Sniffie

Not sure what you mean by the "leverage needed". I am sure you can make it as long as you want, but 300 mm is plenty. Should not take more than 10 min to make.

Easy peasy to make your own chainwhip. All you need is a pice of 25 x 5 flat bar and an old piece of chain. Cassette lockring remover should not set you back more than a couple of ZARs.

@htone My friend! You are so echoing my own thoughts on this subject! Glad you put it into words for me as I am not so fluent in English. When I met you at the end of March this year I think I was some way towards becoming fat adapted. Several things happened in the meantime that made me give up the strict LCHF approach. As I stated in an earlier post I am at the moment adopting JCZA's approach towards eating and riding. I have Berg and Bush coming up in a couple of weeks time, so I am not willing to make major changes in my current regime. It should not be a consideration but...; Not lekker to be ridden into the ground while riding on water alone, by someone fueled by carbs, who you know should not be doing it if the playing fields were level. I am just wondering where I might have been now if I gutsed it out for a couple of months more...

I seem to recall that a while back someone posted this link http://www.mensjournal.com/health-fitness/nutrition/paleos-latest-converts-20130618 , about Dave Zabriskie and his LCHF eating while being a world class cyclist. Would be interested to see some new findings if any. Mark Sisson for one believes it is possible to compete at the highest level on a very low carb diet. One of the problems with research done on the low carb, professional athlete theme in the past seems to be that none of the athlete's have been fully fat adapted yet.

Will be seeing you then!

Which one are you doing Dave?

I am with JC on his approach to LCHF. When racing or doing longer than 3 hour training rides I do include carbs. I try to stay away from gels and energy drinks or bars though. Frankly find them very sweet and almost nauseating. I will typically add some baby boiled potatoes or sweet potatoes, biltong or droë wors and or macadamia nuts to my "race pack stash". "Slap pap", not sure what it is called in English, in Sesotho it is called "matoggo" (edit spelling), it is a drinkable maize porridge, made from my own mealie meal in a water bottle also goes down well during a race, because it is not sweet at all and provides fast acting carbs. If I do crave something sweet during a race I find dates very palatable. Fresh if you can get them or else the compressed type found on supermarket shelves. I try to stay with "real food" in other words.

Did this happen on private ground? Does the owner know there are people using this piece of land for mtb'ing? Might want to report this, glad you are ok though.

Please grow up and act your age at least. Comments like this are totally uncalled for. We are all here to learn from each other. Admin some action please!

Know exactly what you are talking about... It gets gross when the gathare protrudes from the thin remains of what used to be lycra.

I am not sure it is a taste that you "can get used to" I think it is one of those you either like or you don't. Luckily for me I am absolutely mad about the taste of coconut and the organic virgin from crede is so tasty I can drink it neat!

If congested single track and unconcerned riders drives you up the wall at the big events, try to do an event in the platteland for a change. There are some gems out there like this one: https://www.bikehub.co.za/events/event/835-2-river-mtb-challenge/

If you want good braking performance and trouble free operation: Shimano XT (I have not used SLX before, but I understand also preforms well). If on the other hand you want excellent braking and modulation, but you don't mind spending all your free time bleeding and replacing seals and o'rings then Avid Elixer CR is the brakes for you.

Front wheel bearings: 2 off 7149787 (32 mm X 20 mm x 7 mm).

You are craving a fresh challenge and longing some uncluttered trails, but you can not stand the stuff some race organizers call single track..... Which is actually nothing more than unimproved cattle paths. More than that you are tired of warm drinks and cold faces at water points. Spring is upon us, so how about doing an event well outside the big smoke to kickstart your season? 2 River MTB Challenge is the race for you! At least 30 Km of hand crafted single track on the banks of the Vals- and Vaalriver, comparable with the garden of Eden on day 1 of Berg and Bush. Come and enjoy some fast flowing and easy going trails at the race with the warm country hospitality, where we won't treat you as a number. River crossings, purpose built bridges and some fast drops and corners are part and parcel of this exciting track. The race with a difference forms part of the 2 River Festival.​ http://www.2riverfestival.co.za/ Pre entries at http://www.entrytime.co.za Entries also on race day. Why not make a weekend of it? For more info call Jan at 0833291007.

+1.If you have good cardiovascular fitness from cycling it is very easy to overdo running and pick up injuries. It is exactly what happened to me.

See what I highlighted above. I had the exact same scenario. Diagnosed meniscus tear. Better check it out before the tear gets worse. If small it could easily be repaired. Go see an orthopedic surgeon, he will do a scope to confirm whether or not it is a meniscus problem.

Two years.

While talking coconut oil, slight hijack, has any one else noticed the coconut oil getting softer by the day? Spring must be around the corner! Can't wait. Although there seems to be another cold front heading our way over the weekend. We have a training camp planned at Fouriesburg. I'ts gonna be a cold one!

I got a few friends together and did a bulk order (25l) earlier this year. Shipment included it worked out at under R80.00 per liter for the organic virgin (not the odourless type). I like the taste of coconut. They do have a minimum value to qualify as bulk order. Best to contact them and get the details.http://www.credeoils.../bulk-oils.html

Just beware of some cheap brands they maybe hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated and thus contain trans fatty acids. Very bad.

Look for organic virgin.http://www.credeoils.com/

I think you are missing the point... The fact that 7000 people have done the epic or thousands have climbed Kilimanjaro should not make it less special for you the individual. I still think it is one magical and special event to take part in and hopefully complete. It may not be special for anyone else, but who cares if it is special to you. I would love to do both, even if it is not special for anyone else.

JC you can try the following: High performance institute of sport at PUK Potchefstroom Campus.http://www.nwu.ac.za/p-hpi/index.html Top athletes from around the world base themselves at Potch and make use of this world class facility. (This was the base for the 2010 world cup winning Spanish side) They do all kinds of cycling performance tests. Contact details are on their website.