porky

I also suffer with skin cancer and have had numerous surgical operations to remove melanomas on my face, shoulders and back. When I was young and invincible (or so I thought) I would go out running swimming or roasting in the sun for hours without protection, now unfortunately the "chickens have come home to roost" as it were and I am paying the piper.! I havent used Techniblock, but use "XERODERM" also reccommended by the dermatologist also Pharmacy only and sometimes difficult to find, so buy a few tubes if you can, comes in 40 and 60 factor and its the only one I have used that dosnt irritate my eyes when applied. Honestly, one needs serious protection to avoid skin cancer today, I apply the cream everyday,even if I am in the office, in the car whatever, its a small price to avoid melanomas. Good Sunscreen is expensive, all I can say is dont skimp here, buy the best you can and use it liberally. porky2009-01-05 01:51:06

I hardly get involved in discussions like this because I have been running and riding on the road almost daily for well over 25 years and I could probably count the issues I have had on one hand, generally I think if you behave in a responsible and obliging manner people recprocate in a similar manner, of course theres the odd driver who rides a bit close for comfort or hoots unnecessarily but thats life, most truck drivers have a limited understanding of the dynamic effects a 36 wheeler will have on a 7 kg bicycle, its not done intentionally, we all make mistakes that effect others in some way or another - lighten up a bit and get used to it or dont venture out.

Okay, Cool, would like to see it.

Interesting, is it made of plywood Big H? and how do you attach the indicator?

That sounds about right? Must McLean and Co now take the wrap for every person who wears a Cyclelab jersey and misbehaves? Personally no of course not, but collectively the club MUST take some responsibility for its members. If you went into a shop and the salesman was rude and swore at you, would you not feel it was the companies responsibility to reprimand him/her - or if you complained would you be happy if the owner said, "I cant take responsibility for my employees behaviour" - I doubt it.!! Fact is, responsible clubs will screen complaints, if a certain cyclist or group of cyclists get a number of complaints they MUST be reprimanded and told to toe the line or asked to leave, saying "its not our responsibility" is a cop out - plain and simple.!

Okay,fair enough.!! I would be surprised if Avnic has no stock at this time of year, this is a very popular line, especially for christmas, but even if they have run out, it makes no sense to not tell you, then at least you know it will be here in xyz days. That dosnt sound like the service I and many others recieved from Avnic. I still think theres another issue, but Hey, I understand, its frustrating.

If you want to lift your spirits, just help someone in need - it works every time.

I am very surprised Konaman, Avnic has always been top of their game in Garmin issues, Hang, I even had one that was 4 or 5 years old which had a screen problem, took it in and they fixed it for me, upgraded the maps, and I think they charged me something like R180.00 Do you have proof of payment to Tribal Zone? If you do take it to Avnic and ask them to sort it out, if you dont ask your bike shop for the proof of payment, then do the same, with proof of payment, I can almost guarantee they will sort it out immediately. I really,really, think there is a financial issue here - somebody is not paid and there is no stock forthcoming, there can be no other explanation.

UMMM, are we so starved of "normal" service that when we get it we think its exceptional.?? In any company internationally that would just be the norm, actually you may even have scored a free hat or something as well. It dosnt sound like exceptional service to me, just a company doing what needs to be done to secure a sale and keep a customer - in my book thats normal. Lets look at exceptional, they would have delivered the kit to your door, a few days later they would have called to see if all was in order and lastly they would have sent a letter, e-mail saying that they hoped you were satisfied and giving contact details for you in case you were not. SA is so used to crappy service, when somebody actually dos the job they should, we cant believe it and think "Wow" this is exceptional - the rest of the consumer world would say, "Yeah, service was okay."

I cant believe anybody still reads this magazine, let alone buys it.! I guess as long as their are people buying it, they will continue to print it.!

Thats nonsense, (we are ASSUMING here the frame is still within the warranty period - if not, well then yes, its your baby) if its still within the warranty then the cost of returning the frame to the manufacturer is borne by the importer - not you. The cost of returning a new frame to you is borne by the manufacturer - not you either. I have never heard of a warranty working any other way. ...........Out of warranty, you need to cough up, irrespective of weither YOU think its a manufacturing fault or not. porky2008-12-19 06:16:51

Public forum Sis. .......butwhile we are on the point, try not to be so selective in your support, maybe you should also support those dorks who jump lights, I mean they are also cyclists.!! .........and I ride enough thanks.!

I really dont understand this post, who the hell cares about Seth?? Has ANYBODY here been personally affected by his paper?? Really, get a life and stop been so defensive. So he has a dislike for lycra and helmet wearing coffee drinkers, big deal, if thats all you have to concern yourself about, you need to get out more.!!!

I wafted through this whole issue and apart from a headache, I cant see any problems with the posts. Some people put forward their opinion, so what, if it dosnt effect you, why should you worry.? Some people said it wasnt their ideal, so what, if it dosnt effect you, why should you worry.? Some folk said their may be inherant dangers, so what, if it dosnt effect you, why should you worry.? The fact is, nothing will ever suit everybody, thats life, if you enjoy it, great thats all that matters.!

A lot of on-line stores also have a brick and mortar shop as well, thats the same for local or international. As to why on-line is cheaper, well its a combination really, mostly its because a shop is local, so usually only draws local custom, an on-line facility reaches the world with no extra cost, (the rent etc is paid) and thats a big market, so there is a certain saving to the business which can be passed on, plus increased sales means a better purchase price can usually be negotiated which means lower costs all round. A web based retailer in the SA market will get really a small exposure to a bigger market, (ie) international, but could do well with a increased local market like CWC who seem to have embraced this well. South Africans are still hesitant to buy on-line, plus they still like to go to the store and look around, its a culture thing now but slowly it will change, I read somewhere that internet sales accounts for at least 60% of American companies retail sales.

No matter where it comes from, - thats just hilarious.! It has to be deliberate, really, can someone be so gormless.!!??

I wont be buying another bike in the forseeable future so it makes little differance to me, but I think the glib manner in which Mr Els says "hard times ahead for ALL businesses" is a little over reaching. A lot of importers (not necessarily cycling) are still doing well, they have leaned out passed the savings on to the customer, fat, bloated operations with little controls will experience hard times, but well run lean companies will continue to thrive because they provide value. There is a very big company we used to deal with in the USA, they got fat and bloated over the years and refused to move with the times, I remember once discussing price with them and said, they were out of line internationally, they told me "sorry thats our price, pass it on to your customer" - we like many other customers looked for new suppliers, - two years ago they filed for chapter 13 and put 9000 people out of work. There is a good reason why stores like Mako, Game, P&P etc prosper and thrive in even the most difficult times, the reason is they supply MASS MARKETS, are very aware of price points, move rapidly to keep prices as stable as possible and generally leave the high end small markets to folk who prefer to work for less profit. Small high end markets cost the importer and retailer a lot to service, the customer is fussy and because they are spending more per head they demand more attention. Suppliers are also squeezed to the bone here and make minimal margins. Low end products, generally move fast, demand minimal service and usually carry bigger margins. I can assure you you will never find a R90.000.00 in any of these retailers, simply because its not cost effective, if it was, they would sell it. In general most importers have had price increases, but its in the area of between 15% -30% nowhere near like has been suggested 70% on bikes.

Can't a person ask CRC to disassemble the bike and send it over as "spares" to make the import duties less? You can, but customs here are not that stoopid. Bringing in 1 x frame, 2 x wheels, 1 x handlebar, 1 x deraileur,1 x stem etc will trigger all sorts of red lights and they will say you are importing a bike and charge the appropriate duty - of course you MAY be lucky and it slips through, or you may not be so lucky and customs sees it as trying to avoid duties and slaps you with a fine - maybe not worth the risk. Personally, I import virtually everything I have, I dont support any local shop because every time I go in they dont have stock, have to order it in, its the wrong one, it has to go back, takes another two days, drive through the traffic again, the price is differant from three days ago, the managers out riding, the assistant is on lunch and its only the receptionist on duty. Now I sit in front of my computer with my C/ Card, buy what I want and have it conveniently delivered to my door. Personally I could care less about the welfare of the local bike industry, I am not a welfare organisation.!

Dammmmmmmmmmm she looks just fine to me "DT" Haa,Haa, Yeah, she scares me.!

Yeah, Jo Lo, there was a character, never forget the time she rode the tour of Durban, stopped at Macdonalds for a burger and got lost. Theres quite a few that only post irregularly as well.

............but she dont look that happy...........!!

Yeah, I guess you are right.!

Surely thats just normal business procedures.??

I guess you could just call the fuel companies customer care line and tell them your story, ask them to go check.? It would be quite a serious offence if the owner has tampered with the calibration as the pumps usually always remain the property of the fuel company. If the pump has been damaged, thats differant and the company needs to know to fix it, so they may be quite willing to go take a lookie-see.!