The rider, not the bike

[DJR]

Once had an oldish guy on what I thought was a crappy old bike, easily keep up with me from Rhodes Memorial to the King's Blockhouse.

 

Afterwards had an eyeopener of a chat. Turned out he was riding a top touring bike with his panniers left at the B&B. He was in Cape Town to start the homeward leg of his ride, which started in Alaska a year before. Part 1 included the length of North and South America. Part 2 would be through Africa and Europe, back to his native Norway.

[Shift]

Awesome story!

Can see by his giant smile that he LOVES it!

[Shift]

Should probably just say "big smile"...(not "giant smile"), as he was on a Raleigh!

[LazyTrailRider]

I remember something similar... In my first year as a student at Stellenbosch, I thought I was a hotshot on my new Wheeler 7900ZX and took a quick training ride to Jonkershoek, with slicks on. There I was, cranking it out up that climb past Lanzerac, the tar flowing beneath my sleek new wheels. All very good, except that a guy on an MTB came cruising past me on the left, on the dirt.

 

Man, I felt silly. Haha.

[Pappa Bear]

I have a slightly diffrent view....... It is about the bike. If you put the same guy on two diffrent bikes, he will be faster on one of them. However, two diffrent guys on two diffrent bikes is another story........ There i would agree its not about the bike.

[Yang]

Today was an interesting ride. There was a fundraiser here in Whakatane for a local lass who is racing UCI World Cup XC so along I went. Rocked up with my carbon S-Works full suspension, Garmin 500, S-Works shoes, QUITE THE MAN. Up the hill we went; all but one chap soon left behind.

The bloke who was staying with me is about 45-50-ish, wearing running gear and riding what we used to call a 'school bike'. The hills got steeper, this Kiwi hard man just kept on hooking it...until he rode away from me. He left me for DEAD! Check the photo of me and him in the parking lot afterwards - name's Gary. Good bloke, too, in between coughing up my lungs, managed to have a chat and whatnot. Says he's more of a runner.

Anyway, got schooled proper today! This chap had no gears (10-15% gradient, steepest at 18%), no suspension, those crappy caliper brakes you see on Game bikes, steel 'Raleigh 20' frame from 1985. RESPEK! We averaged 25.2km/h over 35km. With him in front of me just about all the time.

Imagine what he could do on a 11.5kg Spes and with shaved legs...... This sounds like one of those undiscovered prodigies. With training and the right equipment he could yet make a mark on the vets events. It also supports the theory that runners make great cyclists.

[intern]

I asked him if that was his regular ride - he said no, his usual MTB was in the shop getting some repairs. I'm inclined to believe that as he put that crap bike into the back of a Land Cruiser. I asked him if he races much and he said no, prefers the running races and has his hands full with national-level karate kids.

 

About the fork - not broken, it has a steel tube as a crown.

[intern]

Does your new mate have front teeth? From the pic it looks like , not ? Too many face plants with those caliper-brakes ? Or is the gap reserved for the sheep ?

 

Over here we judge the quality of sheep, not people, by their teeth.

[Mads]

Over here we judge the quality of sheep, not people, by their teeth.

 

Well said. Almost sounds poetic

Edited May 22, 2011 by Mads

[Shift]

Oh, so he does Karate! That solves this mystery...

[barrykm]

Great story Intern!

[nathrix]

Awesome Intern That bloke must have been awfully strong on a bicycle to give you a little hiding! Just more proof that all this marketing hype bulsh!t around supplements, wheel sizes, suspensions, materials, etc. are not beneficial at all without the most important basic ingredients which is training hard, eating healthy and perhaps some good genes to give you that edge on others.

[amasendeinja]

Over here we judge the quality of sheep, not people, by their teeth.

 

Haha glad to see you're fitting into Kiwiland properly! Love that story - I'm sure you didn't mind having your ass handed to you too much in this case!

[intern]

Thanks for the comments guys. Chatting with the people at the LBS, they informed me that the Raleigh 20 ekshualy has 20-inch wheels. (Ya, ya, there was a bit of a clue in the name...).

Anyway, the local MTB race is this weekend; I have helped mark and clear the course, it is going to be interesting. Just 35km, but with 1250 uphill and the races here are a damn side more technical than there. The expected winning time is around 2 hours.

http://whakatane.mtb...ope_ordeal.html

Check it out. And I am told that Gary may well attempt it on the Raleigh. Guess who I have to try and keep ahead of!

Edited May 30, 2011 by intern