MaxKnox

Thanks Sadly it is. but we will have a jol.

Thanks i will enjoy it. what is not to love. beautiful trails, wonderful camaraderie and a fantastic three days touring natal. enjoy it if you riding.

why would it be harsh?? is it harsh if i judge your results?? we are in the same boat.. i ride for fun, I'm an unpaid cyclists that enjoys racing my bike. at the end of the month no money comes into my account from racing. ( exactly the same as you.) I'm blessed with parents that suppport me and my expenses every month. So why should i have pressure to be competitive. i race as hard as i want. naturally im competitive and try to do my best. you seems to have this misconseption that all us guys that ride fast are earning furtunes in money and have to answer for bad results. I earn zero salary from racing i do it for the love of riding. if i win I'm happy if i come last I'm happy and i have no one to answer for it. so why belittle my result at epic. Some european teams run on budgets in excess of hundreds of euros yet you seem to think we should beat them. bottom line i love riding if i come first or last so what.. i do it for me..

what awesome shot!

ha ha... the genral concensus amongst female population was that the snor was not a hit.. ;-(

mountain biking greatest food for the soul ;-)

only the ones with out shaved legs.. ;-)

Happy to surprise you ;-) sponsors make racing possible and I'm very grateful to mine. However, it wouldn't make a difference if i didn't have sponsors. I love riding my bike and hopefully if I'm blessed with a long life i plan on enjoying riding till my last day ;-)

how cool is that!! time for csa to invest in schools racing, and keep all these champs in our spot through to the elite level!!

@rouxtjie felt ready good!! recon this year i was in with a good shot at top 3 but, not shredded my tyre at the 40km mark beyond repair.. was wonderful race and real test for epic contenders.. was great to crest the KOM only 30 seconds behind urs and kev and 10 seconds behind karl especially since i been focussing on short power climbs.. and sabie has some monster hills!! big respect to all the soldiers who finished that monster day out... it looked deadly!!! funniest thing is in the week before the event the weather was wonderful and track so smooth and fast.. friday night that ll changed.. anyone else got any predictions on epic? dark horses?

@ rouxtjie only reason i would go for epic again is yellow... at 26 reckon in the next 10 years that could happen.. but for know i concentrate on common wealth and olympics.. and let me tell you something.. the depth of youngsters in sa is amazing at xc!! there are so many talented riders and they all fighing very hard!! the likes of rourke croeser, phil buys is amzing.. i got a lot of work to do still to get my xc legs up to them... they dont get the credit they deserve at xc.. marathon gets all publicity.. !! but its a new challenge for me and im loving it!!

the way Yamamotorbike made suffer last year... the couch is going to be a very real treat for me @ Lapa....

agreed going to be one hell of a race to watch... !!! but the way the bulls look at the moment i have never seen them look so motivated!!! think karl wants to be the first man to0 five epic wins!!! kevin evans also in great shape he would be right up there contending !!! think nino and phil will pull off a stage win or two but dont fancy them for overall. but as i said all just speculation.. let the riders do the talking and prove us couch potatoes wrong... not long to go know and i for one am excited to see what happens!!!

My top 3... 1- Platt, huber (untouchable at the moment) 2-Merida always consistent 3-Top peak ( mennen and hunik (not sure spelling) ( check his past results out another rider from czech rep top 4 marathon world champs last two years) outside contenders who could still fill 2nd and 3rd overall are -Susi ( he best rider in the world, but its all about team work and a new be to epic is a big disadvantage) -centuria vaude ( markus kaufman and jackom kass, winners transalp and in top shape there goal win epic!! kass has been on the podium at the epic a few times i think.. apart from them i dont think any one else will stand a any chance at all... but im fist to admit, i have been proven wrong in the past so lets see... the big day is coming soon!! then the geuss work wont be needed... :-)

take wet lube in your pocket and re lube your chain any chance you get. a dry squey chain can loose up to 10 percent of its efficiency..