Thinking of the good old days

[Azonic]

I used to race what used to be the SAMBA National Series years ago when I was in my teens and early 20's. It would be so lekker to tour the country with the rest of the EP team and road trip up to the various races in SA. Other times my folks would go with. Awesome days.

 

During those days, as a youngster you got to know the names of the "big guys" on the scene, the local idols on the scene - the guys that were at the top of the podium 10, 15 years ago. Every now and then you happen across an old photo and you cannot but wonder, where are those guys today. Do they still ride, race, did they give up racing all together? I came up with this silly saying a few days ago, and it ring very true for me: There is no place so lonely as being the only one to remember a certain memory or time. Read that again and make sure you understand it. Like I would ask a friend, "Remember that time when we........" And he just goes, "No?". Then you think, so the copy of this memory in my head, is the only copy that anyone, anywhere remembers? That's a sad place right there. Am I the only person to still remember these names, or think back to those times and those guys?

 

Carl Hutchinson (circa, mid 90's)

Greg Miller - Wheeler rider and one of the countries best DH and XC riders. After SA's first World Cup in Stellenbosch many years ago he didn't perform at the level he thought he would as a local and quietly faded off the scene.

Wynand Jacobs - friend of Dylan Victor.

Dirk Lourens (I remember him making his own downhill bikes with crazy suspension in the days when 4" was extreme)

Jason Delport (I remember his as a sick fast young junior). I found this writeup about him from over 10 years ago

 

"Early starter South African Jason Delport was sitting on the yellow Honda road motorcycle that served as the leader’s hot seat through 29 riders after crushing the previous best time by over 11 seconds. With only a handful of riders left, he was getting used to the idea of being world champion and said, “I just hope nobody comes and beats me. I don’t want to get off this bike here.”

But just as Delport’s time was starting to look untouchable, the third-to-last rider, Julien Camellini of France knocked over five seconds off it and waved his arms excitedly as he crossed the line. Australia’s 16-year-old Sam Hill also beat Delport, but he was three seconds behind Camellini. But when Cory blew in 1.39 seconds faster, Camellini had to settle for second."

 

You can actually just look at this link and see some of the old names: http://www.geocities...a/dh/NatDH1.htm

 

Again, is it just me? Its not a case of living in the past. I see having fond memories of the times that made you who you are today as a very good thing.

Edited September 9, 2012 by Azonic

[DR ◣◢]

So glad you posted this. Takes me back a long way.

 

Some of the things I remember fondly was Woodridge College and the bar. Best national races ever. Bunny hop competitions with Greg, Dylan and the other guys, bike soccer on the fields etc etc.

 

Raced my first year DH with Andrew and Jonty Neetling in sports class. They still had Giant ATX 9xx frames with the Big Six conversion on the rear. Those days you could race any SA on a hardtail with a Marzocchi Z1 and be competitive. I won the PTA nationals sports class at Fort Kapperkop on a Wheeler 5700 hardtail with a 4" travel fork in 1997 IIRC.

 

So many memories.

[Azonic]

That's awesome buddy... I'll post some more memories from those days tomorrow. :-)

[DR ◣◢]

Same here. Raced SAMBA DH from 96 to 02. Lots of memories and stories.

 

Good old days.

[Danger Dassie]

Still have my old 'SAMBA' licence lying around somewhere. As well as loads of old photos of the guys, including Greg Millar.

[Azonic]

Sho... so its not just me

 

I remember the dual slaloms we used to have at Sabie, on the hill just as you came into town. The EP team managers at the time didn't enter me correctly (or something), making me slip through the cracks during the heats as such. I had to eventually ask the guys at the gates, ok when do I go? Eventually they said ok now its you. Now in my defence at that time I couldn't affort a XC bike and a DH bike (not that you used to get "real" DH bikes those days), so I went to nationals with a set of more "rugged" wheels and riser bars which I'd just put onto my bike the night before the DH and DS. So after the officials tells me, ok now your turn, guess who lines up in the gate next to me. One young Greg Minnaar. Oh f*ck was all that went through my mind. Gun goes and I pump it out the gates. Ka! ka! ka! ka! ka! ka! The sound of a chain skipping on a cassette that it wasn't meant to go with. "DH Wheel" = fail. Had to pretty much soft pedal most of the course and finished about 1-2 secs behind Greg. Had lots of fun though

 

We had XC nationals at World View in Maritzburg also many years ago, and the DH at Cascades on a course much different to the World Cup course we have there today. The dual slalom was in town, albeit I wouldn't be able to find the spot again today. It was on a grassy slope between the neighbourhoods somewhere. The course was under floodlights, was a night time DS. At one point the lights went out for some reason covering everything in darkness. In the dark we heard a commotion what sounded like bikes going down the course. Heard afterwards it was the late Wesley Fowler and his mates doing a butt naked run down the DS in the dark

[Shebeen]

 

You can actually just look at this link and see some of the old names: http://www.geocities...a/dh/NatDH1.htm

 

Again, is it just me? Its not a case of living in the past. I see having fond memories of the times that made you who you are today as a very good thing.

wow, many some of those old names still very much in the business.