Aicorner

Is the thesis abstract something along the lines of : "Trail Blaze Community Customer/Participant spelling mistake and foolishness test" ?

Nah, Durban to Bloem in one day is too far for me.

DirtyHippo AfricaKid jou blik@#m !! Greg, see you Sunday

Bleom & OFM are great - the place is small enough that almost anywhere is central but I would say City Lodge or find a B & B

Stop trying to mess withg nature. Flowers attract bees, boobs attract men. What I'm struggling with is what attracts roadies (maybe we can use it to keep them off the singletrack)

RIP Gheogs, thanks for the great cycling

All the things a racer needs !

My entry even said I get A batch seeding and a table near the shortest food queue

Registered the team first - bit of a schlepp because you need ID no's & medical aid for both team members, then they send you an email saying you're in & telling where to pay.

Nope, previous entrant

Feeling happy - just entered (& paid).

I know I don't have to watch. I like to watch but get disapointed when its not what it could be. Public expression (and criticism) of views is one of the reasons for forums like this. I think all the arguments in support of this years tour (its long, its tactical, etc) have been shown to re-inforce the fact that its boring. Okay, now I really will go & watch.

Patience is boring ... I don't think one needs a point to rant in the rant 'n rave section. No question previous races were more exciting (come to think of it, the most exciting ones were before radios...) This year's tour is boring - I'm off to watch it now but only 'coz its better than working on a Friday afternoon.

I'm so bored I have to respond : Many years ago, when I first started following the tour and when I became aware of team tactics, people like Eddie Merrcx or Bernard Hinault raced every day; and the tour (which we follwed on am radio !) was a 3 week race. Then Big Mig & Lance came along, learnt to win by recipe' (ie limit you losses in the mountains & gain time in the ITT) and predicitng the overall winner became less exciting; but at least there was still a real race for the stage on most days. This year its boring : the odd broken wrist or glare does not make it exciting; the negative team tactics (which I understand, better it seems than some) do not make it exciting, the fact that its 3 weeks long does not make it exciting, the chance of a break filled with low GC riders staying away does not make it exciting, the possibility of the winner only being decided on the second last day does not make the whole race exciting. Its boring !!

Welcome to the world of race admin - race organisers have had to deal with cyclists leaving their brains (and manners) at home (and with power cuts etc etc) since races were organised. ROAG is a good idea but you have to meet all the challenges, not just the ones that are easy to solve.

Sorry, the sprinters are not "playing chess" (but even if they were watching a 3 week chess game would be boring). The only tactical question at the moment is whether the break will work or whether Cav will win. Ho hum, another day of "1 minute for every 10km" Sorry, its also not foreplay. In my experience (recollection) that term refers to increasing tittilation building to an explosive climax. Not increasing boredom whcih makes anything different appear exciting. I hope I'm wrong and the predicitons of Schlecks/Evans attacking or today being the day are good because I'm so frutrated I'm almost ready to ride a bicycle myself.

Another friggin' "transitional stage" - what are they trying to transform into ? It's been said before and I have to say it again - this year's tour is boring boring boring. 3 weeks of defensive riding for a one day race on the second last day (especially when one team has half the good riders) just sucks.

Thank everybody, he contacted me as soon as he had cleaned his bike and defrosted

Thanks DT Must say I thort it was too cold to ride at night your side - even here in Durban the temperature has plumeted to below 15 degrees

I've never heard of Kabouga - Koudboude maybe

I want to pm you

I will go to knysna with my cycling buddies, buy a R30 forest permit, ride well away from the race route. On the day of the road race I will do the same, maybe in a differebt area. I suspect I will have more fun than those racing. I voted with my wallet 94,7 time and it was great. Probably do the same come next Argus & all the other well sponsored but nonetheless very expensive events.

Go to Howick Cycles, sign an indemnity & buy a board (R50), they will direct you from the shop

Give the 40km a go if its dry (some rain predicted) You will be fine as long as you are prepared to be out there for a while and walk a few sections. The track is tricky rather than scary, marked at dangerous spots and there are some chicken runs. Also, doing it is the only way to get better ! This really is a fantastic course.

Rode the route for the Howick Classic this coming Sunday and its amazing super fantastic Teichman's Terror and Pascoe's Plunge are back; the usual technical climbs are there (Mother, The Rattler) along with a new one from the bottom of new track; there's some great swoopy stuff at the bottom of Bridges and a whole nursery of new rock gardens; old favourites are there - Flat Track, Harry's, Goblins, the Face, the Face; and some new bits who haven't introduced themselves yet. More than half the 40kms are real true fun awesome awesome good single stuff - I guess 2/3s of the riding time ! (Even the jeep track in between would be called "true mountainbiking" at many other races). Not for the beginner (there's an easier 20km). Not to be missed if you're a purist.