Baracuda

There are obviously a few more differences . But to me the notion of spending R7200 on a cassette, on a wear and tear item, is insane. I just bought my girlfriend a nearly new Silverback Sola 1 for that price. A whole bike with full XT, Arch wheelset, decent fork....

I agree, I have gone from 2x10 to 1x11 (both top SRAM) and I find the 2x shifting easier, especially in up-down Cape conditions. When you get to the bottom the decent, it is quick to drop one ring upfront for the climb. Likewise, when going over the peak, it is just one quick shift onto the large chainring. Not up and down whole cassettes.

A bald eagle cassette costs double that of a XTR 2x10 cassette or the same as a full XT 2x10 drivetrain https://www.bike-discount.de/en/shop/mtb-group-sets-391/l-24

Hi Tom, My apologies. As mentioned I had a tough time with an Anthem. Similar in that it starting packing up after two rides, frame crack, then the BB had issues, then the ..... But very different, in that the previous owner told me he had bought it new and used it for 6 weeks to train for the Epic and then got a S-works - which he had there when I picked it up. When the nonsense started, I took it to Luke Rex who works on all my bikes and as I wheeled it in, he said "I know this bike, I serviced it on the last 2 Epics". The bike was 3 years old and had been ridden into the ground. My apologies once again.

If you search for "foam pit bike" on youtube, one can see how it is done. I am not sure if we have foam pits in SA, perhaps one could do it into water. One could cover yourself in cricket pads, but the main issue would be your neck and back.

I had the same happen to me a few years ago with a Giant Anthem. Two rides in I had issues with the frame. I took it back to the guy I bought it from and demanded my money back. The fault here does not lie with Pyga but with the guy who he bought it from. Very, very fishy that a second hand bike cracks in two places on the second ride.

I am not sure if it has been covered within these 222 pages, but a question for folks who have installed a 1x11 XT system on their 110's: are you happy with the system? Would you change anything? What size front chainring and cluster are you using? I am about to pull the trigger on a XT 8000 system, with a 11-42 cassette and 32 front. Some forums recon it is worth upgrading the shifter to XTR, but I don't believe it is worth an extra R1000. Thanks for any advice.

Where did you purchase the spider for 2x?

I have a 70mm stem already. Don't wanna go longer than that.

Thanks for all the advice from all of you. I have 760mm bars. I will try flipping the stem, dropping the stack and all in incremental steps. It is a 110 and I love it. It came with 2.35 Hans Damphs on it and while it can be a hack getting up hill, it is an absolute beast on single track and down hill. To help uphill I also changed the tires to a Saguaro / Barzo mix, but the XC tires limit its potential - a bit like surfing Pipeline on a boggie board. I have placed a Hans Damph back on the front and its fear nothing / War Rig mentality has come back.

I have a question on Pyga sizing as my bike feels 'short' and I am not sure if this is just the way it is supposed to be. I am 1.77m in height and are therefore on the boundary of a medium / large frame according to the guidance on the pyga webpage. I bought a Large frame and have a 70mm stem on it, but the reach still feels short and my upper body position seems very upright. I have gone through the ergo fit process, which recommends a reach of 70.7cm, which is 3 cm longer than the current distance between the saddle and the bars. The fitment guy recommended changing the stem to a 100mm or 110mm, but that will really change the handling and would be sacrilege on a pyga - sort of like the guy above wanting to drill holes in a Pyga frame to install a specialized twat box. The other option is to install a lean-back saddle post but I am loving the dropper post I have and one can't buy lean back dropper posts. Any advice? Should one just get used to the upright position? Install tri-bars....

Indeed, I think the marketing approach and soulless corporate nature of it grind many folks up the wrong way. If you can survive the amount of cheese in that video commentary, you should be able to survive the event.

I travelled on Emirates to Milan with a bike recently and did not have any issues. Has the 300cm rule changed since April 2016? If one is going to travel with two bags, I can see there will be an issue as the total dimensions will exceed 300cm, but I had one box of 28 kgs, a standard Giant card board box, with my bike and then clothes, helmet and shoes in a bag in the box. Got it wrapped at the airport in plastic. All in all, no issue.

On sponsored spokes. Same as the big knife or panga trick, but using spokes instead.

what tires is he using? Ardent Race on the back and then on the front?

I am the biggest advocate of the metric system, but in this context, imperial just sounds better. I would rather say "I have a 6 inch Pyga" than, "I have a hundred and forty three millimeter Pyga" Would love to see our head of state describing a downhill bike

He is still not near the level of cross training by some:

You could start a whole new thread on that - Name the ultimate Eric Celeb Team

If one has a look at the GCN tech shows on Youtube, most pros are going for 25 or larger now.

So one should prefer to believe a spreadsheet, rather than a scale that measures the actual bike? I used to have a Giant Alu 29er and when I did take off the heavy wheels and fork during maintenance, I was amazed by the weight of the frame.

Easy peezie. See http://www.mountainbike.nl/forum/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=86764 Below 10kg, size large. Broader discussion here: http://weightweenies.starbike.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=134978

I am still not sure why it is referred to as a fork, if it doesn't fork.

Due to an overwhelming positive response from Cycle Lab marshals, I believe this post has been removed from Facebook.

Please note, due to a positive, engaging response from Cycle Lab marshals, I believe this message has been removed from Facebook. If anyone knows how I can delete this thread please let me know. A friend of mine just posted this on Facebook and I have heard of it elsewhere - I would just like to warn other cyclists riding in the cradle about the Cycle Lab pelotons. Yesterday was the second time I have been screamed vulgar words at by the front rider of the group and physically pushed off my bike whilst riding to the left of the yellow line, out of the way of passing cyclists. The group will approach a cyclist in front of them, scream at them to move out of the way and then physically push the cyclists out of the way with their hands as they pass. I have also witnessed this same group screaming at cyclists to move at the caves stop whilst they try to pass through. This is completely unacceptable behavior and I would just like to warn others to be aware of this, as at high speeds a fall can result in injury. There are many different levels of cyclists riding in the cradle, but this gives the Cycle Lab pelotons absolutely no right to behave like this. We have enough to worry about with vehicles hitting other cyclists on road and now we have to worry about fellow cyclists endangering one another. This is not on. As one of the leading cycling brands in South Africa this is not the type of behavior I would imagine Cycle Lab are wanting to portray for your brand.

Thank you for the all the advice, it sounds like the Park Tool PCS 9 is the puppy's nuts.