Roneblack46

Medium RD.

The track for the next Provincial XCO for 1 March should be marked by today. The start is up near the amphitheater. To get there you go through the main gate, first right then next right again and park on the left. From that parking you will see a road to your left going up the hill. About 10m up that road to the right is the start. It is a pretty cool place for XCO. Lots of ups and downs and pretty rocky. SA champs will be held there later in the year and they are planning so radicle obstacles.

So the 42T went on on friday afternoon. Easy instructions. remove the 17t and 1 spacer and add the 42t with spacers on either side. Slight turn in of the B screw, fit new chain and that was it. 20 minutes. Saturday morning was a speed training session at the Voortrekker Monument on the XCO track for the next Provincial race. So 5.2km lap with 190m climbing. Rocky and numerous gradient changes. The shifting up to and from the 42T was smooth with no recognizable delay in shifting. The gap between 15 and 19 lower down was also not noticeable. A definite for those rfding 1x10. Almost the same ratio as 1x11 except no 10T and the 42T costs $100 and fits normal 11/36 cassette. So for R2000 I see it as a very cost effective alternative to 1x11.

I ordered mine on 4 December 2013. They only shipped on 20 January. I had it shipped to my work postal address in Washington DC and then it comes in the pouch through that mail channel. Arrived today. It will be going on this afternoon. All ready for tomorrow's ride.

i am unfortunately not one of those mechanically proficient persons. Trying to get off work early and get it on. I have XCO training at Voortrekker Monument tomorrow (5.32km laps with 190m climbing). Perfect testing terrain.

My One Up Components 42T just arrived in the mail. see new thread on this...

Just got this in the mail. 42T to go onto my 11/36 cassette. So the instructions are to ditch the 17T and add this big saucer on the end - giving me an 11/42 spread. Will have to wait till monday to be installed by LBS. Will give an update then on installation and first ride.

I sometimes (i normally run a 30T wolftooth) run a 32T wolftooth on my 2x10 raceface turbine crankset. I have had no issues with chain line at all.

I suppose everything wears eventually. IMO the General Lee replaces the top 4 rings so you are in them quite a bit. They are in the end your climbing gears. The Oneup is only the last ring with the rest of the original cassette available. So your use of the 42 should be minimal. I am looking at 1 ring lasting at least 2 cassettes maybe even 3. I can get 2 Oneups for 1 General Lee.

The problem with the General Lee conversion is that it wears to quickly. My Oneup Components 42T is in the post and should be here next week. So on a 11/36 cassette I ditch the 17T and add the 42T on the other end effectively giving me a 11/42 cassette. For $85 (at the time) a great saving over XX1 and XO1. Running that wih either a 30T or 32T Wolftooth upfront on my 29er HT gives me a very cost effective 1x10 with wide range. As soon as it arrives I will post a new subject with pictures and read up. Yes I do lose a little on the flats but I have clocked in excess of 40km/h on flats with my 30T upfront. In fact I am finding the 30T on the 29er HT a very very suitable front chainring.

Get Specialized Ground Control front and back for her. Good grip, lasts pretty long, decent rolling resistance and under R400 each.

I forgot to add that my times over the marathon distance are more or less the same as when I rode with the 2x10 drivetrain. It is important to have a variation of rings at least a 30 and 32 in my case. An upcoming race profile will determine what ring on front. Example. MTN Sabie with a lot of climbing will definitely be a 30 up front. MTN Clarens has a lot of gravel road riding at speed so there the 32 will be needed. I believe those options will give you a better all round set up.

Just a few comments on what I have experienced. I ride a 29HT with a 1x10 conversion with an 11/36 cassette.I first tried a 32T front for about 6 weeks and found some longer steeper climbs a bit hard on the legs as the 32/36 was just not enough. I then tried a 30T on the front and that is a super size chainring for a 1x10 29er. I am able to climb steeper hills easier and quicker than with the 32. On the flats I have no problem keeping up with other 29ers with 2x10 drivetrains. Yes I have to keep a high cadence but easily manage to stay with on 40km/h + speeds. you also learn to be a good drafter. My riding partner is about the same as me on strength and endurance and rides a Trek Superfly carbon full suspension 29er. So we ride similar times over similar distances and that was when I ran a 2x10 on the HT. with the 1x10 30T he is the one trying to keep up. Whether it be on flats or climbs. Also what I have experienced is that the gearing forces me to ride at a high cadence. So I am not grinding through big gears and expending my legs. Overall my times are quicker and I am less expended. Now just waiting for that 42T cog to arrive to give me 11/42 on the back.

In my opinion there is only 1 way to go and that is the snakeskin version In Rocket Ron. I have one on the front, tubeless and it is a good gripping tyre. I ride XCO and XCM and the tyre has been great. I weigh 85 kg and run my front at 1.5 - 1.6. I ride Thaba Trails, Van Gaalens, Hakahana etc regularly which is pretty rocky and never had a burp. Do be aware that they are a race specific tyre so puncture durability on the tread area is not the best. Nothing a plug can sort out.

The Wolftooth 42T is still some weeks away from been available. I do not know what their cog will look like but the oneupcomponents 42T has 12 shifting ramps. I doubt if the WT 42T is going to be any cheaper though. Paid $85 for the Oneup. I have the WT chain rings and they are fantastic.

The wolf tooth chainrings are available from Evobikes. You can try get Raceface narrow wides from various cycling shops. Oneupcomponents.com for the 42T cog. You can order online and they are shipping middle January. As far as I know they are not available locally yet.

This is what I am running at the moment: Race face crank 104bcd (best variety of narrow wides available in his BCD) with either Wolftooth 30 or 32 (depending on terrain) narrow wide chainring. Rear cassette is a SRAM 11/36. Have just ordered a 42T cog from oneupcomponents. Will remove the 17T and add the 42T giving me an 11/42. Running this with a SRAM X9 Type 2 Medium cage Derailler. Normal 10 speed chain SRAM 1050. I do XCO which is harsh on drivetrain and no issues whatsoever. Smooth shifts and no dropped chains. The 42T will be here end January and will post on it then. IMO go for 104BCD and any crank that has that. Get a Wolftooth chainring and you good to go upfront.

Look on the bright side. You can train for uphills, technical downhills and great for interval training. Thaba Trails is great for that and Monument is going to be Epic. I wish many more A batch and B batch riders would do so, so we don' t have to walk the easy obstacles because riders get stuck on them at the marathon races and cause bottle necks.

I agree. They are fairly slow to get their timetable out. Especially as the first provincial is middle January. This may help. see attached. SA XCO Champs are in Gauteng this year. I hear they want to prepare a track at the Voortrekker Monument. 5km with 300m climbing per lap.

This is what I need as I am a pretty good climber and that extra bail out is what I need for Barberton and Sabie. Well it is ordered so will update as soon as it is here. Pity about the mid January shipping as I have friends coming from US in 2 weeks time and they could have brought it with.

Finally what we have been waiting for. I have just ordered one and should be here by end January (hopefully in time for Barberton XCM) Interesting that it has 12 upshift points which I assume will enable smooth upshifting, which I see is an issue with General Lee. Been only the granny gear would enable longevity equal to that of the rest of the cassette. If this works it will be a no brainer and way more cost effective than XO1 or XX1. I can live without the 10T. So a 11-42 can come in at under R2000 cassette and 42T. Will give an update when it arrives etc.

I am doing the 65km with a mate of mine. Going to put the 1x10 to the test. Been checking the weather forecast. Seems the heavy rain is staying away. Should be an awesome race. Reading some of the older threads about it - couple of nice steep rocky climbs.

Have a look here: light-bicycle.com 650B carbon rims coming in at 1455gr a set. $564 excl shipping and customs. Weight rating of 120kg. Some Hubbers are riding 29inch carbon wheels from them with no issues. They also advertise "assistance with invoice" for customs duties. So you could get them landed here for under 7.5k.

I am in the fortunate position that my employer pays 2/3rds of my monthly payment. I am just finding Discovery not suitable for say orthodontics. My eldest has 6 months to go and her orthodontics comes out of my my yearly savings plan. My family limit for the year is what the orthodontics cost. So what happens is I run into my self payment gap pretty early in the year. I have a second teen waiting for orthodontics as well.

I have been with Discovery Health for more than 14 years on the classic comprehensive plan. So with a family of 4 including 2 teenagers it seems that Discovery has become more expensive but cover less. I am looking at possibly shifting to anther medical aid but have no idea. I would like to hear what other Hubbers are experiencing with their Medical Aid. Pros and Cons...