El Scorcho

I started cycling almost exactly one year ago, I've spent about R40 000 on it since... Will probably spend around that amount this year as well.

I'm 1.77m and on a medium 29er - I feel I can fit onto a large if I have to.

Last time I sent a bike there it came back missing a clamp and plug from one of the lock-on grips. They did give me a replacement clamp and plug, still not a good experience though.

I bought a Niteye B10 from Extreme Lights - it does the job and is a quality product. I wouldn't go less than 600 lumens though.

Have you tried them on flat pedals yet? Any idea how they'd compare to something like 5.10s?

What shoes are these? Where? How much? I'm thinking of trying out cleats so looking at something dual-purpose.

The rubber is also super sticky, I always pull back on my pedals when riding on flats and they never slip.

I was just behind you then, 2:12. Fun day out, really enjoyed it. The bottlenecks were a little annoying, but to be expected I guess.

I've got a Menabo Winny 3. It works. I have nothing to compare it to though. It's probably heavier than a Thule, and took serious effort to clamp to the towbar the first time I attached it (has loosened to a reasonable level since). I can't really complain about anything apart from that. It also comes with a little rope that clips to the car, for additional support apart from the towbar, not sure how necessary this is as I've never seen another rack that has this, but I use it anyway. I guess it prevents the thing from bouncing around too much. The locks and tilt function work well. Edit: You will receive very good service from Barry from Rack and Carry, if that was a concern.

Only managed to do green, silver, and blue while I was down there over December, weather and other commitments meant I didn't get to ride as much as I wanted to. Blue was the best of those 3, planned on doing red next. Awesome place to ride!

I'm probably riding there tomorrow, don't think I'm up for a 50km ride in this heat though. Enjoy! Have done green/silver/blue there since getting here last week, awesome riding! Will probably ride red tomorrow.

I did buy a pair of 5.10s from there, seeing as you can't always get them locally. Worked out to a fair price incl. customs.

Don't know the difference, but is it possibly that the Winny has the tilt functionality as well as locking carrier to car and bikes to carrier? I used my Winny 3 for the first time this weekend and it does the job, not sure how much better the Thule racks are. Three bikes might be a bit tight, but I'm sure you could get them on after playing around a bit, I bought it to make sure my 2 bikes fit easily. The only issue I had with it was that it took significant force to lock on to the towbar when I first put it on - but it seems to have loosened up to an acceptable level after attaching and removing it a few times.

Also did the Over the Moon race last night, tried out my Niteye B10 for the first time - 600 lumens proved adequate, but I was wishing I had a bit more at times. Will also get a decent headlamp to compensate.

Went from Titan 26er with Altus/v-brakes to Momsen 29er with X5/Elixir 1/Recon Silver Air.

I made this mistake, I bought cheap (3k) and sold my bike within a few months to upgrade to a 10k bike. All valid advice being given here. If I could do it all again, I'd wait a bit more, save up, and buy something decent from the start.

That's the one I bought

Oh yeah, couldn't really wait to save up because I'm doing a night race next week!

Thanks. I did end up doing some research, ended up ordering a Niteye B10 on special. I guess using a cheap light is a bit like using a cheap helmet, don't really want to take a chance with something that's responsible for your safety.

Bump

Hi guys, Thinking of doing some night riding at Modderfontein soon - what is the minimum that I need in terms of lights? I have one small Giant light for the handlebar, and one small headlamp at the moment. Will get a cheap rear light as well. Will this suffice? If not, please recommend what I should get as a minimum - my budget is really tight this month as I've just thrown money at a Menabo Winny 3, so I'm really looking for the cheapest option. Thanks in advance.

This. I started off on a bike with Altus and v-brakes thinking it would last me a year at least. I upgraded within 5 months.

Put this to the test today with a query I had: "It's a toy we are selling here, no matter how old a person gets, you can't wait for a toy. So we respond to mails immediately," Pleased to report that a quick and helpful response was received.

My first 94.7 - 5h45 in baggies and on flat pedals Reached 50km in around 2h30 feeling great, it all seems to fall apart a bit after that doesn't it?