Jadon

I'ts clearly had a hard last few months, but a new chain and cassette, some tyres and a service, and she'll be good to go. No insurance, so it's mine!

Found the OIZ last week!! Woohoo!! A certain gentleman brought it to Penford Cycles wanting a few things done, including the fitting of standard pedals.... I went into the shop on Saturday and Steve asked about about the bike that was stolen. I described it to him, and wonder of wonders, he takes me by the arm and leads me to the bike! What a victory. He had suspected that it may be stolen and stalled the quote/ repair process. Thanks Steve! Police have taken it as evidence as the aforesaid gent was decent enough to supply his contact details. Hopefully justice will be done.....

I agree that some more research is needed to establish whether it is muscular or structural. No point in feeding the dragon if some specific exercises can sort it out! Thanks very much for the help!

Thanks for the replies so far. Maybe I should add that I'm not guessing this, it's as measured by a chiropractor. I just would like to know the options available when I go see him again.

OK: From the get go, for the purposes of the topic at hand and to avoid confusion, a man has only got two legs. The problem: My one leg is about 10-15mm longer than the other. I usually set the seat height to suit the shorter one, but suffer from a bit of pain on the front of the knee on the longer leg. What are my options? can you get adjustable length cranks? Or should I pack up under my cleat, taking care to maintain a platform of some kind? Any help will be appreciated.

It's a second hand machine, but I agree, let me contact my LBS. Or better still, try one out...... Thanks for the feedback.

Thanks Bontie. Would you agree that if it is in fact a 19" and therefore a large, it would suit me for size? Maybe my question is not whether the bike on offer is a large or not, but whether a Large Scalpel is suitable for my height.......

New Year Bump!

I am interested in buying a Cannondale Scalpel 3. Unfortunately I cannot take it for a test drive as it is on the other side of the country to where I am! Size quoted is 18.5 inch. Can anybody confirm that this is a large, or better still refer me to a sizing chart? My height is 1.88m in bare feet and a T shirt. Yes I have Googled the matter but cannot find anything definite, and the official website directs you to a garment sizing page when you click on the 'sizing' tab! Any advice will be appreciated. Thanks!

The boerboel on the farm outside Uitenhage where I keep a few beehives got bitten in the face by a puffy. Shame! The poor thing's face swelled up like anything, and it was all he could do to drag himself around while the poison worked its way out. Got bitten all over by ticks from just lying in the bush for hours. The dog recovered in the end.

A letter would be good. Furthermore, if that maniac is actually scared of everything that moves at night and wants us to phone him before we come through, I have no problem with that. I don't want to turn the farmers against cyclists. If there ever is any real trouble along that road (injury or attack) they may well be the people we have to turn to for help.

Went over to the farm on Saturday. A young bloke directed me to an old hillbilly with a warning to be careful 'want dai oom is befok'. Chatted to the old timer, he thought it a huge joke and admitted to firing the shots. Said that his neighbour had advised him of a poacher on the way up to his farm. He decided to teach this poacher a lesson. 'Die mense moet weet ons slaap wakker hier op die Hillwacht!' So there you have it. My light was obviously mistaken for that of a hunter. He said that he wasn't aiming to kill. Some comfort!! The farm is called Klipdrift. After a few brandies do you shoot straight when you are trying to miss?

Yip, that's the one.

Flea its the gravel road heading out of the North side of Uitenhage, at the back of Vanes Estate.

Hey no, I was riding on a public road! May have been hunters..... there is quite a bit of game in the area. Never sh@t myself more in my life!! BTW- Plenty of kudu in the Eastern Cape, gutterhugger!

OK, maybe I was taking a chance, but took a spin over the Hillwacht Rd last night at about 8:30. (no problem if you know Brighter-lights) On my return, coming up the hill from the Jansenville Rd side, some maniac took two shots at me, bullets whistling through the bush. It was at that farmhouse quite near the road with the blue free-standing pool and the big dogs. Needless to say, the rest of the ride home was a tad tense, what with waiting for the 3rd shot between the shoulderblades! Nothing like a farm road in the dark to get your imagination working overtime........ I intend to find out what the heck was going on and will report back later.

I know of a bloke who fitted the mudflaps to the FRONT of the wheel arches on his first car..................

Regarding your problem of not fitting a drill into the space betwen the rim and the hub: don't know how often you do this, but Festool have an attachment for one of their drills that put the drive through 90 degrees, and another the off-sets the drive. Check it out here: http://www.festool.co.za/mediandoweb/index.cfm?sLanguage=English&ID_O_TREE_GROUP=3593&PARENT=1569&AKTIVPROD=1

"Scars are tattoos wth better stories."~ Anon.

You must try Aim Peak Endurance, a totally natural supplement. Check it out here: http://www.aim4health.com/peakendurance.htm Works for me!!

But will still do the cleat set-up. The advice given on this thread has made me far more aware of this aspect and its importance. Thanks all!

Some good news!! I removed the laces from the shoes last night. Although I never tightened them, using the velcro straps instead, they were definitely limiting the expansion of the shoe widthwise. And then best of all: Lying under the inner, right at the contact point, I find a 40mm nail!! How the hell it got there is beyond me, but I went for a 25k ride this morning, (gravel, fair hills) and the feet have never been better. Now my knees ache and my back hurts and my head throbs, but thats another story...... Wooopah!! Jadon2009-02-06 00:15:35

Well thank you everybody! I certainly have some sound advice to consider.

And what good value mtb shoe is a fair choice as a replacement?