amac

I suggest you look second hand and get the lightest you can afford. Momsen also make nice kids bikes. Especially if you can find one in the superlight range.

And comes with a crash replacement warranty.

The Anthem and Top Fuel only have space for one bottle cage. The Supercaliber accommodates 2. This is an important consideration for some.

I apologise if you think I was condescending. My intention was to be helpful.

Hi Frosty Thanks for clarifying. The point I was making is that the victims were members of CSA.

Hi Dave The problem is that you cannot compel a victim to testify against an alleged perpetrator.

Hi Chris It may or may not have been referred to SAPS. CSA is entitled to deal with the matter because Mr. Bester is a coach who is accredited by CSA. Two (presumably licensed cyclists) complained to CSA. This is similar to the Alberto Salazar case in America where He was given a lifetime coaching ban.

I have followed this thread and it is clear that many people do not understand legal process. All I know about this matter is what is contained in the CSA statement. It is apparent: 1. Mr Bester is an accredited coach. ( Accredited by CSA) 2. Two complaints were made against him to CSA. 3. CSA held a hearing and Mr. Bester was found guilty of improper conduct and was punished by CSA. 4. The CSA decision could be reviewed by higher legal authority. That could result in the punishment being upheld, amended or set aside. 5. The burden of proof at the CSA hearing is "proof on a balance of probabilities." In a criminal case the burden of proof is " beyond reasonable doubt." 6. If the CSA finding is reviewed and upheld, Mr. Bester would not have a criminal record and the review court could not impose a criminal sanction. 7. It is possible that criminal charges have been laid. It is also possible that criminal charges were not laid. Not every victim wishes to pursue justice via the criminal justice process. A criminal court does not have capacity to prevent a coach from coaching; (although an imprisoned coach is obviously unavailable.) 8. From the information contained in the CSA statement, it seems to me that CSA has handled the matter very well.

I suggest you try and find out if there are any cycling clubs or cycling groups that you can join in your area. Getting a bike and riding on your own is not the best idea for a number of reasons. ( Accidents, security, mechanical failures etc.) And if you are only going to be riding by yourself, it is my experience that it is quite easy to let yourself down. So find people to ride with. Then find out what bikes those people have. In the beginning you may not have the fitness to keep up. Don't worry, cyclists are a friendly bunch and won't mind waiting for you in the beginning. But you don't want to be unable to keep up because of lack of fitness compounded by an inappropriate bike. Your best option - and i know there are going to be howls of protest - may be to buy an e-bike. They are fun to ride and suitable for riding in groups with non e-bike riders on low power settings. You still get a very hard workout if that is what you want. As a beginner they are easier to ride than non e-bikes and they allow you to keep up with fitter riders. A reasonable e-bike is going to cost much more than R10 - 15 K but it is more likely to be well used and you may avoid buying more than once in a short time frame. Whatever you decide, I hope you enjoy the shopping experience and more so that you enjoy your new sport.

I was recently gifted a new mtb helmet. When I first put it it on it was noticeably thicker on my forehead than the one it replaced. It has a very small peak which adds to the protrusion. At first I thought I did not like this and it would compromise looking ahead. But I soon realised that it is noticeably better because it shades my eyes against the low early morning sun. With the previous one I had to lift a hand against the early rays.

I find this really interesting. At what age do kids start dreaming of elite sporting success ? I suspect that at primary school level kids aren't dreaming about anything more than success at the next event they compete at. I think kids pretty much live in the moment. I suspect that a lot of parents spoil childrens' sport. But there may well be kids that truly love swimming and being in a pool. Are they being " drilled" ? I have noticed that with for example motorsport, success is linked to starting at a young age. ( Binder, Rossi, Verstappen, Pastrana, Carmichael, Stoner etc.) I am sad that we no longer have inter provincial xco racing for nippers and sprogs. I was told that this was because the parents were overly competitive and this made the competition undesirable. I took my child to interprovincials. It was an opportunity to go away for a weekend, make friendships with people from other provinces and for the kids to play with peers at these events. Sometimes the races were disappointing because of crashes, mechanicals etc. But the race was a small part of the weekend. Overall it was really enjoyable. I can't think of any event that was not worthwhile. I posted previously that a 10 year old is too young for training. I stand by that but it is important to ensure we all agree on what training is. I don't regard riding 45 minutes to an hour on a couple of weekdays and perhaps an hour and a half at the weekend as training. It's just fun time together. Training is when you ''have" to ride. When riding includes intervals either on an indoor or outdoors uphill. Training is less fun. But is often still rewarding. (Seeing progress is motivating.) With cycling it is also less fun because it is an individual sport. So is swimming, but that is usually a club activity and kids are in pools with numbers of other children. I think that is an important difference. I don't know the answers to these interesting issues, but I think it unfortunate that adults form strong opinions and attempt to control what other people may enjoy. ( I have no idea what happens in china and I am not advocating for kids to be taken away to train for the glory of a country. ) But I do think it sad that kids are prevented from inter provincial xco racing, while provincial races and schools races are permitted to go ahead. If parents are the problem, they must be a problem at any level of competition, not just inter provincial. I think inter provincial is important because kids in smaller provinces do not get to glimpse elite athletes at their provincial events. It is inspiring for kids to meet the likes of the Hatherleys and Lills. But these elites only compete in the WC and perhaps to a lesser extent near Gauteng.

Apologies, I not you said he is 10 in the heading. Too young for training. Ride regularly and do other sport as well.

Hi Dirk I hope the following helps: 1. A lot of crashes happen at the start in every age group. 2. You can try to mitigate the risk by trying to give yourself space. Put your elbows out. And try to leave a gap to the row ahead. ( Hard because other riders see space and try to move into those spaces) 3. I recommend trying to position yourself on the outside. You can sometimes find space on the outside where the middle places and the inside are just a crush. 4, You did not mention your boys age so it is impossible to give training advice. Keeping it fun is key. Arranging for him to ride with his peers is ideal. Try and ride regularly rather than making cycling a seasonal activity.

When my daughter was a little older than your son is now she was riding a 24" avalanche. About 15 months later we upgraded to a 2nd hand momsen superlight. We always had fun, but when she got onto the light bike it was so much more fun for all of us.

Some years ago I was mugged in the bush at knifepoint. I landed up losing my camelbak, my phone, some cash, tools and tubes. The mugger was intent on taking my bike because he was disappointed at the small return. I was able to negotiate that he leave the bike. The incident really upset me and for quite a long time. The mugger, while searching through my camelbak left himself open to an attack. I didn't exploit the opportunity. I thought about this quite a lot afterward. I don't carry anything. I sometimes still ride alone. I think carrying could be more dangerous. I know a guy who was attacked riding past 3 guys that he did not think were going to attack. On a bicycle you too vulnerable. It is too easy for handle bars to be knocked and you have no chance to avoid falling. In which case you could be overwhelmed before you can draw whatever you are carrying. Worse you could be injured/killed with whatever you were carrying. What will be...