CJ Van

Everything and more but I do have some minor issues that I will sort out. The E-thirteen tyres are very grippy and time will tell if I will replace them with the same when they are done. WTB rims are 29mm internal and I think that is wide enough for me. Shimano hubs got centre lock disk and not 6 bolt, not sure what to make of that..... Box drivetrain, smooth as hell!! I have ridden XO and XT for a long time but the shifting on the Box is SOOOO much better for me. The push push shifter takes 2 seconds to get used to. 9.8 fall line dropper with 175mm drop feels really smooth, time will tell how long it lasts. WTB Volt saddle..... Not sure this will be on the bike for to long. Will probably put a Spez Henge on in this week but I will give the Volt one more longer ride today. 120mm of UNBOTTOMOUTABLE rear suspension is great! This was one of the main reasons I went with the Evil The Following out of all the bikes I have tested. Stopping things are Formula Cura brakes. Reviews looks good on them but I will test them out in the next few rides and decide if they stay on or get swopped out for my XO trail brakes that's on the Epic. Handle bar is Box X 35mm Carbon bars. They look a bit weird but I'm sure I will get used to that. Fork is the MRP Ribbon. Still need to get mine fine tuned but I have ridden the Ribbon and it is great. All and all, I like it a lot!!!

Went for a quick Helderberg session las night.

All build up and ready to ride!

Someone dropped this boxes off for me at my office. Luckily it is 17:00 now and I can start building up whatever is inside this boxes.

Anybody here that owns a size large Dee Dar and lives around Cape Town - Somerset West area? I am in the market for a steel hardtail and the Dee Dar is the bike that ticks all the boxes. Just one problem, not sure if the Large frame will fit me. I'm 1.87m tall with longer legs than torso. So, I would like to see if I will fit on the bike before I go ahead and buy one. Any help would be appreciated.

I’m busy building myself a dining room table. Oregon top with rectangular steel tubing for the legs and frame. I would like to keep the frame and legs raw steel with the little bit of rust that is on there, not paint it. Does anybody know what I can use on the steal to prevent it from further rusting. I see some of the folks in USA use a product called Penetrol for this. Anybody here that have used Penetrol for this application? I would also like to get your recommendations on what oil you would use on the table top. The top will not get a lot of abuse and I don’t want to seal it with varnish.

I wish I could say this is my bike.... This was a demo bike, had it for a weekend to test ride. Absolute BEAST on the technical and downhill stuff and still a pleasure to ride on the open farm roads. Want to pull the trigger on this bike but kind of in 2 minds between this and an Camber Comp Carbon with a 130mm Pike upgrade. The Camber does not have that "I hate you" factor as you so nicey put it, but it is about R15,000 less with same spec......

Some not so boring farm rides!

Maybe the 80/20 ratio you are talking about is the symptom of bike companies making entry level XC bikes and Joe Average buying what he thinks is a bike capable of riding techy single track like Nino Schurter. Poor Joe gets to the single track and the bike does not want to do what Nino’s bike does, so instead he walks down the trail. Maybe if Joe bought a entry level short travel trail bike he would be riding down the trail instead of walking. So, are bike companies catering for a gap in the market or are they creating the 80/20 ratio?

Entered!! I think they should make it compulsory that at least half of each activity should be done off road or at least on gravel road. We don’t want any inexperienced riders take on “the most difficult MTB race in the world” without being able to ride off road.

Toughest MTB event or toughest MTB race? My question is: If there is no prize money for winning the Freedom Challenge, is it still regarded as an MTB race or is it just that, a challenge?

This weekend I went riding at Helderberg trails. When we got to the bottom we cycled back up to do the downhill single track again. When we got to the bottom for a 2nd time I would not have mind to do it again if it was not for the not so flat sections to the top. So, I can totally see why someone would want a pedal assist bike if money was not an object. No MTB'er will only have an pedal assist bike, this will obviously be one of your n + 1 bikes. At the moment I have to working legs that are able to get me to the top of a mountain at least 2 times and a bank account that will not get me to the top of that mountain for a 3rd time. If I did have that kind of bank account then there are far more important stuff to buy than a pedal assist bike. For those that say you will buy it when you are 75, not sure that will happen. I you are to old to cycle to the top, surely you will be to old to shred down the mountain. Not saying 75 year old toppies cannot shred down hill, I'm sure there are some out there that can. What I don't understand is how will a pedal assist bike get MTB'er banned. If it does not have a throttle and only powers up when you pedal, how does this pose a risk to fellow riders or cause damage to the trails? I do understand that if I cycle to the top with hard earned sweat and leg power and someone on a pedal assist bike passes me on the uphill only to turn out not having any skill on the decent and prevents me from getting that PR or KOM on a Strava segment that I will be pissed off! But that is not the fault of the bike but rather the "box" on the bike.