BigGuy

Although end of March it can become very hot during the day. Also there could be +-30km of very rough climbing/walking between water points. I would recommend a camelbak of at least 2l + 2 bottles. Agree with TopFuel, study the day's route profile carefully to avoid dehydration. Eat like a pig, from day 1, especially breakfast. Unless you are a pro, you will be out there for between 7 and 11 hours daily. If you have a buddy in the medical tent who can organise a post-stage glucose drip or 2, even better.

Breakfast is scrambled eggs, bacon or sausages, bread, cereals, cheese, jam. Most people make sandwiches to take along. Waterpoint 1 is muffins (salt and sweet), energy bars, energade, coke, water, sometimes energade jellies. Waterpoint 2 is similar to WP1 but this is also the "nutrition" WP with your personal premixed bottles (that you hand in the previous evening), as well as various fruits such as apple, babana, orange. Waterpoint 3 similar to WP 1. Waterpoint 4 similar to WP 1. Mormally at the end of stage unless it is a very long day. At end of stage you receive a Woolies hamper with nuts, smoothie or drinking yoghurt, sandwich or wrap. Most people will need more than this, because no formal lunch is served there are various food stalls where you can buy burgers, chips, hot dogs, coffee etc. Supper is choice of meat with rice, pasta, veg, fruit juice, pudding. And dont forget the beer tent. Food quantity is more than enough, quality is above average. The water is clean, it comes from just one source for the duration of the event.

Wifey gave me this for Xmas

Cool, planning on going up there soon before I am too old.

"Outdoor riders at all levels are often aware of the inefficiency of chain in terms of power transfer and the limitations over time due to chain wear and stretch that creates wasted power output through an inefficient system." Craig Taylor, on behalf of Virgin Active. What utter nonsensical rubbish!

Used to do this many moons ago when Zambesi drive (Pretoria) was a fairly quiet road. I would cycle on the wrong side of the road to check for bricks and so forth and then slip behind a truck from the highway off-ramp up to the drive-in. Never had a scary moment but heard a horror story of one guy who swerved in behind a truck without noticing the trailer. Apparently he was lucky to be able to jump onto the trailer but the bike was toast. Not sure how true this story was. It was sometime during the late 80s.

Interesting. I have not tried the new bikes, but the old bikes seem to have the opposite effect; when sweat drips on the flywheel it actually feels as if you have hit a grassy or sandy patch for a few seconds. If I cover the complete handlebar with a towel it rarely happens.

Good choice of eating and drinking options at close range...

Good luck, will come check it out.

Very nice! But I would never wear it in public in Gauteng. The Rolex gang she is watching...

Garmin FR60. Cheap and nasty looking but works really well for its intended purpose.

You have my sympathy. Take things very easy the first few weeks. You will most probably become an expert on the topic if not already. Every rh fracture is unique and you will have to let the level of discomfort guide you along your path of recovery. The bone heals quickly, it is the ligaments and nerves that take a long time to heal. Good luck!

Works well on my alu Giant mtb. No failures yet.

Strippers?

Phew I am safe then as my Volvo regularly gets stuck in one gear!

I drive a 2005 T5. Agreed, consumption is very good considering the performance. I get 8 litr/100km. The seats are sublime and the premium sound makes every trip a pleasure. Auto box valve bodies are giving me hassles lately though. Will cost more to fix than the car is worth!

S60R is nice.

I have a GT Peace SS 26" Small for sale.

In the end I bought a scale from Clicks that does all the interesting numbers. I think it was around R200. DC Rainmaker did an interesting investigation recently (DC Rainmaker scale comparison), comparing all the body composition scales he could find, and referencing their accuracy with something clinical called the Bod-Pod. I think in the end he concluded that they are all inconsistent with one another, but that they all work very well to track the trend over time, as long as you stick with the same scale.

Unfortunately the local Tanita agents are not willing to supply this product. Trying to get it from abroad proved fruitless as well. I even took it up with Tanita themselves. Their reply was to work through the local agent, who on my second request for the scale got annoyed with me bothering them again. Me: Why can't you supply me the scale? Them: Because it is not available in South Africa. Me: I know that. You are the agent for Tanita products in South Africa, right? Them: Yes we are! Me: But why do you not change that? Make this product available to the public of South Africa. Them: Didn't you hear me the first time? This product is not available in South Africa!!!

@Help.Me, if Maryks helped you so far, she should be able to assist you with your questions. I doubt that you will find a satisfying answer on this forum, we are all different individuals with different training needs. What works for me will probably not work for you. Just my 50c.

Foxy is on the right trail. What I do know is that the softer woods are used for paper pulp (like at Ngodwana en route to Nelspruit), and the harder woods for mine beams, furniture and so forth. Operating a saw mill is a cut-throat business, strange but true.

It's all about the money....it's all about the dumdumdududumdum, I don't think it's funny...

I don't fall for the "save a tree" thing anymore. At least not in this country of ours. Did a project recently regarding plantation and sawmill competition in the lowveld. The farming of hard and soft woods is a huge business. The planning and effective use of plantations is an exact science. These guys want you to use as much paper as possible.

Personally I can't imagine the 6-bolt->cl converter to be any less affective... the shimano disc rotors are very sturdy and should not warp so easily as conventional 6-bolt rotors.