Madmac Posted September 2, 2013 Posted September 2, 2013 What is often forgotten and is much as we beg to differ, cycling / mtb'ing in SA is not a mainstream sport in school which is the root of any sports development. Instead, most kids who get into the sport is because they inherit it from their parents. Most kids don't grow up on bikes because there are security concerns for their safety, etc. Take Europe on the other hand, their mainstream sports are football, sking and cycling. They are also first world countries where governments are not having to throw money into educating the masses, building houses for the poor, etc so a lot of money can be poured into sports development. SA is a sports mad country and sometimes our downfall because of our beautiful climate is that we just have too many options and not enough resources. In a world where world economies are under stress and sponsors are dwindling, professional cycling in SA is under imense pressure and hopefully talented individuals like Greg Minnaar, the great and late Burry, Robbie Hunter, Daryl Impey, etc will get through the cracks and keep raising the profile so that more SA contendors will come through and fly our flag at the top of the international arena.
gummibear Posted September 2, 2013 Posted September 2, 2013 I don't know how the hell these guys ride these things. Andrew Steer, DIPSLICK and SwissVan 3
Wyatt Earp Posted September 2, 2013 Posted September 2, 2013 Meh, looks easy............. Right, I forgot, this is hub land. Steven Knoetze (sk27) 1
gummibear Posted September 2, 2013 Posted September 2, 2013 I don't know how the hell these guys ride these things. ...and some of them with 80mm forks.
Eldron Posted September 2, 2013 Posted September 2, 2013 Shurter's bike was much more fun oriented on XCE day - it had about a million multi coloured smiley faces on it!
Andrew Steer Posted September 2, 2013 Posted September 2, 2013 Shurter's bike was much more fun oriented on XCE day - it had about a million multi coloured smiley faces on it! Jeepers, is he nuts... what about all that extra weight
Andrew Steer Posted September 2, 2013 Posted September 2, 2013 Right, I forgot, this is hub land.I'm pretty sure he was being sarcastic - but Nino did make it look easy, some others not so much
Gnarly Posted September 2, 2013 Posted September 2, 2013 Just goes to show. Scott is the Fastest MTB Bike in the world.......DT Swiss is the Fastest MTB Fork in the world.......Sidi are the Fastest MTB Shoes in the world.....DT Swiss are the Fastest MTB wheels in the world.....Assos is the fastest MTB kit in the world......Sponsor is the fastest MTB supplement in the world......SRAM is the fastest MTB groupset in the world.....Dugast Tubular are the fastest MTB tyres in the world...... And last but not least..... 27.5" wheels are the fastest MTB size wheel in the world..... And Nino just had to hang on. Andrew Steer 1
Steven Knoetze (sk27) Posted September 2, 2013 Posted September 2, 2013 Emily batty's face plant being one of the not so good examples. Andrew Steer 1
Gen Posted September 2, 2013 Posted September 2, 2013 Nino was an animal! Technically supreme, pity Fontana broke his saddle/seat, it looked like he was in the mood to give him a go. And some of the riders did get caught up by the crashes on the first lap I think. But Nino made sure he was in the right position for that not to effect him. As for our SA riders.. ai, Buys started great, but he needs to figure out the technical parts of XC. Not sure if it's SA's obsession with going faster for longer and forgetting the about the technical bits of XC, but phewie, that rock garden has had Buys number. I believe Max Knox was riding with a broken shoulder or something. Lets see what Knox can do in the next few years, he's only just made the decision to cross over from Marathon to XC, and has a great sponsor in Spesialized. As for our ladies.. well now, I really think they need to have a good look at their careers, if they want to compete in the XC then they will have to make a 100% commitment, take that chance and go to Europe, not sure any of them ride in Europe atm. Else if they don't want to do that, then they should just stick with riding locally in the Marathon events. It's simple actually if you ride in Europe and eventually if you do okay your seeding improves, and seeding is everything in XC, no ways that if you start at the back you can challenge, by the time they hit the first bend the lot in front are gone. Any how.. just my thought on the matter.
Wyatt Earp Posted September 2, 2013 Posted September 2, 2013 I'm pretty sure he was being sarcastic - but Nino did make it look easy, some others not so much I know, thus my chirp.
kosmonooit Posted September 2, 2013 Posted September 2, 2013 Anyone with more details as to what exactly happened to my man Marco?
Sharkie 2 Posted September 2, 2013 Posted September 2, 2013 Nino was an animal! Technically supreme, pity Fontana broke his saddle/seat, it looked like he was in the mood to give him a go. And some of the riders did get caught up by the crashes on the first lap I think. But Nino made sure he was in the right position for that not to effect him. As for our SA riders.. ai, Buys started great, but he needs to figure out the technical parts of XC. Not sure if it's SA's obsession with going faster for longer and forgetting the about the technical bits of XC, but phewie, that rock garden has had Buys number. I believe Max Knox was riding with a broken shoulder or something. Lets see what Knox can do in the next few years, he's only just made the decision to cross over from Marathon to XC, and has a great sponsor in Spesialized. As for our ladies.. well now, I really think they need to have a good look at their careers, if they want to compete in the XC then they will have to make a 100% commitment, take that chance and go to Europe, not sure any of them ride in Europe atm. Else if they don't want to do that, then they should just stick with riding locally in the Marathon events. It's simple actually if you ride in Europe and eventually if you do okay your seeding improves, and seeding is everything in XC, no ways that if you start at the back you can challenge, by the time they hit the first bend the lot in front are gone. Any how.. just my thought on the matter.Buys has done extremely well and is ranked in the top 20 thus he had a good starting point. It will still come together for him. He is currently 25 and has only in the last two years competed consistently in Europe. He however needs to be backed by a European sponsor so that he can stay there during the year like Burry use to. Chro Mo and Andrew Steer 2
SwissVan Posted September 2, 2013 Posted September 2, 2013 (edited) I agree with your earlier point about the SA rider experience. But there was also another difference at worlds. During practice laps, many of the other teams had their coaches out riding the course with them, talking strategy and talking lines. I don't think I saw the Saffas having that sort of mentorship or guidance. There is talent, but it's not being molded well. And the only way to do that is to throw money at it.Thus the need for a proper academy, one that can build up a slush fund , one that can find the real hungry and talented riders and develop them for the pride of their nation. Maybe one day the Spur School series will bare fruit. One thing that i have realized is that most of the top mtb riders rode bmx at a young age so their skills were built back then.SA has some very good juniors and if they get the right opportunities will be great riders in a few years.Mountain biking is a very hard sport and most kids want the easy life. A big part of developing talent is getting the youngsters involved from a young age, showing them how to ride and train. This needs to be done on an organized basis in groups / clubs / national academies and not only individually i.e. by the parents. A couple of years ago we had a top young lady mtbker from SA stay with us for a few months, she was doing the entire world cup circuit (at her own expense) and she stayed with us (for no cost) for a few months while she was in Switz…. One day I went with her to practice for one of the swiss XC series races and while we were doing practice laps there was a group of +/- 15 very junior riders (pre-teens boys and girls) all riding around the same track with a coach who was making them stop at each technical section and he would show them how to ride it and then let them practice it (only if they wanted to) before moving onto the next section. These kids were also going to race but on a shorter and different track, but they were still being exposed to the main track and being supervised / coached on it at a young age.The Swiss have a system and coaches at most of the different mtb clubs who coach the youngsters from a young age. I’m pretty sure it’s the same for most of the European countries. I asked the young lady from SA if she ever had any coaching before like this in SA and her answer was no, not like these kids were getting and only on an ad hoc level from friends / father. Just coming to Europe and trying to race here will be a shock, hence you need to stay here for longer, absorb it all and work hard. Edited September 2, 2013 by SwissVan
Andrew Steer Posted September 2, 2013 Posted September 2, 2013 I know, thus my chirp.Aaah... I thought you were chirping him
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