HdB

According to my dad, it has been cleared all the way, and nice to ride. The path is a bit more narrow here and there, and some places it is necessary to get off to cross the tracks to the other side. They rode it this past Monday.

I am aware of a few people that ride together from the Klein Brak/Reebok/Tergniet area, where will you be based? They tend to not start super early though, all being retired 😁 I'm sure there are plenty others, roughly half of Bloem will be there on holiday; if all else fails check in at the local cycling shop.

To my knowledge some of the groups from Hartenbos and Kleinbrak/Reebok/Tergniet worked together to clear some sections, but I don't know the details. I've reached out to my dad; he helped there so should be able to give me some more information.

If you brought a gravel bike, you could do most of the MTB rides as well Most of these road rides are less than 60km. If you are planning on doing the Festive 500 (I will try), you'd need to add a bit. I don't see anything on the programme to Brenton-on Sea, which has some really nice views. I might request that for the 24th or 29th. Nor do I see Hoekwil on there...

All the rides start 6am from the Cycleworx shop, to avoid the worst traffic (I sometimes start a bit earlier to add an extra 10km or so, before meeting the group at the start). You can contact Eugene (number in the programme) to get added to the WhatsApp group. Or chat with Sean at the shop when you get here. Dec24-Jan25 Cycling Programme.pdf A lot of the routes get repeated a bit, so I won't join them all - got to balance riding with my wife, the group, other friends, and workouts on the trainer 😂

Looks like they put a flat-top chain link in the wrong way around...

Thanks! Really good to know I'm not entirely lost with this. It will be an "interesting" test, one way or another. Taking a chance on some of the components 🤞 If it works ok on my road wheels, I will look for a separate gravel wheelset. My first road bike had a 52-42 chainring (and dowwntube shifters), so I am familiar with refusing to get off and walk 🤣

So, if the gravel frame I got hold of has a 10 mm shorter reach, 5mm effective top tube, and 10mm longer head tube, I would need a stem that is 5-10mm longer than on my road bike, to mimic my non-aggressive position? And the slightly steeper seat tube means my seat would need to be a tiny bit further back?

I feel a bit better about ours now 🤣 We went quite a bit slower than expected as well. Turns out the rider who was always going to be our slowest up the bigger climbs, picked up some virus the week or so before the race, and even the smaller rises had him struggling. We also had 4 riders that pretty much never rode with us before the race, who all need rear view mirrors for Christmas. At the Bonnievale stop the ill rider pulled the plug, knowing the witches etc that lay ahead. By the first witch, one rider had to stop with cramp, and another a spell of dizziness (maybe due to the heat). The team captain suggested I take the rest and go and set a time for the team; that was not what I signed up for, so we let the magnificent 6 go ahead, while myself and one lady helped the rider with cramps up the climbs to the finish, and the team captain helped the other rider. Just over 9 hours for the first six, a further 9 minutes for the next three, and the last two followed about 10 minutes later. Lessons learnt.

It was R14000 for the team, if I have it correctly

That it used to work, it might be good to report it as an issue and include your log file, if you have not done so already. https://help.trainingpeaks.com/hc/en-us/articles/31341295251597-TrainingPeaks-Virtual-Feedback-and-Bug-Reports or mail it to virtual@trainingpeaks.com

What type of watch are you trying to connect? Does it show up as an option in the pairing screen but not connect, or does it not show at all? Edit: I wonder if the watch HRM, when/if it can connect, would be an issue with Tier 1 races.

I've managed to get a alu gravel frame, and would like to pick the brains of those who can maybe help me avoid some expensive mistakes... especially as I try to build it up relatively cheaply, can always upgrade (much) later. The frame has 100/142 spacing, and can take a front derailleur. I've got a Shimano 50-34 chainring somewhere in a cupboard, and my plan is to get an 11spd 11-34 or 11-36 (ex. SRAM PG-1130?) cassette. Short of going 1x, any better suggestions for the cassette? Can probably change the chainring later, if my knees beg for mercy. I'd probably have to avoid any serious hills, even though it would still be a lot lighter than my road bike (52-36, 11-30). Ideally it should work with Shimano/Sram road 11spd, so I can put it on the trainer or use some of my spare wheels. Would a long-cage road derailleur even be able to handle the 34x36T? Better to spend a bit more and get a derailleur with a clutch or something, to survive the corrugations? For shifters I'm thinking of testing one of the Chinese groupsets' shifters, ie. Sensah or L-twoo. Or used 105 shifters, depending on the price. Mechanical, cable shifting and brakes, with cable or cable/hydraulic brakes. Am I making any huge mistakes?

Dryland hinted at Black Friday specials for the Prince George, so maybe hold thumbs and toes for something for Attakwas as well?

So about R143 a month, if you do the annual subscription which already saves quite a bit. Hmmmm