davem

They couldn't keep the WTS series in CT.

Always. Whether it be your guy, the middle aged lady who is prepared to force her big 4x4 through runners so as not to be late to put on her act at church (oops, am I being judgmental there?) or someone like appeared in Durban.

Do you think Sky would throw a race to silence the doping criticism? Haters gonna hate irrespective of evidence or logic. Even your post, whilst not hating, plays to this logic. Commercial considerations mean win the event. Then suck up/ignore any negative publicity.

Let's not tar and feather the whole of Durban for the actions of a few self important racists. Of course the race will be back. You don't walk away from R7.5m in entry fees and even more in tourism revenue. Durban very clearly understands the value of the sports tourist. Calm shall return, humble pie will be served quietly in private.

But you still keep the 1600 engine in the M3. Yes it is more aero, more comfortable, more precise but only your legs can make it go fast. Sometimes is also nice just to own nice things even if it is not completely rational.

That is the most incredible sporting footage I think I have ever seen. In 14 minutes I think I aged 6 months. Compare that to an F1 driver who practices on a simulator for a thousand laps and then performs a closed completely known circuit repeatedly all within a clearly defined performance envelope. Given the length I doubt you can ride this course more than a few times to practice. Then you plummet headlong at Anaerobic Threshold and have to make hundreds of microsecond decisions just to stay upright. Completely insane. I am in awe!

http://www.cansalostcity.co.za/115km%20-%20Profile.jpg

From the website: Lost City Cycling Festival receives an overhaul New routes, safer riding! The Lost City Cycling Festival, has a distinct new look this year on both the road and mountain bike events presented on the weekend of 15-16 August 2015.Road RaceThe road race route has received a complete overhaul and the 115km long distance now takes place on roads that are much quieter and wider, which equates to greater safety in the popular event. The road race has always carried a stigma of being dangerous, courtesy of the flat course and roads that narrow at times on the course. It was also largely flat, which meant bunches stuck together most of the way creating a breeding ground for accidents. The new course is not only longer than its predecessor, but also boasts a few more undulations, which will definitely make it a more challenging ride. The course now also passes through a host of the local villages and it even goes past the Royal Bafokeng stadium - and past the house of the king himself! The organisers are working closely with the Royal Bafokeng monarchy and local traffic authorities to ensure safety of participants and they have received great buy-in. "We are very fortunate to have their support on the new format this year," said race organiser Johan du Toit. "The new route gives the event a real cultural feel as well as making it much safer. The roads for most of the way are wide with a broad shoulder." Du Toit has been contemplating a change to the course for the past three years, and with a renewed commitment from Sun International this year, now was the time. "But we want to provide something different and also lay to rest any fears cyclists have had about safety in the race. With the new route we feel much more at ease." Running alongside the 115km route option will be a 66km ride for cyclists coming out of winter hibernation who don't quite fancying a race above 100km yet. The 65km route is largely flat and a nice way to ease into the season.

Ironman does not allow any sort of recording device in the event. To protect their media rights.

Any suggestions on how to mount a German Shepherd onto my bike. They seem pretty effective. Could you use a Gaermin mount? But a little more seriously, I won my last fight by at least 100m. Any weapon you choose should be to buy you time to flee, not to overpower the aggressor.

Durban I think was partly due to overloading of the course. Do the organisers care? 70.3 World Championships in Clearwater, Florida was talked about with derision for years because it was a draft fest. Lots of good athletes were not bothered to go because of the reputation. Ironman then took the event away from them. Will IMSA limit the Durban entries to an appropriate amount, get a better course or get a longer use of the M4 so they can spread out the starts by a lot of time. All that costs money. I think in general it is very much "Ooh, no one's looking, hey it's easier if I sit on this oke's wheel who just passed me." My reference point is that I grew up racing sail boats. The rules are complex when boats meet as to who has right of way. The unique aspect of the rules, compared to any other sport that I know, is that a sailor can exonerate his rule infringement by taking a self inflicted penalty. (Generally performing two full turns). No referees required. Integrity is. Where there are unresolved disputes, a protest procedure with penalty of disqualification exists. 99% of disputes are resolved by the sailors themselves on the water.

Couple of hours spent practicing body surfing the week before will be the best gains you can make to your overall time with minimal effort. Seems a number of people spoke about cramps in the surf. I know I have often had cramps when the sand at the end of the swim is very soft or mud that sucks you in. Need to find some sort of training drill to prevent this.

South African non drafting races have lots of complaints about big packs. Too many athletes on the course. Too small gaps between start waves. Too few referees. All explanations used to justify what is an athlete's decision to break the rules and cheat. IM Durban 70.3 seems to have taken drafting to new heights from the race reports. Referees will always struggle to enforce rules where the penalty is seen as not significant. Getting to recover for four minutes is obviously not harsh enough for athletes to choose to comply with the rules. I believe we need to create an attitude where every athlete chooses to obey the rules of the sport and loses the 'let see what I can get away with' approach. At Challenge Roth they pioneered a new penalty system for people caught drafting. It is called the "Fair Kilometer" Instead of sending an athlete to the penalty box for 8 minutes if he or she is given a black (drafting) card, the participants gets to combine a 5-minute penalty with an additional running penalty, This penalty is an additional 1km loop off the main course (read: loop of shame) and has to be done at kilometer 30 of the run course. Sounds like a very emphatic penalty to me. Something to be really afraid of. What do you think?

If you could body surf those waves would take 2 minutes off your swim time. If you got dumped add 2 minutes. Looks fun.

See there were only 2206 finishers out of 3000 entries. Hundreds of non starters and lots of non finishers. That must be highest attrition rate for any SA Ironman event.

Synthetic testosterone from a synthetic cow. You mean steak doesn't come in a syringe?

Average of R50k per bike is somewhat wishful thinking. The real answer is rather less but still very significant. Maybe R40-50m at market value.

Have fun everyone. Don't let Garfield draft you!

triathlonsa.co.za Year runs 1 Sept to 31 Aug. Normally if you join in Aug it counts for the following year. Quicker to join than read this post. Really quick. Store your TSA number in your phone and you can just show it when they ask for it at events.

davem + mrsm on the tandem

Sometimes one should read what is actually happening before declaring one's indignation so publicly.

Having attended to an accident where a motorbiker took a nice wide arc on the curve by Teak Place into the cycling lane and took out two cyclists, I think the flappers perform a useful task. When they first arrived, I deliberately rode over one and found it was quite innocuous. Have hit many by accident including one at 60kmh in the tribars and despite the big fright, had no huge wobbly. The likely reason why people have come down is more their own reaction to the impact, which is minimal if you are riding in a straight line. If there is a better design then great, but I would rather the municipality repaired the broken ones than have nothing.

Sat 08 Aug 2015 C-GN Sungardens Carousel Classic RACE CANCELLED. Freddie Buys 082-7552304 Tue 23 Jun 2015 http://www.cyclersguide.co.za/Calendar/RaceUpdates/AutoRaceUpdates.aspx.aspx Disappointed.

Who sat on the top tube?