Cadre

Correction, "se Muff af..." has never been part of the expression. Don't know where you get that from. You are right, the days when the Bluff was Rough and Tough are long gone. We have all settled into Careers and Families, most have relocated, others emigrated. The Heyday of the "Ruff and Tuff" tag was during the Border war around the 70's and early 80's. Grosvenor Boys High school was the epicenter for copious supply of hardy boys. Dirkie Uys and Grosvenor annual rugby clash was called the BOER WAR and sideline fights of opposing parents were guaranteed. I got drilled by a left hook myself..and it was a woman who hit me for no reason. I was just standing at my Inside Centre position, before the ref blew the whistle for the start of the game in '82. We have moved on. Judges, pilots, doctors, preachers etc. and many are still living on the Bluff and we are still getting together. Jakes "Rooibaard" Oosthuizen was a S/Sgt from the Bluff, phenomenal soldier. He would bite your ears till blood flows on the parade ground if you complained about 5SAI in Ladysmith. With his beard full of blood, he would continue training Infantry soldiers the rest of the day. "Ek sal 'n koei se Po@s oor jou kop trek laat 'n bul jou brains uitnaa@." was his trademark saying. Bluff oke per definition.. There many older characters left on the Bluff, but those youngsters claiming allegiance to the old habits, occasional deranged norms of yesteryear and sometimes questionable values of those days are talking nonsense. Just softie Millennials these days.

"Cost" were pointed out. Over the years I have built up a good friendship with management at the Intersite Road Branch in Durban...so yesterday we engaged in all kinds of small talk whilst the staff were fitting a new cassette and chain on the bike. On a question of when they are leaving for Greenpoint, Reesa dropped the bomb and said that the combined escalation in cost has rendered the exercise futile. He did not single out any single cost but remarked on the overall basket of expenses. I was left saddened as, to me, the Solomons stand is as synonmous with CTCT as is Beetroot salad with Christmas Lunch.

Learnt yesterday that one of the most popular exhibititors at CTCT won't be displaying at Greenpoint Stadium this year. Solomons, also my LBS, cited some all too familiar reasons why they won't pitch this year. Always made a point of dropping by to say Hi to the blokes from Durban. They will be missed.

Worth the trip from Durban. No complaints whatsoever. A small improvement might be a Portaloo or six right next to the start. Otherwise a lekka day out. We are safely home in Durban.I will be back next year.

On Dad!!! Wheelchair in March and crutches for another two months and then extensive physio and acupuncture after I badly ripped my Right Leg Abductor muscle in a massive wipe-out and a bus stopping inches away from my face, and that at 4am on a Wednesday morning. Very grateful to be alive and given another chance. Feeling strong enough for the 110km. Bring it on.

I have not left Cape Town with a positive feeling.....for two years running Third time lucky, I hope?

Dear CTCT, Please give me the template for download on your website. Leave a space to enable printing. I will insert name and number that matches my hidden racetec chip number (to negate the cheat). I will print the number and provide my own safety pins. Those unable to print themselves will have to queue at the stadium. Sorry. I will tick the box where you ask if I am participating, should you need to know. If I feel like picking up the racepack I will do so...or not.

It gets worse on Race Day. Einstein in 2G (2015) decides to stop deadstill on a fast downhill, on the very righthand side of the road which is meant for the faster blokes to overtake. There he proceeded to enjoy a GU sachet of personal taste. A high speed collision resulted which I can still see in my minds eye. Visions of a summersault, bike in hand, onto a tarred pavement, tends to stick in ones mind. The bloke broke a hip and destroyed a very expensive bike. Einstein seemed to be mostly unaffected with serious injury.

So glad I can ride with the others on the 11th of March.

Narrghh...not worried about any of that....Demonstrations, wind, roadworks, earthquakes, falling rocks and cheap see-through bibs... you name it. All of little concern this year. I will ride around and through adversity. Infact, I want to write my race report right now... "All was good, and you guessed right, I was the heavy breather in 2D".

Could anyone from Durban, flying to CT on Mango, part with info on bike transport arrangements, please. In the past we had to take the bike to KING SHAKA Cargo Terminal a few days before. Bidvest used to fly the bikes down a few days before and back a few days after the race. I haven't heard a thing yet. No email yet and also no special notice on the website either. The lady at Mango Customer Service says there might be an alternative arrangement this year, but cannot say for sure. Nor can she say when an announcement will be made. Input will be mostly welcomed. Thanks.

The Goodie bag is more of an added bonus these days. Not many races even pass a water-bottle with their race nomenclature over to say thanks for taking the trouble to support us. The rest of the goodies, as you say, are eagerly scooped up by the kids. The contents are not much to you and I, but it certainly helps to canvas future cyclists, albeit in a commercial way. The setup at Garden court was flawless. The freshly brewed coffee outside was superb and very strong. Both eyes in the same socket stuff. Can't fault the organizers on the efficiency. In and out in less than 7 minutes.

Light Tailwind out of Maritzburg all the way to Cato Ridge. From Pinetown expect a gentle headwind (and no protection) coming at you from a "10 o'clock" direction. Last few 3 km's is into the face of the gentle headwind, as always. Be back in Durban before 2 pm on Monday as we expect another heavy rainstorm.

DL

A day for racing turned into a prep for 94.7. Pile-up down ou-wapad left my rear shifter broken off at the handlebar mounting. Front brake Rotor bent as well, but I moered it with a klip into some kind of submission. Rode for 80 km against my front brakes (Chi-chi-chi). Was lucky to find some helpful people at the bridge on the R62 who had cable-ties in the car. That somewhat secured my front-shifter in a rudimentary way. Needless to say, pedaling against brakes left me cramping at the 85km mark, like the was no tomorrow. A very hard race for me. But... I finished.. and I will be back.