Waxhead

· Maxxis Ardent Exo Skinwall 29X2.4 60TPI MTB Tyres (front and rear) was my first choice but I have decided to go Vittoria combo instead. 70kg and 1.7 m height on steel frame bike 1. Vittoria Mezcal III 29 x 2.35 XC-Trail G2.0 Cape Cobra Black MTB Tyre (rear) 2. Vittoria Barzo 29 x 2.35 XC-Trail G2.0 Cape Cobra Black MTB Tyre (front)

Hi chaps.....just an update on the weather and ride conditions - I live in McGregor and am riding on Saturday. We have had a lot of saturating rain since the weekend and I am sure the surrounding areas have been pummeled as well. Very cold temperatures as well. The ground is extremely wet/sticky and when you hit those red clay/wet sections it will be very clingy/muddy. The first river crossing as you leave the village is flowing nicely, but there is a very muddy section 100 meters out as you approach the river - very little you can do as there is no way to avoid this. My suggestion is to run that section, and carry the bike and wash the feet/shoes off as you go thru the river - pointless stuffing up the bike so early in the ride. You will love the Vrolikheid nature reserve. Watch out when you descend from the mast, as the tar road is likely to be wet and super slippery. Going to be interesting that's for sure - spot you on the weekend!

Come thru Oli.....will be fun

Gonna be a big jol.........my home town of McGregor. Scelerat has been given permission by the organisers to participate...... using a 35/19 ratio & will take my trail running shoes for the Galgeberg climb - cant wait. And of course, will have to don the kilt

Dankie man, that was a good test for me that 10 minute clip.......made sure i did not drop the F bomb!

Howzit you Bike Hub dudes, that time again......3 of my young men will be joining me at the back of the field celebrating the love of mountain biking on the worlds greatest stage. Such a blessing to have these three Warriors - Juanne, Mandall and Joker pictured below at KarooBurn from the other day. Keep an eye out for us during the event and give the kids a huge shout! In October we were officially the last team to cross the line at Paarl 😅 - "The Steel Challenge". Max

I get what u asking ........been in Zooms the whole day!! A good event Plus: nice gees around tent area, great food , well priced Not lekker: bladdy long drive to get there Maybe consider changing: a lot of district road riding...might be difficult for you to adjust that. I look for more technical type riding with decent elevation but that is a personal call. Seems like it should be a gravel type event? Strange weighted seeding concept you have Overall very nice and it was great to get out after such a long period of LC

Not sure vwhat u asking here.....I took the Warriors A team up to do TransAugrabies last week - nice event...not technical at all but great scenery . Long drive though!

Thanks for watching

Better not have another engine failure! Had my first chest pain just after this pic - can u believe it and going up dead mans tree nogal

Thanks Mark - it is a good story......thanks for watching

Gone thru 3 sets of Flows......always crack around the nipples. Built up a new set AGAIN - last time i am doing this

Its a Dave Mercer bespoke steel frame and front fork. Hope - 4 pod brakes, cranks , BB, Pro 4 hubs. Steel CNC chain rings 32/22 for Epic. - same chain for 4 years now . Stans Flow rims running at 1.0 bar and 1.2 rear with rubber inserts. Stainless steel bottle cages See below pic and article with bike specs...the photo is the latest and most recent on how the bike is looking . The article below was just before i snapped top tube on mnt and we removed pump and put a thicker top tube on and a gusset joint below to strengthen it all up. Thanks for asking....take care SA mnt bike article.pdf

Amended it slightly - To the best of my knowledge this has not been completed by a steel rigid ss team in the last 10 years of the Epic, which is now a technical & gnarly experience with every km of each day pushing the riders to their limits.

Wow that is awesome, I did not know that and tried to check with Epic the history of all this from 2009 (post Knysna). Were their bikes fully rigid and steel? Congrats to them. I have been the only dude i know of since 2015 that does it each year on my rigid ss steel bike and i know how hard it is. Remember, i had the heart attack at Epic 2018 - blew a head gasket!. Anyway, time to do it again. Let me amend my post in recognising their achievement . Thanks for letting me know

Epic SS steel challenge - can it be done? Hell yes, and I have sign-off from The Supreme Commander! To the best of my knowledge this has not been completed by a steel fully rigid SS team in the last 10 years of the Epic, which is now a technical & gnarly experience with every km of each day pushing the riders to their limits. The Cape Epic taking place 17 to 24 October is the world’s hardest MTB event. The old ballie on Scelerat V2, an all-steel/single speed/fully rigid 29’er MTB, hand-made by Dave Mercer, with a leather Brooks B17 saddle (which came out in 1898 nogal) keeping it real & honest. And my partner will be the young 20-year-old Warrior, Fernell Regue, aka Fykz on my old contraband steel bike, Scelerat V1. Embarking on this challenge in aid of raising funds & awareness for McGregor Young Warriors biking academy and the amazing Cape Leopard Trust (CLT). Please share with any potential funders & if personally wanting to help get in touch with me via FB, whats up 0832709284 or email myw@breedecentreco.za https://breedecentre.co.za/ (site been updated) https://capeleopard.org.za/ https://www.cape-epic.com/

i use a gum guard cable tied to helmut! Zoom in and u can check it

very seldom have any tire issues - never had a side wall issue. Use Stan flow rims with Hope pro4 SS spec Hubs. Never had one puncture over 5 Epics - on my SS bike u pick your lines all the time........never ust bash thru like most guys do on a full sus

The insets play havoc with Stan's, so i go 4 cups sealant per wheel. Will be first Epic using them and if they cause **** i will ditch straight away!

the inserts is something relatively new that i am trying because of the very low tire pressure i run. The Barzo's have worked fine (Did Atta, Imbuko,Munga on them) but have my 2.6 Argo's as backup for Epic if there is a problem

not really a weight weenie......always needed the bike to be as strong as possible. My experience has been on a the technical rides the lighter stuff does not stand up to the workload. V4 because its the best (40 grams less than Formula Cura out of interest - thats including rotors, cable, everything) , top of the Hope range and i know IT the distributer. Total bike weight.....dont even know exactly - say 12.5kg all in

Epic set-up will be Front 11PSI and Rear = 16 PSI.........i use Csixx Foamo inserts as a safety net

All the bike specs are in this Bike Magazine SA issue just released Made two changes to bike photo for Sunday start: HOPE four pod v4 with new rotors and silver braizedcable !! 2.6 Argo Vittoria tires for front and rear wheels........wicked

Thought about RASA, but MUNGA was really hard for me (119 hours and 30 minutes) but need a SS partner for that one i feel