Rapunzel

specialized Jett - it's about 250g, doesn't look like an over-stuffed couch and it's comfortable for me B)

that's the first I've heard of stray dogs at Majik and I'm there at least once a week. Will definitely take the pepper spray along and make sure it's readily accessible. Thanks for the warning and hope you make a quick recovery.

Bikemonster is correct - the width is the first thing to check and saddles generally come in 3 widths: 130, 143 and 155. Most bike shops have a gel gadget which you can sit on and it leaves indentations which they measure to get an idea of how wide apart your sit bones are. When you get measured, ask if you can test ride a saddle because you'll need an hour or two before you can really tell if it works for you or not. I had a look at a recent event and the selle italia ladies gel saddle was by far the most popular. I use the Specialized Ruby on my road bike and a specialized Jett on my mtb.

I'm not exactly a pro on this one, but lactic acid isn't likely to affect the ph of your digestive tract. I've not had heartburn or indigestion to test it on, but a lemon juice and water mix is supposed to assist your body to correct it's ph. Try mixing the juice of half a lemon in a cup of warm water and let us know if it works There's been a lot of talk about our body's ph and how our diet affects it. You can find a basic list of acid and alkaline foods here http://www.energiseforlife.com/list_of_alkaline_foods.php

I put "pro" bar ends on the end of my flat bars after suffering numb hands after 3+ hours on the bike. Didn't think I used them that much until I took them off last week. Only disadvantage is that they can catch on vegetation. pro's include veriety of hand positions - no numb hands and additional leverage (particularly climbing out of the saddle).

Hey Pete I've got the model before that - the white and red Time shoes dating back to about '91. They are disintegrating so just replaced them with a pair of DMT's. Mtb shoes - 1 year old Olympics

I had a problem with scratches on some glass panels and I polished the worst of it using felt and a buffing compound which I got from a local optician (don't recall what it's called, but it's a very fine pink powder).

my bad - won't head through there again two of us had been using it as a way to get from Meerendal to contermanskloof but now that there's a green corridor for tbmtb members, theres a safer way to get from contermans to meerendal without having to brave dogs or vissershok road traffic (the first option was the safer).

As far as I understand - bicycles are allowed on national roads but not on freeways (ie with high speed feed off/in). It's arguably safer and less inconvenient to other road users to train on wider roads using the shoulder when there's a following vehicle. Blocking a minor road at 35km/hour with a backup vehicle would be perfectly legal but I don't think motorists would appreciate it too much

most of us girls tend to not eat enough protein - it helps keep you full for longer. Try to incorporate a bit of protein with each meal (eg tuna on low GI bread for lunch and yoghurt or egg with your breakfast cereal). Unfortunately a lot of us also tend to have a "preferred body weight". To fall under this may be difficult to achieve and maintain and may also negatively affect your performance.

if you're in for a few nasty climbs, try riding Meerendal trail and then onto the jeep track to the top of the hill. Use dubious route through the quarry (don't know what the status is on whether we're allowed to ride here - just ensure you can ride faster than the guard dogs can run). Make your way to malanshoogte road to contermanskloof farm. Follow contermanskloof trail across the top of the hill and into hillcrest and do the red route. Get back to Durbanville start via D'Aria (riding up what some refer to as super speedway) and then single track from substation all the way to the bottom of Majik. Remember - if you're not a TBMTB member then you'll have to bring a few bucks along as this traverses 3 "pay to use" trails. I don't know details for sure, but it's about 45km with about 1200m climbing.

well short of putting myself on a stretching rack so I can try out my brother's 29er, it's not going to happen anybody know if what's happening with the scott 2011 29er range yet?

..and what are the chances of getting a test ride on the Kahuna in cpt?

I suppose it also depends on where you're weak. If the hills kill you then the extra weight of a dual suspension probably won't be a good call but if you're technically challenged then the dual suspension is more forgiving. I changed to a dual suspension prior to changing to longer distance events and I don't regret the change. however I am still very tempted to switch to a lighter hardtail for the shorter races (3 hours or less).

Hi there Dirtman Will there be signeage up for members who can't get there on the weekend?

accuweather.com has the temperature at -2 by 8pm and the realfeel at -6. OUCH!!

I found the crank length on the calculator interesting - if my recommended mtb size is between 17" and 18" and recommended crank length is 170 (probably due my small feet). so why do most mountain bikes come out with 175mm cranks even on their small and medium models?

where do frames fit in?

It sounds daft when you're at home in front of the fireplace with warm toes my size 4 feet fit into the jiffy bag but you'll probably need something a touch bigger and just trim the extra off. It sounds daft but I'm loathe to spend a fortune on booties and then find they don't work. The jiffy trick helped a bit riding in De Doorns 3 weeks ago in 3 degrees (only took 30km to defrost my feet and legs where I'd normally still be frozen after a 50km race). I suppose the most important thing is to keep your core warm and a bit of extra winter insulation could help.

as for the jiffy bags - they're brilliant. I normally put a thin pair of socks on first, then jiffybags then my normal mtb socks. It not only stops the wind chill but it keeps the feet dry after the inevitable river crossings this time of year. I've never had a problem with blisters or feet slipping.

.... on their indoor trainers? nobody training outside in capetown in weather like this is a sissy

Did mine august last year and no operation. Shoulder also hangs a bit lower and it hurts a bit in certain positions (just rode with 1 hand for the first 2-3 weeks). Just make sure you see a physio - don't want to end up with frozen shoulder.

I spoke to Dave Clark from racetec re seedings and he pointed out some obvious challenges for mtb seeding. Route markings are not always good so not all riders complete the full distance eg Faircape (many organisers are still on a learning curve). Argus MTB also couldn't be used for seeding due to routes being cut short due to the heat. I think the correct action to take would be to mail pedal power with a list of your results, requesting a review of your seeding. Hopefully this can resolve your problems until a more suitable system can be established.

The only PPA sanctioned event missing was the Lourensford mtb from October 2010. The problem is that the qualifying race criteria are the same for road and mtb and MTB events aren't condusive to huge fields. The whole seeding process revolves around the Argus cycle tour and I think it is time for it to change to be more inclusive of different distances and disciplines.

anybody else only do mtb events? My seeding is down to S!!! Only 2 of the 12 races I did last year count for seeding which is really frustrating. Is the argus mtb event only going to be considered in the next seeding run?