eddy

This is not likely to be a popular post, but hear me out. There is no doubt that if money was no object we would all have a R250 000, carbon fiber, Di2 XTR equipped, dual suspension, carbon hooped super 29" bike as one of the bikes in our stable. But that is not your situation. However, you can still have what was once such a dream bike, albeit not a new one. As you will have seen on the Hub, nobody wants to ride a 26er anymore which is why secondhand ones can't be given away, and they thus provide absolute bargains for someone willing to pocket his pride and wait for one in the classifieds. I bought, for my daughter who wanted to get into cycling, a professional level 26" bike (SID, XTR all around, Mavic rims, DT-Swiss spokes on Tune hubs, Thomson cockpit and seat-post, etc.) for not much more that you are likely to have paid at Makro. The bike was 10 years old at the time and had hardly been ridden since the owner bought the first of her 29ers shortly thereafter. Everything on my bike is serviceable, I fitted new tyres, spares are available, the bike fits her perfectly, probably weighs 50% less than yours, and is likely to outlast me. She enjoys riding it and when the time comes to move up, she will probably buy a secondhand 29er with a lower level of components which will likely cost 10 times as much and we'll sell the bike for about the same as we paid for it. Until about 2010-2012 every mountain-biker rode a 26" bicycle, and guess what, they managed. So unless you can do a sub 7-hour Attakwas it is unlikely that it is the wheel size that is holding you back, as people did that back in the day. What I always find amusing is when people say: "you are tall and must therefore ride a 29er". 26 refers to the wheel size not to the frame/bike size, and frames came in a wide enough range that even very tall people could be fitted to an appropriate frame (just as very short people can now ride a 29er). Jaroslav Kulhavy is 1.87 and won the CX at the Olympics on a 26er. Nobody said he was too tall to do so. So think about it, a champagne bike for beer money that won't let you down.

Helmets. Everything else is optional.

I'll be braaing halfway up Jan Smuts and handing out abuse to all laggards....

The other side looks like this, Robert:

Lucky them. I've been trying to get one from the local agents since 4 September last year. They have obviously had a consignment of cranks from 4iiii as they are enticing people with a launch offer on the new models, but couldn't be bothered to get a small plastic piece added to the consignment.

Hi, I posted a photo above.

Does the cap look like this ? If so, perhaps I can buy it

Regrettably not. It is a round one with a contact for the CR2032 coin battery. Thanks for the offer though. I appreciate it.

I'd be careful about this as there is no after sales service and the local agents are very unhelpful. The battery cap of my 4iiii power meter fell off whilst riding and rhe agents have been unable to supply a replacement for over a year. There is always an excuse, always next month. If only they were honest. I could have bought one online and had it brought back from the USA or Canada for me. (Despite claims of "global shortage", they are available online). I bought my girlfriend a Wahoo power meter for her birthday last month. It works and the local agents are superb.

@Matt I joined September 3 2004. One could at one stage check what number you were. Where do I find that ?

I have Dura Ace 11 speed on a road bike and XX 11 on a MTB. I both shift well, but neither as good as the 2004 Record 10spd and 2010 9spd X0 on some older bikes. I suspect that shorter cages (it is easier to build a short rigid lever than a long one) , fewer gears (precision less critical) and perhaps more solid construction all contribute to this. But both RDs shift solidly and immediately. The Record absolutely silently and the X0 with a satisfying clunk.

If you decide to check, I'd call the park directly and get your Afrikaanse maatjie to gooi die taal.

Re-build Sheriff, re-build...

Some times even because some (expert) wheel builder who is so good he doesn't need a tension meter pulls a spoke through an Enve rim..

What Alfa are you selling ?