[[Event] Gryphon 99er Cycle Tour 2020]

Absolutely Horrible.

 

Was ill in the week(coughing and very snotty) But by Friday I felt better so I thought I would be ok. My Saturday went a little something like this:

 

- Woke up late.

- Never had beakfast

- Arrived at 5:50 and finished getting dressed and ready just after 6.

- Had to try make my way through what seemed like a million cyclists all standing waiting to be loaded in the start chutes, Just made it, fortunately I actually ended up in the front of the bunch (D).

- Started ok, sat mid bunch as there are still a few very bad bike handlers in the bunch, especially descending the fast sections from the start till the turn to Vissers,

- Turn right at Vissers, group came to a stand still, I was in the wrong gear, tried changing, Dropped chain which got stuck between crank arm and big blade, had to stop(no it was not me who caused the sudden stop, my stop didn't inconvenience anyone fortunately)

- Bunch wasn't too far ahead but burnt quite a few matches trying to close the gap, eventually gave u and Sat up and waited for the front of E to catch up, which they did right on top.

- joined the front of E through the winding roads an then right past Fisantekraal. Going over the 2nd little ditch in the road, my Garmin mount literally broke off, mount and Garmin went flying, had to allow the guys to pass and turn around to go and find my Garmin Fortunately no cars had come past as it was in the line where the cars right wheels would've probably  smashed it.

- waited for next bunch, Sat comfortably till the final drag up the R312 where I could feel my illness was not as cured as I thought it was, I started coughing up some really nasty hard green chunky phlegm(sorry guys), So decided to Sit up rather and maybe latch on to a slower bunch.

- Sat alone until just after the Boland Landbou school where a few guys caught up, Sat with them till half way up Slent Rd where 2 guys shared a few choice words because 1 was not doing his turn in the paceline, 1 guy decided to attack the bunch, I joined(I know I'm an idiot) and we worked well together till about halfway along Klipheuwel where my legs just couldn't anymore because my chest was also saying no no. I sat up and apologised for not being able to continue and he went on his merry way.

- I dragged myself to the finish line, feeling crap in both legs but refusing to stop unless my legs locked which they fortunately didn't do. My mind was in a very very dark place.

- I crawled over the finish line in my worst time of 3:29 and just after I finished and sat down, started coughing like a TB patient.

 

I will never ride a race again if I was sick in the week leading up to the race, I have learnt my lesson. 

 

I can see you had a difficult race, this might be the first post in 813 where you didn't have a single "LOL" in there 

[All things Team Qhubeka NextHash]

I wonder how much credit for the much improved performance of the team this year must go to Bjarne Riis?

 

Isn't it too soon?  The buildup into the performances of the last few weeks have been long in the making and he only took over as manager in January.

 

At this stage I wouldn't mind them recruiting Johan Bruyneel if it gets them a GT win 

[[Event] Gryphon 99er Cycle Tour 2020]

Yes, in my experience 90% of your road race experience is determined by the group dynamics (incl wind). Other than knowing where the "big climb" is having a detailed live route map on your Garmin not particularly helpful imo.

 

But I am genuinely curious if I'm missing some nifty trick the more tech savvy roadies are in on

 

For me, a mere mortal that hangs in the bunch.... ClimbPro on the Edge 530/830/1030 is an awesome feature.  Have the route pre-plotted for the race and just before we hit a climb Climbpro will show you the climb.  As you start climbing it will tell you how much ascent and distance on the climb remains, as well as the average remaining gradient.

 

 

Knowing what I'm facing on a climb somehow motivates me more than hitting it blindly.  It also helps one determine whether the pace the bunch is pushing is sustainable, but like you say there isn't necessarily much you can do with the information.  Perhaps less useful on the 99er, but extremely useful on Transbaviaans where you are more likely to be racing at your own pace.

 

Other than that I merely use the cycling computer to record my data so I can look at it afterwards.

 

Now if you were someone with actual talent (as in capable of attacking the group, not just hanging with them like me) you could use the headunit to determine whether you are likely to have the legs for an attack at a particular point, given the effort already exerted.  If you were in a breakaway you could use it to pace your effort to keep things sustainable.

[Covert Spinning bike into Smart Trainer]

.....if I find a way to connect garmin speed sensor for distance, just wondering hoe accurate the readings will be as I dont want 70km/ph readings if I pedal at 30km/ph??? I assume the flywheel spin much faster as a normal wheel.

 

 

Please so kind and help me on this one!

 

Speed sensors merely count revolutions of the wheel.  You can set the circumference of the wheel to whatever gets you a "realistic" speed.  If the flywheel is tiny, set the wheel circumference to a small number.

[[Event] Gryphon 99er Cycle Tour 2020]

That is the Tour de PPA route.

It does not come back on Slent, but carries on to R302, and finish is at D'Urbanvale, not on Odendaals as with 99'er.

Rest of the route is a mirror. 

 

Ah ok!  Very similar

[[Event] Gryphon 99er Cycle Tour 2020]

Looks like the organizers did the best they could under the circumstances. I'm really glad Vissershok is still included in the race and that the only update to the route is not just that they're sending us back via the M58.

 

Everyone is adding their 2 cents here so i guess I'll add mine... I really hope in future years they move the finish 1km up Odendaal as it used to be so the climbers actually have a shot for once. 400m is a sub 1 minute power effort! Does anyone know why they decided to move the finish in the first place? I guess if you have the legs you can break away up Vissershok and do a 6km solo effort till the finish... what a win that would be!!

 

Either way, look forward to racing this weekend 

 

I'd guess that having the finish at the top was an organizational challenge, where the newer finish is next to an open field where organizers are set up for medals, medics, announcer etc.

[[Event] Gryphon 99er Cycle Tour 2020]

 

Missed the Slent turnoff and the finish is wrong?

[Wahoo Kickr 4 vs Tacx Neo]

I have the Neo1 and Kickr4, the wife and I like to IDT together.

 

Wahoo support is excellent locally.  I assume that with Garmin SA taking over Tacx support that experience should also improve, but Wahoo is still on another level that Garmin can't touch.

 

Having said that...  The Neo is superior.  I used to have a more balanced opinion, but no longer.  For the Kickr doing spindowns can become a pain and it definitely has more ANT+ dropouts than the Neo.  Basically you have to run BLE or your data will have many gaps.  The Neo suffers no such issues.

 

The Neo is fire and forget, the Kickr just isn't quite there.  I end up having my wife's bike on the Neo because she'll never need to troubleshoot anything.  I have to "fiddle" (spindowns, unpairing and reconnecting) with the Kickr often.  IDT should be simpler!

Go for the Neo.  Worth the extra cost.

[[Event] Paarl Cycle Tour]

Awesome race, flat and fast! Well organised to get a full event to run quite smoothly! Unfortunately I went down in the crash in B bunch about 11kms out, luckily no major damage done, TT to the finish. Looking forward to 99er next weekend ????

Also went down in that crash. The first fall happened about three bikes in front of me, do you have any idea what went wrong? It was on a straight and wide road!

 

Regardless, 10/10 to Paarl Rotary Club. Especially for not succumbing to pressure to increase the field size. Excellent event

[[Event] Paarl Cycle Tour]

TL is at 6am

 

Flat route, they should be able to stay away

[[Event] Paarl Cycle Tour]

Anyone starting at 6am because AL start group starts at 6:05, just trying to establish if their is another group ahead of us like Tandems or Elites or have they shifted the start time back to accommodate sunrise? 

 

Good observation, sunrise is at precisely 6:05am tomorrow 

 

Visibility should be totally fine at 6am flat though

[Giant Durbanville]

I just wanted to know which bike shop wouldn't help the OP...

[Are Hardtails dead?]

Didn't read your whole post, but no, most certrainly not dead. As an XC bike they don't make sense to me - they are uncomfortable, and slower than dual suspensions on everything except for smooth climbs.

 

But as a hooligan trail bike, nothing is more fun. Of all my bikes I reach for my trail hardtail more than anything else just because it is so dam fun. Long, low and slack HTs are very capable, low maintenance, and make even mellower trails more lively. They have a next to cult following - but you are right, they are not as poppular as they once were, and the reason for that is simple - full suspension bikes are faster (whether that is climbing or descending) and more comfortable.

 

Although my HT is my favourite bike, it would not be the bike I would choose if I could have only one bike.

 

Could somebody explain to me why full suspension bikes climb faster on non-smooth climbs?

[CWC: Ask what u want SALE!!]

SRAM disc brake pads for Level TLM

https://www.cwcycles.co.za/product/sram-disc-brake-pads-hrdlevel-tlm

Specifically organic/alu

 

SRAM bleed kit

https://www.cwcycles.co.za/product/sram-guide-ultimate-bleed-kit

 

Shimano R55C4 pads for alu training wheels

https://www.cwcycles.co.za/product/shimano-dura-ace-alu-br9000-pads-r55c4

 

Swissstop FlashPro Black Prince pads for racing wheels

Can't find it on your website, hoping you have them.

 

 

DONE

 

I think something's gone wrong on the bleed kit?

https://www.cwcycles.co.za/product/sram-guide-ultimate-bleed-kit

 

No luck with the Swissstop Black Prince?

 

Thanks for the other two!

[Dumb Question, but here goes.]

My approach would be that if you set the distance from the bottom of the pedal stroke to the seat the same and you have the same effective seat post angle you can use any bike you want.

This!

 

Plus mountain bike service intervals and replacement parts are a nightmare.  Running a road bike on the trainer is far more palatable.

 

I find that ERG workouts on the Kickr eat chains.

[CWC: Ask what u want SALE!!]

SRAM disc brake pads for Level TLM

https://www.cwcycles.co.za/product/sram-disc-brake-pads-hrdlevel-tlm

Specifically organic/alu

 

SRAM bleed kit

https://www.cwcycles.co.za/product/sram-guide-ultimate-bleed-kit

 

Shimano R55C4 pads for alu training wheels

https://www.cwcycles.co.za/product/shimano-dura-ace-alu-br9000-pads-r55c4

 

Swissstop FlashPro Black Prince pads for racing wheels

Can't find it on your website, hoping you have them.

[Nic Dlamini's arm broken by Table Mountain rangers]

https://bonniebio.co.za/shop-our-products/?gclid=Cj0KCQiA04XxBRD5ARIsAGFygj-kE1bLNg2SeZwffjZTgTSpcMa8ZLB6CHW0ZyxqhEEWwh16qMu1uU0aAlstEALw_wcB

 

My wife buys these and we use them for walking the dog, but only now do I realise how expensive they are!

[What happened to the PPA Sportifs?]

I can just about hold on in F. Would I die at WP event?

 

 

If you can hold on in F you will have a ball in Cat 3, promise.

 

I did two WP winter league races and thoroughly enjoyed them.  Yes the routes are repetitive but the racing was great.  Also very cheap.  Will try to do more this year.

[[Event] MEDIHELP Stellenbosch Cycle Tour 2020]

I must also be a racing lady because I don't think I'm a vet or a master I'm only 34yo

 

I'm also sub vet at 34yo and this has happened a couple of times before.  We're outside the top sub vets while the Racing Ladies, Vet Men and Master Men aren't enough to fill %, so we get to fill those spots instead of falling to 1A where we belong.

[[Event] MEDIHELP Stellenbosch Cycle Tour 2020]

SCT Cat's.JPG

 

Thanks!  She'll be happy to hear she's a Racing Lady now 

[[Event] MEDIHELP Stellenbosch Cycle Tour 2020]

I'm in %.  My PPA seeding index is 16.98 at the moment, so more or less expected.

 

My wife is also seeded in %, with a PPA seeding index of 28.44.  That is not quite expected.

 

Is it because % is also the ladies racing batch like it was at Durbie Dash?

 

https://pedalpower.org.za/seeding/

[Canyon H36 cockpit]

https://www.canyon.com/en-za/gear/components/handlebars-and-stems/cockpits/canyon-h36-aerocockpit/9100401.html

[Garmin edge 130 not displaying HR]

Sounds like a strap issue, have you tried replacing the CR2032 coin battery?

[Nic Dlamini's arm broken by Table Mountain rangers]

OK    - we were all either born into or raised by parents who were born into an authoritarian culture that enforced it's law through violence. As a result this violence and the fear of it are omnipresent in our society and burst through in incidents like this and others. What happens next in Nic's story is as much about how we as a society enforce the law as it is about broken arms and trail permits.

 

Also - don't hit your children.

 

I'm allowed to hit my children in self-defense, right??

 

Brilliantly put, Mamil.  Seriously disconcerting, but as peaceful societies have evolved from violent authoritarianism elsewhere there is always hope for change in our own.  We just need to be willing.

[Nic Dlamini's arm broken by Table Mountain rangers]

Yes, way too big.

 

The differences are numerous. I am sure young Nic was not armed nor had consulted with witch doctors to ensure he was safe from SANparks finest prior to cycling in their domain and certainly did not go looking for a fight.

 

Nic was passive, was minding he own business when accosted by these thugs.

 

No parallels.

 

Dude you are doing the classic Dominee thing and taking a verse from the bible which has an entirely different context when seen as a complete passage     

 

If we want to take a snippet that sums up the situation elegantly, here it is:

 

you have grown up in an authoritarian culture where law is violently enforced.