KevinG

Awesome event. Second year I've done it and great trails. Well organized, from camping to after race entertainment. Amazing trails/routes. Suggest the Friday night ride made a bit shorter. Not because it's too tough, just a stretch for a lot of riders to get there in time for the start and then only able to set up camp afterwards. Average rider took about 2h30min which means after showering, eating and setting up camp it is quite late. Maybe 25k's. Well done again to the entire team. Will be back next year.

Any more route info available? Maps, profiles?

I'm looking for trail maps of the routes in Montague. Anyone know who to contact.

Are there any detailed maps available anywhere of the Grabouw MTO forest routes? A lot of new single track built through there as ridden on W2W.

R5000 to upgrade to the luxury tent option on W2W. That's R1250/person/night. That would get you a bed in a luxury game lodge like Bushman's Kloof with all the bells and whistles. That's insane! What am I missing?

I had the same problem. Because of the sizing of the Columbia kit, they allocated the same sizing in the Assos Amabubezi tops to riders. So if you ordered Large kit you got a Large Amabubezi top. Unfortunately for you, they don't make anything bigger that an XL. I asked, got given a XL, handed back my L. Luckily the XL just fits me.

What was your impression of the GR300 this year? My thoughts: Great event in an absolutely great location. But they dropped the ball this year. Day 1: Missing out the Harkerville red route singles, what a waste of some of the best riding in the Western Cape! Day 2: That portage.....what were they thinking??? The last 25k's on the road, although easy and a nice finish, doesn't do much for the route. Starting in Rheenendal was not the greatest option. It breaks away from the whole concept that this race is low admin. Start and finish in one place. Ride from your accommodation to the start. Day 3: Same last 25k's as day 2. Why? The venue: Nice location but the food was shocking. What can be done: Don't try and radically change the route every year. Keep it more or less the same but tweak certain section from year to year, much like W2W. Have an option for entering without the catered option. Pay less if you don't include meals. Any other thoughts?

Got one if you want.

I realize that Chappies is closed to traffic after all the mudslides, but does anybody know if you can get through on a MTB? Wanting to do a Peninsula loop on Sunday riding from Noordhoek side to Hout Bay. Possible? Allowed?

Are you still selling your entry for reals. I'll buy it.

Make sure you compare apples with apples. Standard Spark 920 differs from Booth. Also remember the Booth you can spec according to your budget. Booth full carbon: 920 rear triangle alloy Booth breakset XT: 920 breakset SLX Booth FD XT: 920 FD SLX Booth stem, bar and seatpost carbon: 920 all alloy Booth ZTR wheelset: 920 Syncros wheelset Booth Fox Factory fork with kashima: 920 Fox Evolution fork no kashima Booth Fox CTD shock with Kashima: 920 (2013) DT Swiss Nude shock If you are getting a 920 with full XT for R30k, don't hesitate and buy it. But make sure it's full XT.

Climbing is very good and it handles the descents like a charm. I do have a 120mm Talas fork on the bike which makes a difference.

I have purchased a bike from carbon29er.com and done many miles of riding on it including Epic, Attakwas, W2W, Sani2C and Garden Route 300. Very happy with the frame and my chosen spec and off course the price. Only thing I think that can be improved would be to have through axle at the rear to stiffen up the rear triangle and I would choose Hope hubs over the Stan's 3.3's. They've given me some bearing issues, but that is no reflection on the frame or the build.

Do you want Citrusdal or Cederberg? Two very different places. Cederberg is littered with accommodation options but mostly cottages sleeping 4-6 people. Sandrift in the Cederberg has cottages that range from 4 sleepers to 10 sleepers. Check www.cederbergwine.com. In Citrusdal try Erika van Zyl cel: 082 783 9910.12 Sleeper with 5 bathrooms on a farm just outside town. email: admin@middelpost.co.za.

I have purchased a GoPro Hero2 with battery bacpac. Both brand new and fully charged. Anybody else got this combo and how long does your battery last? I find mine varies a great deal and have even had longer run time with the single battery than with both batteries. Max time I have got with both batteries has been 4 hours and max with one battery has been 3 hours. GoPro claim an almost double run time with both batteries, but I am not finding that. What are your observations?

Anybody who did this event earlier this year, do you perhaps have your GPS/Garmin tracks of the routes you could share with me? Would be appreciated.

I am planning 3 days of riding in Cederberg based at Sandrif. Over the last few years we have done a lot of riding in the area and I am looking for new routes. JdB, you don't perhaps have GPS/Garmin tracks of the routes you cycled around Sandrif?

2012 was my first Epic and being your first, your nerves will tell you to do more than you really need to. But that's not a bad thing. October/November/December do low intensity long rides. Jan/Feb do higher intensity rides. If you live in the Cape here are a few suggestions: W2W is a good starter stage race but a bit early in your training program to give you any indication of fitness level. Cederberg stage race in January will give you a good indication of how you will handle the heat on the Epic. Attakwas is an excellent indicator of how you will handle a day of 8 hours. It replicates an average stage of the Epic well. Knysna 300 is good to test 3 days of proper climbing. Most important thing while training: Always have fun. As soon as you loose the fun factor you will find it harder to motivate yourself to train. So make your rides enjoyable, interesting and varied. Try train at different locations. Good luck and enjoy. It will be one of your most rewarding achievements.

I see a lot of guys upgrading the standard Giant P-XC2 29" rims to other brands. Why is this? I have had no problems with my rims and don't think they are much heavier than a lot of sub R5k brands. The only issue I have found has been that I seem to have a problem getting tires to seat on the rim (tubeless conversion). Is this possibly the reason for the upgrade? How can I improve the seating on the rim? If I flat I cannot inflate with a bomb, which means putting in a tube for roadside repairs.

Epic 2012 route is out. Stage 3 147km with almost 3000m of clinbing

I use a Garmin 310xt and download my data to Training center and Garmin Connect. How do these programs work out the total ascent? I did 7weekspoort and the ascent on the website is 1276, training center worked it out as 1344 and garmin connect worked it out as 1975. I have found these discrepancies often. Which is accurate?

Check the following link for a good buy for your mate. http://capetown.gumtree.co.za/c-Stuff-for-Sale-sports-bicycles-fitness-Mongoose-Meteore-Elite-W0QQAdIdZ245954246

Not sure where you are based, but Cycle Factory in Montague Gardens is selling the Ghost and Merida for about R22k each. Carbon, full XT and weight under 12kg's. Good value for money. Check their website for details.

Did anybody do the Piketberg MTB race yesterday? What did you think? What can be improved on this new event?

I tend to agree that it could be dud. Unfortunately I am doing K2C this weekend and they cannot get a new one in time, so I am going to regrease and use it. LBS says it should be ok for K2C. Will replace and inspect it next week. Waiting for a reply on warranty issue from CRC.