winesteyn

is there a way to get a late entry?

Hey Simon I am also looking for a riding partner but i mostly ride on weekends at Tokai. PM me if you are interested and we could get together for some weekend rides. JC

Gents I normally dont do this but i feel something has to be done about the poor service i receive from the bike stores. I have on been trying to get my hands on Specialized 2013 shoes since October. I have contacted two bike stores (Olympic cycles and Helderberg Cycle works) Both took my details as the stock hadn't arrived in SA for various reasons. They both promised they would call back as soon as the stock had arrived. Neither of these stores called me back despite me calling them approximately 5 times to inquire as i know for a fact the stock had arrived. I have as yet sill not recieved a call and its now 3 months later. This is common practice for Olympic cycles and i can unfortunately say the the in-store service is no better. At the same time i would like to commend CWC for their excellent service!! I have given up on Specialized and rather gone for a brand they stock purely due to better service levels.

Hey Zula Im keen. I normally ride the Durbanville trails. If you do all four it ends up being around 55km of tough riding. Let me know if you are keen.

Sounds good. What days of the week and do u ride late afternoons?

I will be in Knysna from the 19th till the 25th. Anyone keen for a MTB partner let me know or if there is already a few groups let me know too.

I used to have all kinds of pain on both knees. First it was an ITB like pain but was not right at the ITB. Went for an operation but the pain was still there. I tried deep tissue massage and it helps, only thing is its a bit costly. Then I also developed a pain on the top of my knee cap. Not deep. I then found a physio that told me to stretch. I now stretch all the time, before and after rides. Also use a roller to help "soften" the muscles while stretching. I recently did the karoo to coast and after 4.45hrs on bike had no pain. Knee pain of front of knee is without a doubt as result of too low saddle and tight muscles in my case.

Where do you feel the pain?

Always lock my fork when not going downhill. Also find that when going steep uphill and you might stand for a few seconds, if the fork is unlocked you loose traction way more than if it were locked.

Think its this! http://www.thefixfixfix.com/fix/

Ouch!

@MDW I never said I dont believe it works, I just stated what I READ, thanks for clearing it up. Will give it a try!! Would you recommend the chews in conjunction with the drink?

Read the new study in april/may ride mag. They dont seem to think 32GI works at all.

I also have a click, but my one physio said lots of people do and I dont find it bothers me yet. I do agree with hboli4 that stretching will sometimes help alleviate the problem caused by a weak muscle somewhere else. ie. you stretch the strong muscle on the opposite side of the weak one as it becomes tight from working harder to compensate for the weak ones lack of work. If you do not stretch it cause an imbalance in the tracking(movement) of the knee cap and knee which results in pain. Another thing I found out is that I had a weak iliopsoas muscle(large muscle that lifts the leg, inside of leg from hip to knee) and therefore had muscles that attatch to my ITB (outside of leg) much stronger and this also placed strain on my ITB as a result of overcompansation. Another probloem that i had was my quads were very tight which caused pain on the kneecap almost right under the skin. As can be seen tight muscles aggravate joints hugely. Hope it all helps.

I have had knee pain(s) for the past two years on and off. Just when u think its better then another pain starts. I have been for an op, four different Physio's and a Biokineticist. I had very little success. Some did massage, some did strength exercises etc. My last physio did however manage to solve the problem. It was a weak muscle as well as tight muscles. We did some strength exercises BUT the major impact was just plain and simple stretching. I cant emphasis how much it helped. I stretch before, during and after rides. Whenever I feel some slight tightness (not pain) and I must say even when i had pain on the front of my knee I streched for 1 day before a ride and instaed of riding for 1 hour I could easily ride for 3 hours with NO pain. Massga eis also an option but its basically loosening the tight muscles and its costly too. I also use a roller maybe once or twice a week more as a prevantative tool. Good luck, hope my advice helps.