johannrissik

Ag jinne korporaal, moet jou nie alewig dom astrant hou nie... "Locked gate" (= gate which is locked, to deny access). I have never seen that gate locked. Closed, yes. Locked? No. = own goal ?

Ketoors, Ketoors, come now..... "there is a locked gate (has been for at least 30yrs now)." You know as well as I do that is patently untrue. "The fact that there is now a newer, bigger gate does not change anything and you or anybody else do not have the authority to decide if it does not belong there or to enter the property without the proper authorisation. I am not talking about "entering the property without proper authorisation", I am talking about exercising the right to use a public right of way. I'm going to miss you, Ketoors.

OK, let me be the spanner in the works: That video says absolutely nothing new. Just SRAM capitalising on modern trends in urban mobility. I guess if it gets more people thinking of bicycles as transport, rather than toys, then good.

Neither can this idiot... http://i.imgur.com/quRkrD6.gif edit spelling

I'm not rushing you, take your time, but I'd like some clear answers please. You are not wasting your time, I really want to get to the bottom of this to find out what it is that you think I don't understand.

Please explain which facts you think I am "misrepresenting". It doesn't help to simply make sweeping allegations, please be specific. It might interest you to know that I met one of the landowners on one of my trips up Die Leer, a polite and friendly man who made no mention of any access issues. It would be helpful if you could attempt to address some of my earlier questions.

As I understand it, no one has sought permission in the past. I have personally in the past been up Die Leer without asking permission. So have many mountain bikers, hikers and even horse riders. Farmers living in the Vleiland area have used Die Leer in the past and continue to use it. Then you as landowners start insisting on permission from the Freedom Challenge (and in the case of the landowner at the top, payment). When you were told that permission would not be sought as a public right of way you initially threatened legal action but then decided to take the law into your own hands, erecting razor wire and "arresting" people passing through. It seems to me that you rely on the law and what is right only when it suits you. For the rest, it's perhaps still a little lawless in the Gamkaskloof.

Ag Ketoors... I had merely felt it necessary to point out a potential hazard to wildlife, but thank you for acting on my request anyway. Why on earth would you place razor wire on a public path? What were you trying to deterr?

Not yet, but I hear that Specialized are bringing out oval 650B wheels soon.

Maybe you'd like to address some of the issues I have raised? I would like to suggest that youconsider removing the razor wire which you had strewn in the bush at the northern end of your electrified fence. It poses a potentially serious threat to wildlife (kudu, leopard, duiker etc) as the fence channels these animals towards the razor wire.

If I understand you correctly, you are suggesting that the right of way was somehow limited to the farmers living in the kloof and their visitors. I am not sure where that puts the bushmen who were there before the farmers arrived and whose presence is recorded in the rock paintings located on your property, but that is a side issue. Based on what you say, am I correct then in assuming that in your version it means that members of the Mostert/Joubert/Cordier families who have lived in the kloof for a number of generations enjoyed the right of way? Given that they still live there, do they continue to do so? Am I also correct in assuming that it is extended to their visitors and guests and continues to do so? Or did you issue them with their own key to the locked gate and a magic method for getting past your unlawfully erected razor wire? You demand that your rights are respected but refuse to recognise the rights of the public, or, for that matter, the rights of your neighbours who have lived in the kloof for many generations. As an aside, I would like to take this opportunity to alert you to the danger posed to wildlife by casually strewn razor wire. Animals can become entangled in it, and then die an agonising death as their tendons are slashed by the razor wire. ( It is not the same as a razor wire on a properly constructed fence.)

There are other helmet options out there...but this one I'm not too sure about. http://marionferrec.com/Helmet

Your worst nightmare would have been wondering WTF happened when you woke up in hospital. Look at it this way, be happy you found it now. Good luck in getting it sorted.

It's certainly a complex issue...proven efficacy.....personal choice...blablabla. If one is arguing from a legislation angle, then motorists and their passengers should wear them too, assuming the purpose of legislation is to protect people from their own and other people's stupidity. Arguing from an efficacy point of view, is there solid, empirical evidence to show that they work? Lot's of us know people who are still alive thanks to the polystyrene pot, so maybe they do? On that note.....http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC300808/pdf/32701459.pdf It's always an interesting discussion.

Mikael ‏@copenhagenize3 Jul Would everyone who promotes bike helmets but NOT also motorist helmets please leave the debate? Thank you. http://motoringhelmet.com Retweeted by Johann RissikExpand Reply Retweeted Favorite More Just some more fuel to the fire...it being winter and all

Wait a minute... It is grossly unfair on genuine development riders and their mentors to make broad generalisations. Think for a moment what Martin Dreyer and many others do. This particular bunch (and their "coach") should have been nailed. Hard.

A public right of way is just that, a public right of way. A landowner does not have the right to offer exclusive access on a public right of way. Die Leer is a public right of way and this right needs protection. That said, I am the first to respect the privacy of landowners (and don't even get me started on littering..) There is a perfectly sensible and mutually beneficial solution to this issue. It involves respecting rights.

Under one of those stones is a small bit of paper that says "Jan Boom was hier"...because he was

Thank you, I will do my best.

I used Caffelatex a few years back, as they were launching it. Worked fine, I'd put it on a par with Stans and it was much cheaper initially. Then they yanked the price up....byebye. Batseal/Stans work fine for me. I still want to find a source of cheap latex to make my own...I have a recipe.

Marnitz who ? Not sure where he is?

(If Johann does not have his tongue firmly in his cheek, the story here is as follows:)........................ Absolutely not tongue in cheek. You have described the situation regarding the access issue very well, thanks tubed.

Drama in Gamkaskloof today.... David and I were unlawfully arrested by the son of one of the landowners for attempting to make use of a public route. We were detained by this young fellow for over 4 hours. We were released at approximately 21h45, David rode on up Die Leer, I drove back to PA to report on the situation to Race Office (no comms in the valley). Suffice to say that these landowners have erected an electrified fence and locked gate across a public route, they also chose to festoon the base of Die Leer with razor wire. DWK fencing pliers were useful. I met Martin and Jeannie down in the kloof at 22h15.

Howling, no rain and not too cold, but h o w l i n g. Eina. Edit =Rethink Would be a great day to ride TO WilleMoere.

They leave a swath of starving farmers in their wake......