i24

Wow an e-bike bun fight. Blink and you miss it! A bunch of posts deleted. Back to E-bikes: The 3h50 rule and 3A start time rules make sense. But they need to be enforced. E-bikes times times should be filtered and anything that looks like it breaks either of the above should not be published until it has been verified and DQ'd (or not). Remember the E-bike event is NOT A RACE. E-bike times are irrelevant, except perhaps for the individual riders. Perhaps they should be sent directly to the riders and not published all? But maybe it is time for some more e-bike rules: Ban battery "swap stations" and external battery support on the route. Besides anything, the Giant station is on the wrong side of the road. All other support stations are on the left, that one is on the right - which seems a bit dangerous. If you cannot get round on one battery, you should carry your own spares or ride the short route. E-bikes should get a different medal. (Perhaps one the size of a coin battery with a plastic coated electric wire instead of a ribbon 😉) That might imply a different finish chute. If the e-bikes had to pull off the route a hundred meters before the real finish it would separate them from the racers in the finish line photos. E-bike riders should be banned from shouting "passing right" (or anything else). If they want to pass, particularly up Smits or Chappies, they should wait until there is a gap in traffic and pass quietly without upsetting the racers. (But that is just my own feeling). For those who want to race e-bikes. I will join you on my EM-Bike, it is a lot of fun too!. I can easily break 3 hours round the course, even on a normal day with traffic, without breaking any speed limits or riding through red robots. I have "sufficient" wattage and no speed limiter device. I can do the whole course without refuelling. A tank of energy juice plus the Chappies toll fee is much cheap than an Argie Entry. The cycle and rider are both licenced (and taxed). I can even legally ride down the M3 on a non-tour day. (But I don't race M-Bikes - that is another story).

I notice that the 2025 medals no longer have "Rotary - Pedal Power Association" in fine print. This was always on the medals in past years. Those organisations have always been responsible for distributing the charitable proceeds from the event. Has there been a change in the structure of the beneficiaries or is this just a minor design change to the medals?

First make sure the bike you buy is the right size for the cyclist.

Don't these riders get disqualified? (Would be a simple SQL query on the results).

I had Biopace chain rings on my vintage MTB 'till quite recently. I have ridden 10's of thousands of km's on that bike and I still ride it regularly. I replaced them with entry level Shimano rings when the Biopace rings wore out. I can confirm 2 things: There is no notable benefit from "oval" chain rings. It has 3x7 gears, oval chain rings make setting and using the front derailleur significantly trickier.

Hi I am trying to help a youngster who has a Silverback Storm 29" with a broken hanger. He has tried LBS's and even the manufacturer but it seems these are not readily available. He also tried modifying another hanger but it is not working and gears do not shift properly. Any suggestions where we can get hold of one? Can one be made (at viable price) if we can locate the broken original as a sample?

How did your ride go?

The judge in this case had a different opinion. https://www.stephensons.co.uk/site/news_and_events/uptodatenews/cyclist-sentenced-over-death-of-pedestrian

Oops ... 🫢

Brakes?

Chris. Have you considered using (2) to seat a tubeless tyre? Could be useful if you could get all, or most, of the air into the valve stem...

You can use (1) to seat a tubeless tyre. Just take the core out and hold the nozzle against the valve stem. When it "pops" put your finger over the stem and quickly fit the core, then pump to required pressure with a proper adaptor.

If you find yourself in a situation like this, try doing a 180 turn and head back the way you came. Hopefully the aggressor will break off at this stage rather than doing a 180 to follow you in the wrong direction. If they don't you should still get a head start to get clear. Better to avoid the situation in the 1st place.

It depends on how they have been stored: If you riding off road, you might get away with those for a while.

One thing to beware of is using a modern car synthetic oil in a bike with a wet plate clutch. These oils have low friction additives which can upset a wet plate clutch.

Hmm. Maybe give them a 5 star review. But in the text state you are only giving them 5 stars so that the review does not get taken down, that you do not recommend the product and that you would not purchase it again ...

It comes down to, do you want to: go fast on a slow bike go slow on a fast bike or dream of going fast on a fast bike (occasionally) These days I only get to ride occasionally, on a slowish bike, but it still brings a smile to my face.

No saddle bags reduce aerodynamic drag by reducing the turbulent wake behind the riders backside. They help you go faster, like a MotorGP bike. As a side effect, they provide UV protection for your spare tube so when the day comes and you finally need it, you don't find it perished and punctured.

I use a fanny bag to carry the phone, food and other stuff that does not go into the saddle bag.🤫

I can confess to using saddle bags. I even have one that looks the same as the OP's. I have worn out a number of saddle bags and even a seat post where the bag touches the bike, but never had an issue with my legs rubbing on a saddle bag. Ivan I would suggest: Get you saddle adjusted properly. Ideally with a bike fit, or at least with advice from a bike shop or experienced cyclist. Once you are happy with the saddle position, don't mess with it. Then make a plan to get the saddle bag clear of your legs. I am not too sure how but usually it is not a problem. But if it is for you on your bike, try another saddle bag. Regarding saddle bags, I have one on each bike. The contents set up for each specific bike. Spare tube (correct size, valve type etc), puncture kit (tubeless on the MTB, conventional for the tubed bike), chain master link (correct for chain type), valve adaptor for presta valves, core removal tool for shrader ones, then tyre levers, some cable ties, duct tape etc. I carry phone, food, multi-tool, mini pump etc on me as these move from bike to bike.

Western Cape Law Enforcement does not have the powers, nor the budget, to investigate or arrest. There is only so much the Western Cape can do without a functional national Police Force. I am not sure if there is much point in shouting at Allan Winde, the solution to the problem lies with central government.

If you keeping the Harley, you have a bike for highway trips and 2 up occasions, It might be worth looking for something smaller and younger for #2. Anything from a nearly new Hero to a 650 thumper would be traffic friendly for city use and less stressful when you go off road. Remember that not all bikes were engineered to last 20 years and you should keep some budget for riding gear, boots, helmet, goggles etc.

Elon Musk talks about an "idiot factor". Which he defines as the price of buying a component divided by the costs of material used to manufacture the component. The higher the idiot factor the greater the scope for business efficiency improvement. Applied to the cycling industry, the "idiot factors" are very high and it seems the idiots are wisening up and looking for improved efficiency with their discretionary spending. 🫢

Fit 40mm or 50mm gravel tyres, convert it back to 2x gearing (if you previously did the 1x thing), and look for one of those semi-drop type bars that accommodate your existing hydraulic leavers, or fit some "aero extension" bars in board of the brake leavers (time trial bike style). Then wait for this thread to reach the conclusion that you are on the optimal mount 😏

The more this tread goes on, the more the fashion gets back to my "pavement special". A rusty, vintage, rigid, steel frame, Hansom MTB. It is currently rolling on 50mm touring tyres and has 3x7 gears (but the frame and cantilever brakes will accommodate full knobbly MTB tyres). The rigid steel forks have that forward bend typical of 70's bikes which give them a little flex. I just have to wait for the straight bars (with 90's style bar end extensions which definitely don't help) to come back into fashion. And it is made out of heavy duty tubing which weighs plenty and the rust on the spokes does not help with aero ☹️ I have ridden it to the wireless mast on Tokai on MTB tyres - once - then I bought a suspension MTB. I have also ridden the Tokai green belts, on touring tyres, which it handled surprisingly well. It's limitation is corrugated gravel district roads - those are a killer and I would definitely chose a suspension bike for them next time.