Fifo Riders

The Dash that was

2011-12-31T16:04:00.003+02:00

The Road to Nam is long...and straight.

The last training ride, Sandra, Adino, Kim, Kosima

The day finally dawned, with everything planned, prepped, cleaned, serviced, packed, checked, double-checked...as if it was our last chance. Even re-doing a friend's "homeless choobless" setup, adding a bigger safety margin.

From this...

..to this. Don't cut that tube too close.

The forecast said 30 degrees with a gentle breeze in our faces for the climb up to the top of Kupferberg, but at the start it was clear that 30 degrees was optimistic. Four hundred-odd riders can huddle into a small patch of shade when they need to.

Michelle pretending

Michelle, our backup driver did a sterling job. Thank you Michelle for your calm, collected handling of your team. We might just snap you up again unless some young buck gets in ahead of us ;)

There was none of the usual pre-event stressing and hassling over loose ends, they were all taken care of. Which left us to do our thing without excuses.

Kim and Kosima : Brave faces indeed!

Up the hill in the heat is something we've done before, but usually at a more relaxed (read "lazy") training pace. At one stage I was convinced that my heart rate monitor was malfunctioning, and then it dawned on me that the combination of heat, race tension and the hill was pushing me harder than I'd planned. Looking back on it, this is where the intervals helped enormously. (Dankie Maryke!)

I was hugely surprised to find that we were at the top of the hill an hour faster than our (admittedly conservative) schedule. In my rush to hit my first long stage, I forgot to drink the first bottle of recovery mix. Too bad.

Sandra at the end of the first stage

On stage 2

Overlooking the Kuiseb at sunset

The next 70km stretch was a grind, with the wind making everything harder, but at least blowing the dust away.

Near the top of the Us Pass is the memorial to Nico van der Merwe, who died of a heart attack while taking part in the 2006 Dash. It's a sober reminder to those of us with heart rate monitors heading for the double century mark. I stopped here briefly just as the sun was setting .

Don't be fooled, the downhills of the Us Pass are not the end of the stage, there are a "few" hills before that very welcome sight suddenly meets you at the Kuiseb Bridge. My time was somewhere under 4hrs (completely forgot to push the buttons on the BiPolar)

Sandra set off on the stage to Khomas Safaris, by the time we passed her, she was well into the stage. This is a difficult one, primarily because of the hills and the dust caused by backup vehicles (and the lack of wind to blow the dust away). Michelle and I arrived at Khomas in good time, ate, rested, drank coffee and even tried to sleep. I had set my alarm for 01:30, but fortunately woke up at 12:45 and rode up to the check-in. Sandra had finished minutes earlier, much earlier than planned, so our timing was perfect.

Bloedkopje in the sober light of day

Khomas to Bloedkopje. This was the stage I had been fearing. How would I cope with the next 70km, having just done 100km hard km? Greatly helped by Sandra's earlier than planned finish, I set off on the long downhill which is the start of this stage. Thanks to a route change, we only had to share the road with cars for the first 13km, after that it was just the odd light up front and a few far behind. This was classic night riding (no idea of speed or distance, I just put my head down and hammered). The short detour past the Ganab water point was another welcome addition to the route.
Before long it was the lights of the checkpoint, again in way less time than we'd expected. ( I guess riding in the dark I'm not tempted to stop and sightsee ;) 70km in 3hrs.

Sandra set off on the dreaded stage to the Old Power Station. Dreaded because it was another route change which involved getting off the road and onto a 4x4 track and then onto the pipeline service track. In this part of the world that means one thing. SAND. Fortunately it was dark and then heavily misty, making conditions better/less bad than expected. By the time Sandra finished this she was still smiling, but I think only just. Not bad at all because I saw and heard some large-mouth men whining like stuck pigs about not being allowed to ride on the nearby tar road. Form, gentlemen, form.(South Africans often have skewed ideas about what mountain-biking means ). Go big or go home these same guys often say.....

The morning after.
The Pipeline Track that caused all the fuss

From there it was the short "team-building" hop to Swakopmund and the finish. The finish and those 500ml Windhoek Tafels.

At this point it's fitting to stop and think of the people who make this all possible. The organisers (Aiden, JC and the rest of the team), all the admin people, the people who run the water points, the marshalls. The sponsors, the traffic department, everyone who contributes to an event that is so well run. I sometimes feel that the people who make this kind of event happen don't know quite how much they are appreciated. The person who took my bike from me at the Ganab waterpoint at about 2am with the words "Let me take your bike, get yourself something to eat and drink"
People who put months of hard work into something that's all over in 24hrs (well, the race is, their work goes on long afterwards).
As with any event of this nature, it's the organisers, the workers and the volunteers who are the thread that keeps it all together. "Thank you" seems inadequate.
Know that what you do is highly appreciated by so many. Know that for sure.

Highlights for me...

a handmade, personalised finisher's medal for solo finishers and a handmade, personalised "dog tag" for the two and four person team finishers.
the fact that Sandra and I were the first (and only) mixed masters team.

Lessons learned?

Get fit (I did 13 solid weeks of intervals, even more next time)
Plan the ride, ride the plan (Know what to do when, it's much less stressful that way)
Have fun, that's why we're here in the first place.

And yes, of course DC was there.

My BiPolar Heart Rate Monitor says....

2011-12-31T10:30:00.000+02:00

STFU and RIDE!

This is not "the next post"... that will be next week.

2011-12-13T15:47:00.000+02:00

It's a link to Kent's blog.

Good reading from a man who knows a thing or two. Kent has been a source of inspiration for me.

http://kentsbike.blogspot.com/2011/12/return-of-mountain-turtle.html

The Impending

2011-12-13T14:13:00.001+02:00

For some months now, the primary current in my life has been the Desert Dash. Now that the 16th of December is a few days away, the current has become a torrent, all the mental and physical preparation is coming to a head.

Last year I was the back-up for the Desert Vixens, an experience which convinced me to do it myself. The thought of doing it on my singlespeed GT Peace 9r was a bit daunting, so that in turn set in motion the process which became the "The GoldenBike". That's a Niner S.I.R. with a carefully thought out, tight-budget build and a setup which is an exact replica of the Peace. (Mary Bars, Ergon grips, Murray Orthoped sadlle, Thudbuster seatpost, tubeless).

Then of course came the main bit, getting properly fit so that the Dash would stand a fair chance of being an enjoyable event rather than a bad memory. Is it wrong to go into an intensive interval training programme in order to avoid shitting off in the race? Maybe, but it worked for me. Sixteen weeks ago I got hold of Maryke Verster (more on this later) to work out a training programme for me. I supplied her with the necessary info and she provided the interval training programme, six days a week, on average 7-9 hours per week.....

In the first four weeks I lost 4kg without even noticing it (not that weight-loss was a priority, just a nice to have, but that in itself is a story, I guess)
Maryke had me sussed, the programme was just hard enough to make me work, but not so hard that I felt like ducking out. So it started, day in and day out, hour long interval sessions with longer weekend rides. Sometimes freezing cold, often windy, rainy (when in Tokai) but always enjoyable, the rides just seemed to get better and better.

It wasn't long before I began to notice a difference, feeling better, sleeping better, even eating better. No more desire to eat junk or to gorge after a hard ride. I attribute this to eating properly before rides and exercising within managed ranges.

There have been some memorable rides (into the howling south wind, icy cold winter mornings, and more recently heat). Certainly one that sticks out is the 118km night ride that Sandra, Jan and I did about a month ago. With some careful planning based on http://www.yr.no weather forecasts, we hammered a fast ride in a time that surprised us. (That was also the night I learned, not for the first time, the effects of badly designed padding in cycling shorts). Maybe someone will one day explain why (in this case, Cape Storm) put the crease in the padding directly under one's seat bones. That night I heard the distant voice of Graeme Murray, saying not so politely that I should be riding in un-padded shorts. So I have gone back down the unpadded shorts route again.

Now if only I could get the same sorted out for my feet. I have wide feet, like many, but cycling shoes generally seem to made for long skinny European feet. Not Nike, not Shimano, not Olympic. Once there was a Sidi that worked OK. This is all leading me to a more dialled setup which may just include platform pedals and comfortable trail shoes. (And NO, I do not wish to engage in the "clips are better debate", but thanks for offering anyway ;) At my elevated level of cycling, clips have one huge advantage...they keep me attached to the bike......and help me feel more secure. I guess that's a bit like over-tightening ski-bindings and doesn't help one develop technique.The Peace already has platforms, and I must admit I really like that feel. This option will be investigated after the Dash.

Back to the Dash, we are now into the last few days of the taper phase of our training, in fact only two gentle rides left. Now it's into the final preparation and detail planning (food, drinks, and mechanical ). I have had to deal with a fair whack of pre-race "just in case" replacements and also some unacceptable ones.
New chains and cassettes and in my case a new headset. (FSA= Full Speed Ahead into the recycling bin). Sandra's fork (which caused drama by packing up just before last year's Dash, did so again this year)
Many thanks to Damien at Cycle Wholesale for the prompt, professional response and the loan of a Fox fork.
Support your lbs and they'll return the favour.

The race works like this:

Sandra and I start in Windhoek in an expected 29 degrees Celsius and a headwind of 20kmh up the Kupferberg hill to an altitude of 2000m. (35km). Thanks http://www.yr.no/place/Namibia/Khomas/Windhoek~3352136/ Maybe we didn't need to know that!
At the end of this stage, Sandra gets into the support vehicle and I ride on to the Kuiseb bridge (70km). When I get to the Kuiseb bridge, Sandra rides the next stage to Khomas Safaris (70km) while I get moved to the end of the stage.
From Khomas, I ride on to Bloedkopje (70km) where Sandra takes over for the stage to the Old Power Station (70km). Here I join her and we ride together into Swakopmund. To the finish.(35km)
That all needs to be done in under 24hours to qualify as a finish.

Reading between the lines you can see there's lots that can happen, so we are getting ourselves well organised. The idea is to enjoy the ride, not to struggle as a result of bad planning.

Hence the meticulous attention to mechanical detail, no chances, no shortcuts. Not even any tiny irritating squeaks on the bike. Lights, back-up lights, reflectors, spares, ........

Meals cooked, packed and ready to be eaten at the end of our stages. Bicycle juices (Hammer Perpetuem and USN Recover Max) in bottles, just add water.
Stuff to wash yourself with.
Warm clothes(it can get cold in the desert in thesmall hours of the morning!)
Coffee

This afternoon is the second last pre-Dash ride, a gentle taper ride with full kit. Batteries charged, ready to roll.

The next post could just be interesting.

Am I too old for heroes?

2011-10-24T11:09:00.000+02:00

I don't care if I am, Judi is my hero right now.

http://drunkcyclist.com/2011/10/23/i-fell-off/

Die Hel

2011-09-12T20:31:00.000+02:00

'twas a rough weekend down in The Hell.......

Not stirred, not shaken

2011-09-10T18:11:00.000+02:00

Someone posted a comment on Kentsbike about how small rear blinky lights last so much better if not mounted on a rigid mount. Not exactly rocket science, but something that seems to have been overlooked by most light manufacturers.

Generic blinkies, ready to fall apart.

I have seen numerous of this kind of generic LED light fall off, simply because they can't handle the vibration of being rigidly mounted on the seatpost. The solution is to mount them on your helmet, shirt or backpack (where they also happen to be more visible).

Having recently invested in a front light, I want to prevent it being shaken to pieces on the corrugations. This is the prototype. Hardly rocket science either. Boogie Board re-purposed.

Two storage holes for spare batteries, this torch uses one 18650 at a time, giving more security of light on all-night rides.

Now for some creative routing of the foam, could maybe save five or ten grammes off the weight ;)

Not user serviceable ...like hell!! Or as Oldfool says: If you can't open it, you don't own it!

2011-09-09T20:48:00.000+02:00

I have been lent a rather nice Polar CS200 heart rate monitor to aid in my training for the Desert Dash (thanks Jan)
Anyway, it turned out that the speed sensor was not working well, giving intermittent readings and getting distance and speed rather wrong. After some investigation I worked out that the sensor's battery was probably nearly flat, problem is the sensor is not "user serviceable". In other words you throw it away and pay through the nose for a new one. That's bullshit, particularly from a company like Polar.
A quick call to the agents confirmed this. Send it up to us and we'll replace the unit for $$$. Don't they get it? Downtime, the cost of sending the thing backwards and forwards across the country? I'm guessing that they simply use an RFID unit to scan the frequency of your old one, programme a new one and send the new one to you once you shelled out. Bin the old one when all that's wrong is a flat battery.

One of the most useful tools in my workshop is Google. In no time at all I found that these specific sensors are problematic and that you CAN open them and replace the batteries. Admittedly, one needs to use some delicate brute force and a Stanley knife, but voila and it's open. Replace battery (R15.00), increase tension of contact springs (i.e. bend them up a bit). Apply a small amount of Pratley epoxy to re-seal the unit and Josephine's your Uncle. Seal it properly.

That's it. Battery under the clip on the left. It's a CR 2035. The chest strap uses a CR2025, the CS200 unit uses another CR2035.

The lesson? Just like the external BB bearings that say "Do Not Disassemble". Stuff 'em.

To be entirely fair to Polar, the rest of the CS200 is a dream. Easy to use, large display, downloads a treat. Even the mounting bracket is cleverly thought out.

Another Holy Cow meets it's maker

2011-08-31T19:15:00.000+02:00

I came upon the shoe article while reading an interesting piece about riding slower . Read the "riding slower" one first, then check out http://www.rivbike.com/article/clothing/the_shoes_ruse

Given the hassle I am having getting a pair of cycling shoes to fit my (not above average) wide feet, I might just give this a try.

I can't wait for the "Do you think 29ers are here to stay" brigade's indignation.....

2011-08-28T17:06:00.000+02:00

SSWC2012 in SA !!

Are there really people out there who would open this?

2011-08-28T12:19:00.000+02:00

Dear Email Owner/Fund Beneficiary,

Open the Attached Letter for your Fund Payment

Regards,

Dr. Edward Fox.

United Nations.

If it were not for the risks involved, I would be tempted to enter into a spurious communication with Mr Foxfullstop.

Perhaps he is a long-lost relative of my old acquaintance Mr Eduardo Zachary?

For Old Fool

2011-08-28T12:01:00.000+02:00

Asie Payton

2011-08-21T15:12:00.000+02:00

This will work on the hills just before the Kuiseb bridge.

I'm trying to imagine how this would translate into cycle-speak

2011-08-20T14:23:00.000+02:00

Every now and then one enters a space that reeks of bad energy, sometimes it's just because the veneer is so thin, really just a transparent gloss. That's being harsh, but I couldn't help wondering what the previous sign said. I can only guess that it may have been a little more specific in terms of race, creed, gender, etc.

This I share for your bemusement:

Clearly standards have to be maintained!

Not acceptable on course.

"T-shirts, denim jeans, elastic or draw string trousers or shorts, combat trousers or shorts, rugby-type socks, secret socks, rolled down long socks, sandals, thongs or 3/4 lenght (sic) shorts"

"Not acceptable in clubhouse and verandah

Track suits, T-shirts, bold advertising on garment, overalls, no hats or caps to be worn in bar."

My mind boggles at the thought of someone trying to play golf in rolled-down rugby socks, a thong and a polar (sic) neck designer golf shirt. **@Hurben: They appear to have dropped the mandatory black plastic comb in the sock ;)

At least in the world of cycling the fashion police operate at a different level, but believe me, they operate.

PS Please don't assume I entered these hallowed premises to play golf!

There's a riot going on over at DC

2011-08-14T21:25:00.000+02:00

Real people. Real racing. Real fun. Real DC

Have you...

2011-08-14T15:21:00.004+02:00

.......been to Church recently? Well, you should, because you would have heard this..........

Compare the two versions, the other from Ali Farka Toure's "In the Heart of the Moon" album.

And how was my Sunday morning, I hear you ask? Fiddling with the p.o.s. that is the cable fixing bolt on a SRAM X9 2X10 front derailleur. Fundamentally a crap design. Full stop. Nothing that can't be drilled, tapped and re-built if you have the tools though.

Papsak in Iceland. Really.

2011-08-12T18:49:00.000+02:00

You just have to see this, again thanks to Guitar Ted for the lead.

http://forums.mtbr.com/fat-bikes/iceland-trip-report-730035.html

At least I know I have an ally in the papsak crew. The man deserves honourary Dikwiel Kommando membership!

Fun on bikes

2011-08-07T17:19:00.000+02:00

This is how it should be done........watch till the very end. Thanks to PinkBike

ProGRT How To Cheer on pinkbike.com

I might just make a few of these if I get enough orders

2011-08-07T14:38:00.000+02:00

Really, it's become a bit like born-agains preachin' to the converted. Who ever thought it would come to this ?

And, no, I'm not suggesting that 29 inches is anything like a religion....except maybe for the oh my god bit at the end.

I want one of those.

Local orders taken in the comments section.

We're not alone.....

2011-08-07T14:12:00.000+02:00

Thanks to Guitar Ted for the link to this:

http://piratecyclingleague.blogspot.com/

I like their Golden Rule.

Real people, real riding.

A man whom I have never met, but have great respect for....................

2011-08-01T18:32:00.000+02:00

When asked about battery-powered digital readouts on bicycle pumps, gave this answer:

I think I alluded to my attitude on anything with batteries and LCD readouts. A wooden stake through the CPU should do the trick. Wrap a rosary with a silver cross around your fist as you drive the stake home. Some things just dont have to be electronic.

Well put JB!

Top Bike, Down Under

2011-07-30T16:27:00.000+02:00

If this is/was the original commercial, then hats off to them.

This is too good not to share

2011-07-29T10:35:00.000+02:00

OK, so He Who Shall Remain Nameless has finally seen the light and bought himself some big wheels. Finally. Now he's like a kid with his first bike, all smiles and even wants to go out on frosty Karoo mornings.......long may it last. So it happens that three of us are now like kids with new bikes and it's infectious (much needed as I'll be putting my toe on the Desert Dash line in December)

And then Gunnar posts this, further inflaming the passion

Ride on.

The Life

2011-07-22T18:51:00.000+02:00

No bicycles involved due to the presence of large predators.

It's a particularly soulful time of the year for me

2011-07-18T23:13:00.000+02:00

Freedom Challenge 2011 has come and gone, it's become a huge part of my life. I'll write more about this later.
Suffice to say that it has been an honour and a pleasure to play a small part. Thank you all for the chance.

Sudden increase in demand for tubeless plugs and the importance of saddle noses

2011-06-29T19:55:00.000+02:00

Paul Gripper and Colin Myers caused a national shortage of tubeless plugs with this move. Strongly recommended for triple sidewall cuts over 20mm in diameter.

This man, or rather, the rider of this saddle, got frostbite.

Was it possibly divine retribution for trying to imitate this?

Clearly, dark forces at work again.

Freedom Challenge

2011-06-28T09:14:00.000+02:00

If you're not following this, www.freedomchallenge.org.za , you're missing some serious stuff.

Follow it on twitter http://twitter.com/#!/freedom_trail

This ain't no showy weekend warrior "multi-stage mtb race", this is the soul, the very core of the matter.

Days of the Dead Moon

2011-06-26T21:28:00.002+02:00

This outing was originally supposed to have happened on Commissioner's Salt Pan, but the recent heavy rains made that a non-starter.

Commissioner's Salt Pan

Second option was Inkbos Pan (sibling of the more famous Hakskeen Pan),

but in the interests of a smaller carbon footprint (and more riding, less driving) we opted for Mirabib in the Namib Desert in Namibia.

.
That's how the innocent doddle around a pan at full moon turned into a subversive cross-border raid under cover of a total lunar eclipse. I suggest you fly your own tour of this area in your private Google Erf Jet, it's a magical landscape of gravel desert and red sand dunes.

Part of the plan was to check out the Desert Dash route in preparation for December this year. Another part of the plan was to see the Namib desert after the best rain in a very long time. The main part of the plan was to ride under the total lunar eclipse on the 15th of June. The other part of the plan was to recruit riders for the Dikwiel Kommando. Not surprisingly, the parts all came together.

Shortly after arriving in Windhoek, I was treated to some local after-dark single-track by the locals, if the plan was to see me invest in some of their real estate, it worked. On one of the tighter, windy bits, I bought some farm courtesy of a large rock in the long grass. Due to the late hour, I was the only one who saw myself fall, so they'll just have to take my word for it.

Preparations for the Namib outing were thorough, as we had been warned of extreme cold in the desert. Being well-experienced hill-climbers, we graciously opted out of riding up the Kupferberg Hill on our way out (have to save something for later). Kim and I will be riding the Us Pass in the Dash (probably in the dark) so we recce'ed that. Like all downhills it also involves some some uphill, funny that.

Spot the Cyclists

Small herd of Wild Namibian Buffalo impeding progress

To see the Kuiseb river flowing strongly in winter is something else. It had to be swum in.

That night's stop was at Niedersachsen Guest Farm. Interesting experience. They've had six times their average rainfall so far this year, so it wasn't surprising to see the spiderweb tree phenomenon a la Pakistan.

Pakistan

View from the poop deck porthole of the good ship Niedersachsen

Day two started with Sandra and Adino riding into an increasing headwind, not fun on these "narrow, winding desert roads". (Rumour has it you can land a microlight sideways on them, so there's nowhere to hide from the wind.)

Deserts conjure up all kinds of different things for different people, this is not exactly what I had expected.

Adino struggling through the desert

Sandra doing it neatly

We turned south and headed down into the Namib, things often look deceptively close in this vast landscape with few points of reference. Mirabib was deserted, as we'd hoped, our campsite chosen for it's view of the setting sun and the rising moon. Mui perfecto.

Home

It wasn't long before we had to contend with this....

Mirabib

..and then this

Somebody took better pics than us. Pic courtesy of the intrawebthingy.

We saw this, but then it went almost black.

At which time we set out around the rock...

Two bright Troute lights, one very dark moon

Shield Nose Snake

Next day the sun came up just after the moon set, we had been over-indulged in matters lunar. The day's plan involved riding down to the Kuiseb river near Hoameb. It's hard to explain the generally downhill ride, through the desert filled with knee-high grass, towards the elusive red dunes. This is what it looks like from above..

On the ground it's a whole different story, those red sand dunes stopping abruptly at the river. Go and Google Erf it, or better still, go there.

Route planning

More route planning

If you look very carefully, the red dunes are on the horizon.

She was lookin' back to see if I was lookin' back....

Promise of an oasis

Kuiseb River 16 Jun 2011

I bailed, leaving Kim and Adino to complete the ride down to the river and lunch.

Yours truly feeling a bit like this guy http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Fe6vBEUGWUk/TUZj-PYJcaI/AAAAAAAABMU/poLuKkGyXYk/s1600/Sad+cycle+pic+WW1.jpg but my nurse was nicer

Back at camp, it wasn't long before one of the local shepherds came by, kindly offering medication for a suffering cyclist. He even claimed to know someone in the pharmaceutical trade, so we latched onto him.

Friendly shepherd

The friendly shepherd forcing sheep dip on us. We were not immediately convinced. Last time I saw something in a container like that, it was sheep dip. This was ginger brandy sheep dip.

Whatever was in it, it worked.

The Final Morning

Good coffee, warm sun, home made rusks fantastic company. The life.

On the way home, we detoured past the Kuiseb Canyon. This is one of the spots where Henno Martin and his friend hid during the Second World War. (They were Germans who feared internment due to their nationality and set off into the Namib, where they hid for a long, long time. Their book, "The Sheltering Desert" is a classic. Read it. http://www.archive.org/details/shelteringdesert007109mbp ) While here, we hatched a new plot, this one involves a walk down a section of the Kuiseb Canyon. I have been told I have to leave my beloved Niner behind and walk. For days. Now there's a challenge.

In conclusion I leave you with this.................................

The view, boys, the view.

Beauty in the Land of Evilastus

2011-06-24T10:59:00.000+02:00

It's a harsh and hostile continent, so get used to it.

Trying to come back to earth after the Dikwiel Kommando outing to the Namib. Much to digest before packing it out here.

The insidious spread of the DC gospel

We also have three new members.

Give me a break to sharpen the pencil.......

The story behind the story..

2011-05-31T17:42:00.000+02:00

This pic is National Geographic's Adventure pic of the week. Taken by the son of a friend (the friend who has so expertly covered my Ergon grips in leather). Proud Papa.

..................znamena chlubit se.....................

How I injured my back...

2011-05-29T10:17:00.000+02:00

..by watching this before stretching properly.

A few days ago I was admiring a double flip and now this.

As usual, DC is the root of all this evil.

I'm clearly on a roll. DC fodder.

2011-05-21T10:03:00.000+02:00

http://bikehugger.com/post/view/bike-to-work-winner

Copy and Paste blogging...

2011-05-21T08:51:00.000+02:00

Mea culpa, but Gunnar will understand http://oakwoodlife.blogspot.com/

CUPERTINO (The Borowitz Report) – A new scientific study released today says that iPad owners are less likely to commit adultery “because they stop noticing other people altogether.”

According to the study, commissioned by Apple, Inc., iPad use disrupts what scientists agree are the necessary first stages of extramarital sex: “noticing, admiring, and talking to other people.”

The study, which was conducted on a sample of one thousand iPad owners, found that not only did iPad use make them thoroughly uninterested in extramarital sex, “their nonstop talking about the amazing features and apps on their iPads made them completely unattractive to potential sex partners as well.”

The study also indicated that iPad owners are far less likely to have sex with the people they are married to, but that in two-iPad couples “neither partner seems to care.”

The new findings about the iPad drew widespread praise for the tablet device, including an official seal of approval from the National Association of Housekeepers and Maids.

In Europe, the International Monetary Fund announced that the iPad would be “mandatory equipment” for any candidate who hopes to take the helm of the IMF.

In Washington, presidential candidate Newt Gingrich said that the latest findings about the iPad made him interested in purchasing one, “but first I’ve got to pay off this damn Tiffany’s bill.”

In other political news, potential presidential candidate Michele Bachmann (R-Minn) said today that she was preparing for the GOP debates, including “studying up on where the Boston Tea Party took place.”

Recycling and The Great Rapture

2011-05-21T08:45:00.000+02:00

To all of those with the neat little yellow armbands......

Your last chance to recycle them before the Apocolypse. In case you needed any encouragement to rip them off before you're caught at the Pearly Gates with them still in place.....

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-13481408

I hear that sound of the Titanic ....going DOWN.

It got there..........

2011-05-20T21:01:00.001+02:00

http://drunkcyclist.tumblr.com/post/5355152359/a-letter-from-south-africa

There's a story behind this. Way to go, Gnome.

All work and no play...well, not entirely true.

2011-05-20T20:37:00.004+02:00

Just back from a solid two week stint in the Eastern Cape, interesting, challenging work. Meeting lots of new people and assessing as fast as my on-board processor can process.

Generally a rather sad state of affairs, but it's a long story...

One of many artesian boreholes I visited.

And then the long trip home to sanctuary and proper internet access, where I inevitably stumbled upon this:

No "crabon fibre" here and yes that ball is solid lead. Rumour has it that it's a bitch on the uphill.

Grateful thanks to the S.I.N. brothers.

http://sincycles.blogspot.com/

Thanks to the disreputable SIN Brothers I have been scheming...Some years ago, this bit of road gave 70km/h on a 26" mtb with knobbly tyres, with this kind of machine we may just go faster and further. Very and very.Check it out.

If the work is fun, then the fun is really fun

2011-05-15T17:32:00.000+02:00

The work is fun, interesting and challenging, demanding. Good to be back in the groove again.

I wasn't sure how much riding I'd be getting, so brought my Peace 9r. Turns out to have been a great call, undulating hills and just the right terrain. Google it.

Representing

Spent a good portion of Sunday morning at the Church of the Big Wheel

It involved a few evasive manoeuvres and some gate-hopping, but ended up having paradise to myself. Any thoughts of ducking into the bush to avoid officialdom were quickly erased, this Eastern Cape bush is impenetrable. And the timing was perfect, I met the patrolman just after I hopped over the gate on my way out...;)

Groendal is definitely worth checking out. -33.704279S 25.269343E

Did I mention that this is winter ?

What else I do

2011-05-08T13:13:00.005+02:00

My life, generally dominated by matters bicycle, has another aspect which I don't think has ever been mentioned on the blog....

For the next two weeks I'll be closely scrutinising the groundwater of a small piece of the earth. Actually trying to get a handle on what gives in terms of available groundwater and it's use. It's all part of a much bigger picture which is about long-term water security for the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropole.

Get out there and find out what's going on..........

...of course I'm taking a bike ;)

Kevin Davie's Ganna Ride

2011-05-08T12:48:00.000+02:00

My friend Kevin passed through here on his 3500km Ganna ride a short while ago.

As I said in an earlier post, it's always an honour to be associated with people like Kevin doing things like this.

Read the article and then watch the multimedia

Dumb-ass redneck mofo

2011-04-27T14:29:00.000+02:00

OK, so I live in a little one-horse town populated to a large degree by rednecks (and no, I'm not using the term in the traditional South African context which referrs to English speakers), I'm using it to referr to stupid, narrow-minded bigots.

The fact that for the last four years I have been riding a singlespeed 29er has, believe it or not, caused a bit of a stir. I'm sure other singlespeeders have encountered the usual light-hearted and generally good-natured banter about riding singlespeed, but this is not what I'm talking about.

While out riding with my children this morning, I was accosted by one of the sub-species who spotted me on my bike and passed the comment "Still haven't got enough money for gears" and proceeds to giggle himself into a frenzy. Actually very funny.

Funny because I was riding a home-built extrabike with Swedish Grandpa Bars and need I say it, 24 gears.....not something a redneck would ever notice.

He was born in Oklahoma,

His wife's name's Betty Lou Thelma Liz

And he's not responsible for what he's doing

Cause his mother made him what he is.

Kevin Davie Beit Bridge to Cape Point

2011-04-27T14:15:00.000+02:00

I had the honour of hosting Kevin on Sunday night.

He had the honour of riding out of here head-on into the first big storm of the winter.

http://twitter.com/#!/gannaride

This Aardvark Doesn't Pack Baby Potatoes

2011-04-22T21:31:00.001+02:00

We were trying to work out where this whole idea started and it appears it has something to do with Liam wanting a bike and someone mentioning that he ask his uncle to help him build one. Well, that's one version anyway.

A while back Liam and I built up his bike, and the result was good. So good in fact that Liam decide to ride from Prince Albert to Plett to raise funds for his school. Liam attends the Wittedrif Waldorf School which doesn't have a science teacher, hence the need to raise money.

The choice of route was left to me. I hate tar roads and traffic and particularly people rushing to their holiday destinations (yes, some of them with a big pile of bikes on the arse end of the SUV). No problem. Just go the back routes which I so love, but this particular route goes through one serious mountain pass, again, no problem. I'd be guiding a 12 year old who'd be riding a 26" mtb with a 1 x 8 drive, 44T chainring so there'd be plenty of slack in it for me.
Big BIG mistake. You see, Liam is no slacker.

Day one started literally as the clock struck 7 with a small group of well-wishers (including the Richard Boots contingent who were Touring the Freedom Trail, but more of their imprint later)

Immediately out of Prince Albert and we're into familiar territory, miles of open space and sandy, uphill, corrugated road into the east wind. I guess at the age of 12 you don't notice these things as astutely as us lazy older riders do? Liam couldn't get why I was suggesting that he tuck in behind me to avoid taking the wind head on. Or rather, I couldn't get why Liam couldn't get.....

The beauty of this route (which forms part of the Freedom Challenge) is that there's so much to see...tracks in the sand, skeletons, plants.

That ain't no footprint

One of the joys of these sandy tracks (yes, I'm biased, but then 29r wheels just DO sand ) is the stories one finds left behind. By this stage of their ride the Boots Contingent had clearly had enough of sand and corrugations which is why we are graciously offering them the opportunity to come clean and tell us who left this in the sand. I have my suspicions....... ;)

There is enough on the road verges to keep your mind busy, in this case a stunning Steenbok skull.

And so we progressed, primarily on a diet of boiled baby potatoes and chai. Karen knows her chai. No bicycle juice just yet, just proper food and loads of carbs. Our target for the day (I had never ridden more than 20km with Liam) was a dry river bed at 54km, we reached this in time for an early lunch and then pushed on until Karen found us a neat camping spot. ( I have since learned to leave the choice of campsite entirely in Karen's hands, clearly she is an expert at this).

Not many know it, but this is the legendary breakfast spot of the very first Freedom Challenge. To David Waddilove this is THE spot....................................it doesn't look like much, but he'll tell you all about it.

A five star campsite at 68km, complete with a windpump (although we generally call them "windmills" in SA). Water was not a problem and we were able to enjoy the luxury of a bucket shower. It doesn't get better than this (or so we thought). The next night's spot was to be very different.

We were up long before sunrise to pack and eat breakfast, everything covered in dew. The Karoo has a special light in the early morning. The second day's route took us even further east, still into a not so gentle headwind, but it's such brilliant riding that one tends to forget the wind. More interesting tracks and lots of evidence of meerkats eating tortoise eggs, one was so fresh that the egg yolk was still soft. It was somewhere along here that we found the delightful imprint of a male antbear having dug an exploratory hole. The nature lesson surrounding this picture was something I'll treasure.

The Aaardvark has been busy.

Eventually the eastward grind did a sudden swing to the south and the wind disappeared (why is it that we notice headwinds but not tailwinds?) Through Soetendalspoort and on to the rather desolate settlement of Vondeling. The name translates as "foundling", but it's become a castaway on the beach of change. As the railway system changed and was allowed to disintegrate, these little places lost their meaning. Sitting in the old station building having yet another of Karen's wonderful lunches, it was not hard to imagine this as a thriving hub, with people and parcels and goods being loaded and unloaded moving between the wild hinterland and the harbour city of Port Elizabeth.

Toorwaterpoort (which translates as "The Gorge of Magic Water") is where the railway line goes through a narrow gorge in the Swartberg without an adjacent service road. I had some years previously entered from the south and, tired of riding between the lines, turned back.

We set out into the "unknown" along some narrow bits of track interspersed with riding on the ballast (not fun) to riding on the sleepers (NOT fun), to pushing.

Liam riding on a bit of the beach of change

It was along here somewhere that I managed to snap a brand new 9speed chain, I guess it's the old singlespeed habit of stomping which did the damage.

Liam admiring the bridge he nearly bought

Walking ON the track is better than skipping on the sleepers

Handsome bloody bike

And we're through and suddenly it's cloudy and cold

From the Toorwaterpoort "station" to the overnight stop was a short (5km) hill. That was a long 5km for both of us, but waiting at the top was a 5 star campsite!

We pitched our tents on the verandah of the derelict old resort which provided shelter from the wind and the light rain that had begun falling. The highlight (for me anyway!) was the massive flow of HOT (over 42 Deg C) water flowing out of the ground. There cannot be many greater luxuries than being able to strip off your sticky cycling kit and pour unlimited quantities of hot water over yourself. Well, right then I could not think of many. Next time we'll take a fold up tub of some nature.

10L/s @ 42 Deg C. Constant!

Another of Karen's famous meals rounded off a perfect day.

Two Bicycles at the Hotel California

The third day was to be less laid back as we had to cover about 50km of tar road, not without a few climbs. This turned out to be less onerous than I had expected, it was early on Sunday morning and traffic was minimal. In no time we were in (and through) Uniondale, with our sights set on Avontuur and the Prince Alfred's Pass.

Smile. You now have 13km of winding downhill.

This was a really sweet reward, winding down, down, down to the very bottom at the Keurbooms river and the coffee shop. (Yes, I was fully aware that we'd shortly be paying for those sweeping downhills ) "Tea/Coffee/Scones" the sign at the bottom said, how could we resist?

Oops. Immediately after the coffee break comes the climb out past the Trout Farm, much too soon. Anyway, we approached the task at hand pragmatically, not knowing that we'd soon be at another magnificent campsite. High up on a fynbos ridge, perfectly positioned to see the sun set and the full moon rise. My talking camera pictures don't to it justice (I'll have to make some of Karen's images smaller and put them onto the blog)

A crisp early morning downhill of about 5km to start the day and we're at what has for years been my dream campsite. No more. We had camped high on the ridge and were dry and warm as the sun rose, down here in the valley it was not only cold, but seriously wet. Shattered dreams in hand I faced the Diepriver Heights climb. There are many things to laugh about, but this is not one of them. If I said that I walked to keep Liam company, some of you would choke on your drink and spew it all over the screen.

At the top of the Dieprivier Heights we found this..........

Ok, it's possible that it was left there by a trail runner, but highly unlikely. I'd bet anything it was discarded by one of our two wheeled brethren. Some poor jerk who couldn't make it up the hill without this stuff, OK, it's a democracy he can eat what he likes. But why the hell can't he just put the empty sachet in his pocket and take it home? The sight of the damn GOO/GEL sachets littering the trails is really offensive and puts me on my soapbox in no time. The Swartberg Pass is also often littered with these.

We wound our way down to Kransbos where Brenda fed us as we cooled our heels (the welcoming committee would only be ready by 12). Thanks Brenda!

For the last 15km we were joined by Liam's classmate, Kevin. This stretch was largely downhill and a good chunk of it on tar. There was something pulling Liam towards the finish line like a magnet, Kevin shared some secrets with me on condition that I remain tight-lipped. OK Liam, I won't say a thing about girlfriends!

Before we knew it, the end was 200m away, so like the hot shot pro's that we are, we laid it down and flew the train over the finish line.

Done. 252km. 18h31 12yrs old. Pretty damn impressive

Part of the welcoming commitee.

The future has become the present

2011-04-13T14:11:00.002+02:00

A while back I posted a piece about the future being root beer.
Well, the future became the present and it's actually golden.

Golden is how I describe this...............

Solid Gold in the Karoo hills

Light, smooth, quick, simple, reliable.....

Not unlike it's predecessor, the venerable singlespeed Peace 9r, except that its lighter, quicker, smoother and geared. And it has front suspension.

I hear the gasps from the audience......you haven't...! I have. And I'm actually enjoying it. Setup is pretty much identical to the Peace. Bars, saddle, grips, except that this one has a 9 speed shifter instead of a bell.

Another harsh day on the hostile continent, but someone has to do it

Gates Belt Drive...modified.

2011-03-21T17:17:00.002+02:00

I was hugely excited about the Gates Carbon Belt drive system (Yes, I once rode one and even did a "homeless choobless" conversion for it's owner.) For a while it was all I coveted (well, almost). Smooth, quiet, all those things. It certainly has it's niche in the internal hub/singlespeed world, but as South Africa is so "derailleur bevok", I can't see much scope for it here, other than in the singlespeed/Rohloff arena.

One problem I have read about (and plenty of that) is of the belt drive clogging up and, excuse the word "derailling" the belt.

Seems like that issue may have been dealt with, see this write-up over at OldSpokes http://www.oldspokeshome.com/sneak-peak-new-belt-drive-system-gates

(and while you're there, check out the museum)

It's starting to look more like a chain.

You can get lucky, you can get very lucky, or you can get this......

2011-03-16T14:41:00.001+02:00

All the way from Flagstaff, Arizona..............

Gnome, you are the man!

If any of you local yokels have ideas about where to lay the DC brand, let me know. Send me your postal address if you fancy a bit of this:

Or any of these old bike licence disks? Do the same.

That's my front door.

Urban Downhill in Chile

2011-03-03T21:45:00.000+02:00

OK, OK, I know this is lazy blogging, but watch this. Right at the end is some appropriately labelled dickhead. (You'll see what I mean)

VCA 2010 RACE RUN from changoman on Vimeo.

Jacquie Phelan

2011-03-03T08:03:00.002+02:00

Thanks to Judi at DC for posting this.
I know it will resonate.

The thrill of music

2011-02-28T14:56:00.002+02:00

Sometimes a piece of music lifts you off the ground, like a C130 on jump run...............

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CXKQlCQKtIg&feature=player_embedded

Whatever you do, play it loud

Never..........

2011-02-26T10:44:00.001+02:00

Never under-estimate locals, singlespeeders and old riders, particularly if they are on a steel bike.
el jefe DC

Liam's Bike Build

2011-02-07T19:43:00.003+02:00

About a month ago, my cousin Karen asked if I could help her son, Liam put a bike together. On condition that Liam paid for everything and that he could do pretty much all of the work himself. OK.

I pulled out an old Gert Visser frame, handed it to Liam and said "Sand". Lots of water paper and even more elbow-grease later, he produced a well-prepped frame. Some time to get the primer in place and then we were ready for the matt black. Black, particularly matt black is a good first colour for a spray job.

At this stage Liam had to head back to school for a few weeks ( Rev Dick- See what I mean?) In the interim I was able to collect some bits, in fact quite a pile of pretty decent bits. (Big thanks Steven and Fiona )

When Liam and Karen returned, we were ready for the final big build, not sure who was the most excited. By this stage the frame had acquired a coat of clear matt lacquer and most of the gubbins were pre-prepped, this is not the time to discover that something doesn't fit.

.....a bit like Lego, but you can eventually ride it!

It's important to note that Liam has saved and worked to earn the money to put this baby together.

Early on the Saturday morning, things looked like this...

This is it, let's get started!

Getting that headset in where it belongs

Lubed seatpost

Stripped thread

Reverse the frame into the workstand and get the fork in, headset adjusted, and the stem in place. At this stage we discovered that the "B" on the stem stood for "Buggered" (It had ended up in the parts box because the threads in the bar clamp were stripped..) Fortunately there was another stem in the box. My entire credibility had been hanging by a stripped thread........

Turn the bike around in the workstand so that real work can start.

Crank bolts

No low-end chain lubes in here please....

Liam had by now installed every component himself, I only supplied the intelligent use of brute force (like shoving the grips on). Putting a bike together like this can be a tiring experience, so we stopped for a break before the final assault, but not before Liam had put his wheels together (rim tape, tyres, tubes, valve lined up with the tyre logo) I am also a detail person ;)

While polishing the rims and spokes (every spoke), Liam noticed that one of the rims was knackered, so I'd replaced it. That's why you clean your bike by hand, because that's how you get to know it. Personally. If the bike really means anything to you, that is.

Then that magical moment! It works!
The clicker clicks and the gorilla does what it's meant to do. (And what's that I hear someone chirp? The gorilla, my friend climbs up and down the cluster )

Finally.

On yer bike!

For the record

The dangerous realisation that these bitchin' machines can take you anywhere................

Karen, Liam and I will be doing a 230km fundraising ride from Prince Albert to Plettenberg Bay. Fundraising for a science teacher at his school.

Special thanks to:

Steven and Di Thomas of Daytrippers,
Fiona Coward of Sabie Experience ,
Steffi Rohrbach

Photo Credits: All photographs by Karen Rissik

The Route

Don't mix your blends

2011-02-03T22:33:00.001+02:00

No doubt many of you have converted to tubeless (on mtb at least) and possibly even some on road.

We all have our funny stories about various tubeless conversions and probably even some war stories about tubeless gone wrong gone wrong.....Stans on the windows, the ceiling, the floor ?

The tyre in questionhas been on my Peace 9r since 2007, first on the front, and later, when the rear Bontrager delaminated in spectacular fashion, on the back. I have no idea how many thousand kilometres it has on it, but plenty anyway.

It developed a slow leak the other day, so I took the liberty of a deep cavity inspection.......a not very pretty sight. A mix of dried Stans and some other blue stuff (also dry) and who knows what else. Prognosis not positive :(

Most people would have put the tyre out for recycling, but not me. No ways, there must be a good few clicks left on that airplane-like tyre tyre. My current favourite sealant is CaffeLatex, so I slopped in a good dose of that. (I've been having a very good run with Caffelatex recently, particularly with a recent "homeless choobless conversion on the Extrabike). So why not up the ante?)

Fit and forget. Until it happens. A fair-sized sidewall hole far from home...made it back, but only just.

Ever hopeful, I pumped it up and did the usual shake and rattle number. It eventually sealed, but not after first depositing this (below) on my workshop table. And some more elsewhere, but let's stay focussed.

Tubeless DNA

Lots of very old white Stans plus some arbitrary blue goo plus some off-white Caffelatex = light frothy green. Looked a bit like something out of a gangrenous wound.

It sealed, and is still sealed, but I think it's time for a tubeless renovation, pull 'er up into the dry dock, scrape it all off and start again. With a new tyre.

OK, so I'm biased, but it seems like Caffelatex IS the business. Well, for me it is anyway.

Sheldon Brown

2011-02-03T09:16:00.002+02:00

Sheldon Brown Day today.

I owe much to the great man.

**Correction: Thanks to Gunnar I now know that Sheldon Brown Day is April 1st.

2011-01-31T13:45:00.000+02:00

The future is also terracotta

2011-01-23T20:37:00.000+02:00

Who'd have thought this would be waiting for me on the other side of the mountain?

While I was sad to see the Mississippi Crocodile go, it's really time for change. 1978 240 D, the pinnacle of German electro-mechanical engineering (I have that on good authority) With unknown hundreds of thousands on the clock, but that's what they do best.

First Notice

2011-01-23T20:15:00.000+02:00

Early warning

June 15

Full Moon

Lunar Eclipse

Profile perfect for the purpose.

RASA and R2R members excused.

Yes, SIR 9 !

2011-01-15T10:01:00.003+02:00

Yes SIR 9

Dream Time

Big Time

The Future

Is Gold

No Doubt About That
.

Echoing Others

2011-01-15T09:44:00.000+02:00

If you came this far......

Go over to the Church , listen to Junior Brown, look at the pics, read the words.

The Rev has a way.

Desert Vixens Wax the Dash

2010-12-24T20:57:00.020+02:00

I've always loved Namibia, wide open spaces, stunning desert environment and a population density of less than two people per square kilometre which means that most of the country seems deserted. When I was asked to second a team on the Desert Dash, I didn't hesitate. Not for a moment.

The Desert Dash is an annual race from Windhoek to Swakopmund, 340km which must be completed in less than 24hrs. Options are solo, and two person or 4 person teams. All riders must ride the first and last 35km and their share of the 70km stages in between. This means that there is a mass of support vehicles at the first stage hand-over, fewer at the next and so on. Water points are in the middle of each of the 70km stages and riders may not be assisted along the route by their back-up vehicles.

The race starts at 3pm, with most teams making the top of the Kupferberg in about two hours.

The FNB Namibia Desert Vixens before the start

The start was accompanied by harsh gusting wind, all the way to the top of the Kupferberg, slowing riders somewhat but also offering some respite from the heat.

Gisela starting the Us Pass stage

Kupferberg is chaos as the designated rider moves on and the others get themselves into the support vehicles for the trek to the beginning of the next stage, in this case the Kuiseb Bridge after the Us Pass.

Louis "Luiperd" Wessels showing how the masters do it

Unidentified rider making like a fokofpolisiekar down the Us Pass

Gisela ripped this stage, with her half candle-power light she never even saw the yawning chasms over the edge of the pass. Way to ride.

Kim attacked the second stage with a sense of urgency unknown in these parts, being familiar with the stage, she had a plan. All I can say is that I'm glad that I wasn't out there on a bike in my present state of fitness. So I stuck to this.......

Kim flew into the Khomas Safari checkpoint, giving the graveyard shift to Sandra. Kim, it appears is unflappable.

This "undulating" stretch seemed to be never-ending dust. By this time I was hallucinating in the dust clouds (did I mention the dust?). The dilemma of passing riders and leaving them in the dust, knowing that you really have no choice, but it still goes against the grain.

The BloedKopje checkpoint was where I hoped to get some sleep, so I pushed the driver's seat back and passed out, regrettably my over-trained team were having none of this. It wasn't long before Tina set out on her stage to the Power Station checkpoint, Sandra having ripped the section in faster than expected time

Tina setting out from Bloedkopje at dawn

Wicked Desert Vixen behaviour

(no sound or video images available)

The Power Station checkpoint was where the entire team regrouped for the final stretch into Swakopmund.

Arriving at the finish the team looked as calm and composed as they had at the start nineteen and a half hours earlier!

Kim, Sandra, Tina, Gisela after a very credible 19 h 31min

(I'm the Fat Bastard without a bike)

PS Mannie Heymans set a new record of 12h13min. Solo. Loco.

Brushwork, or rather fine brush strokes

2010-12-05T18:14:00.005+02:00

Custom paint jobs on bicycles cover a wide range, but recently I noticed two that stand out.

Horse hair brush stroke finish (lifted this off the intrawebs, source unknown)

This one off an old Hansom track bike;

That sure as hell ain't horse hair....?

It speaks volumes about a very much closer relationship with the bicycle. (or am I missing something)

2010-11-30T08:32:00.002+02:00

OK, so I'm probably showing my age................yesterday I was introduced to Whatsapp for the first time.

Given that the Nokia version of it appears to have been on the market for about 10 days, I'm not too slow.

This neat little app allows you to send text messages via the data system rather than the iniquitous sms rip-off that exists in this country. (In SA the sms business is a license to print money).

Get it here

http://whatsapp.com/dl

OK, I'm sorry if you knew all this before

Thanksgiving

2010-11-28T11:58:00.008+02:00

Funny title for a post on a South African blog, I guess.

It would appear that Thanksgiving in North America is a celebration that is largely unaffected by the crass commercialism that has hijacked the one a month later. Why?

Those who know me will hesitate to say things like "Christmas spirit" and "oh, but it's for the children" or even "it's family time" within earshot. If you didn't know that about me, now you do, consider yourself warned.

While not a Christian, I support the right of others to be Christians, particularly if they support my right NOT to be one with equal fervour.

When I see "Xmas specials" and the related crap oozing into advertisements in September, it confirms for me the abuse of a festival (admittedly one the Christians themselves hijacked) for pure commercial gain.

And oh shit, the heat I take because I will not enter into the "Christmas Spirit"! What is it that the vast majority (who are no more Christian than my dogs are buddhist cat lovers) are actually celebrating? The birth of Jesus Christ? No. It's merely a mindless rush into some unnecesssary and in most cases, unaffordable consumption. How about saying STOP and just for a moment thinking whether we need all the Christmas "stuff".

How about rather saying, "I'm giving up this or that for Christmas"?

I doubt that South Africa is alone in the way this happens, but my eyes were recently opened to Thanksgiving and what it stands for in North America. Hell, even the crew over at DC got quite serious!

While I'm often critical of the way the USA conducts itself on the world stage or the way their country is run, there is much we can learn from them. Thanksgiving is but one.......

It would be appropriate for us in the southern hemisphere to be giving thanks at this time of the year. The end of the calender year.The beginning of summer. The year end break (yup, you Yankees have nothing on us when it comes to this....industry and much of business closes for a month! And in the month before and the month after they are preparing to shut down and recovering from lags in the supply chain) Imagine that, the whole country slips into neutral for a month. FOR CHRISTMAS!! Funny that, in a largely Pagan and animist country.

Anyway, I have much to be thankful for, I am very aware of that.

I chose to celebrate it by making the most of the bounty provided by my apricot trees.

Apricots, with blemishes, with bird damage and even some with worms. The presence of worms indicates that there is no poison, unlike commercially grown fruit.

And through a freestyle process involving a lot of this, and

ably supported by the Buddhist cat lovers,

I ended up with this.

"This" being a large quantity of smoked apricot chutney, apricot chutney with achaar masala and apricot jam with ginger. And still the apricots keep coming.

And in the background? A postcard depicting a bicycle race at the 1903 Athens Olympics.

My Man in Minnesota

2010-11-18T19:48:00.003+02:00

.....may be hell on the raccoons, but he knows where to find the diamonds.

Gunnar beat me to it on the new Danny Macaskill video, hell, he even beat DC to it too.

http://drunkcyclist.com/2010/11/17/the-holy-shit-section/#comment-58667

Whatever you do, watch that man on his bike (Danny, that is ).............................

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cj6ho1-G6tw

Watch, and listen to this.

2010-11-12T08:37:00.002+02:00

Gunnar "Don't Mess with my Carp" Berg has just posted something that blew me away.

Look. Listen. Bettye LaVette.

http://oakwoodlife.blogspot.com/

Humanity's Rite Of Passage: A World Tended By Adults

2010-11-11T14:40:00.000+02:00

http://www.countercurrents.org/baker131009.htm

Read it.

XtraBag

2010-11-07T13:34:00.006+02:00

XtraBag. Frame bag. Frame pack. Call it what you want to, but it's a clever way to carry stuff, particularly heavy stuff.

I originally made this one out of Kudu rawhide (as light as carbon, stronger, not brittle, re-usable, bla bla bla) for the Sishen-Saldanha ride. http://johannrissik.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2008-11-18T08:00:00%2B02:00&max-results=10

It could hold almost 8 litres of water in a series of 2 litre bladders (re-used wine bladders), making the bike seriously heavy. Heavy takes second place to water in Bushmanland.

Thanks to this bag, I never ran out of water, but towards the end I no longer needed to carry as much water, so filled it with food. Accessible food.

No, it's not waterproof (that's not generally required in that part of the country) and when it got totally wet at the coast it lost it's shape. Too bad.

I'd been keen on making a canvas one to replace the rawhide one, with a side zip and even an inner compartment for small things, so it was fortuitous that Di O'Donovan mentioned that she was pretty good on a sewing machine. We set at it with rough sketches, then proper drawings and finally hardboard templates.

Your Salute, Reverend.

Lots of backwards and forwards to make sure everything fitted as planned, even a hole in the template to hang it up.

Afficionados will recognise this as the middle compartment of the XtraBike

The first prototype:

++It's made of bullet proof ripstop canvas

+ Fits the frame perfectly

+ Zip placement is under discussion

- It's off-centre (that will be changed)

- No logo (wait and see, but it's likely to involve a 16t sprocket and a finger)

We're aiming for:

As water resistant as possible
Lightest/strongest/cheapest
Ultra durable bag and zip
Customized to each specific frame, no "one size fits all crap"

The Black Mamba

2010-11-07T10:10:00.008+02:00

OK, so this is where I am on this one...

Stripped it down the other day, grinding, sanding polishing, priming and spraying. I have parked the idea of the Desert camo Sharki colour for now (it's not available in the Prince Albert powder coating booth, but rattle can matt black is ;) Thanks to the soft focus ability of my Nokia talking camera, you can't even see the high quality welds. Probably better that way.

I have also installed a new crankset and chains, well, chain and a half. Yes, new chain and new cables are half the way to solving a lot of cycling problems.

Also back on is the SLX chain tensioner (thanks to Mechanical Ray, http://fiforiders.blogspot.com/2010/06/my-freedom-challenge.html). It turns out that chain tension is an issue when you have a crankset with three functional rings. The trick seems to be to set the "middle-rear" derailleur in the middle (strange that) using the limit screws and the ubiquitous piece of tying wire.

The "cockpit setup" is almost edzachary the same as the 29r, so we are off to a good start. In fact they are so similar that I reached out to change gear on the 29r...and a voice from above said "sit and spin *^%**&^%"

All that clutter on the bars? Mary Bars, Ergon grips, Deore brake levers and R40 (about $6) friction shifters, think I have all my bases covered there, except the bell.

So, just the luggage to sort out. Di is making two frame bags (she of XtraBag fame) one for the front triangle (100mm wide) and one for the third triangle (250mm wide). And maybe a pair of panniers for the back.

And then I suppose I'll have to do the long trip this bike was built for.

Two Greats

2010-10-31T11:00:00.001+02:00

Pity about the sound quality, but the spirit is there.

It's hard to make a stand ....that's light, strong and cheap

2010-10-31T10:28:00.003+02:00

I might just be disowned for this............

I was sitting here scheming how to make the centre stand for the XtraBike. Trying to fit it into those standard three dimensional bicycle parameters STRONG LIGHT CHEAP when I was distracted by the words of this song.

You said it, Ms Crowe.

....but not impossible.

It's been a long week

2010-10-29T20:05:00.007+02:00

It has, with it's ups and downs, been a rough rollercoaster one, this last week.

My friend Graeme went into hospital for an operation, only to be told that he has picked up an infection (in the hospital when he was there for tests last week) and has to be on an IV anti-biotic drip for a week. Fuckin' hard for anybody to have to deal with that.

Bicycle design http://bicycledesign.net/ post a piece on Archibald Sharp's epic treatise, including the direct line to the mother lode. Where to download this wonderful book and many others in a similar vein, for free. Big props to James T and Miles. You were a highlight in the week. Thanks guys.

We (Di and I) are deeply involved in the design of the first three "xtrabags" (trademark applies) for the xtrabike (well, two for the xtrabike and one for the 29r). Di is precisely 10 times more precise than me, I do the centimetre thing whereas she wants it in millimetres ). These are frame bags for the long haul, made of ripstop canvas with take no prisoners zips, they should outlast even a good steel frame. (Not for use on carbon frames, the mere sound of that zip closing could crack that pretty frame ;)

Another big prop to TopCopy in Claremont, Cape Town (Ray, Leila and Jeremy). Nothing was too much trouble in getting Sharps' classic to them via yousendit.com, printed, bound and ready on time. The marvel of modern technology; Download a 20MB file of a digitized 19th century book from the other side of the world, send it to TopCopy via yousendit. They print it and bind it and two good friends make sure it gets to Graeme in hospital. He's blown away.

I proceed to greedily download a host of other 19th century cycling books thanks to BikeDesign, including BOTH volumes of Thomas Stevens "Around the World on a Bicycle". If you haven't done so already, do so now. And that includes you, Steven Thomas. These 1100-odd pages help put things in perspective. Around the world on an "Ordinary". In the 1880's. No kidding.

Xtrabag design now 99% complete, final templates done and Di and I are on the same page regarding angles and millimetres...looking good. We may yet turn this into a business, the only other person I know of making frame bags is in Alaska, so we shouldn't tread on each other's toes too much. Anyway, his snow will have melted by the time he gets down here.

That all-important template, all detail correct and present

Then a call from Graeme to say that he's home tonight..wtf?...the hospital has run out of the anti-biotic needed to deal with the infection he picked up in said hospital. Welcome to South Africa, to the land of the World Cup 2010, to the land of fat thieving greedy politicians, to the land that runs out of medicines at it's training hospitals. Fuck these thieving swine.

Ok, so that's now out, so I pull out the singlespeed corkscrew and get to write this all up........this is for a friend up North where the snow only stays slushy for a very short while, until it freezes solid!

A good Merlot and a brilliant corkscrew.

For many reasons this has been a week from hell, but after it's all over, there's light at the end of the tunnel.

This is floating my boat right now

2010-10-24T16:36:00.001+02:00

SRV Mary had a Little Lamb

Stretch and the compartment issue

2010-10-22T16:53:00.003+02:00

Cardboard mock-ups of potential frame bag spaces.....

Oh yes, motivation for the weekend

2010-10-22T13:50:00.000+02:00

S...t...r...e...t...c...h

2010-10-21T12:58:00.004+02:00

Stretch is taking shape in an "organic process".

Weld, grind, weld.....

This idea scored top points for creativity, but that's all. Hours of careful thinking removed with a grinder.......

A very late night last night has produced this so far.................

Rock solid
Rides like a dream
Carries a load without a problem
Would be lighter if made of carbon fibre

Handles very well with the 15kg load, even placed up that high.

Technical detail: Notice the second gorilla (that was acting as a chain tensioner) has gone, not needed.

Elegant solution, still a way to go.

Action List:

Fit plywood deck on rear rack
Complete sides of rear rack
Tidy up the metal-work
Strip and paint (Afrika Korp Brown RAL 8020)
Install both brakes
Install rear gorilla with a friction clicker

A whim, I suppose.

2010-10-18T19:40:00.007+02:00

I don't remember what started the search, but I ended up on the Bikeforums.net homebuilt Xtracycle page over the weekend..........if someone in Western Canuckistan can do it so can I!

I dragged two old steel frames together, in fact I tied them together so that they could commune overnight. Come morning things were looking good. I posted some pics on the thread, hoping for advice and encouragement, but after 30 minutes there was no response so I picked up the grinder and got to work. I mean hell, boy, what time do you wake up in that part of the world ;)

Fortunately (for my level of skill as a welder) these frames are made of steel, back in the days when it was still cheap. They made nice thick-walled tubing for sparkers like me to play with.

I think the extra few hours of thought paid off (as it so often does) and I was able to turn out an XtraCycle frame that rides pretty well (still no technical gubbins...brakes, shifter cables etc) without having to backtrack.

OK, the process in a nutshell:

Put the frames together to see how they work together (actually bolted the donor bike and the "other" bike (the receiver?) together, BB to dropout. That gave me an idea of what and where to cut.

Cut and grind. Removed the down-tube in it's entirety, kept the top-tube, but sliced it to facilitate a bend. Grind the front of the top-tube to mate with the receiver's seatpost.

Weld (yes I know you can't weld this stuff with an arc welder) That's why I just pretended I had a tig welder and got on with it. Looks not unlike pigeon shit, just smaller. Nothing that body-filler and undercoat can't tidy up. (Actually, I'm rather proud of my arc welding ability)

The "meeting point", where the donor bike's BB goes into the receiver's rear drop-outs was simple enough. A 12mm high tensile bolt, drilled dropouts to 12mm, some spacers, aligned the whole lot and welded it in place. Neat, strong, simple.

So far a fun project, the rack detail at the back is going to take more time, it needs a strong, lightweight, cheap, home-made, practical, stylish rack (I don't want to raise expectations at this stage).

So that's her, and yes, I know it's like coming out of the closet, here I am riding those little wheels aided by clickers and gorillas. Standards just ain't what they used to be. Please don't tell anyone.

OK, seriously now. That "parallelogram thing" looks like the business to me. This bike suddenly opens up a few possibilities, there's space to load quite a few litres of water in there (Sishen-Saldanha and another Bushmanland trip are now in reach.) Just a pity about those little wheels, but I could get over it. And the gears.

If anybody has any ideas about racks, please supply.

I don't generally like "concept bikes", but this is real. And I like it. A lot.

2010-10-11T14:13:00.002+02:00

Wonder how she sails?

http://www.innercitybikes.com/bikes/

Never Mind The Dog - Beware of the Owner

2010-10-11T12:45:00.004+02:00

Harry with with his favourite uncle, Noor, at the range.

That's a first generation Glock, for those know these things

The results? Impressive.

The Irony of it all

2010-10-11T12:35:00.003+02:00

I have unashamedly lifted this from http://www.metro.co.uk/news/843583-plumber-creates-bicycle-made-for-tools-to-beat-olympic-road-works

Plumber creates bicycle made for tools to beat Olympic road works

A plumber driven round the bend by Olympic road works has adapted a bicycle to keep his business running.

( 0 )

Related Tags:: bike; olympic; customers; traffic; pipe

On your pipe: Chris Jones dodges road works on his adapted bike (Dorset Media picture)

That's great, but I really can't help thinking that in most of the "developing world" this would be considered perfectly normal and hardly newsworthy.

"Dangerous Roads" my arse !

2010-10-10T19:22:00.005+02:00

I drive this road regularly. 400km along the "most dangerous road in the country". Regular massive crashes, regular double-digit fatality "accidents". Generally the only visible presence of the traffic officials is when they are hiding behind bushes manning (or womanning) speed cameras. Very rarely does one see a moving traffic cop, one that can deal with "moving violations" which must be the major cause of so many accidents..

Arseholes like this one.........ZMJ467GP

Not once, but four times I saw this vehicle pull the same move.

South Africa -- The Real Threat

2010-10-07T12:04:00.003+02:00

Solid piece by Justice Malala, heartening in these times of the neo-kleptocracy.

Justice Malala, The Times, Johannesburg, 4 October 2010

ANC leader Pallo Jordan, writing in this newspaper last week, asserted that because of the struggles of his comrades I am able to write my "wordy, self-righteous columns in The Times, certain that he (I) won't spend that night in prison."

I am not sure that I won't spend tonight or any other night in prison. I am also not certain that the leaders of the ANC won't throw me in jail. Because, as outlined by ANC veteran Oyama Mabandla in an article in African Affairs in 1990, large chunks of the ANC hates free speech and hates people who speak truth to power.

Which is why this same ANC - that Jordan claims fought for me - arrested and detained him for six weeks in 1983.

This is what Mabandla said way back in 1990:

"Pallo was detained on the orders of (Communist) Party member and Mbokodo (the ANC's security department) chieftain, Peter Boroko. . Pallo was accused of exposing the Mbokodo informant network within the Department of Information and Publicity by mockingly referring to department official Francis Malaya and another man named Ace . as Amapolisa (the police) - warning other DIP staffers to be careful of them. On that basis, Pallo was detained and was to spend six weeks in detention.

"I participated in an informal meeting at Green House (Mbokodo HQ) which discussed Pallo's arrest. . During the discussion one Mbokodo officer made a chilling remark which seemed to capture the essence of the entire saga. The comment went thus, 'leli intellectual lase Merika lisijwayela kabi': 'this American-trained intellectual is uppity' - and thus in need of straightening out."

This is the ANC that Jordan now claims I should be certain will not jail me. Either he has been imbibing something strong, has been in a coma or he is delusional. He should ask Mzilikazi wa Afrika what the ANC is capable of.

Wa Afrika, in case that story passed the perceptive Jordan by, was arrested by 20 policemen in six vans, taken to a secret location in Mpumalanga and interrogated at 2am without a lawyer. The charges against him have been dropped. Wa Afrika works in my building.

I am grateful for Jordan's certainty that I will not spend the night in prison.

Yet the ANC I know is the ANC that detained Jordan for saying exactly what I say today in my "wordy" columns. It is the ANC that detained my colleague Wa Afrika just two months ago while Jordan was composing his Floyd Shivambu-esque drone.

The really offensive part of Jordan's piece is that he claims that it was him and the ANC who fought and liberated South Africa so that "today Malala enjoys the freedom to insult them with impunity".

It is time to tell the true story of who delivered the country to the democracy that it is today - and who fights to protect these freedoms. The ANC's useful idiots arrogantly claim that "it was the ANC" that fought to give us our freedom. Rubbish!

While the ANC was detaining the likes of Jordan or torturing young women in its camps, it was people like my young friends and relatives who were, under the banner of the Mass Democratic Movement, rendering the apartheid state unworkable. It was Desmond Tutu who led me and other young students to the beaches of Cape Town to defy apartheid laws.

It was Peter Mokaba who, as president of the SA Youth Congress, harried PW Botha. It was Trevor Manuel and Popo Molefe and others in the UDF, and Jay Naidoo at Cosatu, who led our mothers on marches and stayaways.

Meanwhile, the ANC was detaining and then poisoning the young leader Thami Zulu. Jordan may be interested to know that Zulu's bosses in that ANC, and the people who still won't say what happened to him and many others, are now snugly in Cabinet giving us legislation such as the Protection of Information Bill.

An ANC that can behave so abominably towards its own members, in a faraway place of hurt and loneliness, is not the noble beast Jordan tries to portray. I am empathetic to - and even love - the real ANC, the one Jordan turns his face away from: it is fallible, it is aware that it is open to abuse by people within its ranks and it is humble in its enjoyment of the freedoms that we, the people of South Africa and the world, fought so hard for. This is the ANC that values a free press.

In the meantime, I am going to enjoy my sleep and write more "wordy" columns now that I have Jordan's assurance that the leaders of Mbokodo, the people who ran the ANC torture camp Quattro, won't jail me. Or Mzilikazi wa Afrika. Or even the rather wordy Pallo Jordan himself.

From: http://www.timeslive.co.za/opinion/columnists/article687980.ece/The-ANC-did-not-set-us-free

Eukanuba Dog Food Diet ---Thanks Di!

2010-10-06T13:56:00.003+02:00

I was buying a large bag of Eukanuba dog food at my vet and
standing in a queue at the check-out. A guy behind me asked if I
had a dog.

On impulse, I told him no, I was starting the Eukanuba Diet again,
although I probably shouldn't because I'd ended up in hospital last
time, but that I'd lost 22 kilos before I awoke in an intensive care
unit with tubes coming out of most of my orifices and IVs in both
arms.

I told him that it was essentially a perfect diet and that all you do
is load your pockets with Eukanuba nuggets and simply eat one or two
every time you feel hungry. And I told him that the food is
nutritionally complete so I was going to try it again. I have to
mention here that by now, practically everyone in the queue was
enthralled with my story, particularly a guy who was behind him.

Horrified, he asked if I'd ended up in hospital in that condition
because I'd been poisoned. I told him no; it was because I'd been
sitting in the street licking my balls when a car hit me.

Stupid fool... why else would I buy dog food?

Nietzsche

2010-10-05T14:00:00.001+02:00

The individual has always had to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by the tribe. If you try it, you will be lonely often, and sometimes frightened. But no price is too high to pay for the privilege of owning yourself.

Bastards

2010-10-04T11:01:00.004+02:00

These are the bastards who ran the rhino killing syndicate.

Sunday Blues

2010-10-03T12:22:00.001+02:00

Hole-in-Foot Disease

2010-09-30T08:19:00.004+02:00

Move over Tex, it looks like El Pistolero may have a hole or two in his feet.

...and yes, I know, it besmirches this blog to post this stuff here.

Take that! Pink Singlespeed Triplets.

2010-09-23T17:44:00.006+02:00

How many sets of singlespeeding triplets are there in the world? Not many.

What are the chances of a set of singlespeeding triplets on identical bikes walking into Cape Town's top singlespeed bike shop? Less than zero.

Proof that the impossible happens.

Inside the shop window, you might have noticed, is a ten year old boy, deep in thought. Is he:

Offering thanks to his gods that he only has one sister ?
Frantically memorising their names and phone numbers ?

All we need now is a matching set of 20" bikes. Any ideas?

Animal Welfare versus Human Taste

2010-09-21T16:00:00.003+02:00

This poor critter was spotted lounging on the rear window ledge of an indiscriminate vintage Toyota Cressida bearing a CFP number plate. Poor dog has to lie there all the time, occasionally nodding his head at passing strangers. What a life.

Guaranteed best sellers in South Africa!!!

2010-09-19T21:01:00.005+02:00

Every now and then a real gem just pops up to the surface, a bit like finding a diamond at your feet....well almost.

A recent gem was the Voodoo Bantu (http://fiforiders.blogspot.com/2009/06/voodoo-bantu.html) but now, lo and behold we have a real winner.........

Zuma Helmet:
A compact, streamlined design enhanced by a system of 26 vents: Zuma combines the characteristics of a technically advanced helmet with a dynamic, highly attractive look.

Regular Retail: R1300,00

...and that's without the standard shower attachment

Just in case you think I made that up:

http://www.buycycle.co.za/buygear/eyewear/rudy-project-en/rudy-project-rydon-impactx-free-zuma-helmet-and-a-set-smoke-lenses-rudy-project.html

I have always wanted to be at the start of a major race, leg cocked over the top tube, nonchalantly chewing gum and sporting the latest Zuma helmet.

Layla, hold me close, I think I'm going to start feeling dizzy. Layla??

Somebody tell me it's a joke. Please.

Where the hell have I been?

2010-09-18T14:54:00.004+02:00

Layla Zoe laying it down.

And it's all Gunnar Berg's fault.

Junior Brown

2010-09-17T16:59:00.001+02:00

Hats off to Gunnar for bringing this to my attention. http://oakwoodlife.blogspot.com

Use of Coke

2010-09-07T08:00:00.001+02:00

Watch this, right till the end. (OK, I'm a lazy blogger, but this is too good not to share)

Robin Hood Tax

2010-09-06T19:11:00.005+02:00

Fun.

Laurent Fignon

2010-09-02T09:04:00.003+02:00

Viva Laurent Fignon

31August 2010

Corky Siegel & Marcy Levy

2010-07-22T18:49:00.000+02:00

Lay Down Sally.

Oh yes.

"My" Freedom Challenge

2010-06-30T18:12:00.009+02:00

It's that time of the year again. Winter. Something I associate with biting cold, chapped hands, eating oranges by the dozen and the crisp silence of the Karoo nights. There is another iconic association that has crept onto that list. Meeting the Freedom Challenge riders.

Every year it's different, but usually a combination of cold, wind and rain along the route from Willowmore to Prince Albert make it a somewhat dreaded stretch. THAT road, 168km of relentless slog has a special surprise this year; sand and corrugations as they have not been in recent years. The road has become synonymous with the "Coffee Shop", but things have changed and now the site of the famous Annie's Cuca shop is deserted...........Annie you should know that Marnitz stood there and cried. He had ridden all the way and all he found was this.....

This section takes riders into the Western Cape (the name Koup is another story on it's own) and onto the psychological home stretch.

You Kouping ?

First rider I met was Glen. Singlespeed Gentleman Extraordinaire. I consider myself fortunate to meet people like Glen (and honoured to help sort out niggling technicals on his bike).

Exiting the mobile coffee shop

Fresh out of the Karoo Singlespeed Workshop

And then Ray, Mechanical Ray to some. The call came in to say he had a trashed rear gorilla but he was carrying a spare one (yes, I know the image of Ray riding along with a spare gorilla in his backpack may confuse some readers, but he was!) After trying to do the "over-the-phone" DIY number for a few minutes, I realised that Ray needed my help. 93km out on the road was another special meeting. Special for me and special for Ray. It gives me a huge amount of pleasure to head out there, meet complete strangers and just click. One time. Thanks Ray.

Racing again...Mechanical Ray

Two Wheels. One Dark Lord

We cruciFix your bike

Anytime. Anywhere

If it's not your time, it's not your time.

2010-06-05T19:11:00.003+02:00

One day I'll learn how to show the video in the blog... in the meantime check this one. (Thanks to Steve, I now can!)

A very good reason to wear safety goggles at all times while cycling!

My Home

2010-06-03T13:48:00.006+02:00

A few people have asked what my home looks like, so here it is.

I'll try and show then and now pics.

Dwyka. Don't pass go.

Construction, early 2004

Plastered, not painted mid-2004

Later. Stoep added

Construction detail.

Harry's bed

Kitchen 2009

Living area 2009

Evidence of child labour

From above Winter 2009

The North Wall. Late 2009. Unhappy wall.

The clay pits with water.

The stoep.

The sign.

Entrance late 2009

Entrance now (June 2010)

Clay pits June 2010

North wall June 2010

Stoep June 2010

Front door June 2010

OK. So that's where I live.

If you were very observant, you'll ahve noticed that I can cycle off the stoep and away. The ramp is both wheelchair and bike friendly.

Some steps forward and a little bit sideways

2010-06-03T12:21:00.003+02:00

Simple good looks

Spent some hours last night building the rear wheel. Thanks to Julia and Pam for the effort required to collect the spokes and to Essie of Oudtshoorn Fietse for cutting them to length.

Galvanised spokes are offer a substantial cost saving (R1 per spoke and nipple as opposed to R10 for stainless), but there are pitfalls.... the nipples strip.

Anyway, the wheel, in it's raw form has worked well, four cross lacing with the coaster hub. Looks just the part. Unfortunately the uber-cool Conti Speed King doesn't fit in the frame.....bugger. So, I suppose it will be plain black for me. I like the idea.

The bing wheel-nuts are optional!

Graeme Murray is riding across the country to advise me on the bb saga. Looks like we may machine it down to the required dimension to be able to tap it to the standard 1.370 x 24 tpi thread. That will solve a lot of problems, after all, I'm making a ride-able bike, not trying to re-build a 1930's bike to original condition.

Anyway, looking good so far................

I may be able to get a Rudge chain ring, which would complete the picture.

Those bars work!

Threads

2010-06-02T22:44:00.003+02:00

Thanks to Ron Thompson (collector extraordinaire and member of V-CC) I think I have the answer to the thread question...

It (BB shell ID) measures out at 33.0 mm (plus or minus a tad) so the closest match to that is BSC 1 1/4" 24tpi (http://www.sizes.com/tools/thread_BSC.htm) Brilliant. Bloody fantastic.

Walk into lbs and ask for a bb 76mm (actually 3") for the BSC 1 1/4' x 24tpi !

Chances are they'll understand the first two letter (bb) and then go rapidly blank.

Looking even more like a machining job.

The Awakening

2010-06-01T11:43:00.010+02:00

Taking Shape

After years of lying forgotten somewhere and narrowly missing being "recycled", this Rudge-Whitworth frame is slowly coming to life. More on the man himself..........http://www.localhistory.scit.wlv.ac.uk/Museum/Transport/bicycles/Rudge.htm

My research indicates that the frame dates back to the 1930's (that particular type of headset badge was last used in 1939). If anybody has more information, I'd be grateful.

Front End:

I've sourced a steel, twin-tube fork and the necessary headset (the frame has an integrated headset, something you'll be told is a "new development" in bike design)

The North Road bars (http://www.sheldonbrown.com/english-3.html) are old, with a nice sweep and with their original plastic grips in what is now "ivory" or more simply, dirty white.

The bell, in contrast, is new, cheap and, inevitably, Chinese. (Sourced from the Kooperasie in Laingsburg)

Chrome. Ivory.

The front wheel is a Swift Arriv, (http://www.stars-rim.com/english/) deep-section rim with a 1988 Maillard hub, radially spoked and fitted with Continental Speed Kings (35mm)

That ultra sleek look of radial lacing

The rear wheel has the same Swift Arriv rim with a coaster hub (back-pedal hub to South Africans) from the Czech Republic, laced 4 cross and fitted with the same Speed King tyre.

The BB is another story which requires a detour through the history books........ When the majority of British cycle manufacturers agreed to standardise on a BB thread, they chose the BSA thread (1.370"x24tpi). Raleigh, being the Microsoft of the time, decided to remain with their 1.370"x26tpi thread)

That BB......is it 1.370" x 26tpi ??

So that's what I'm looking for right now, bearing cups for a 1.370" x 26 tpi BB shell. I will find them, but buying the Phil Woods one is not an option. Phoning a "big" bike shop in Cape Town and I learn some new stuff. That there are only two BB threads in the world, British and Italian. Wow. And to think I believed Sheldon Brown when he listed no less than 8! Maybe more bike shop owners should make a study of http://sheldonbrown.com/gloss_bo-z.html#bottom

In fact it would do them good to study the entire website. In detail.

Hot from the workshop: The bb shell does not measure what a 1.370" x 26tpi should. Maybe we have some predecessor here....starting to look like a machining job coming up!

Cranks and pedals will surely follow.

Saddle?

An old Brooks. This particular saddle is rather special because it was made in SA under licence. It appears to have been a partnership that ended when Cycsad took over the manufacturing and branded the saddles as Cycsad (a standard on many old SA made dikwiels)

Except that this one's leather is buggered, so I'll be making a replacement out of rawhide and then covering it with sheepskin (just for a little local flavour). Graeme Murray will be assisting in the shaping of the saddle because he knows about those things.

Seatpost? It's less than an inch, so probably an imperial size like 7/8" or, knowing the British, possibly even some "standard" size like 13/16" !! Update: It would appear to be 15/16". I'll just pop down to the lbs and collect "One 15/16" seatpost please" Which length would you like sir?....

That stylish contrast

Give me gears, Lord, give me gears!

2010-05-23T18:45:00.004+02:00

This via urbanvelo....

IS NOTHING SACRED?????????????