vanniri

Just had a two week unplanned break as a result of work. Big stress, long hours, little sleep, long travelling and late nite dinners. Did a 4 hour ride this week-end on only XC race cource track - ending off with a race between friends (last one wins the flashlight to help him finds his way back home in the dark). Well..., I was slammered. I do not know were you guys get your numbers but I felt like I lost at least 30% of my fitness. From previous experience I estimate I can get back into shape fairly easily within 3 weeks.

Only one cable tie is used. Push the cable tie through the cut-off rubber pipe section, circle the same section of the cable tie around the brake cable, loop it back into the cut-off rubber pipe section, then tie the cable tie around the frame/shock. Hope the above explains

Aussie administered race & Aussie website = lethal combination

Check out bikeradar.com They had a review last week - they did not require the injection tool in riding in UK weather for half-a-year or so. Seems to be good - pricey!

Nice built. I notice the frame protector stickers - for me it spoils the frame. In my wanderings I have seen the following alternatives: My previous LBS used to buy O-rings and skewered them on the cables for use as frame protection. When using a cable tie to fix a cable on a frame without a small little stub: cut a piece of rubber tube, 1/2 cm long. Slip the cable tie through it before looping it round the cable and back through the tube. Then tie round the frame or front shock. This looks great, I though it was a special thingy until I removed the cable one day - was pretty impressed! Plz note: I am not sending this to talk anyone down.

I have seen some rentals outside Manic Cycles. Don?t expect high-end rentals.

I also pre-entered and was irritated by the long registrations. Yet I cannot believe the ignorance in some of the posts above. The general administration of our races is much better than most countries I have been to. I cannot wait to be back in SA to ride any race. I will be back in Wellington. All the best for the future plans - looking forward to riding it.

Attend one of JB?s courses, then the service cost is neglible

Pardon for hijacking your thread - will you guys do any night rides in the next month (Stellenbosch area) I would be very interested to join

I will be in CT area (Franschhoek to be exact) from 29th July to 17 Aug. Looking for riding buddies/contacts during this period or any regular group rides I can link-up with.

I have been using Goodridge paired with XTR calipers and LX levers for the better part of 5 years. My advice - go through the hassle of installation, you?ll not be sorry in the long run

My own story about Spes SA: In August of 2004 I decided to buy a M5 S-Works frame only. After enquiry through my LBS the frame was ordered. No delivery date was specified but Spes SA confirmed frame to be included in a order already place with Spes USA. Delivery expected +/- 1 month. Nothing happend for 3 months. My LBS got sick of me, so eventually they gave me the direct contact numbers of the Spes SA gentlemen. After numerous calls it turned-out that Spes SA was busy negotiating an extension of the distribution contract with Spes USA. At the same time Spes SA was also in talks with an equity stakeholder - apparently an equity injection was required/desired from Spes USA. During this sensitive period I was requested not to rock the boat by contacting Spes USA directly - I agreed. All of the above delayed the delivery of the frame (all stock delivery was delayed according to Spes SA). During this time the frame was always either one day from arrival or one day from clearance at customs. This kept on till January/February the next year. During February the next year I visited a famous shop in Pretoria. One of the shop assistants told me they "just" sold such a frame in my size a week before. The owner of the shop came over and stopped the conversation - at the stage I thought it quite odd. Eventually I recieve a 2005 frame in April. Extremely happy, excellent frame! Too late for the Cape Epic, which I ended riding on a Santa Cruz Blur (what a pleasure it was to deal with the SC importer - his SC business was still very small at that stage). In October during warm-up at a major race I met a guy riding a frame (same 21 size) like mine. He used to be a cycling buddy of the owner of the above shop - both very "famous" racers at that stage, although this guy stop competing to focus on studies. He told me he was extremely lucky to find the frame since he enquired during February and received the frame in the same month - apparently they had one ready in the warehouse which just arrived. Putting two and two together them made me realise what happened. The lack of integrity shown by the owners during the above episode made me decide never to buy from Spes SA again.

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/intermontaine-challenge-mtb-stage-race-offers-equal-prize-money See above, still with equal prize money the women entries is 5 times less than the men.

Have been doing Mtb for more than 15 yrs. Only two I have never changed since first time I purchased them: Eggbeater pedals Tubeless (tubeless rims + tubeless tyres in SA - for all the thorns & stan?s conversion with normal tyres in Europe and Brazil)

Don?t use any type of degreaser near sealed bearings! Buy yourself some proper grease - not your local LBS, too expensive. Go to a hardware shop and ask around. Buy a grease with a unique colour - preferably white. Then you can easily see when it is contaminated. Remove your crank (like in your picture) at least once a month or after EVERY wet ride. Clean all excess grease with a rag, smear new grease on bolts, shaft and contact points and re-fit. Clean excess grease. Grease will tend to leaked out during riding - it?s a good thing since it moves the grime away from the bearings. Just wipe down after each ride. The sealed bearing should only be wiped with the rag and smeared with a bit of grease - leave it sealed. See how to service sealed bb?s if you want to go that route. I have followed a basic, regular cleaning (as little water and soap as possible) and grease routine with all my bikes and they all run smooth for long.

If that guy did not question the year of the frame you would have never posted that lovely photo of the top tube (with the Giant decal) Excellent looking frame. My advice to sellers would be to commit a few days to their sell, by answering questions (even dumb one?s ) or adressing comments (even menacing one?s).

Check out the following link: http://www.bikeradar.com/fitness/training/article/power-output-road-bike-vs-mountain-bike-19691

I bought a Lupine whatever in Europe when I was living in the Balkans - it was in excess of GBP 280. I used it at least for 4 nights a week during the summertime. Excellent light - would recommend it to all. Like all else, if you use it often the price becomes reasonable (eventually).

Brazilians do it the best - sometime ago I saw a guy on a commuter bike hooking his left foot at the right back-end of a city bus. This was in rush hour traffic with the bus doing at least 40km/h plus. Obviously now helmet was in sight.

As jou hart of carbon is en jy hoef nie die geld te leen nie koop dit. Merida bring ?n nuwe sub 900g raam uit (2010) wat vir 5 jaar gewaarborg is en ?n gewig limit het van 120kg. Die waarborg sluit XC racing in. Kyk op BikeRadar.com Bostaande is veronderstel om die ligste produksie raam te wees - dit wys ook wat carbon kan doen.

Merida with X0

I?ve been using a roller since I arrived in Brazil (9 months ago), a combination or work, crime, rain, traffic and distance (oops - nearly forgot the wife) result in me only being able to mtb once a week on the dirt and once a week on tar. I only use a HR monitor. My advice will be: a) Use a slick tyre b) Buy a seperate wheelset for the rear. Not only do you not have to change the tyre, but your expensive hub will be saved the abuse as a result of too much pre-load on bearings - the clamp mech results in more binding than suitable, i.e. more wear and tear. c) Get hold of interval programs to do on the trainer. You will only need entertainment (TV, etc.) when warming-up or cooling down, the rest of the time you should be too tired. I?ve done base training on a gym bicycle in winter in Kosovo for 3 hours or more with either no electricity or when the electricity was working having to listen to Albanian folk songs. I am still in therapy as a result. d) Use good weather days or week-ends to do get some real time in the saddle. Other considerations: I have had no adverse effect on the frame (carbon bling nogal), maybe I will regret it later. Sure to post something on the hub if anything happens. Using a power meter should be beneficial - but expensive and keeping track of your speed and difficulty setting (see explanation in a post above) on the trainer should result in constant power. If you?re HR decrease over time while keeping the other two constant you?re on the right track.

Been using metal cheap one?s for ages - I bend them till the bottle sticks. The resulting scuff marks on the bottle complements the bike?s. Got a Merida carbon one with the bike sometime ago - agree with the guy above: it works very well (some rubber thingy attached to top bolt).

You need a needle, dental floss, super glue and tyre patch and rubber solution. Stitch the side wall using the dental floss, then put some superglue on outside wall. Patch the inside wall using a large patch (easily covering the area - including stitches). Remember to clean inside of tyre wall very well and rough it with sufficiently for the rubber solution to work. Note: If you?re using tyre sealant you might get away with not patching the inside.