[Bonus & Wendy's Big Adventure . . . .]

24 minutes ago, Bonus said:

 

Yep. It's hard. Best of luck to you.

We have friends up in Scotland and on one of our future visits to the UK (although it def won't be the one coming up this Christmas!) we plan to drive up and visit them - I'll give you a shout if we do...

That would be great! Please do...

[Bonus & Wendy's Big Adventure . . . .]

7 minutes ago, Bonus said:

 

Hey well done man! That's great to hear.

We met at Lifestyle Garden Centre if I recall? And you were considering trying the Western Cape? 

Yes that's 100%. We considered a lot of options! It was a hard decision to leave JHB and SA!

[Bonus & Wendy's Big Adventure . . . .]

Hey Bonus & Wendy, good catching up on your adventures. Do you recall catching up with my wife and I at the restaurant in Randburg to chat about "options" in terms of getting out of the rat race? It took us some time to make the change but we're now living in a lovely little village bordering the Yorkshire Dales in the UK. I do LOADS more cycling than I used to do (plus lots of trail running). Thank you for providing a little inspiration to us to make the leap into the unknown. 

[Stolen 2012 Canfield Jedi]

Oh man! I'm sorry guy! That looks like a beauty and clearly a much loved bike! Bleak for you. 

[Backing out of a deal]

Having read this saga, if I was on the jury I'd find in favour of the OP. Agreed that communication could have been slightly better but the overall facts to me are:

• The buyer and seller agreed terms. 
• The buyer said he'd pay a deposit. He paid this deposit over and the banks on both sides confirmed that the money was in the seller's account. Okay he didn't send POP but as he pointed out and others have backed up, instant payment means the money clears in at most several hours. Usually less. So the money would have been in Wade's account within hours. I think the seller was playing fast and loose with the truth when he said the money wasn't reflecting as a delay tactic or something. There's something fishy going on there because after saying he didn't get the money, suddenly he refunds the buyer! Hmmm!?????
• The seller behaved in a poor fashion, throwing insults and getting difficult when the buyer started asking about why he was backing out of the deal which to me is a sign of a guilty person.  Reading that thread, I think the buyer was justified in feeling pissed when the seller starting playing games.  If I had been the seller and got a better offer, I think the only reasonable thing to do is tell the new buyer that he's got first dibs if the original deal falls through. But terms had been agreed and deposit paid. Deal is sealed unless buyer reneges on 2nd part of the payment. 

At the end of the day, the money has been refunded so nobody was "scammed". The buyer is understandably disappointed both that he didn't get the bike he wanted (which of us wouldn't be bleak not to get your dream bike - you feel like Christmas morning!) and in Wade's behaviour.  Wade is guilty of being a dick - that's my verdict!

[Cycling in the UK]

1 hour ago, Andreas_187 said:

Summer cycling is great but that British weather is a killer

I won't say it's great, especially compared to Johannesburg which does have incredible weather. But I enjoy "interesting" weather and we get that here. Rain, sleet, snow, hail, sun, wind, heat (okay warmish!). But what we don't get is SUPER hot and actually, in Yorkshire temps never get SUPER cold either. A really cold day here is -5. You adapt and because homes are heated, a day of 0 degrees doesn't FEEL that bad. Your core is warm when you step outside. I was expecting days of grey too which I haven't experienced. The short days do suck in Jan & Feb. 

[Cycling in the UK]

2 minutes ago, dave303e said:

given that the highest point on the mud island is a few hundred meters lower than the Randburg average- must be going faster there...

Haha, yeah, not so sure about that. Eg my last ride 34km with 600m climbing. One hill was 1.8km with avg gradient of 9.2%. That's a tough climb. 

It may not ever get very high here but there are lots of bumps! 

[Cycling in the UK]

13 minutes ago, dave303e said:

do yourself a favor, before winter hits. Head North and ride Bealach na Ba. Cycle over to Applecross and back over the pass...

Looks awesome! Will put that on my bucket list of rides to do. 

[Cycling in the UK]

1 minute ago, TNT1 said:

Ah, two riders taking up an entire lane. Just like tonsils in SA. Good to see some things never change. Bloody Muppets.

Wow, ain't you a bundle of joy and laughter! ????

[Cycling in the UK]

I know many in SA are considering emigrating. I used to live in Randburg, but have now emigrated to West Yorkshire, UK. 

My experience of cycling here is as follows:

• Cycling is a BIG sport here in the UK. Everywhere you go, you see cyclists. 
• Whereas in SA, I used to ride 90% MTB, here I do 99% road. That is because where I am based, the road cycling is simply amazing, and MTB riding is not quite as accessible funnily enough. There are MANY walking trails everywhere, but many of them specifically say "No cycling" for some reason.  I've also joined up with a bunch of guys who mostly road ride here so that's what I tend to do. 
• I find cycling gear here is cheaper than SA. There are lots of great online stores and especially if you are prepared to buy on sales etc, you can get great stuff for big discounts.  Obviously with the pandemic, certain items are hard to get and hence not cheap. Cool thing is that when you buy something online, it typically arrives within about 48 hours or less. 
• The drivers here are largely WAY better than SA in terms of giving you a few inches of space! I am NOT saying it's perfect and I believe much of Europe is much better in terms of respect for cyclists, but I have found the UK to be mostly good. However, there IS a anti-cyclist brigade and a few a-holes that rev their cars as they go by or hoot if you so much as dare to be on the road! 

I am riding here a lot more than SA. It's so easy to pop out, particularly on a summer evening and do a ride from 8 to 9.30pm! Obviously we are now heading into winter so that's changing but I still love that. In winter, it can of course be $£$& cold but you buy the gear and get on with it. 

Anyway, here are a few recent photos of my cycling trips. That 2nd photo below is a hill called "Park Rash" with a gradient that reaches 25% at places! Lots of steep hills around here. Had to put on an 11-34 to cope! 

 

[Will Pearl Izumi bib tights stretch?]

Hey there, 

I bought a pair of Pearl Izumi ELITE Escape AmFIB Bib Tights. These are windproof & water resistant tights that are made of quite a firm-feeling fabric and lined for cold/wet weather riding. They feel more like outdoor mountain wear trousers than the typical lycra feel I am used to with cycling shorts. 

Since I was on the cusp in terms of size, I bought a medium & large to try out. 

The mediums fit well around the lower leg & knees, but feel a bit tight around my thighs. I can put them on no problem - I'm just aware that my thighs feel like they're surrounded with a sleeve if you get my meaning. 

The large pair feel fine around the thighs, but the knees and lower legs are a little baggy. 

Both pairs are fine in the hips and chamois area. 

I have zero experience with these "tougher" cold weather bib tights and don't want to regret my purchase. I SUSPECT the medium pair will give a bit with use and a wash or two so that would be perfect then. 

What do you sage folk think? Get the mediums? ????

[Cyclists with a "Running" Problem]

Some advise requested...

I have at stages run a bit - perhaps as much as 40k's per week at stages.  But I started to suffer from a pain on my right knee at the outer right quadrant (10 o'clock or so) at around 3.5km.  This progresses from mild discomfort to pretty painful which severely limits my running, plus I worry about damaging my knees.  

 

I have done the very obvious stuff such as stretch before and after running, check my shoes (Asics Nimbus) and I am pretty neutral in my feet.  I have a foam roller but cannot honestly say I used it much.    

 

I do have tight hamstrings - I can reach to about 15cm from my toes! 

 

If I want to get back into running without pain, what do I do next? 

• Visit a running store (which one in Northern Joeys) that can relook at my running style and perhaps get new shoes. 
• Visit a biokineticist?
• Visit a podiatrist?
• Use a foam roller and stretch? 

Buying new shoes or visiting medical people is pricey!  Happy to spend the money but not if it doesn't help.  What would you suggest is the best way forward? 

[Boast about your latest purchases here...]

I'm rather pleased with what we just picked up.  After looking around for a while, on Saturday went out with my wife and kids to get her a bike for her birthday.  We were looking at 2nd hand so drove around to a few sellers and checked out a lovely Titan Elite, a Momsen Race Tech (too big) and then headed to bike bay.  They had a few bikes which she tried out.  Giant Talon, BMC SportElite and finally a Silverback Slade 2.  The last one was one of the few XS frames and she enjoyed the fit.  I was chuffed because this bike came with XT rear derailleur and a SR Suntour Raidon 100mm travel fork, 650B wheels (which I think is ideal on an XS frame) and was a good deal.  Ended up paying R5500 for it and now that I've had a few days to check it out fully, I am even happier.  Great bike and I am sure she's gonna have a blast on it.  

So in follow up to this, took the day off for my wife's birthday.  Packed the bikes in the car, packed a picnic etc.  Went off to Emmarentia, unpacked bikes, connected up the half bike, adjusted helmet straps, seat heights, put gloves on the right way round on the kiddies etc.  Rode off for about 5 minutes before my wife - not used to how strong disc brakes are - managed to go over her handlebars and test which was tougher - her chin or the tarmac.  So back to the car, tissues for the blood, calm the kiddies down who are now crying because mommy is bleeding, unhook half bike, remove helmets, put bikes back in the car and spend a good part of the rest of the day at the hospital!  Wife had abrasions on her shoulder, elbow, knee and 3 stitches in her chin. Bike had some minor damage to brake lever and handlebars but otherwise appears okay.  Cellphone screen cracked and new activity tracker (Christmas present) cracked to pieces.              

Luckily my wife is a tough cookie and will ride again!  

[Boast about your latest purchases here...]

I'm rather pleased with what we just picked up.  After looking around for a while, on Saturday went out with my wife and kids to get her a bike for her birthday.  We were looking at 2nd hand so drove around to a few sellers and checked out a lovely Titan Elite, a Momsen Race Tech (too big) and then headed to bike bay.  They had a few bikes which she tried out.  Giant Talon, BMC SportElite and finally a Silverback Slade 2.  The last one was one of the few XS frames and she enjoyed the fit.  I was chuffed because this bike came with XT rear derailleur and a SR Suntour Raidon 100mm travel fork, 650B wheels (which I think is ideal on an XS frame) and was a good deal.  Ended up paying R5500 for it and now that I've had a few days to check it out fully, I am even happier.  Great bike and I am sure she's gonna have a blast on it.  

[First Look: 2016 Giant Anthem X, Reign, TCR and Liv Lust]

Where is the Trance? 

[Ethics in classifieds!?]

No, If i advertised something for X (I am prepared to accept X for the item in its current condition) and i get a second person that whats it for Y, my answer would be simply. "Thanks for your offer but i have another interested party, however if that party does not respond by ABC date then I will call you and give you the option".

 

This is not e-b@y, if you want to see how much money you can get for an item list it on bid-or-buy.

 

Edit: Grammar / spelling

Just to be clear.  Say you were selling a bike for R10K.  Buyer 1 negotiates it to R8500 and promises to pay R1000 deposit to secure.  Before the R1000 has been paid, buyer 2 comes along and says he'll take it for R9500.  What now?  

 

To my mind, the crux is that the R1000 has not been paid over yet and so the deal has not yet been sealed.  As soon as the R1000 is paid over, that's it.  The deal is done.  My opinion but keen to see if others agree. 

[Ethics in classifieds!?]

Here's an ethical dilemma.  You're selling a bike and a buyer who hasn't seen your bike says he will definitely take it (at a discounted price) and promises to pay you R1000 deposit with the balance once he picks it up.  You say that the deposit secures the bike and buyer commits that he WILL take it.  

 

Before buyer 1's deposit is in your account, buyer 2 comes along and offers you a better price.   Can you sell the bike to buyer 2?  

 

WHAT I WOULD DO: Call buyer 1 and tell him that buyer 2 has offered more.  Buyer 1 must match the price or buyer 2 gets the bike.  

In this scenario, my belief is only once the deposit has come through, it's a done deal and I wouldn't back out at that point even if a better deal comes along. 

 

It's all about communication.  As a seller, either don't agree to hold the item for someone on the basis of "dibs" or if you do agree then you must hold the item.  You were dumb enough to agree to dibs so stick to your word.  

 

But as far as I am concerned I won't accept dibs.  If you haven't paid and someone else comes along, your rights are zero.  

 

The decent thing is that if someone has given you a firm commitment to take an item, it's only right to inform the first guy that you have a 3rd party interested and it's first come, first served.  But that's it.  Don't come crying to me that you were waiting for your aunty to pay you blah blah.  I've had too many guys promise me this and that and then...nada.  

[Peach’s MTB Skills Clinics]

Sounds good... I am hoping to join you.  

[Review: 2015 Giant Trance 2]

These. Things. Are. Everywhere. Now.

The ONLY thing I don't like about these bikes!  Too much of KOMIN. 

[Review: 2015 Giant Trance 2]

Just bought a 2015 trance 2. It's been sitting in my lounge for the past 4 nights! This weekend... that bike's gonna get it! :-)

[Video: Fabio Wibmer - Osttirol is my playground]

Is there anyone in SA that is doing stuff like this?  A club or something?  Would be cool to learn with/from others. 

[EBOLA!!!]

No, it's really...gasp...here.  Cough, splutter. 

[Thehubsa makes it on South Africa's Internet Map]

Check out this map of SA's internet destinations. See how thehubsa is right up there with Laduma etc as one of the biggest/busiest sites!

 

To read the full article on fin24 go here.

[26" wheel upgrade - what would you recommend]

I had a look tonight and I have Alex DP20's. Seems like I might be looking to spend when I don't have to as JB pointed out. Seems like they are light enough that spending this money is not worth it.

 

Spec says they weight 490g so probably won't see a big difference after dropping R3K. I have rocket ron's on front and back so I think for now I am sorted...

[26" wheel upgrade - what would you recommend]

Thanks for the input and CPT ARMPIES MAYHEM - once again your help much appreciated!