!

Sun's out, guns out!

This morning's solidarity ride, dedicated to all my mates back home in SA that can't currently enjoy the splendid beauty of mother nature.

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.

Hi Ghost, I have a Checkpoint SL6 given that I wanted to do the exact same as you - have a comfortable/relaxed road bike, that also happens to be happy on gravel roads etc. (and I now even commute with her as well). Although all of the bikes mentioned are great options, I absolutely love the Checkpoint given that it is a slightly more aggressive gravel bike than some of the others (in my non expert opinion and based on internet reviews). Not only does she allow me to fit proper fenders during the winter months, she's surprisingly quick as well - no need for smaller diameter tyres given that I (in a semi unfit shape) don't struggle to keep up with the riding mates on 60km+ road rides with the standard 35 rubber whilst having no concerns when hitting the sidewalk or forest roads as part of a ride to keep things interesting. However with that being said, the important element to keep in mind as well is that I know I'm not competing for podiums anymore and as long as you have this mindset you will be super happy with any of the options mentioned. If still in a racing snake mindset...none of the gravel bike will suffice and you should instead look at something like the new Domane that can also fit wider tyres. In summary, the Checkpoint is a super comfortable ride due to the wider tyres, relaxed setup and iso speed decoupler whilst I've had absolutely no buyers remorse in the nearly 2 years that I've had her (other than longing for the SL7 when that beauty was released during 2019) Although I'm not sure what they currently retail for in SA given how the rand plummeted, the SL5 is also a decent option if it's the carbon and decoupler that you're after, whilst I in hindsight I even could've bough the ALR5 as well - superb value for money at around 50% of the cost of the SL6 and also absolutely bulletproof! Feel free to DM me for more questions etc. and happy hunting for your bike!

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!

My new bike came with a SRAM GX 12 speed setup (X1 crank) together with XT 8120 brakes. I was initially truly gutted about not getting the new XT 1X12 , given that I turned into a bit of a Shimano "groupie" since my Avid Juicy experience a couple of years ago... However with that being said and after a couple of short and easy as well as long an intense rides (keeping in mind that I'm not a product review expert) - really impressed with the fast and crisp changes together with overall quality of the product.

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