Oufy MTB (Roadie)

my Scott entry level bike was bought in 2005 wth Tiagra components, I still ride it, it has the same chain, cranks and rear cassette. and everything else for that matter. the only thing changed was the rear deraillurer due to a fall, by then the bike was 7 years old already. so i tend to believe there was a bit more reliability back then.. I commute with the bike, so it does pile up the km's. i wanted to service it before Argus, but everything working fine, scared they will screw it up at the LBS , definitely will give it a full monty next month

this very morning where that pic was taken I was passed by the same my citi bus on two occassions(and then closer to camps bay) and on both occassions the bus passed me with very little gap in between. I get the sense okes need to get use to bus, i hope so, and quickly

rained for a 2 minute on eastern blvd in my first argus in 2006, late starter. otherwise perfect conditions

I'm keeping a keen eye on this tread, got my Edge 500 bundle for 2 weeks now and loving it. go good to hear that you can get some good life out the battery and on the otherhand it scary to hear that you can't replace it cheaply and easily as most other gadgets

Alot of angry cyclist out there that think they going to win this Argus Cycle Tour starting in group X. shucks! i'm also starting in that group!

well done on sheer determination after that surgery, my best times were 3:29 and the best advice I can give is get to Wynberg Hill intact. After that chase your goal. If you blow it trying to make your split time to wynberg hill you might be in for a long ride. guys going for sub 3's don't have that luxury they have to hit their splits from the first checkpoint. if you still strong on Wynberg Hill you can use those flats to make up time, but if you in your chops you will be using the downhill and flat for recovery which is a waste.

water all the time unless the ride is longer than 3 hours. race days, energade, water, GU, potatoes, Super C and a koeksister if there is

Alagamd, u ok. and that is my route in the morning to work from Wynberg, albeit 6:30am, scary nevertheless

The best I will weigh is 66kg. ( I move between 66-72, depending on diet and season) I hear you on the hard tail and have ridden them and agree they super fast but my knees have taken a beating over the years due to 25 years of jumping up and down on a volleyball court, so the softer ride is actually essential for longevity. I also consider myself beyond entry level (self evaluation) so I 'deserve' a lighter bike, but $$$ and babies,

I find this very useful, I'm a weekend warrior i suppose, I'm doing alot of road cycling now for Argus Cycle Tour but after that I wanna do all the XC races but don't want to sukkel due to geometry or riding a tank.

Currently 71kg, will be 68kg after the Cycle Tour, LOL. Height 1.68m So I got vertical issues, horizontally not challenged at all

I currently have a merida 120 dual sus trail bike 26er. great bike for ST but it is heavy and I sukkel on the the climbs on XC rides/races. I think it weighs like R15kg. I would love a Spez Epic Comp but they like go for R34k, my budget is under R20k and i see the Scott Spark 960 29er dual sus going for under R20k. it's weight is 13,45kg, how does that compare to weight of other bikes in that price range. it must be a 29er and must be dual sus (I prefer the softer ride for my knees and age, LOL)

I agree, a good photo, quality stuff I will pay for no problem. my brother studied photography and I can appreciate it is more than just mik and druk. I would just like a decent discounts if you take the whole lot. Then they will get much more R45's plus more.

i get loads of pics, you riding too fast

this morning riding from Fish hoek to muizenberg a Sani hoots at me and the passenger points to the back, by the time I look back I see it is towing a boat wider than the vehicle itself, the Sani didn't both to veer right at all, the sani passed me with great space but the boat on the trailer probably left me 5cm, literally! at least I was warned. I drive a discovery and when I give a cyclist 1,5m I'm definitely in the other lane, so at times I just chill when it is safe to do so, what did I lose 10sec! why rush?

I got me a 1200 lumens light in front and battery back for night rides, didn't use it once for a night ride, but it flashes on my bike whole day when I ride. I experienced that you get a bit more attention, especially if you come up from the side, it hits the mirrors nicely.

on a sad note, cyclist down on cnr of broad rd and rosmead ave this morning at 8:30, medics were there. guy was speaking, heal up buddy

got a 12 inch bmx for my boy at pnp brand new for R400. both front and rear brakes, no fix cog, and no reverse pedal braking. He turned 4 and was on a balancing bike, whipped of the side wheels and he rides like a dream. honestly, the kiddies bike in bike shops are over priced and some don't respresent his future bike, unless you plan for your child to ride a fixed cog, or reverse pedal brakes. cos I only spent 400, i have no issue upgrading soon. yes younger brother is only a year behind and the other boy pops out next month, so hand me down opportunities galore

sometimes sat is better other days sunday is better, doesn't really matter. for me it must start early as possible. I don't mind waking up early to make an early start. then I get the rest of the day to spend with the family

This is a very important point and perhaps we need to ask them what is their finance committee's policy with regard to accumulation of reserves. An NGO's financialy sustainability is largely dependant on a diversified income portfolio and accumulation of reserves. PPA's R20 million rand in the bank is the exception rather than the norm where most NGO's live month by month with a few having cash in the bank to cover 12 months operating costs (not good). You have to save money for a rainy day, that ensures financial sustainability and gives donors and the public confidence that the organisation will still be around. The only question begging is what is acceptable level of reserves for a PPA entity. Well, their operating expenses is just under R 5 mill per annum, include inflation, if PPA were to receive no money (unlikely) they will be able to operate for 3 years. so that is very reassuring. Now throw in the scenario that they lose the cycle tour (remember that was a discussion not to long ago), 1 or 2 big sponsors suddenly withdraw (which happened to many NGO's post 2008) then all of a sudden R 20 million is not alot of money. I don't have an issue with their reserve because they also make money off investments, I would like it to remain at a 3 year level of 'cover'. But we can go to their AGM, ask the question, I'm sure the finance dudes will explain the justification of it, and I'm pretty sure I'm not so far off course. on the otherhand, I saw many donors not fund organisations because they are deemed healthy and the next year the NGO closes because income took a knock for a host of reasons. The NGO sector is very volatile, largely unpredictable.

it is partly due to the economic downturn but it is more to do with corporates funding priorities. All corporates are obliged to give 1% of post tax profits to their CSI programmes, they also need to conform to BBBEEE legislation (lets not discuss this here). So when corporates assist charities they will ensure that they meet their CSI and BBBEEE objectives first, they have no choice. If they fund an 'event' it is viewed as sponsorship and marketing and they can't claim CSI and BBBEEE points for that, so funding a cycling event (especially smallish ones) is not worth their while, they will rather meet their legal obligations first. Events comes out of their marketing budget and it is often committed to other marketing/advertising opportunities with a greater reach. This is not only for cycling but other codes as well, including arts and culture. So if a corporate comes on board for an event, nurture that relationship because it is worth its weight in gold. many charities run on shoe string budgets, so if they walk away with a R20k here and a R30k there, it actually makes a big difference to their cash flow since it is unrestricted income which they can use to cover operations as opposed to restrictive designated funding. every bit helps rings true for non-profits.

with regard to charities I can give a mouthful, I work in the sector, did my honours in it and now doing my masters. yes there are some NGOs that don't do the job and waste money, they are the minority and tend not to last. The costs of an event will always mean that charities will get a lower percentage than a 100% donation from an individual. Events have the added bonus of putting NGOs and their cause on the map ( I do think NGOs don't sufficiently utilise the marketing/awareness opportunities at an event). For me it is important that we transparent with what percentage goes to charity (bearing in mind that 100% is ideal but not always possible). Secondly, we need to perform our due diligence as donors to ensure that the charity is using the money efficiently and effectively. How we view charities should also begin to shift, many growing and effective charities have massive infrastructure, highly qualified staff, IT systems. And the first question we ask, what is your admin and running costs? it is too high? I want all the money to go the people you serve. Not realising that these are essential processes to ensure that the charity can do its job. A bit of double standards at times when we ask charities to be more 'business like' in their approach and when they do they get crucified. When we purchase a product or a service at a store do we ask how much was spent on admin and running costs to produce the service or product? no we don't, we buy it, finish and klaar. Charities are public entities so you have a right to ask them their annual reports, AFS , attend the AGM's etc. my suggestion, do it. There are great ones and some scaly ones, report them! for the rest support them

and if you do both like me? dirty roadie perhaps?

between 7am - 7:30am I encountered a host of Cape Town Giant riders in Noordhoek before the Chappies climb, as I approached their Captain/coach/leader was giving orders for them to all hug the left of the road, which they all were in the process of doing. So kudos to them!

great event, both my boys did it last year and will do it again this year. because it is a big event and seems fully subscribed they cannot take entries on the day. each event has strict laws wrt to number of participants for risk management purposes. other PPA events you can enter on the day because the races are never fully subscribed, so yes get your entries in!