Indeed no snow in most of France I live there we went to Andorra to be able to ski a bit in the end. Pyrenees almost snow free french side. My buddies in the alps picking flowers at almost 2000m on MTB rides

Keep us updated how you did and about the good cause and possibility to donate. You do the suffering so you can make some publicity for your cause.

Many ride with 47 mm rims I have done 1000’s on either trialtech SL or Bonz rims. It makes your tire rounder, which decreases the rish on sidewall cut. Brings the knobblies more to the sde and makes for better corner grip on front wheel. Negative a bit les damping, less grip on the really loos stuff and you float a bit less on the mushy stuff.

92,846m
Elevation gain (equivalent to climbing Everest 10.5 times….in a single year)

Thats not that massive I got to 154K m and I qualify that as I don’t get too ride enough anymore had 240K m in 2014 work took its toll

Still some stages on Sigma and now with the Merry codes extra 40 or 60 quid off wish I waited a bit longer before I pressed buy recently ;)

I haven’t but many off my mates have. What kind of riding or experience are you after?

They seem to have been looking for money/getting rid off stock elsewhere too http://www.bikebiz.com/news/read/600-planet-x-items-sold-at-auction-earlier-today/020356

Racing the Freedom challenge adventure race in South africa the five of us stop for a chat about route to take and a picture. One chap lost his phone had seen t last on the ridgeling over 5k back. Que the four of us building a small fire to make ourselfs a coffe when Anton went too look for his phone, he was back in less then 30 min. We did leave him a cup though.

Looks interesting pity it is about the same dates as http://www.freedomchallenge.org.za/ was thinking of having another go at that one, racing instead of touring this time

https://www.merlincycles.com/lusso-max-repel-cycling-bib-tights-47913.html
These work well for me against cold and rain. Sizes a bit small so probabely go a size up. Padding is minimal so wear normal bibs underneath for long rides.

Take the bluto but get the lockout on the fork itself. The lockout on the handlebar is mor expensive but completely crap. If it gets within 1m of sand it breaks. Love my bluto’s detest the non existent lockout cos the remote is absolutely crap(and has been for years according to the techni

It does stay up, looses some air pressure over time (repressure every couple of months) though.Have to check but its normally quite a bit past its 2 year warranty period.

Did you get one of those flexy SC’s or one of those mean looking DUCS. Easy to service. Thoug the legs metal is flimsy so when you unscrew the damper make sur your tool is a great fit. Actually don’t use a normal wrench just put it in a vice wit some protection(I modded a small vice and it makes it so much smoother).

As for parts there is a bloke who does spares in France.

My forks collect dust now that I have a new bike with Bluto’s but nothing can better the looks of a Duc

Koksijde presale was only 2 EUR cheaper then at the gate last year and its a different pick up location.
Gent 6 you but online at uitbureau.be seems the english version of their site is a bit of a maze, though often sold out so have to go that way.

would say near oude kwaremont too http://campingpanorama.be/en/ campsite only a handfull k’s from oude kwaremont there must be others nearby or have a look near Ronse

check the sequence on that koppenberg vid around 12′ what do you think?

At a press conference today UCI (Union Cycliste Internationale) president, Brian Cookson, confirmed the bike the 19-year-old Belgian was riding, when she pulled out of the race with mechanical problems, was later found to contain a concealed motor. – See more at: http://road.cc/content/news/177183-mechanical-doping-cyclocross-worlds-confirmed#sthash.phCkYSST.dpuf
N.B. according to that report, she was riding the bike with the motor, it’s not a bike that was sitting in the pits.

So we’re trying to prove that the spinning bike with no credible evidence of cheating had a motor in it, and the bike that has been found with a motor in it didn’t really have a motor in it; am I up to speed?

According to most reports it was a bike in the pits. If you read many of the original dutch tekst and then the english or French translation there are quite some mis translations either from incompetence(google translate) or to spice things up.

Its seems quite sure the bike was found in the pits early on and so not(yet) ridden on. Can obviously have been used earlier on her koppenberg climb looks very dodgy. I would love to see her and the alleged friend take a polygraph. Her dad has a dodgy head but then that’s not punishable by law ;)

Marge, can you confirm how long she has been with her current team and on the same bike? I saw a comment that she was riding different bikes last season which would sink the “modified sold old bike” defence?

http://www.nieuwsblad.be/cnt/dmf20141226_01448109 there is a late 2014 article that sports a quite similar bike. Team name as per interwebs was different but the old bike holds sofar. I want the friend do do a polygraph though

Hofnar people are mentioning it along with her Father being hookie allegedly nice sporting family :-/

http://cyclingtips.com/2016/01/more-details-emerge-about-motorized-doping-at-cyclo-cross-worlds/ I just see it mentionned in this article. The same guy that does the rubbish google translate stuff. I speak dutch and can’t spot any references to this except for Shane Stokes who doesn’t really inspire me .

If I’ve read this rightly it suggests if correct, the Belgian national team would be banned?

http://cyclingtips.com/2016/01/more-details-emerge-about-motorized-doping-at-cyclo-cross-worlds/
Really not good news, I don’t believe this could be done in isolation for someone at that level.

Should be carefull with that article as it seems google translate quick grab together. He speaks about crankshafts while it was the bottom bracket they mentionned in the original text(I am rather fluent in dutch) Also he can’t even spell the name of the newspaper that’s his source correctly. Very interested in the EPO brother can’t find it anywhere doesn’t mean its not true but would have expected some trace on the interwebs.

Post it’s and group them in importancy.

I had urgent, will do soon, **** no clue how to do this and **** will never do this.

Never tell people which groups you have and where they are on the board, so that you can show those who ask about a **** will never do this job look its on the list but you can see I have lots of stuff to do.

Managing african style

Not to keen on Sani 2C as its way too manicured trails and to crowded. Can not recomend http://www.freedomchallenge.org.za/ enough Though thats about three weeks. There is a week or faster event Race 2 rhodes in june there is amarch event race to Cradock but that one’s full already.

There is also the touring (semi) guided version of race 2 rhodes in september. For the adventurous people not afraid of a bit of carrying shoving a bike and map reading a wonderfull event.

It is by far the best bike experience of my life(I have done the spring ruide and the full 26 stage race(took 3 weeks as I got injured)

Its a bit remote at times so ya should either have mates of be adventurous. Some days I didn’t see another competitor except forr breakfast or dinner

http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/anybody-ridden-in-south-africa

old tread. But go on thehub now called bikehub.co.za

Be carefull with the advice above things have changed. There is no real good riding left close to Cape Town. The mountain burned a while ago and many places as the whole of Tokai have been off limits for a while.

Have a look at the durbanville area Bloemendaal and all the tygerberg MTB club trails. You have Delvera near Stellenbosch, Stellenbosch had Yonkershoek but this as well had a massive fire and is only partially open again. Check near Wellington where you have Welvanpas although my acquiantance farm on the trails burnt down last year as well. Otherwise ther is some around paarl. You have bottelarij hills in between stellenbosch and durbanville. Bit further away you have Paul Cluver Thandi oak valley and there is another place the other side of the road last ones are all the Grabouw area.

They are quite into manicured trails if you like the rougher stuff choice is limited. Let me know what you are into i have been to the place many times.

Forget riding from hotel in Cape Town, this changes if you stay around Durbanville. Why hotel there is many great B&B around some even right next to the lovely trails.

And on the car question yes get one public transport in general is a no for foreigners.

Jup get more seat post in, had the same frame, mine cracked on all three welds

Quite popular in some hard core long distance mtb events with quite some walking.

I liked my Scott Boa trails for this stuff

I quite liked my MT53 before mud killed their soles within three months of harcore riding

Y aura t-il quelqu’un qui pourrait me conseiller unE service de traduction Anglais/Français (version) ?

Not that bad the google translate seems to hammer the second phrase badly but handle the next one suprisingly good. But then I am neither a native French or English speaker.

I have 47mm rims Trialtech SL from tarty bikes they seem to have a 2015 model now I have the older one. Now use Bonz rims as that what my neighbour stocks.

I am hard on material as I do enduro’s and hard terrain with my fatbike. I can not break the 47mm rims.

I did break a 37mm front rim but that’s when I accidentally used it without a tyre(make sure the tubeless latex is dry)

Venue in Borgerhout? You do know that Borgerhout is not really the nicest of neighboorhoods? Check your times and where to go.

Multi day to 24 hour is so much different. 24 hour is about sleep deprivation and decent speed. Multi day is about sleep deprivation and recovery, speed is not that important. I spend a fair part of june racing a mtb across southern africa its the old men who feature cos they can just keep going. Takes a special kind of idiot to sleep only 2-3 hours a day for 10 days. I had nice long sleeps thats why my youg bones trailed the winner by over a week.

as a base take the Post office colissimo international for 20kg would be about 66EUR without insurance. Max of the three sizes is 200cm though so might have to cut the box down a bit.

Take it on the plane, depends on airline. BA very good price wise 55£ for first extra bag(which can be a bike) 120£ for second extra bag.

Clean bike very well and put new tires on(especially on a mtb) as they can be quite anal on cleaning same for New Zealand

Have a look for this book http://www.southafrica.net/blog/en/posts/entry/mountain-biking-in-south-africa-more-top-mtb-trails

Read a bit on thehubsa.co.za forum

and do chat to the locals before you head out there is some great stuff around but some area’s have some unwelcome caracters hanging around too.

I was last in Pietermaritzburg in September for a 6 day trek out off there best riding week off my life

No duty as its EU.

Payment depends on the rate your bank usually gives you on your card and the rate they offer so hard to tell but often no big difference.

They deliver quick, but then I am in France.

maybe click on change language top of the screen slightly to the left of the middle?

I must say impressive feat from a 9 year old. Though gobsmacked by the reactions and the flaming of one of the few who doubt it was a good idea.

9 year olds are far from fully grown and hard and endurance riding can have serious consequences in the long term.

I have coached kids for years of his age too but often a bit older and know that they are capable of a lot. But they also often need protection to their eagerness or those of parents. I don’t know the kid or the race/ride personally. I can just say don’t take it as an example not even half of it as there is a good chance your kids body is not up to it.

Better safe then sorry.

I have done it did PPDS with the option loop and some extra’s. Went back later as well. It works fine with 4 inch and 47mm rims should be ok 4.0 60mm tight fit on 80mm. on real 4.5 or 5.0 you will not get it in in some.

There are quite some lifts where the bike goes inside or is hung from the frame they will all be fine.

Avoid Les Gets main lift if they have last years supervisor he told me to never come back and that it was dangerous. Utter nonsense my bike was swaying a lot less then the others.

chuck it down in french, will translate(I just got back home from my french course)

Check bicycle and weight policy. I.e. emirates 300cm box limit
For tickets issued on or after 15th November 2014
Individual items with total dimensions exceeding 300cm (118 inches) cannot be transported as checked baggage, and must be sent as cargo or freight. There are no exceptions to this rule.

and weight 30 kilo, BA is not expensive to buy an extra bag around 50£ i belive for another 23 kilo. Emirates once you go over your initial 30kg 180£ each 5 kilo

SAA used to give 10 kg extra now it seems It gives the whole bike for free
The following Sporting equipment as described below (ONE additional Piece weighing not more than 23kg per passenger & maximum dimension of 158 cm unless specified) is free of charge and must be requested with a SSR SPEQ in the booking:

Cycling: 200cm – 100cm – 75cm
does not apply if flying codeshare through dubai.

So all depends if you fly heavy packed or not. Do not leave any valuables in luggage Johannesburg is a known for many bags opened and searched.

No website that I use i used to live there so ride on personal knowledge

if you start with steezysix route you can hop on the canal from ostend to Bruges, visit lovely Bruges. From Bruges there are two Canal towpaths into Ghent. From there on follow the schelde either to Antwerp if not keen to visit Antwerp leave it just after Temse to join up with the Rupel riverboom rumst duffel Lier emblem. You join the main canal in Massenhoven whih takes you all the way to Hasselt and links and then to Maastricht in the netherlands. The dutch Belgian border area between Maastricht an Aachen is lovely so maybe you want to do some local loop there.I have done most of those, as next to a canal its flat but most is car free and tranquile. I like the rivers more then the canal’s. On a sunny saturday or sunday some get quite busy so you might hve to adopt your speed to the sunday grandies or mum and dad with the kids speed.

What do you mean with offroad cycle paths? Away from road or untarred?

For untarred linking up you will struggle in Belgium. If you just wan’t to be away from roads have a look at the canal’s and bigger river most have tarred canal towpaths some shorter bits untarred and no cars except service vehicle.

I can piece you together a route depending on your intended entry and exit points of belgium. There are some disfunct railway roads turned into cycle paths, interesting when you get to the southern part or Germany to avoid the steeper inclines.