Plentipotential

Same height as you. Giant trance frame. Rockshox fork 120-150mm and riser bars with 110 mm stem. 450 mm seat post. Very comfortable.

Johann at Yellow Saddle, google for details. Oops just did and see he has moved to Scotland.

Would not be too brittle, unless the heat treatment was duffed. 7075 is used to manufacture very specialized fasteners for the power generation and transmission industry, specifically nuclear power industry. Very expensive, may as well buy carbon.

So happy I never went the upgrade to 29er route from my 2012 Trance. Awesome bike for my twice a week at Modderfontein.

Link to tyre changing tutorial, motorcycle but same principals apply. http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=50717

I am not that skilled at explaining things without props however let me have a go. The trick is " if you are struggling you are doing it wrong". Your rim is at its smallest diameter in the centre so before you use the tyre levers on the top part of the tyre make sure that the same side of the bottom of the tyre is in the centre of the rim. If you are trying to remove a tyre before the bead has been released from the entire rim you will battle. If your tyre is stuck to the rim you could use a small G clamp and two small blocks of wood, to protect the tyre from the clamp, tighten the clamp on either side of the tyre and " break " the seal. Do not use a pair of pliers as this will damage the tyre bead. I can send you a link to a fantastic video tutorial on how to do this to a motorcycle tyre but the same principle applies, PM me if you like. You reverse the process to put the tyre back onto the rim. I suspect that you are pinching the tube when you are replacing the tyre that's why you have so many holes! You need to take more care. The ability to fix punctures out on the trail/road is the key to enjoyable cycling.

That's actually pretty cool. Stay safe on that road.

Ride quite a bit at Modder and have seen the following. Duiker Blesbok Slender Mongoose Few of the birds. Fish Eagle Spotted Eagle Owl Western Barn Owl Marsh Owl African Grass Owl? Chinspot Batis European Bee-eater Best time to spot game is on the night ride, very seldom see other riders on the trail on Wednesdays. What have I not seen? Please add your sightings.

Your frustration is justified,.............. however. It's not about what you think the consumer deserves, nor about what you think he/she should have, rather it's about what the customer wants. An example. I need a light to work on the last hour, max 2 hours of a mid winter ride, winter lasts a max 4 months of the year. The R700.00 1200 as advertised light will work perfectly and it's no big deal to charge it after every 2nd ride so I buy that light rather than the better more legit 1200 light and battery for twice the price. Why? Because in 2 years time both brands will be well outdated and a light twice as good, twice as bright will be available for about the same price. And the old light? That's in the bin or collecting dust wasting space in the bottom of a box along with the old ipad/phone and all the rest of those overpriced electronic gadgets we just could not live without. Your challenge? make me believe I need your better light, don't try and make me believe I need a more expensive light. Sorry to pee on your battery

To Koos and the Klopper family, Please know that you are in my thoughts. Many months ago I was hit by a car which had skipped a red light. Someone was watching over me that day or it was just "my lucky day". My hope for you is that you make a full recovery and are back on your bike in next to no time. My hope for the driver is that she accounts for her actions in a court of law.

Flats and bicycles do not go well together, ever.

Thanks for the reply.

Thanks for the race updates.

I do a hill like that in Linksfield, called Bedford street and goes past King David's school.

Yes they still happen. No official race as such AFAIK so just go along, pay at the gate, R 40 for a single entry or buy a multi card R 400 for 14 rides so 29 bucks a ride and off you go. You will need a light. By the way this week will be a good week as there are great views across the skyline looking west and an chance to see the Moon, Venus, Mercury and Jupiter just after sunset. Might struggle to see Jupiter.

The dark art of buying a light! In winter I ride twice a week, once a week at Modderfontein and I now need a light, specifically a light suited to trail and single track like the Modder trail. What do you have, are you happy? Thanks

Had a car take me out and the crank was destroyed in the accident, when I ordered a new one from Chain Reaction they never had the 170 so I thought I'd try a longer set, sometimes you get lucky, I am much happier with the longer cranks as it turns out. (pun intended)

Try and stick to training in open air pools rather than indoor pools and swim at the end of the day before they put in the chlorine. More chlorine in the indoor pools throughout the day, open air pools have less towards the end of the day as the sunlight kills it.

A little off topic but relevant. I suffered with a saddle sore, just one spot. Different saddles, various creams, no relief. Had to replace my crank set and bought longer cranks, 175mm up from 170's. Same bike, same shorts, same seat, end of saddle sore! Go figure. I do use cream for rides longer than 11/2 hours, makes a difference. I just buy Mil Kreem from Dischem, cheap enough and works well.

Great reply, appreciate you taking the time to write it

This thread is not about Prepsol, however there are a few folk who seem to like it and have given it the thumbs up here so I feel it appropriate to post my experience using Prepsol on a bicycle. I used Prepsol to wash my motorbikes for years and bought it in 25 litre containers from the importer, Allijam in Polly Street Jo'Burg. I always transferred it into a container with a tap in the drum, this drum sat over a sink in my garage as there was always a bit that dripped out when transferring the Prepsol to a 5 lt spray bottle. Used the Prepsol on the bicycle and was just as impressed as everyone else. However I had plenty problems with seals on the bicycle and never gave a thought to what caused the problems. 3 years later I notice that the velveglo paint on the shelf below the sink drain is peeling off like it was painted with pain stripper, white paint with a pink tinge. Turns out that the rubber seal and silicone in the sink drain had been eaten by the Prepsol and Prepsol had now started leaking onto the painted shelf and was working on eating the paint away. Because the sink was in a store room in the garage it was seldom used and water was only used to wash out the Prepsol which had leaked into the sink. Needless to say I no longer use Prepsol on the bicycle. However it works a treat on getting mud stains out of clothing, just apply with a paint brush, leave 10 minutes and rinse off, throw clothes into the washing machine. You will never use products like vanish again it's so good. Just my experience, feel free to experiment with the stuff yourself.

Quick follow up as suggested by Scooterza. I imported a few parts from CRC, had the wheel rebuilt locally and my insurance paid me out for the helmet. All in I was out of pocket for just over 4 grand. The youngster agreed to pay me back at R500 a month. Three months go by without any problems and then he tells me he lost his job. I was huffed but it's just not worth the hassle to be honest. What did happen post the incident was my thinking about how lucky I actually was. Just as the car was about to hit me I realized that if it hit my leg I was going to be in shite and must have subconsciously pulled my foot from the cleat. The crank was so badly bent that it could not turn past the frame (impact side at the top of the cycle). Had the crank been at the bottom of the cycle and the car had hit my leg I would have been in real trouble. Some things are more important than others. I struggle to get enthusiastic about riding and have considered selling the bike. Thing is I really used to enjoy cycling as a way of getting some alternate exercise to swimming and canoeing. So easy as you are exercising as soon as you ride out of the gate as opposed to driving to the canoe club or pool. The open ground not far from my house which was a great place to ride has become the latest place for builders/rubble removal folk to dump their loads and that wrinkles my bag but I guess in time I will find alternate routes and get back on the bike. I think I lost more than a few grand but I'll dry my eyes and man up soon enough and get back to 3 rides a week. Take care out there.

I am under the impression that UST tyres only work on UST rims but may be wrong. For what it's worth the best change I made to my bike was to go with Mavic 819 ust rims, fantastic. Mountain King has a more aggressive tread pattern, most guys run the MK on the front and the race king on the rear. The MK has good grip on cambered sand due to the prominent side wall knob pattern. I never get surprised by my front wheel letting go. Continental tyres are made from rubber as opposed to plastic rubber as used in Maxxis Crossmark. This means that they wear quicker but give more grip. I ran a 2.2 MK on the rear wheel over summer and fount that the grip on wet rock was better with the Race King in the same conditions. Smaller knobs, more knobs = more contact. Mountain King on the rear wears very quickly on tar BTW.

Clever. Went with the standard rings. Imported from Chain Reaction, a lot cheaper than local price.

Just ordered a race king and mountain king from chain reaction, R387.00 a piece. Makes the local price look steep. Need to add VAT to the imported price, lucky I needed a new crankset so postage is free. Huge saving on the crankset btw.