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I bought a Fandango MTB Tandem from MTBTandems.com = Great!

I use Crossmark on the rear of my 26er, and monorail on the front, and am happy with this. On the 29er, for some reason Maxxis don't make the Monorail in 29er Size, so I use Crossmarks front and rear. Crossmarks are excellent 'all round', but next to useless in thick mud - still my recommendation though.

Hi Johan, Slight hijack, but still related (?) Are people's feet getting wider? I have VERY wide feet - as a 'youth' I used to wear Doc Martins, and my foot used to 'stretch' the leather (eventually) and 'overhang' the sole on the outside. I recently went back to the 'traditional' Doc Martins and, over the last couple of years, they have changed the last to a wider last. I had Nike Kato MTB Shoes which were wider than any others, and were a great shoe for me - unfortunately Nike have 'got out' of the cycling shoe business, and I've never found any that fit as well. Occasionally you see 'new old stock' or second hand Nikre Kato shoes come up on EBay, and they sell for stupid money (a lot more than I paid for them when they were 'current', so there are obviously a number of people who still want them. It seems like most cycling shoes are built on what they call an 'Italian Last' - If you, like me, have a 'high volume foot', which is wide, with high arches it seems to be that, in cycling, you're doomed to never find any really good fitting shoes!

Thanks Johan - just getting organised, and (Not) looking forward to Winter! I guess those cold, dark nights will give me chance to biuld up those wheels, and keep the DAL series going! on my list are: A 26er Rear Wheel - Hope Pro 2 Hub and American Classic Rim A pair of 29er wheels - Hope Pro 2 Hubs and ZTR Crest Rims Cheers, Dave. p.s. Can I have the job, and will you pay travelling expenses!

I'm more like 120kg, so you're not heavy (since I'm not!). I have American Classics, and have not had a problem, but my next build will be Hope Hubs and Crest Rims

Me - Me - ME Can I - Can I - Can I? Will you pay travelling expenses? (you see - gone, but not forgotten! - I'm still 'lurking') Cheers Johan!

I think you just need to be careful with the rim 'width' as well! I have fitted a set of 29er wheels (Velocity Rims) with a Continental GP4000 in 700 25C width - no problem, but some of the MTB rims are too wide for a narrow tyre - you may need to go up to a 34C or a 38C (we're talking tyres here ) if the rim is wide! As was said, on most 26er MTB's, you can get this to fit - you're most likely to have a problem putting this combo on a 26er Soft-Tail,due to suspension clearance issues. My wife used this combo (albeit with a wheelset made up of MTB hubs and road 700C rims) on her Scot Scale 26er for her first 94.7.

I ride 32-hole wheels on my 26er (and 32-hole Americal Classics on my 29er) - Johan recommended that, bearing in mind my weight , I go '36-hole' on some 29er Wheels I'm going to build but, unfortunately, lightweight rims in 36-hole are like Hens Teeth, so I've decided on 32-hole Hope Pro II Hubs, Competition Spokes and (obviouisly) 32-hole ZTR Crest Rims for my 29er Wheels (Hubs and spokes in Silver, and Rims in White (with stickers removed) - as I'm breaking with tradition)

I got the hubs, as a great deal, from here on TheHub - brand new, and unused, R1,500 the pair - the Rims from CRC GBP58.08 plus SA VAT (say R750 each, all in), and then I went on Johan Bornman's Wheel Building Course and built them there. So, if you ignore the cost of the course, about R4,000 with DT Swiss Revolution Spokes - all in! Fantastic set of wheels

Sorry Bman - a bit of an 'in joke' for others reading - if you see my bikes (and my closthes) I remouve stickers and labels off everything! Have you ever seen a pair of Black Fox Forks withe all the stickers removed? Plain and beautiful! ZTR Crest Rims are plain black once you remove the stickers

Hope Pro II Hubs DT Swiss Revolution Spokes (or wheelsmith)or even DT Swiss Competition Spokes and ZTR Crest Rims (with the stickers removed )

I know - I was building my (rather standard) 29er wheels at the same time!

Are these the one's that Johan was assembling?

I do - though my Trance already had one

Johan, Friday 29th April for Me 7th and 8th May is the Honda Trophy, so I can't make that If you can make it Friday 29th, count me in! Cheers, Dave.

I ride a Trance X1, and was riding a Scandal hardtail 29er - I've recently moved over to a Kona Hei-Hei softtail 29er (3 1/2 inch rear travel as opposed to the 5 inch of rear travel on the Trance) and I have to say that the Trance and the 29er Hei-Hei are very similar. Both have their pros and cons - the Trance obviously wins in the tight single track stuff, but I prefer the Hei-Hei for everything else. But before I'm flamed, I'm neither a rabid fan of 29er's or of 26er's - each has their merits, and eich is better at somethings than others. At the end of the day, it's down to what you feel most comfortable on!

I was at the Farm yesterday morning, and felt 'safe' in the Farm - I did see one lone MTBer riding on the side of the road from Cedar Road towards the Farm, and thought it was 'something I wouldn't do' If you're going to ride TO Northern Farm, I WOULD NOT do it alone!

I've done 4 of the 35km races (3 last year, and one this) - I find them a good race, well organised, and about right in terms of a challenge (OK for almost anyone to complete, but tough enough to be a challenge). The conditions are 'weather dependant' - if it is dry, there is some sand to contend with, and if it is wet, there is some mud to contend with. If I remember correctly, there is a tough section from around 19K to around 25K (constant up grade, with one or two short but rocky climbs), but then it is OK to the finish, with the last 2K or so on the road. Depending on conditions, the 35K takes me from around 1:50 to 2:15 (and I'm not fast by any means!) I'm in for a new challenge on the next one - I'm doing the 70K , which I think is nearer 60K. Overall I recommend it, though have newer done Buffeslpoort, so can not compare.

As Eldron says, I think it's basically down to what 'series' equipment you're used to - if you currently run Shimano, then go for XTR - if you currently run SRAM, go for X0. I was building a bike with a friend at the weekend using SRAM and it took twice as long as with Shimano (all my bikes are Shimano), since it was not 'second nature'. So I think both are excellent, it's just a matter of personal taste.

I used this machine at Johan's this weekend, in building my wheels (hope Hubs and Crest Rims) and it is, indeed, a fantastic piece of kit - exquisite in its manufacture!

Quote from an MTN E-Mail: 'Kevin Evans commented (team 360LIFE): “After the second long climb of the day in Fisantboskloof, with a very steep descent, I realised my brakes weren’t working. I was going way to fast and needed to pick a landing spot. I crashed really hard and knew immediately I was unlikely to get up. We rode to the nearest marshals and they confirmed that I would not be riding again this week. My collar bone was definitely broken.” ' That must have been scary

Just one slip up in his Doping Regime over the last 3 years then?

I'm a similar weight to you - I find that on 'gentle' uphills, I'm fine, and can keep us with, or go faster than, others. But when the hill gets steeper, I find the 'lighter boys' ride away from me. I think for us with big bones, there is a point where the extra mass has a dramatic effect, and the power-to-weight equasion is found wanting!

It is quite distinctive - in a stealth sort of way (absolutely no branding on it whatsoever) - I started in BB - the international bunch at 07:51. Cheers, Dave.

The 'costs' are also very dependant on whether it is a 9-speed or 10-speed bike - 10-speed road flat bar shifters are very expensive (8 or 9 speed are quite cheap though). I haven't heard of anyone using 10-speed MTB shifters with road derailleurs, this might work. I rode the Argus on just such a bike that I built, and it was a much more comfortable ride - I'm of a 'larger' build