[Bulls vs Stormers]

[I hate MTB single track in races!!!]

MJ - that is part of the sport and its the same for everyone. Change your attitude and maybe the "dikgat" will let you pass. The best shirt I ever saw was a lady rider's it simply said: "Don't swear at me because you can't climb"

Maybe we are spoilt in CT, because event orginisers go out of their way to make sure that traffic is not an issue.

 

MTB-ing is an inclusive sport, so next time show some consideration to the "Dikgat" that is on his bike and not on the couch eating mcdonalds.

[Chain reaction cycles shopping]

I've spent close to R20k since June last year at CRC.

Upgrades and tools was more than 1/2 of this, parts for replacement was about R7k and the rest was consumables.

The year before I spent about R36k at my bike shop on my bikes for repairs and consumables only, so yes - it is alot cheaper and I've learnt a thing or 2 about bikes since working on my bikes myself. Twice I had to collect parcels at Cape Mail, but I suspect that when the parcel gets bigger, they think up a reason to get you to go there yourself, rather than sending it to the PO.

[Men are from Mars and Women are from Venus]

Point here is gentleman there should always be someone or a small group that will be willing to stay with the slower riders' date=' no point in getting someone new that now has to cycle well beyond their ability to stay with the group. That is demoralising and does take away the fun aspect.

 

I am still working on my fitness i go cycling with with my brother and his mates that do races like the Cape Epic, and to be frank, I am unfit, and slow. Even these guys get that urge to power up the hill, etc, but I have to admit, they will power off into the distance checkinng testosterone levels, then they even turn around cycle back to where I am swearing uphill. Point being I am never alone, and I dont mind them racing off becuase i know they will be back soon (Road cycling obviously different) but i think the same concept applies.

 

And if its a club ride, there should always be two groups, one for the fit and one for the errrmm not so fit, where no man/women gets left behind.

[/quote']

Well said - This post points out the difference between training and riding. When you train, you have certain goals in mind and sometimes people train with you that is on a different level. I try to ride with my wife and / or friends and family about once a week and the focus here is on helping with technique and to keep the spirits up. Most club / group rides cater for everyone's ability and fitness levels.

[Men are from Mars and Women are from Venus]

Its simple:

Its not because you are a girl, its because we are boys. And boys will be boys as they say in the classics.

 

I am yet to go out on a leisurely ride that doesn't turn into a race... even if it is to the coolerbox in the back of the bakkie to crack open a cold one.

[Online stores killing RSA economy!]

Why do I buy online?

1. Choice and availablity: Its so nice to go to CRC / CWC and stick everything you need into a basket, check if there is stock and pay. It is so frustrating if you want something specific and you need to phone 10 bike shops to try and get the stuff you want. Click and collect 5 days later.

2. Price: Sure there is a discount, even when you add the import duties and VAT onto it.

 

Why do I support my LBS?

1. Expertise - I am busy buying a new bike. I want to make sure that I get exactly what I want, and my LBS will make sure that I get that.

2. Support - I want to know that if I have an aftermarket issue, my LBS is going to bat for me. I will not buy wheels, shocks or frames online for exactly that reason (perhaps through CWC, but not from overseas), but you have much less risk when buying seatposts, cranks, consumables and the like online.

3. Urgency - something breaks on Friday afternoon and I have a race on Saturday. I then have to pay the inflated prices to ensure that I am ready to compete the next day.

 

Interesting bit on the Mavic Wheels and Dragon sport - I suspect that they are concerned that if there are aftermarket issues, the guy on the bike is going to come running to them to sort out CRC stuff.

I like the idea of more than 1 agent / distributor to ensure that competition is healthy, as long as we don't have a vodacom / mtn type deal where they decide beforehand who gets what part of the marketshare and fix their prices. With the phenominal growth in cycling (and mtb-ing in particular) it will become attractive for more players to enter the distribution market.

 

Are we killing the local economy?

Definately not! We are simply exercising choice.

[Morewood Zula vs Merida 96]

OK so its decision time.

 

or I can get a Morewood Zula for R40K. Truvativ Stylo Crankset' date=' RS Reba Team 120mm, XO gripshift.

 

[/quote']

What's the rest of the spec of the bike? Seems a bit steep, if you buy a zula frame from rushsports, get a sram XX groupset from CWCycles and wheels and other bits and bobs from CRC, it's going to work out to about the same price but with much better components, than a Stylo crank..

Zula frame incl FOX shock

RS Reba Team 120mm
Mavic SLR wheelset / American Classic Wheelset (still have to decide, but Am Classic is cheaper and will reduce the price)
Crank +BB Truvativ Noir (sorry I said Stylo before)
Cassette - SRAM PG 990
Chain - SRAM PC 991
Shifters SRAM X0 Gripshift
Front Der - SRAM X9

Rear Der - SRAM X0
Brakes - Avid Elixir Cbn/Mag
Handlebar, stem, seat post Truvativ Stylo Team
Saddle - Fizik Gobi
Tyres - Crossmark UST
Grips - Contours
Frame protectors - BBB Tube skin
Tubeless valves and stans
Pedals - Shimano SPD M770
Head Set - Chris King

[Morewood Zula vs Merida 96]

Thanks guys. I have decided where to get the Zula as well. Not going to publish shop names on here, but I consider a few things when buying a bike:

1. Past experiences with the particular shop.

2. The shop's know-how and experience on the product

3. Convenience for me to get there to have my baby serviced

4. Riding mates' experiences with the shop

5. Price of the bike.

 

For the record: I asked a few shops about the Zula (not mentioning that I intended on buying one, but asking questions in general)

1 shop didn't bother replying to my mail (ironically I've supported this shop for years and was excited when they decided to stock the brand),

2 tried to sell me a bike without asking me any questions on the bike.

1 asked me about my needs as a rider and why I am attracted to the Zula. We only later came to costing the bike. Naturally this is the shop I am buying from

[Morewood Zula vs Merida 96]

Does this mean you're going to have a look around at reserving a new user name?

Baby steps Decado - baby steps! I first have to see if I like riding the Zula

[Morewood Zula vs Merida 96]

I was probably at 90% Zula, 10% 96 2 days ago. Just needed confirmation about this. So Zula it is then... I can't wait to put that order in!

[Morewood Zula vs Merida 96]

OK So far its Zula 2 - Merida 0 and rads seeing if he can do business. My heart say Zula and my head say Zula for the fun stuff ant Merida if I am going to race to win (which I am not). So Zula it is then. Now for that bonus that is coming my way end of June. Its going to be a looong month.

[Is Mountain Biking always so unorganised?]

Its been proven that a bad experience is much worse than no experience. My point? Bad race orginisers should be discouraged to arrange events without professional intervention. A bad experience at a race does so much damage for future events.

The way that it is currently done is whereby orginisers need to pay an orginisation (CSA, PPA, CGC or the likes) to host the event. This orgninisation is supposed to ensure that minimum safety and logistical standards are set. This still doesn't happen to the degree that we should expect, but every time I start b!tching about PPA I just think about how much worse the event could have been.

There certainly is room for professional events co-ordinators to get into the market. Help the local church to get advertising on the web, facilitate online bookings, go measure the route and do some GPS profiling, provide infrastructure for entries etc at races, get the food vendors to supply products at the event etc.

It will however cost the guy in the street an extra R20 to R30. So the real question is will we then start b!tching about the prices of the events.

[Morewood Zula vs Merida 96]

OK so its decision time.

 

I can get a Merida 96 Carbon 3000 for R35K. XT crank set, FOX 32 100RL, X0 gripshift

 

or I can get a Morewood Zula for R40K. Truvativ Stylo Crankset, RS Reba Team 120mm, XO gripshift.

 

I currently ride a merida FLX 3000 hard tail. Awesome bike, climbs like a rocket, but I need a bit of comfort for enduro and multi stage racing and enjoy technical riding. I am 1.8m and weigh about 90kg's. I am worried that the Merida carbon frame will not be able to support my weight and riding style.

 

I must admit that I am more than just a little in love with the Zula, but dropping R40K needs more than just an infactuation. It needs a bit of common sense.

 

Besides... I'll then have to change my username

 

Your thoughts please.

[Is Mountain Biking always so unorganised?]

Same story everywhere. Just like the amateur riders cannot compete with the pro's (some can, but lets leave it at a very select few), amateur event co-ordinators cannot compete with the pro event orginisers on planning and logistics. Even if they have the knowledge, they generally lack the rescources.

Think of the smaller races as church bazaars. You will not get the nutritional info on tannie santie's homemade rusks like you get it at woollies, but they sure as well taste damn nice!

[Dirtopia at Contermanskloof]

Hopefully Dirtopia will be fixing all the switchbacks that has been destroyed. Rode Contermanskloof 2 months ago on my trusty hard tail and loved it. Went back on Monday for a lap, and will not go back until it is fixed.

[No to Makro in Fourways]

I say build away, but if makro had any sense. They would put their Bulk infrastructure contribution levies into upgrading the roads etc around fourways. Giving it to the City fathers, it will simply dissapear into someones back pocket eventually

[Mountain Bike help for Roadie]

If you have the budget, buy a FS. A good frame should be your 1st priority, 2nd is a decent shock, 3rd look at the wheels. Strong, light and decent hubs. All the rest is Bling that you can replace when they wear out. As to the SRAM vs shim question. I recently switched my shifters and dereulleu from XT to a X0 Shifter X9 rear der combo. The SRAM stuff is way better and is more bang for your buck.

[Silversands Lottery Scam]

not to mention the 8 emails I got from "ABSA" this month to update my personal details. I don't even have an ABSA account.

 

Another one doing the rounds is what is called the domain name scam. They claim that some guy in the east is registering your company's domain name in other parts of the world and that if you act quickly, they can reserve the name for you. My boss actually almost fell for this one.

[LBS Bad Quality Work]

I spent R3000 on supplementing my tool kit with everything I need to work on my own bike. The only thing that I need the shop for is rebuilding and tru-ing wheels and servicing my fork.

So I ordered new shifters, cables and a new dereulleur online and did the work myself on Saturday. Total cost = R1900. My LBS quoted me R2800 3 months back for the same job. I learnt a few things about the shifters and dereulleur by doing it myself and actually reading through the instruction and care manual. So they will be lasting longer as well.

[Dual sus frame????]

We all have our preferances. Last year I would have given one of my kidneys for a Merida 96. This year I will give both my kidneys and my soul for a Morewood Zula...

[LBS Bad Quality Work]

I had issues with my LBS about 2 years ago. They were making mistakes on my bike that cost me money and time during races. I changed shops to a smaller "personal service" type shop. Was very happy initially, but after some mistakes that they made (after appointing a jnr mechie) I have bought my own tools and will now be working on my own bike. I mentioned it to the shop and told them that I will still like to use them for major work that I am not equipped and skilled to do, provided that the head mechanic work on my bike. I am saving money now, my bike lasts longer because I can take action as soon as something needs attention and the shop doesn't seem to mind. The only problem is that there are permananently bikes all over the dining room in various stages of assembly and this may start to cause some domestic issues in future

[Why do the pro's not race with hydration systems?]

Chatted to a buddie of mine last night that races competitively. He recons that water bottles is neutral on your centre of gravity as well. If you add 2kgs to your back, it affects your balance too much (especially if you weigh 65kgs) and this slows you down. The reason why these guys fly through the technical stuff, is because they manage to get a low centre of gravity, and being alot lighter than us mortals, the bike simply handles better.

[Why do the pro's not race with hydration systems?]

Thanks guys . I just thought the pro's wont have support everywhere in the mountains....

2nd Question:  Does one carry a mix in your camelbak' date=' or just water?  I was thinking of water only in camelbak and some AJ mix in my waterbottle (perhaps a bit stronger) which i can wash away with the water.  Ive heard the camelbak bladder can become a but messy..


[/quote']

As long as you take care of the bladder, you will be ok. Wash your bladder with milton and rinse properly with fresh water. Leave the water intake open and store with a clean dish cloth inside the bladder to absorb any moisture.

[Why do the pro's not race with hydration systems?]

I usually don't race with my camelback. I keep it for long training rides in the cederberg and races like Attakwas. The first stop was 42 km in, and on a hot day I would go through 500 to 750ml of liquid an hour. I averaged 15km/h for the this section yesterday, so it would have been touch and go if I didn't have a camelback. If I had a technical issue and was out there for another 20 mins I would have been in trouble, so I opted to be safe. It turned out to be a good call, as all the water points was well stocked with ice, so my race fuel in my camelback was nicely chilled throughout the ride. The pro's don't loose time at the water points. They spend 30 secs to have a quick fill and then they are off again. If you ride pro, every gram counts, so they put up with the slight discomfort of luke warm drinks in their bottles.

[Flat Thin 'fancy' saddle beter why ?]

X-Gear you a roadie ? I'm guessing it will be easier to adapt to those thin saddles if your a roadie ? than if your arse is bouncing on/off the thing on a mountain bike hardtail ?

 

If your ass bounce around, your technique / setup is not correct. I have been riding a hardtail for over 3 years now with a Selle Italia SLR on it. I stand through alot of the techical stuff and many of the down hill stuff while my mates with fancy duelsus bikes take the knocks sitting down. I have a theory that the hard tail riders are less prone to saddle sores on big races like the epic, due to the fact that they stand and ride alot more than the duelsus dudes and gals.