2021 Absa Cape Epic A perspective from farther back in the pack, Team #102 Road ID from the USA, 20th in Masters

[reteid]

thank you for taking the time to share your experiences. Hope you enjoyed the beautiful scenery of my country.

[sellnit]

7 hours ago, reteid said:

thank you for taking the time to share your experiences. Hope you enjoyed the beautiful scenery of my country.

We loved every minute in South Africa.  A truly special place.

[sellnit]

On 10/29/2021 at 2:03 AM, Thebmp said:

It was awesome to ride alongside you guys, even after all of your mechanicals you guys were still in good spirits, we really enjoyed riding with you guys last week.

Good luck for your future events and stick with Maxxis tyres and go Shimano XTR next time ????, I never even had so much as gear slipping last week, was very lucky.

Brian and  Wynand - Team Windovert

You guys were definitely a positive for us to ride with.  Seeing your smiling faces (and Brian's bandaged chin, brought a smile to our faces, and a target to shoot for)  Hope to see you guys in 2023 or at the Swiss Epic next year. 

Until the last few races we've always been on Maxxis, and in 19 days of previous Epic Racing (2019) we only had one puncture.  In 13 Days of Epic series racing this year we've gone through 8 tires......heckuva a change in luck (mostly Kenda related).  The positive is we are pretty quick with the puncture repairs now.  Drivetrains were solid this year, it was that darn DT Swiss Freehub that really cost us.  The ripple effects of that issue caused many of the other issues.  Up until this year we've been on Project 321 hubs with knight industries rims, and zero issues.  Heavier but more reliable.  Oddly we swapped out to the DT Swiss internals on Roval wheels on our Road, Gravel, and MTB bikes for consistent parts across the bikes.  In the end now between the 2 of us we have 6 freehubs needing warranty attn, and likely have lost confidence in the DT Swiss name.  The best warranty is the one you never have to use.  In the end the mechanical issues give us better stories and memories, as did that last few days racing with you guys!!!  Hats off to you boys!

[Fred van Vlaanderen]

Brilliant thread. Thanks for sharing! 

[DieselnDust]

10 hours ago, sellnit said:

You guys were definitely a positive for us to ride with.  Seeing your smiling faces (and Brian's bandaged chin, brought a smile to our faces, and a target to shoot for)  Hope to see you guys in 2023 or at the Swiss Epic next year. 

Until the last few races we've always been on Maxxis, and in 19 days of previous Epic Racing (2019) we only had one puncture.  In 13 Days of Epic series racing this year we've gone through 8 tires......heckuva a change in luck (mostly Kenda related).  The positive is we are pretty quick with the puncture repairs now.  Drivetrains were solid this year, it was that darn DT Swiss Freehub that really cost us.  The ripple effects of that issue caused many of the other issues.  Up until this year we've been on Project 321 hubs with knight industries rims, and zero issues.  Heavier but more reliable.  Oddly we swapped out to the DT Swiss internals on Roval wheels on our Road, Gravel, and MTB bikes for consistent parts across the bikes.  In the end now between the 2 of us we have 6 freehubs needing warranty attn, and likely have lost confidence in the DT Swiss name.  The best warranty is the one you never have to use.  In the end the mechanical issues give us better stories and memories, as did that last few days racing with you guys!!!  Hats off to you boys!

The DT EXP freebody issue has been resolved according to DT Swiss. There's still riders picking up problems though. A step down to the DT 350 hub is what is recommend. It continues to use the venerable dual star ratchet freehub. They will sort out the exp system but for the epic series you want the most reliable drivetrain you can assemble. That would not include Shimano xtr because the shifter has a known issue with the ratchet pin failing.