SeaBee

Great ride, bad day in the saddle. Had troubles early, was forced to stop more and longer in one 500m stretch than the water points combined. Then my HR mon lost reading, so had no idea how I was doing pace-wise. (I now suspect the strap's battery is flat, because it did the same yesterday, lost reading after a short while...) And also fell into the trap of thinking "it's all downhill" after that one longish climb. And then, to boot, I got the mother of all cramps just before the end with a bit of a moment under the bridge, tried to put my foot out... and then the cramp struck! Will be back next year - great event. Thanks AMARider and RE:CM!

Agree with all above - both road and mtb my feet love Specialized shoes. And the below-carbon-soled versions don't break the bank - or didn't when I last bought shoes.

Queen of races this weekend - and already rain in 2nd practise session to get everything even more topsy-turvey! Love Monaco, but will have to watch it delayed live (both quali and race) due to clashes - will be *cough* riding my bike at both those times. Ai, priorities... (This is a cycling forum, after all.)

Dude, sorry... but if you're talking about "serious climbs" then don't bother counting Mitchells and Bains... (unless they're right towards the end of a long ride.) That cherry one I don't know. Gydo will always be there - that's more of a climb than I think bains and Mitchells combined. From Ceres you can do a nice loop to Du Toits as well. You'll have to do Mitchells on the way (and back) and if you want to you pick whether you want to descend Du Toits and return up from the other side or do Bains (or Nuwekloof) on the way back. Sorry, I may be wrong, but that's the way I feel. That said, I somehow positively hate Bains from the "other" (Worcester) side.

Ag, what's a 0 between friends...?! (would've made the bar fight much more interesting, though...) Sorry!

Stupid question for those that's done it (50-miler) before. Do we start in batches or one heckuva group? I presume 3-4 batches to split up the 2000 a bit...(?)

Very personal. Prologo Scratch was okay-ishm then suddenly started killing me even on short rides. Got measured, slapped a Spez Phenom (143) under my butt and... ! Even changed my road saddle to a Spez Romin now. Add more smiles...

If not from the top, you'll get wet from the bottom... Rain expected in the area from tomorrow afternoon till Sat morning. So the going will be "interesting"... Some predict rain for Sat, some not. Whatever... whether it actually rains on the day or not, we'll be there, ready to roll! Will see how my legs hold up, too late to worry about that now anyways!

I've entered for 50-miler and Karoo to Coast. Contemplating To Hell and Back and knowing the One Tonner looms early in Spring. Think I've got enough to motivate me to keep going. But where's the balance for you guys between "this is a training day, I go ride" and "don't want to get sick by riding in this sheet"? The latter esp if (the usual, for me in winter, from sucking in cold air on the bike) sore throat is already around and you're starting to get some cold symptoms... I tend to then rather stay at home, because a serious cold (not even talking about flu) can set you back a lot.

iRide: how "beginner is the beginner and how advanced is the intermediate? I read your site and still confused! I can safely categorise myself in the much-maligned "dirt roadie" sphere (atm my road bike is creating a nice biosphere for spiders ). But can ride a bit of ST - e.g. enjoyed Bottelary Hills immensely this weekend. I just don't do it enough and as such have little confidence (and speed). So I am leaning towards the intermediate in my mind, but don't want to pitch up there and be out of my depth and end up doing more harm than good. Likewise, don't want to attend a beginners course which may be more suited to somebody really just starting off. Any input? I am considering doing this - think it may be quite beneficial where I am at this stage of my mtb'ing.

Must confess I always put mine in the sun, inside out of course, to get the padding to dry properly - esp in winter IF there is sun about. Then again, I haven't found the "way of the Assos" yet - I use other bibs!

No direct sunlight?! That's news to me - why's that?!

Talk about a race of two tales. First off, even as a very long time Fewrrari fan, I was rooting for Pastor over those last few laps, just hoping like crazy that the car won't break or anything. Well done to all involved, a looooong dry spell and I just hope this will bring some extra finances to the team. As for my two-tales comment... It was like watching one of the snore-fest GP's with the top 3, but behind them all chaos and anarchie, people overtaking left, right... and in Schu's case, center. Kimi's most boring race ever, but for his last stint? (I was sort-of expecting more from them this weekend.) Then again, I was also expecting either another quick stop for the front two - or them hitting the end of usefullness on their tyres - but seems only Alonso overworked his a bit. Was pretty sure they'd requires fresh rubber before the end - and then be quicker than Kimi in return, so was gearing me up for that slugfest... imagine my "disappointment"... And well done for the Hamster coming back from the back of the grid - some entertaining overtaking moves there. Was sorry for Perez, was hoping to see him produce something from the front, but that only lasted a couple of corners.

Was there for the first time this weekend (shame on me ) - and I'm still grinning. What a great place to ride. Will have to go back for the views on another day, though - mist was too thick to see much. Job well done to all involved, great variety of riding conditions, I thoroughly enjoyed it.

For me, that brought a LOT of comfort! B)

Got a Phenom 143 for my mtb earlier this year. Suddenly my road saddle (which was great for even a DC!) kills me after that. Latest upgrade was a Romin 143 on the road bike - 1st outing last weekend and I am sooo happy!

We can all gang up and send the sweeper vehicle up ahead to scout the route! Naah, you "real mtb'ers" will zip past me on the downhill. No worries, I won't get in the way... As luck would have it, I seems to have caught a bit of a schnoikop. Have to kill this thing quick! Fortunately seems to be only in the head, so may be able to go for a trip on Sat! Plenty of pill-popping and early bed last night helped for very little. Repeat today and hope it's better tomorrow.

Also doing 50-miler. 1st time for everything... No idea what to expect! I see a downhill towards the finish, so I expect to be dead last! Will it bother me...? I don't think so!

I was about to ask whether I'm the only "old-fashioned" one around... Seems we're in the minority, but there's others as well. A friend recently introduced me to a Mocha pot, got myself a Bialetti and... man, that's just great! Add atmosphere to the whole process, not just a quick grab-a-coffee. And no, it is remarkably quick, it doesn't even take 5 min's to make the espresso. The process is just so much nicer. That's just me, depositing 2c to the discussion.

Ja, as I wrote that I was thinking to myself it's much easier said than done. Good luck on both recovery and the denial of wanting to go riding. Heal up well!

+1001 on this. Most of us aren't pro's - rather listen to the doc and take that extra week off. What's it really going gain you to ride a week or two earlier?! (vs the risk of re-injuring and/or having a long-term niggle) Sit back, light the fireplace and spend time with the family. Maybe an indoor session or two later on. Play it safe and come back better.

Same here - those fireplaces work overtime, but it's great fun... This puts me in the mood for making a long weekend and going there again!

Brilliant, thanks! Last time I was there I swore to bring my bike along next time, but was not sure where the routes are. This will help immensely.

You riding with a GPS and can you maybe share those routes? Been to Sanddrif last year and swore next time I'll bring the mtb along - but it will be nice to know some of the routes beforehands.

It's a longer lever, therefor you have to move the end-point further to move the centerpoint through the same amount of degrees. (Test on a finger: with the finger fully extened, you have to move it much further to get through a set amount of degrees that when it's folded back and you moce only one digit.) Therefore, in my mind a longer stem will dampen your reactions. That's my take on it - I may have a handfull of cat tail and will be open to correction.