Bub Marley

Why does Gerald keep saying Langveld?

In saying this though, I have watched this guy perform at the Lifetime Grand Prix and against Matt as well and he’s absolutely dominated everyone there. So if there is any team than can pull something out of the hat, its these 2. But they will need to do it from tomorrow. Otherwise it’s done.

9 mins will be nigh on impossible to claw back just on being stronger than the rest. They gonna need some luck as well and hope one of the front runners suffer some sort of mechanical. Tomorrow it’s close to 40 in Paarl. The elite guys will most likely miss the brunt of the heat as they should be done before so I don’t think the heat is the factor here. I think he’s probably just underestimated the race or the competition couple with the fact that he hasn’t really acclimatised. Or he’s not well at all.

Tomorrow is a 66km time trial😂. Going to be huge gaps I feel.

Also just shows you how different it is to ride somewhere foreign. You need to adapt and so far doesn’t look like keegan has. Let’s see if he gets stronger as the days go by.

Tbh. Every year the xco specialists come out full guns blazing the first few stages and then fade out completely towards the end so wouldn’t surprise me to see the same thing happen again. I’ve seen so many of Ninos partners look great initially but can’t keep that intensity going for the full week.

If this is by the missing link, then that particular incline is pretty brutal. Not surprised to see people walk it. The picture doesn’t do it justice tbh. It’s ridiculously steep.

So after being dead against this idea in the past, I’ve slowly come full circle on this. Hardtail has been standing for the last 6 months after i purchased my full sus. Did not really want to invest in a full carbon gravel bike and also didn’t want to just get a cheaper one just for the sake of it. And I love this frame which also quite rare so opted to go down this route. Did a quick spin around the block just to get a feel, and it’s different tbh. Will go for a proper spin today but my first thought is perhaps look at a more steeper negative angled stem as the position is a bit high. I feel like i can get lower. Also perhaps need a road derailleur as i cant shift into my lightest gear. Mechanic says its the older style mtb derailleur is the issue.

I know they’ve done it in PPA events so assuming the same will happen for the Argus.

What’s the point of this? They’re just gonna get disqualified.

All of their products are linked to vitality in some way. Even though this is a health thing I’m certain you will probably need vitality as well but 100% sure. This is something new that they launched this year though. Last year they had that wealth fund which gave you a once off access to R 2500 per member after you did your health test. This year it seems to be more ongoing targets based on your health I assume. So far for me, they haven’t asked me to do anything just yet so I assume I am good health wise.

People complain every time but I get so much back honestly. Even this year, they’ve introduced personal health pathways and are giving you money if you do certain things. Between me and my wife the’ve given me R 7,000 back already to use for medications or consultations. I don’t have an MSA but it’s almost like I do now. The only thing my wife was asked to do was visit the dentist for a check up. I’ve had to nothing.

Is Candice choosing to go the privateer route? I find it hard to believe that not one team picked her up after all her performances last year.

I was amped as well. But lets be honest here, if you’re not at the elite level its gonna be a pretty miserable day in the saddle. And honestly 35 degrees in Wellington, out in the trails, it’s gonna feel like 40plus. If my initial target is 7 hours, that takes me to 1:30pm in the baking sun. If it’s 35 degrees, I’m probably looking at 8 hours in the saddle in the baking sun.

I see they allowing you to carry over your entry to next year as well. Seriously considering taking up that option.

Im still not convinced on the shorter cranks off road thing. Longer cranks give you better leverage and for really steep and rough trails i feel like you need that extra leverage for traction. This is not based on any scientific analysis. This is just what my brain is telling me.

Yeah but i enjoy gravel and mtb.

Lourensford Classic also same weekend as Karoo2coast and Canola Roller. Kinda sucks that!

Yeah tbh I only have the oval because the crank i bought came with the oval ring. I didn’t specifically go out and choose it. So I just thought let’s just try and see it if there’s anything different. And honestly if you just ride, you wont feel anything different especially off-road when the terrain varies all the time. Maybe on a road bike on smooth tarmac it would be more noticeable. But i gotta be honest even when i ride on my mtb on tar I would need to really concentrate on my pedal stroke to actually feel anything. I personally would not waste money on oval if you’re thinking of upgrading. If you are already thinking of changing rings then perhaps. But dont spend just for the sake of getting ovals.

I think if they actually used more than one race for seeding it might alleviate some of the issues. The way the system works now, is if you do 6 races for instance, you only need one good result to get that seeding. Using a 6 month average i think makes more sense. Then at least consistency is been taken into account.

I have an oval ring on my mtb. I have no idea if it makes any difference or not. I will also say that after 5min on my first ride, I couldn’t even notice any difference between round and oval. People have this assumption that with oval it’s gonna feel weird or something. Honestly, it’s barely noticeable.

Looks like 35 degrees on Saturday in Wellington. Will probably feel like its over 40.

Stairway to heaven is just before Dorstberg at Meerendal. I assume for the epic you will come up to Dorstberg initially from the jeep track so not the normal route club members will go. Epic Route: Meerendal start > Top of Dorstberg > Down into Faircape > Cross over into Hoogekraal > Down shake rattle & roll > Cross over into missing link > Back to Meerendal > Stairway to Heaven Recce Route: Meerendal start > Stairway to Heaven > Top of Dorstberg > Back down Dorstberg to start > Traverse to Hoogekraal > Down shake, rattle > Cross over into missing link > Back to Meerendal. This will cover around 80% of the route, albeit not in the same order.

By the way… when I say accessible im referring to accessible with a permit. Get the holiday pass if you dont want to do full membership.

The only part you cant access is once you get to the top of Dorstberg. That gate is shut so no chance of getting in there. However the rest of the route is accessible. You are essentially only missing out on the Faircape part which links Meerendal to Hoogekraal. You’d still be able to do a decent recce of the route.