I FLY

Latrinus emmer - next time I see you, I will ask you to repeat that statement while looking straight at me Popeye - I know that the statement is not from LE but his alter ego is the COO and by posting it he is endorsing it. PS - I don't follow elite racing but when a selector makes a public statement as Erica did and then a complete contradictory statement is made by a member of the exco then something is not right.

I think that this statement from Dave is a heap of bull and an insult to the intelligence of this forum. I can't understand why latrinus emmer would link his name to it.

Popcorn time My chick's stronger than yours

Is your wife happy about sleeping with a grandpa?

I did not do the race as R125 for 40kms of easy terrein is not value for money for me. Instead I left home at 6h15 and rode 30kms to Northern Farm. Spent an hour talking to people I know. Watched the start and then rode home. The start did seem confused but it was good to see so many newbies and kids waiting to ride. I enjoyed myself except for the part on the way home when I met some of my hardcore buddies who suggested that I join them. I had forgotten how fast they ride!

I have had the crossmarks on since May 07. In that time I have ridden Greytown Dirty Double, Induna, Walkerville, Tour de jozi, Akkedis Dirty Double and Groot Marico Dirty Double. The conditions have varied from hard pack, soft sand, rocks, river crossings, jeep track, thorns and lots of fantastic singletrack. Being in Gauteng we ( crossmarks and I) have not encountered mud yet. I am fairly light (75kgs) and try to finesse the trials so a sharp handling tyre is important. So far I am enjoying the crossmarks in that they are stable through the corners, have not had a sidewall cut (even at Groot Marico), roll smoothly on hard pack, the rocks have not cut any of the knobs and I have not experienced any wheelspin on any climb. My partner, however, dislikes them as they throw up lots of sand and stones when she sits on my wheel.I FLY2007-08-28 07:12:54

Ahoy Captain, 1. New black chilli compound. I am getting the racing version at 400g per tyre. 2. Last 3 sets of tyres have been Larsen TT's, Killer Bees and Crossmarks. The Killer Bees are the fastest and although they have minimal tread they are surprisingly grippy. They don't last long (back tyre lasted 6 months)and did not get tested in mud.I FLY2007-08-28 06:53:32

I test rode a conti speedking 2.3 on Sunday at Groot Marico on my front wheel. It was the tubeless version with Stans liquid inside. The reason why I was riding it was that my partner had complained about the tyres handling during Saturday's race. I wanted to see if the complaints were justified. I did not like it as it felt slow on the open roads, the side knobs flex through the corners and I battled to hold the wheel on the line I wanted through the rocky sections. The conditions were soft sand, hard pack , plently of slate and some water. The new conti speedkings are due very soon. I understand that there are some changes to the design and as I should be getting a set to test I can post a comparison later.

This is one of my pet boiling points. We are faced with ever decreasing land access and a sure way to screw up what we have, is to trash a course and have a farmer's animals choke to death on a gel wrapper/tube. We have a duty to ourselves and MTBing to keep the trash in our collective pockets.

Yes, but why charge the same for both distances. Late entry is a double penalty - R25 and no T shirt.

I just had a look at the Spring Classic information on Entrytime. Why is the entry fee for both distances the same ie R125,00? It is the first race that i have seen this "logic" applied.

I will not ride this race again as i think it is too dangerous , both from the local road users and the large bunches point of view. The last time I rode, a pack of dogs ran into my bunch, and later a car crashed into us. Add the big trucks going past at 120km/h and I get nervous. Now the kids are hassling the riders! I had the choice of about 5 races this weekend and chose to go and do the Dirty Double series in GrootMarico. The locals claim to have invented the term generically modified (GM). Same driving time as Sun City but for me ,a more enjoyable experience. I am now an expert on the all different types of slate that we rode over, around, through, but luckily not under.

Don't worry about what bike you ride. From my own experience my bikes have become better and better as my ability/physical strength declines.

When I first started cycling I was amazed to see guys arriving in old cars and then hauling out really expensives bikes and visa versa. It just depends on the individual's passion for the sport and their priorities in life. When i first started working the sound system in my car cost 4 times what the car cost me. It was more important to me to be heard than seen.

Simple way to test the effectiveness of the Q rings is to give a set each to the two worst riders on this forum - namely muxman and I - and see if we can finish a road race in front of the last placed person. Seriously, I am quite keen to try a set on my road tandem. I am a sucker for experimenting. My socks are even labelled - "Crash Test Dummy". Once I am over the costs of a new bike, house and car I will be shopping with intent.

It's a whole 20lt back pack with my day's clothing. But I will have a look anyway. Give me a call and you can try my vest on over your backpack. Hopefully your name is not actually Quasimodo.

Thank MichH for posting and k*kking on me for riding during working hours. I will send a PM to all those who asked for the details. I don't want to post the guy's details on an open forum as he is not selling these via a public outlet. He gets them for his motorbiker buddies. Mampara - the vest will fit over a camelbackI FLY2007-07-26 06:50:14

i have one minor b1tch: you had to go all the way to the hotel to get beer afterwards I got smart. I sent my friend with her camelback and some money. She fetched 3 beers and 4 cokes while I sat in the sun and socialised! Did anyone else rinse off in the pool afterwards? Talk about Kamp Staaldraad II.I FLY2007-07-16 02:24:37

Have to agree re the organisation and venue. I did the old race and never enjoyed the start venue. The route was also very challenging. I recorded about 950 metres of climbing. I have carried sram power links for awhile now and never needed them. Today a young Harmony rider broke his chain just before the big climb so I gave him my links. A couple of hours later my friend broke her chain. We bribed Dirt Rider with the promise of a beer if he helped us fit her sram power links. Maybe now I should go to a bike shop and get taught how to fit these links. I worked reasonably hard today. My average HR was 77% of max and I hit 88% on the climb to the mast.

I bought a polar instead of the Garmin because the battery life on the garmin was a problem when I did the Epic. I was not sure if I could get to an electrical point in order to recharge it everyday. If there a solution?

For a few reasons. She needed to be finished early so that she could do some interviews with the elite riders before they went home and she had no car so she had to ride 20kms to race, race and then ride 20kms home in order to watch the rugby at noon.

ohhhhhhh you so going down buddy wth? someone must have put drugs in my breakie that day after over an hour in the cold a face like that........ i dont know Adele from Ride Mag is in the foreground. It looks as if she was wondering if BG was on some special stuff and if she should lodge a protest before the race even started.

Quintin - I also normally come back along Ontdekkers if there are only a few of us MWNN - It is Town Square next to Hillfox.