Blackheart

Laziness I guess...

Hi Looking for info on the Stellenbosch trails. Me and my bike can can pretty much tackle most things, (bike more than me) but prefer longer days out with some climbing challenges and flowing descents (me more than the bike) rather than full on DH or WC Enduro stuff. I know Tokai and TM like the back of my hand, but know nothing about Stellenbosch area, and feel it's time to remedy that. Can anyone advise on must do routes/trails/segments, linking up trails for a big day out, any safety concerns, spots to avoid etc, any local knowledge would be much appreciated. Cheers.

My new holiday build. Specs for those interested: Frame: 2017 Niner RIP9 RDO Shock: Fox Float X Factory Evol 150mm Fork: Ohlins RXF36 Evo 150mm Groupset: Sram Eagle XX1 Wheels: American Classic on DT350 (Front), Tune Kong (Rear) Tyres: Maxxis Minion DHR2 2.6 (Front), Maxxis Aggressor 2.5WT (Rear) Stem: Renthal Apex 50mm Bar: Syntace Vector 780mm Seatpost: Lyne Contour dropper Seat: WTB Carbon Brakes: Formula Cura It's a lot of Fun! Gratuitous new glove shot included.

The trend towards shorter stem length is mostly due to longer top tubes on 'modern' bikes with longer, lower and slacker geometry.

My method, with so far 100% success: Get hold of a product called "Knock 'Er Loose" I know...but it's a legit penetrating and releasing agent. Spray from above and below, give a good soaking. Invert bike. Leave for 48 hours, respray every 18 hours or so. Clamp an old stem to the seatpost, careful not to over torque the bolts. Get a mate to hold the frame. Using a tube for leverage through the stem, begin applying an even amount of force, no sudden heaves or shocks. You might have to reverse direction a few times, back and forth. It's never failed me. Good Luck.

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This is the best tutorial on setting up Eagle I've managed to find.

Horses for courses. Tyres have become so terrain and bike specific now. After 25 years of riding and racing on just about everything out there, for general trail riding (which I think fits the bill of all round grip, weight and rolling resistance) I've landed on: Rear: Maxxis Aggressor 2,5WT EXO Front: Maxxis DHR2 2.6 EXO These are on 34mm wide rims, and I ride a steel hardtail with an Ohlins36 140mm fork. I've spent days doing back to back runs with various tyre combos, and I've found that generally what one loses in perceived rolling speed is more than offset in improved climbing traction, braking and steering control. All of which equals more confidence and thus more speed. The only time I would give that up, would be for something like a 100 Miler or a Trans Karoo type event, where hours and hours of consistent rolly pedalling is key. There I have used Michelin Wild Racer, Vredestein Spotted Cat and Schwalbe Racing Ralph with success. But then also for those events, I'm swapping out fork, stem, seatpost, chainring and lengthening my chianstays.

What kind of riding is he intending to do? Geometry is the one thing you can't upgrade later.

Be cool if someone honours this for the TT

This just popped up on my local community FB Group Found in Hout Bay today.

https://bikehub.co.za/classifieds/item/mountain-bike-forks/425703/fox-float-34-sc-performance

And with bar ends and takkies.. Where's Styleman when you need him.

I can only talk from my own experience and experimentation: Stiff soled 'XC' type shoes pros and cons. Don't require a large pedal platform as the sole provides the support. They skate around on a large platform clipping in. Missed clips are scary. Usually the only shoe/pedal contact is at the cleat, so why carry the extra weight of a large pedal platform around. Designed for pedalling efficiency, not trail feel. Generally don't clip in and out as easily as a 'trail' setup. Clip in at the start, clip out at the end. Flatter 'Trail' type shoes pros and cons. Need the larger platform for support. More trail feel when descending and working the bike around. Clip in and out more easily. Missed clips are not an issue. Not as pedalling efficient. Good for 'sessioning' where a bit of walking back up is expected. I've landed on running Crank Brothers Candy 3's, they are giving me the best combo of weight, ease of in and out, and a large enough platform. I have a pair of carbon soled DMT race shoes for the serious mileage days and a pair of Specialized 2F0 for trail and fun days. The DMT are ultra stiff and light and the 2FO's are at the stiffer end of the trail shoe scale, so still pedal well enough but have way more feel and connection to the trail.

2.5wt Agressor on the back. 2.6 Minion DHR2 Front.

Just put a new fork and tyres on my Hardtail. First ride today spent on fork setup and tyre pressures. This is definitely very much alive

That is so cool. Upside is your hand won't go numb on those NC corrugations! Big respect for getting yourself back doing what you love, I've been in the same storm. Different boat. I'm an Architect and Industrial Designer and if I can ever assist with designing and getting custom parts (for you or the bike) made up, give me a shout, no cost. Cheers.

Pike or Fox34 is the way to go. 120mm minimum. 140mm absolute max. As an alternative there is an Ohlins RXF34 up for sale in the classifieds, which reviews very well. I've just bought an Ohlins RXF36 120mm for my Niner ROS, which I haven't ridden yet but will review and report when I have. Crain has an older Pike up at around R5k, and I know Jacobus h123 has a few suitable forks available, and is a top bloke to deal with. I'm running American Classic 3834 (34mm internal width) rims on Tune hubs and they give great support to wider tyres. My current tyre setup is Maxxis Agressor 2.5wt back and Minion DHF2 2.6 front. Dropper is essential for rowdy hardtails. You are welcome to dm me if I can help further. You are going to have so much fun.

I might have some in a drawer somewhere. I'll check today.

Pleasure. Here's a link to some maps I posted a while back https://community.bikehub.co.za/topic/157570-constantia-greenbelt-trail-news-and-updates-bicyclegearcoza/page-2

Hi, no permit required. There are a few 'start' points, all depends on what you feel like. Bootleggers/Trail & Tar parking lot is the 'bottom', meaning it's all flat and uphill all the way to Southern Cross, or you can carry on and cross the road into Cecilia Forest and finish at the car park there. Then downhill (pretty much) all the way back. You could also start at Peddlars and skip the highway part. There is also the option of starting off in lower Tokai and doing a lap of that. Many possibilitie to make it as long or as short as you like. Just please keep in mind that these are all shared trails, and best enjoyed with Chill on, Strava and Ego off. Happy Trails!

I'm looking for bottomless tokens for my RS-1 to try out some fine tuning. Can't seem to find them anywhere. Can anyone point me in the right direction? Cheers.