full sus january 2014

Why SA struggles in XCO pg6

Check it out online now

FullSussa

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MOUNTAIN BIKE MONTHLYMOUNTAIN BIKE MONTHLY

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January2014, Vol 10

Gear - Cycling Topspg27

Entry level bikes 102 pg8

www.issuu.com/FullSussa full sus

Origin of trails pg12

turn to page 2

Yebo, just 15 minutes from Kokstad, along the R56 towards Harding, the trail

fairies have been slaving away cutting some magical lines deep into the indigenous Weza-Ngele forests that edge the main road on the way to Port Shepstone. On a recent weekend trip to visit the Ingeli Forest Lodge, I was gobsmacked to realise that you barely have to turn off the road to park your car safely, suit up and hit a 15km premium loop of South African trail riding.

Ingeli Forest Lodge, as I mentioned, is set just off the R56. Recently revamped, with super friendly staff and a kitchen that serves excellent affordable chow,

Ingeli Forest Lodge has been in the Armour family since 1992. Clinton Armour was our host for the weekend, and you know you’re bound to enjoy the trails when the owner is a psyched rider! Understanding the investments needed to create good, safe trails; Clint procured the services of Karkloof’s Hylton Turvey to design and build the handcrafted sections of single track.

Heading off from Ingeli Forest Lodge, most of the shorter trails start from the back end of the establishment and are well sign posted. Our group of friends joined a posse of local timber and cattle farmers, and headed off along the 10km loop, tracking our way

Top Dogs & Under Dogs of the Weza-

Ngele ForestsThere is a particular magic triangle that exists in

South Africa, created by tar roads that join the South Coast, the Wild Coast and the Southern

Berg. Somewhere in the middle of this green and fertile triangle, we fi nd the farming town of

Kokstad. Most South Africans know Kokstad because it’s a convenient pit stop when driving

long distances, but Kathryn Fourie bets a fair amount that you didn’t know the area is riddled

with fresh single track. Say whaaat?

turn to page 2

“THAT TURVEY SURE KNOWS HOW TO BUILD A BERM (BERMS YOU WANT TO STEAL, IF BERMS WERE STEALABLE)”

LIVE

Hylton Turvey putting “Commercial Suicide” to the test

KA

TH

FO

UR

IEwww.fullsussa.co.za

2

FS Ingeli Forest MTB Heaven

from page 1

“FOR MOST INTERMEDIATE RIDERS THE BRIDGES AND TURNS OF COMMERCIAL

SUICIDE ALONE WOULD BE WORTH PLANNING A RIDE AT INGELI!”

through a little bit of forestry that soon merged into the loamy depths of indigenous forest. Not far into the ride one comes across perhaps the most premium feature of the trails, cutely dubbed ‘Commercial Suicide’. There are super fun green lines, so you don’t need to take the roller coaster ride of bridges that arc back and forth down the steep sides of the valley – but for most intermediate riders these bridges and turns alone would be worth planning a ride at Ingeli!

The logging history of the area is evident everywhere, with logging pits visible from the seat of your bike en route. The pits, Hylton tells me when we head up to try and take photos at Commercial Suicide, were the only way to saw up the huge trees in the forests to remove them. The trunk would be laid across the pit, with the ‘under dog’ sitting in the pit beneath the trunk, and the ‘top dog’ would stand above. Using an old school blade saw, the two ‘dogs’ would saw the trunks into manageable planks to carry them out of the dense forests. Hylton adds that the under dog would suffer terribly, with the incredibly fine saw dust eventually blinding them.

SUS THE INGELI FOREST LODGESUS THE INGELI FOREST LODGEContact details:

www.ingeliforestlodge.com

Tel: +27(0)39 553 0600

Fax: +27(0)39 553 0609

email: [email protected]

GPS: 30°33’54”S / 29°38’15”E

With that charming information safely stored in my brain to haunt me later in the evening, our ride pops us out on a gorgeous little dam with birdlife galore. Picnic tables and road access make this a magic spot for chilling out, and it’s hard not to imagine a sundowner…even though it’s three in the afternoon. Most of the climbing up in the area is done on forestry roads, and there is a fair amount of climbing, as the region is hilly. But every descent is tucked into the forests, Cruising through high redwoods with sunlight just blinking through onto your knuckles, dappling your world in a high speed blur, is special to be sure.

Again, one of the coolest things about the Ingeli trails are that many of the features you may like to ride multiple times are close to the Lodge, and so it was with the bermed, pump section that had everyone giggling wildly and pushing back up to ride again and again. That Turvey sure knows how to build a berm (berms you want to steal, if berms were stealable); and to have this glorious delight right at the end of the trail a hop and a skip from the main lodge is a real treat.

Aside from the shorter trails (15km, 10km and 7km), which can be combined in many different ways, a longer 30km loop extends out in a different direction utilising jeep track, forestry roads and single track. One of the prime features of this trail is a lovely floating bridge that crosses a dam, and not something I have seen at many MTB establishments.

Ingeli Forest Lodge is geared for riders; there is a high-pressure hose in the parking lot; showers

and loos for day riders; and a brilliant pool in the chalet section at the back. Of course, a variety of accommodation options are also available and can be seen online. The restaurant is large and comfortable with a massive deck, and one gets a real feel for how mountain biking is taken seriously by the communities of Kokstad and Harding. If you are driving along the R56, and you’ve got your bikes on the back, pull in and have look for yourself.

Kathryn Fourie has become a bit of a regular in Full Sus lending us her

considerable skills for the World Champs and introducing us to the life of a female downhiller. She’s from KZN, works for an NGO has a trail dog and a boyfriend called Mark Millar. Not Millah as she initially indicated on her offi cial press

pass application for the World Champs.

Satisfi ed sisters Sarah and Julia. Ingeli’s aim of satisfying souls seems to be going well.

SARAH DREW

SA

RA

H D

RE

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Exiting indigenous forest to ride across a fl oating bridge, Ingeli off ers some unique features for riders of all levels.

4

The EcoBound event organising team has come up with a unique new way of getting you

to explore the best trails in South Africa with their Big MTB Year mobile application and competition.

All you have to do to enter is download the app, which runs on Apple and Android smartphones and costs R199, and register on www.bigmtbyear.com. There are over 60 trails, all across the country taking part, so get ready to make 2014 the year of epic, mountain biking, road trips.

Once you’re at the trail head, you activate the app and check-in at the trail. Then ride – remember these are some of the country’s top MTB trails, so you’ll have a blast. Once you’re

done, take a photo of the Big MTB Year trail board and rate the trail. You get one point for checking-in, one for riding, one for the photo and one for your trail rating. The person with the most points at the end of the year will be the Big MTB Year winner. So it’s not about how fast you can complete each loop or how high you can boost off every jump, but about getting out and exploring the trails of South Africa.

There are levels to move through as you tick trails off your to-ride list and before you know it, you’ll be moving from ‘Rookie’ to ‘Ultimate Trailer’. The Big MTB Year aims to be the biggest MTB event of 2014 and it’s for Anyone, at Anytime and Anywhere. Check it out at www.bigmtbyear.com or find it on Facebook.

newsnewsWow 2014!

Full Sus is nearly a year

old and already there are so many highs (and lows) on this wonderful journey we have begun. To say that starting a free niche newspaper in the current economic climate (although the MTB climate seems to be pretty rosy), in an industry we quickly realised we knew very little about (despite being seasoned publishers that are MTB fanatics), has been to say the least daunting. The industry seemed to think we were destined to failure and of course we also had to convince YOU the reader that Full Sus was worth its salt. I can say unequivocally that our readers, you guys, have completely embraced us and to date we have received overwhelming support. The LBS’s have also been nothing short of brilliant – ensuring we get feedback and that you get your monthly fix.

Besides our tiny team, led by Seamus and supported by Jules and Meg, we have awesome regular writers who have seen the concept and bought into it completely. David Bristow (our pot-stirrer, camel man and friend), David George (who will no longer be a regular but is still a mate and I am sure will contribute again), Coach: Doc Mike and herb & yoghurt chick Rochez, trail-builder and activist Meurant, our own environmentalist Jean-Louise, skills master James, “I don’t work but ride trails all day” legend Jacques, the lighty and ballie team of the Stirlings (Snr who despite his age is still a race snake of note - managing 48kgs plus a zimmer frame on a bike is revolutionary!) and of course Kath and Kate – our wild roses amongst the thorns and of course “team you” - all the reader contributions. Thank you; with all your input we have made Full Sus an SA MTB content feast. We continue to grow and will make every effort to ensure that Full Sus goes from strength to strength.

There were two particularly low points in 2013, the loss of Burry Stander and of course saying goodbye to Madiba. In MTB context Burry was well on his way to legend status, and in context of our country and the world’s, Madiba was a colossus. Hopefully you meet up and Burry can show Madiba some of his awesome talent and Madiba will give Burry some of his magic, kindness and wisdom. RIP.

We find ourselves at the beginning of a new year. Welcome 2014! I hope that you all have a stunning year, that you get to spend more time on your bike, that you introduce at least one person to the sport and that you continue to enjoy the lifestyle of this wonderful sport of mountain biking.

See you on the trails!

Cheers

2014 - maximum time in the saddle

the teamPublishing Editor: Shayne Dowling

[email protected]

Content Editor: Seamus [email protected]

Art Director: Megan [email protected]

Advertising: Shayne Dowling

PR & Promotions: Julia [email protected]

Regulars: Meurant Botha, Stirling Kotze Snr & Jnr, Jacques Marais, Cherise Stander, Dr Mike Posthumus, Rochez O’Grady,

James Thornhill-Fisher & Jeanne-Louise Wiese.

Rogue Contributor: David Bristow

Photography: Julia Andrade, Oakpics.com, Cherie Vale Newsport Media

and thinkstock.com.

Contributors: Kathryn Fourie, Kate Slegrova and Pierre Nel.

Printing: Paarl Coldset (Pty) Ltd

Published by: Integrated Media

Disclaimer: The views expressed by the contributors and columnists do not

necessarily represent the views of Full Sus or Integrated Media.

Head Office | Cape Town Tel: 021 685 0285

Address: Suite WB03 Tannery Park23 Belmont Road, Rondebosch, 7700

Postal Address: PO Box 259, Rondebosch 7701

COMPETITION TERMS & CONDITIONSCompetition submissions should reach us no later than 20 January 2014. The Prize/s is as indicated, no alternatives or cash will be provided. The decision of Integrated Media will be final and no correspondence will be entered into. Under no circumstances shall Integrated Media or its appointed representatives and the prize donors be liable to anyone who enters these Prize Draws for an indirect or consequential loss howsoever arising which may be suffered in relation to the Prize Draws. By entering these competitions you make yourself subject to receiving promotional information. Entrants are deemed to have accepted these terms and conditions. Prize Draw Rules: The prize draw is only open to residents in South Africa. Employees of Integrated Media and their respective advertising, media and PR agencies, as well as the family members, consultants, directors, associates and trading partners of such organisations and persons are ineligible for the draw. Prize style and colour may vary.

Full Sus ALLIANCE PARTNERS

MOUNTAIN BIKE MONTHLY

FS Editorial FS News

Apologies: Full Sus must sincerely apologise

to Avalanche, due to the editing process the

specification features of the Avalanche XXIX Zero

were not listed in full. Here are the full and

correct specs:

Frame Fork Drivetrain

Custom formed

6061 Alloy

Suntour Raidon

-x3-lo29 Air

Shimano Deore/

Alivio/Acera

Brakes Wheels Sizes

Tekto Hydraulic DiscAlex DP20 Disc

Hubs Double Wall 16”, 18”, 20”, 22”

Full Sus has a bit of a history with branching into commuter culture from time to time, introducing you

to the Invisible Helmet and keeping you updated on the Moonlight Mass ups and downs. So with that in mind, the amazing electric bicycle motor, the Copenhagen Wheel isn’t out of place. It’s a technological marvel, developed by the boffins at MIT’s Senseable City Lab, and using F1 pioneered KERS (Kinetic Energy Recovery System) to boost power to its electric motor.

Professor Carlo Ratti, Director of the MIT Senseable City Lab explains: “The [Copenhagen] wheel contains all you need so that no sensors or additional electronics need to be added to the frame and an existing bike can be retrofitted with the blink of an eye. In a sense, you drive by foot: when you pedal forward the motor supplements your torque; when you pedal backwards to brake, the motor starts regenerating electric energy while reducing your speed.”

It differs from other electric bikes in that all components are integrated into the hub, with no unsightly wires, or battery packs. The hub features a motor, 3-speed internal gearing, batteries, a torque sensor, GPRS and a sensor kit

that monitors CO2, NOx, noise (db), relative humidity and temperature. It’s controlled by your smart phone, allowing you to change gears, select how much torque the Copenhagen Wheel adds to your pedalling power and locks the wheel when you park.

So if you’re an avid commuter and want to make your commute easier you can look into retrofitting your bike with a Copenhagen Wheel. Find out more at www.senseable.mit.edu/copenhagenwheel.

THE COPENHAGEN WHEEL

WWW.MAXTOMASINELLI.COM

News FS

With the inaugural Simonsberg Enduro proving to be a great success, with even Giant Factory

Racing’s Andrew Neethling taking part, the Simonsberg trails are set to become one of the highlights of mountain biking in and around Stellenbosch – which is saying something… The trail centre in Welgevonden’s Stone Square complex is also up and

running. You’ll be able to hire bikes, buy entry permits to the Simonsberg Conservancy’s trails and grab a copy of Full Sus from the new Dirtopia Trail Centre, so drop in.

On the matter of where to pick-up a copy of Full Sus in Stellenbosch, you’ll also be able to grab a copy at the Ride In Café on the Jonkershoek road, while you enjoy a post-ride beer or coff ee. Check out Dirtopia at Facebook.com/dirtopia and the Ride In at Facebook.com/rideinjonkershoek.

Looking for the benefi ts of 1 x 11 ease of use without the price

tag? Then you should check out OneUp Components’ 42T Sprocket – designed to extend the gear inches on off er of your existing 10 speed cassette. It’s billed as an easy retrofi t, requiring the removal of one of the mid-range sprockets from your cassette to make space for the 42 tooth sprocket.

How well it’ll work without the specialised Sram 1 x 11 tooth shape and confi guration remains to be seen, but OneUp claim that the 11-13-15-19-21-24-28-32-36-42 retrofi tted cassette will provide a 17% improvement in cassette range. The 42T sprocket will be attractive to riders looking to go with one chainring upfront at a lower cost and for the less fi t riders looking to extend the climbing capabilities of their 2 x 10 set-ups.

The OneUp 42T Sprocket is set for a January launch and is priced at $100, with free world-wide shipping. Find out more at www.oneupcomponents.com.

DATES VENUE FORMAT(S)

10 to 13 AprilPietermaritzburg,

South AfricaWorld Cup: XCO, XCE & DHI

24 to 27 April Cairns, Australia World Cup: XCO, XCE & DHI

23 to 25 MayNove Mesto,

Czech RepublicWorld Cup: XCO, XCE & Junior XCO

30 May to 1 June

Albstadt, Germany World Cup: XCO, XCE & Junior XCO

7 to 8 JuneFort William, Scotland

World Cup: DHI

14 to 15 June Leogang, Austria World Cup: DHI

29 JunePietermaritzburg,

South AfricaWorld Champs: XCM

31 July to 3 AugMont-Sainte-Anne,

CanadaWorld Cup: XCO, XCE & DHI

7 to 10 August Windham, USA World Cup: XCO, XCE & DHI

21 to 24 August Méribel, France World Cup: XCO, XCE & DHI

3 to 9 September Hafj ell, Norway World Champs: XCO, XCE, XCR & DHI

Rika Olivier Ladies Simonsberg Enduro Winner

ONEUP COMPONENTS 42T SPROCKET

UCI MTB CALENDAR

If you keen on keeping track of our elite riders’ progress in 2014, here are the important dates and venues of the UCI World Cup and World Championships.

Stellenbosch Riding and Reading

DARREN GODDARD GAMEPLAN MEDIADIRTOPIA

6

FS Olympic Format Cross-County

Given that our riders competed on home soil, with all the accompanied benefi ts, a great

deal was expected. Unfortunately our top 20 achievements were limited to only fi ve riders. They came from Alan Hatherly, who fi nished 15th in the Junior Men category, Bianca Haw 10th in the Junior Women category, Mariske Strauss 8th and Candice Neethling 14th in the U23 Women category respectively, and Brendon Davids fi nishing 19th in the U23 Men category. The remaining 26 South African XCO riders who managed to fi nish placed anywhere between 30th and 62nd in their respective categories, all only qualifying for t-shirts! Why is that - don’t our riders prepare and race enough to be prepared for an event like this? Or is the talent simply not there to compete at an international level?

The packed Cycling SA racing calendar suggests that masses participate in mountain bike races every weekend. Mr Pienaar and his colleagues have done an incredible job in establishing a mountain bike fraternity in South Africa. Since the inception of the MTN National Mountain Bike Marathon Series, which started as the Mazda Drifter Series at the turn of the century. XCM (cross country marathon) became so popular in South Africa that the MTN series and the Gauteng based Trailseeker series are respectively the biggest XCM series in the world. However, unfortunately, growing mountain biking as a competitive sport requires more than just having masses participating.

The following two reasons could be prime contributors for our top XCO riders being bulldozed by their foreign counterparts:Firstly, XCO, unlike any other mountain bike discipline, requires extreme eff ort and bike handling skills. This is confi rmed in a scholarly article Relationship between Anaerobic Cycling Tests and Mountain Bike Cross-Country Performance by Allan Inoue et al, published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research in 2012. They explain that “XCO is a highly

Where XCO is going wrong

After the grand splendour of a perfectly hosted UCI XCO World Championship has worn off , it will serve us well to do a realistic post mortem

on the performance of the South African riders that participated, writes Pierre Nel.

intense intermittent event ... during which there are phases where maximal and supra-maximal eff orts are necessary such as during steep climbing, at the start of the race and when sprinting to pass slower riders”. For those new to mountain biking, that means participants have to dig freaking deep. Those not prepared for these extreme levels of exertion demanded by XCO will experience much more discomfort during the event than what they will be exposed to during any XCM event. Mix that with the high technical demand of XCO race tracks, and the logical assumption will be that XCO performance is for racing snakes willing to put their bodies on the line. Although an extreme fun-fi lled event, XCO is defi nitely not for the faint hearted! XCM in turn does not require the same physical nor technical commitment from participants as it rarely requires supra-maximal eff orts! It is much easier to perform in XCM!

Secondly, and this might seem controversial, but sport enthusiasts, including mountain bikers, crave ego boosting events. Hence the incredible drive to ride with branded apparel - it creates the perception of noteworthy performance being rewarded, resulting in a “sponsorship“. This has become culture, and suppliers capitalize on that by (mis-)using cyclists as living

bill boards, displaying their brands on apparel. To that, extend that young future heroes are often exploited by being lured into teams where they are coerced to participate in events for the masses where brand exposure is king. Participation at events with fewer contestants becomes a no-go as it limits brand exposure. Bear in mind XCO does not lend itself to the same mass participation associated with XCM as the race tracks mostly boast single track and many bottleneck obstacles. Our future heroes are consequently silently being discouraged to participate in XCO due to a radical decline in support from sponsors for XCO!

Attracting sponsorsThe popularity of XCO, being the only mountain bike discipline globally in which all age group categories can participate competitively, will only be fuelled when the issues listed above can be addressed. When we can ensure that participants reap maximum enjoyment from participation through proper athlete preparation and well prepared race tracks, and when we can get sponsors involved in the discipline.

The limited number of XCO races off ered nationwide is confi rmed when physically comparing the number of XCM events versus the number of XCO events on the CSA calendar! The only XCO races hosted in Gauteng are some of the national

races, provincial races and the XCOSA Race Series. Consequently, if we continue along our current trend, our mountain bikers will evolve into a bunch of fun-riders and never into lean, mean, competitive, top performing bike handling and skilled machines. No wonder our mountain bike performance cannot get off the ground – we lack participation in proper XCO events that will expose participants to the right type of development.

“IF WE CONTINUE ALONG OUR

CURRENT TREND, OUR MOUNTAIN

BIKERS WILL EVOLVE INTO A

BUNCH OF FUN-RIDERS AND NEVER INTO

LEAN, MEAN, COMPETITIVE,

TOP PERFORMING MACHINES.”

Pierre Nel studied sports science at the University of Stellenbosch after

which he furthered his studies on the psychological aspects underpinning

performance excellence. He is a professional sport performance coach,

organiser of a race series and competitive XCO mountain bike rider.

Cherie Vale might have fi nished 37th but she was the highest placed fi nisher to hold down a day job. Now that’s an impressive feat

Is Philip Buys’s 53rd and the 47th and 49th managed by Renay Groustra and Matthys Beukes good enough?

DARREN GODDARD GAMEPLAN MEDIA

DARREN GODDARD GAMEPLAN MEDIA

8

or hard-tail 29ers. And the reason for that is simple economics.

Yes, you could downgrade your car to ride the 2014 Epic, like one of the Full Sus readers’ mates is supposedly doing, but for most of us, especially those of us driving a 2005 Toyota Tazz, that’s not really an option. Normal mountain bikers have to make the realistic choice of what they can afford and go for the most capable bike in that price bracket. Often that’s going to be the best hard-tail 29er. As you saw from the table in the December issue (recap at www.issuu.com/fullsussa), there are quite a few options to

choose from – and you should bear in mind that we didn’t list every single bike, but kept it to one per manufacturer to keep it manageable.

The BasicsIf you’re in the market for a hard-tail 29er with ride anywhere capabilities (anywhere bar a downhill course that is) then these are the following points you need to look for:

◆ A tapered head tubeWith a wider base, a tapered head tube offers strength and stiffness, where you need it most – where the fork, head tube and down tube join.

◆ Quality wheelsYou’re going to want to go for the best specification hubs, rims and

tyres you can afford, better wheels roll faster and are worth every cent if you don’t want to be pedalling your legs off to keep up with your mates when they’re freewheeling. Cheap wheels pretty much negate the benefits of the big 29er wheels – so if you can’t afford decent new wheels rather shop second hand.

◆ Tubeless tyresIf you’re going to be riding on any trails of any consequence you’re going to want tubeless ready rims and tyres. Get your local bike shop to do the conversion before you take the bike home, it’ll make your life so much easier. Tubeless tyres allow you to run lower air pressures, which allow your tyres to grip better, and help you avoid those pesky punctures.

◆ Air sprung forkWhile there nothing wrong with the coil sprung forks on some of the bikes in this price range, the benefit of an air sprung fork is the adjustability. You can set the suspension recoil and air pressure to suit your weight, riding style and the terrain you’re riding. Yes it’s going to cost you a bit more in maintenance, mainly in the effort of remembering to check the pressure regularly, but if you take good care of your bike (as you should) you won’t have any issues.

FS Entry Level Bikes 102

Yes we’d all like a full suspension bike – or even better a full suspension XC

bike, a full suspension trail bike and a steel framed single speed (if you’re going to dream) – but for most of us that’s just not financially feasible. If you look around you, on the start line of a Saturday 45km race, you’ll notice that the majority of riders aren’t on high end full suspension, full carbon 29ers. There certainly are riders on full sus 29ers, but chances are the majority are riding the more reasonably priced aluminium models - full sus 26ers

Last month Full Sus launched its guide to buying your first bike by discussing the hard-tail 29er

options for the new mountain bike rider. With the recreational mountain bikes out the way, let’s

take a closer look at the bikes in the R10 000 to R15 000 – because if you choose wisely from the

bikes in this range you’ll have a bike capable of conquering just about any mountain obstacle.

CAPABLE hard-tails

A tapered head tube

continued on page 9

JULIA ANDRADE

Momsen’s AL429 – it’ll take you anywhere on the mountain and ensure you have a blast too.

The Podium does not lie.The Podium does not lie.

With more than 10 podiumsat the maritzburg worlds27.5 is not in between .

it’s simply -

STIFFERLIGHTERFASTER

STIFFERLIGHTERFASTER

see full range http://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-za/http://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-za/

Spec BonusesIt’s not just the Momsen AL429 which features surprising specifi cation highlights. The 2014 Suntour Raidon 29er forks feature remote lockout across the range. If you’re looking for a feature to make your life a little easier on the bike that’s a good option, which you’ll fi nd on the KTM Ultra Sport and Ghost SE2950 too. The Axis A20 goes one better though, featuring the surprisingly light Suntour Axon fork with a 15mm through axle. As yet none of the other lower cost bikes have caught onto this trend, but look for others to follow suit later in the year.

On the drivetrain front, most of the manufacturers have gone for 3 x 10 set-ups, which provide a great range of gears. If you’re new to the sport then the range is going to be a great help, but if you’re planning on racing (this is especially important if the bike is for a teenager) you should consider one of the 2 x 10 equipped machines rather. There is less gear duplication and less to go wrong (i.e. a broken chain caused by crossing the chain too diagonally, from the chainring to the cassette, under power).

For the Smaller RidersIf you’re slight of stature and have found the 29 inch wheels a bit much to handle, you should consider the 650B (27.5 inch wheel) off erings. Giant’s ladies specifi c Tempt 27.5 (from R6 750) and men’s Talon 27.5 (from R6 995), Avalanche Bond 27.5 (sorry no pricing info), Merida’s ladies specifi c Juliet 10 and men’s Big Seven (sorry no pricing info), Momsen’s ladies specifi c LA 651 (from R6 000) and men’s AL655 (from R7 000), Silverback’s ladies specifi c Splash (from R4 999) and men’s Slade (from R5 850) and Titan’s ladies specifi c 650b men’s Calypso Trail (from R6 499) and 650b Comp (from R9 499), are all worth a closer look.

Possible ProblemsMy concern with the entry lower cost bikes is the bottom bracket quality. Maybe it’s a symptom of being used to the look of the oversized BB30 bottom brackets, but the little bottom brackets on the lower cost bikes did have me worried. The lack of a protective collar joining the crank arm to the frame leaves the bearings vulnerable to grit and grime too. However with some online shopping research, my fears were quickly dispelled. The Shimano BB Spline ES25, as used on the Momsen AL429, will only cost you R141 on buycycle.co.za or R150 on evobikes.co.za. So while it’s not a particularly sustainable way to go about it, you can always ride it ‘til the grinding gets too much and then replace it for a very reasonable cost.

10

FS Entry Level Bikes 102

Across the Price Ranges

Using Momsen as example

here is a list of models and

prices across the hard-tail

29er off erings.

MODEL PRICE

AL029 R5 999

AL129 R7 150

AL229 R9 995

AL329 R11 995

AL429 R11 995

AL529 R17 995

AL629 R19 500

Momsen

AL229AL229

JULIA ANDRADE

For the smaller riders, check out the Merida Big Seven 100 bikes.

The entry level Momsen testSUSSUSMomsen bikes very kindly let Full

Sus ride a couple of their value

models to research this story and

they were honestly great rides.

The AL229 model is priced at

R9 995, and comes well spec’d

with just the Kenda Small Block

Eight tyres letting the bike down

a bit. I took it up the Berg Pad

above Stellenbosch, around and

down to the plantations of Eden

(above Paradyskloof, just outside

Stellenbosch) were it handled

excellently on the gravel roads,

climbing as well as it’s big AL429

brother, but struggled a bit on the

loose single tracks of the pine

forests and the rooty, rocky single

tracks of the Blue Gums plantations.

The increased wheel stiff ness of

the Stan’s ZTR Rapid on the AL429

compared to the Weinmann/

Momsen Double Wall on the AL229

become increasingly noticeable as

the terrain becomes rougher. The

Schwalbe Racing Ralphs off ered

signifi cantly more grip to the

AL429 than the Kendas did for the

AL229. The diff erence between

the two Momsens nicely illustrated

the diff erent bikes for diff erent

predominant riding conditions

approach to bike buying that we

advocated in the previous article.

If you’re going to be riding gravel

roads to keep fi t and enjoy being

out in nature then the AL229 is the

bike for you. Even if you venture

off along the odd short section of

single track the stock standard

AL229 won’t let you down, but

if you’re going to enter races,

tackle anything rocky or negotiate

technical trails, then spend the extra

cash on the Momsen AL429.

The AL429 is one of the most fun

bikes I’ve ever ridden. It just wants

to ride. In fact it felt rather similar

to the Trek Stache in the simple

but responsive ride feel. The only

negative for me on the bike, which

I feel could have been fi xed at the

price point, is the rather unsightly

cable routing, which would have

looked better in a frame matching

tubing colour rather than the

white which stands out rather

glaringly. But on ride quality, trail

handling capability and component

specifi cations you can’t fault it,

especially at the R11 995 price. Yes,

it’s not the lightest and you’ll feel

the nearly 13kg weight on longer

climbs – but it’ll get you fi t, strong

and teach you trail riding skills.

There is an undeniable logic to the

‘do it the hard way on a hard-tail

to develop the base skills’ school

of thought, rather than learning

bad habits on a forgiving full

suspension (though if you do

ride a soft-tail there is no harm in

learning in more comfort).

I took the AL429 on a few rides,

the longest of which was a crank in

the torrential rain on the limestone

hard-dunes around Arniston. The

route featured plenty of short sharp

climbs and slick rock shelves made

treacherously slippery by the rain,

but the AL429 never missed a beat.

Its virtues against its AL229 stable-

mate have already been noted, but

the fact that it comes tubeless ready

is an essential feature while the

remote lockout on the Suntour SR

Raidon fork is a nice bonus.

from page 8

It’s not just the Momsen AL429 which features surprising specifi cation highlights. The 2014 Suntour Raidon 29er forks feature remote lockout across the range. If you’re looking for a feature to make your life a little easier on the bike that’s a good option, which you’ll fi nd on the KTM Ultra Sport and Ghost SE2950 too. The Axis A20 goes one better though, featuring the surprisingly light Suntour Axon fork with a 15mm

Entry Level Bikes 102 For the smaller riders, check out the Merida Big Seven 100 bikes.

For the smaller riders, check out the Merida Big Seven 100 bikes.from page 8

Spec BonusesThe Axis A20, featuring the Suntour Axon fork with a 15mm through axle.

12

FS Origin of Trails

If you’re a regular reader of Full Sus you’ll know we were all pretty excited about the Origin of Trails, Stillwater Sports’ newest addition to the MTB stage race calendar and a ride conceived to raise funds for trail building

and maintenance on the mountains and valleys around Stellenbosch. In an eff ort to provide an in-depth ride report we got Cycle Training’s

Kate Slegrova (one of the top amateur ladies in any local race) and Full Sus’ Seamus Allardice (who is neither a lady nor a top rider).

Kate’s ViewsDAY 1:78km, 2 300m ascent!Friday morning saw the riders assembled in Church Street and ready to go have some fun on the trails. Standing at the start we knew it wasn’t going to be an easy ride, with lots of climbing and hot temperatures predicted.

Heading out of the neutral zone in town and on to Botmanskop, we were soon taking on the similar climbs to the Die Burger MTB race. Not for long though, soon we were on a virgin territory above the Delaire Wine Estate and headed for my favourite part of race. Newly built single track down into the Banhoek Valley, traversing the valley fl oor on farm roads before climbing the south eastern slopes of the surrounding

Kate Slegrova runs Cycle Training, a cycle and mountain biking coaching business. When she’s not at the sharp

end of racing pack herself, she’s teaching technical bike riding skills or coaching riders to complete races like the Cape

Pioneer or the Cape Epic. You can fi nd out more at www.cycletraining.co.za

mountains where the route featured more virgin single track, fi lled with switchbacks, before heading back towards Botmanskop.

After refi lling my water bottle at the second water point, the heat kicked in as did the climbing. We were baking in the sun for some time and had some time to grumble too. I couldn’t help thinking this was not the easy ride to fi nish a long season I’d hoped for. After the gruelling climb we were soon in Jonkershoek, home ground for me and in shade. My legs caught a second wind, with the help of an energy gel, and I rode up nicely and enjoyed the familiar ‘Never-ending Story’ single track down to the Jonkershoek Valley fl oor.

Then we were back in the sun and climbing new single track on the southern side of Jonkershoek. I pushed hard here as didn’t have any more water left and didn’t want to get heat stroke. After the climb, a reward followed with the smooth switchback single track all the way down to the last water point.

Some people thought we were done, but not just yet. They had us climb back up above town and then only to the fi nish.

I came in 6th in the ladies race in a time of four hours, fi fty minutes. Around the lunch tables the conversations turned to complaints about the heat and climbing, though the single track descents and excellent food did lighten the mood.

Before heading back to my guest house, I picked up a Specialized Rumor Expert set-up for me by the Test the Best guys, which gave me something other than great trails to look forward to on day two.

DAY 2:70 km, 1 600m ascentEveryone was bit tired on the start

line after the hard day before. But having the chance to test a Specialized Rumor, ladies specifi c full suspension bike I was pretty excited. I have always ridden a hard tail and was a bit disappointed when I found out that the Rumor Expert is aluminium and not carbon. The Rumor weighs 2.5kg more than my usual ride, which means a lot more eff ort is required on the climbs. We left town and went through Kaymandi with the Songo kids cheering us on, which made it feel quite special. On the fi rst climb I knew I was going to regret the decision to ride the test bike, as I was not able to keep up with people that I beat the previous day. I have quite a competitive nature, so was slightly irritated when people passed me on the up hills where I am usually quite strong. But when we hit Bottelary Hills single track descents I had serious fun and could feel the advantage of full suspension. It actually felt like everyone else was going so slowly...

Now I know why some people never go back to a hard tail after trying a full suspension bike. Even though I know the Bottelary Hills trails fairly well, I enjoyed the route and the beautiful views of Table Mountain to the one side and the Stellenbosch Mountains to the other. The Bottelary Hills trails are open year round and I can defi nitely recommend them.

Friday’s heat was replaced by a proper head wind on Saturday and so I was really looking forward to getting into the forests of ‘Eden’ and the famous ‘G-Spot’ above Stellenbosch, in the lee of the wind. The climb up to the start of ‘G-Spot’ wasn’t easy on the heavy bike with tired legs, but once at the top I really enjoyed the downhill as I didn’t have any one in front of me and could really enjoy the trail bike going full speed with no fear.

Finishing in 6th again, I unfortunately had to head back to Cape Town before the after party at Gino’s.

“THE ROUTE FEATURED VIRGIN SINGLE TRACK, FILLED WITH

SWITCHBACKS”

Top: Kate Slegrova about to feel the benefi t of a full suspension as she enters

‘G-Spot’. Above: Stuart Marais being chased by Conrad, the Caveman, Stoltz.

Bennie Steyn loving the trails.

If you’re a regular reader of Full Sus you’ll know we were all pretty excited If you’re a regular reader of Full Sus you’ll know we were all pretty excited If you’re a regular reader of Full Sus you’ll know we were all pretty excited

The Origin of Great Riding CHERIE VALE NEWSPORT MEDIA

CHERIE VALE NEWSPORT MEDIA

JETLINE ACTION PHOTO

13

Origin of Trails FS

Kate Slegrova runs Cycle Training, a cycle and mountain biking coaching business. When she’s not at the sharp

end of racing pack herself, she’s teaching technical bike riding skills or coaching riders to complete races like the Cape

Pioneer or the Cape Epic. You can fi nd out more at www.cycletraining.co.za

Seamus Allardice came to mountain biking via surfi ng and downhill skateboarding. After the Origins,

Kate kindly off ered him some coach sessions, because she says he needs to

work on his climbing. She’s very right.

Seamus’s ViewsDAY 1:56km 1 793m Like Kate, I was hooked up with a Specialized Test the Best bike but I was lucky enough to spend both days on an S-Works Stumpjumper FSR. Full carbon throughout and equipped with a Sram XX1 drivetrain and Specialized Brain rear suspension technology, I knew there would be no blaming my tools… Though, when Paul Valstar announced that the total climbing had been updated from 2 100m to 2 300m I did feel an urge to look for a second chainring.

Anyway, as Kate has explained, the new, and exclusive to Origin of Trails, single tracks in the Banghoek Conservancy were amazing. Corrie Muller and his team outdid themselves there and deserve every bit of praise they get. But soon my happy thoughts turned dark, as I was left bemoaning the choice of a dentist as route designer. The climb back up Botmanskop was sadistic. Kate, is a very strong rider and underplayed the suff ering most average riders would have faced on that climb. And the top section on the hiking trail, complete with stairs, was rather excessive. We could easily have been routed back the same way we came into the valley. Personally, I was tempted to follow the ‘in’ route when we crossed it about three quarters of the way up.

I think that Stillwater need to clearly identify their goals for the Origin of Trails. Do they want it to be as tough as they can make it? Or do they want it to be a fun, but challenging, end to the MTB year? There are understandably teething problems in the fi rst year of any event and the torrential rains eroding much of the route two weeks before the event couldn’t have helped, so I won’t be too critical. After all I did have fun, as did everyone I spoke to – even if they prefi xed it with: “It was tough, but…”

Anyway near Jonkershoek I ran out of stoke for climbing (I’ve climbed to the top of ‘Never-ending Story’ before and I didn’t see myself enjoying that slog after four and a bit hours in the saddle.) So I took a shortcut home, hence my wonky distance and

line after the hard day before. But having the chance to test a Specialized Rumor, ladies specifi c full suspension bike I was pretty excited. I have always ridden a hard tail and was a bit disappointed when I found out that the Rumor Expert is aluminium and not carbon. The Rumor weighs 2.5kg more than my usual ride, which means a lot more eff ort is required on the climbs. We left town and went through Kaymandi with the Songo kids cheering us on, which made it feel quite special. On the fi rst climb I knew I was going to regret the decision to ride the test bike, as I was not able to keep up with people that I beat the previous day. I have quite a competitive nature, so was slightly irritated when people passed me on the up hills where I am usually quite strong. But when we hit Bottelary Hills single track descents I had serious fun and could feel the advantage of full suspension. It actually felt like everyone else was going so slowly...

Now I know why some people never go back to a hard tail after trying a full suspension bike. Even though I know the Bottelary Hills trails fairly well, I enjoyed the route and the beautiful views of Table Mountain to the one side and the Stellenbosch Mountains to the other. The Bottelary Hills trails are open year round and I can defi nitely recommend them.

Friday’s heat was replaced by a proper head wind on Saturday and so I was really looking forward to getting into the forests of ‘Eden’ and the famous ‘G-Spot’ above Stellenbosch, in the lee of the wind. The climb up to the start of ‘G-Spot’ wasn’t easy on the heavy bike with tired legs, but once at the top I really enjoyed the downhill as I didn’t have any one in front of me and could really enjoy the trail bike going full speed with no fear.

Finishing in 6th again, I unfortunately had to head back to Cape Town before the after party at Gino’s.

altitude. I make no bones about it, if you’re not competitive (which I’m not on a bike), then ride for fun. If you’re not having fun, do something to make it fun. For me that meant bombing down an overgrown plantation road in search of an early shower and a meal that didn’t consist of jelly babies or bananas.

DAY 2:54km 957mDay two started with the climb through Kaymandi which served to juxtapose the haves with the have nots in a brutal fashion. If any riders were in doubt about supporting Songo.info, the ride through Kaymandi would have quickly changed their minds. Origins donated R5 380 to Songo at the after party, but there is still so much more we can all do and not just in monetary terms. If you’d like to volunteer your time get in touch with Kathy Crabbe at [email protected], because every little helps. Back to the riding, at the fi rst water point a group of us decided to opt out of the 70km route and head down to Overgaauw Wine Estate along the 40km route. Sadly for the others, my shortcut transgression from the day before came back to bite us all when we missed a marker and got lost when the route left the banks of the Eerste River. Unfortunately the only two boys in the scholar’s race, caught us just before we took the wrong turn and we led them astray too. We ended up fi nding our own way back to the race, via the Annandale Road and the R44, which added just over ten kays to the 40km route.

We re-joined the race at

Blaauklippen Wine Estate, and wound our way up the climbs of ‘Eden’ to the last hurrahs of the Origin of Trails: ‘G-Spot’ and the Paul Roos single tracks. I must admit that I’ve never felt as comfortable riding ‘G-Spot’ as I did on the Stumpie, it’s so forgiving and surprisingly nimble. I wouldn’t go for the Brain option if I’d scrape together the cash for it myself, and I might do just that (shout if you’ve got 50k to swap for a second-hand kidney). While I get the attraction of its ‘set and forget functionality’, I don’t like the alarming way it clunks into action. The Fox CTD rear shock is so good that you hardly need the added complication of the Brain (though I’m sure the race snakes and the engineers will disagree), especially if you go for the remote lockout option.

Thanks to StillwaterDespite the suff ering on Day One, the inaugural Pennypinchers Origin of Trails was a great ride. Perhaps next year could feature less challenging climbs to allow the fun single track to really shine, but on the balance of things it was a great way to end off 2013. The Stillwater crew once again lived up to their reputation as world class event organisers, with similes and encouragement at every well stocked water point, gourmet catering at the fi nish and great coverage by the cameras of the Newsport Media and Jetline Actionphoto teams (even if I hate the way Cherie Vale breezes past up the steepest hill, camera in hand with 10kg of gear on her back…).

Cheers on another successful event!

“IF YOU’D LIKE TO VOLUNTEER YOUR TIME CONTACT WITH KATHY CRABBE AT [email protected].”

Sharon Laws lead the ladies race from start to fi nish.

Above: Seamus Allardice grinding it up the foothills of the Botmanskop climb. Right: Torrential rain had played havoc with the gravel roads around Stellenbosch.



JETLINE ACTION PHOTO

14

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gLocal Buzz:The Midlands Meander is one of South Africa’s true countryside treasures. This constantly evolving travel experience allows you to wind your merry away through the green heart of KZN, taking in the art galleries, artisanal craft shops, mom-and-pops farm stalls, country eateries, coffee roasters, indigenous forest, canopy tours, bush pubs, exclusive getaways, rustic farm cottages and other hidden tourism gems here in the so-called ‘Last Outpost’. So, do come and explore to your heart’s content, but make sure you bring your mountain bike, because many of these spots are linked by seriously addictive single-track…

Trail Low-Down:There are many access points onto the Karkloof Trail System, but the way to do this is the legal way, and that means you need to head to the Karkloof Country Club. This is where you need to sign your indemnity form and pay for your permit before you crank off on what I promise will be one of the best rides of your life.

There are three permanent routes to choose from, and they are all extremely well sign-posted. Before you leave, check out the map board at the club, and take a photo with your cell phone for reference purposes. Emergency numbers can be found on the back of your indemnity form/permit, so it is all pretty well organised.

The Blue 30km option off ers a pearler of a ride, so head out of the club gates, over the gravel road and onto the pine forest trails which double back along the district road. Dip beneath the main tar strip before zooting through a grassland section until you get to the ‘Benno Boy’ sign (just on 5km) for a sharp left across the river over a wooden bridge.

You once again need to cross the district road, so hop the gate and continue up the trail on the other side, with a solid ascent along ‘Bubble & Skweek’ and into ‘Zille’, where you will pass through to the timber loading zone - just shy of 10km. Now the real fun starts on the ‘Fawlty Towers’ single-track section, which joins a forestry road after the stream crossing. Keep left at ‘Mattison’s’ (look out for the homestead) and then follow the route markers onto ‘Sam’s Slide’ (around 15km).

If your adrenal glands have not gone into overdrive just yet, the mojo fl ow of the superb ‘Brusier’s Burn’ stretch is sure to make them kick in. Continue into a short climb onto the SAPPI/Shafton road, before ascending to your right towards the

FS Trails

Jacques Marais is the author of Top MTB Trails, and will be keeping you up to speed with the best rides in

SA. You can fi nd out more at www.jacquesmarais.co.za

I’ve mountain biked in the UK, States, South America and Europe, but I can proudly (and confi dently) state that Karkloof rates right up there with some of the best trails in the world. But don’t believe me; go ride it and see for yourself. Photographs and words by Jacques Marais.

winwin

Comp FS

Email your name, ID number, physical address and an offi ce hours contact number to [email protected] and stand a chance of winningTHE PRIZE:The Bontrager Node 2.1 provides the same great functions and ANT+ compatibility as the Node 1.1, and adds the ability to track altitude, temperature and gradient percentage in real time. The Node 2.1 includes a soft-strap heart rate monitor, to keep you abreast of your vital signs and comes in a water-resistant package to ensure you’ll be tracking your riding data for years to come. Should it fail, it’s covered by Bontrager’s unconditional guarantee. Recommended retail price R 1 699.99

HOW TO WIN: Drop us an email by the 20th of January, with the subject: “Bontrager comp” to [email protected]. Remember to include your full name, ID number, physical address and a contact number in your e-mail.

DOUBLE your chances by liking and sharing us at

www.facebook.com/fullsussa

Stand a chance to win a Bontrager Node 2.1

FEATURES◆ ANT+ enabled, 2.4 GHz digital signal - compatible with ANT+

speed and power sensors◆ Current, average and maximum speed◆ Trip distance and programmable odometer◆ Clock (12/24-hour) and total ride time, interval timer and pacer◆ Auto start/stop◆ Dual view, cadence, heart rate, power, altitude, gradient, backlight and

battery life indicator◆ Includes heart rate strap◆ Does not include sensors. ANT+ sensors need to be purchased separately◆ Unconditional Bontrager Guarantee

Trails FS

where are we?Karkloof lies north of Howick in the KZN midlands. The Karkloof forest

forms part of SAPPI’s extensive plantations and as such should be

treated as hollowed private land, when riding in the Karkloof always

adhere to the rules of the trail.

winwinwin

treated as hollowed private land, when riding in the Karkloof always

adhere to the rules of the trail.

SO

U

TH AFRICA

Eastern Cape

KZN

Pietermaritzburg

Karkloof

N2

Durban

Indian Ocean

Lesotho

Curry’s Post tar road. Just before the tarmac starts, hit a left onto ‘Bernies Bundle’ and the ‘Carnival’, and let your inner kid free.

‘Back of Beyond’ is next up (just on 21km) before you blast into ‘No Balls’, the penultimate section of single-track near the top of the airstrip. Pin your ears back as you hit ‘Flatters’, taking care as you cross the tar road for the fi nal pedal back to the club. Or you could keep going along the marked 20km route to extend your ride.

For more information and a complete set of map downloads,

speak to the Club Chairman Derek Turvey, or check out their web site www.karkloofmtb.co.za for more info.

Getting there:Take the Howick off -ramp from the N3 and continue onto the Main Street; turn left onto the Karkloof Road and continue for 12km until you see the signage for Karkloof Country Club to your right (this is the D406 district road).

the trails statsSUSSUSGrading: Moderate Duration: 2-3hrs

Confi guration: Circular Ride – 30km

Start Point: Karkloof Country Club

Terrain: Superb single-track most of the way

Beware: SAPPI Rules and Regulations apply –

all riders MUST familiarise themselves with these

before setting off on a ride.

Post-Ride Beer: Karkloof Country Club (082) 878 7251

Must Do Event: SAPPI Trail Blazer or Karkloof Classic - www.karkloofmtb.co.za

Access: Day permits at club costs R35

Cell Reception: Reasonable reception along most of route

Accommodation: Get comfy at www.rockwood.co.za (SC),

www.thistledown.co.za (B&B) and www.bushwillowcaravanpark.co.za

(camping, caravanning and SC).

Local Contact: Hylton Turvey (082) 878 7251 GPS: S 29 22.990’ / E 030 13.814’

www.themapstudio.co.za

15

17

Bike review FS

The Camber S-Works is the business, there is nothing that isn’t the best on the bike with just about

every bit of Specialized technology engineered into or bolted onto the bike. In black and red it’s sexy and classy; it looks fast… a bit like a Ferrari.

The Camber is sandwiched between the Epic and the Stumpie FSR in the Specialized range. Classifi ed as a Trail, with 110mm travel back and front, CTD technology including the proprietary autosag (which is the bomb and should be on all bikes!), dropper post, carbon wheel-set and sporting brilliant Ground Control rubber; the Camber is however defi nitely a comfortable cross-country/trail hybrid. This is the fi rst bike that I immediately noticed how light it is while riding. 11.3kgs light - I went to the LBS and weighed it – and couldn’t believe that a full sus bike with dropper and SWAT extras could come in so light! Plus I was riding a large frame. Did I mention it felt so light?

If Strava was big on my priority list I am sure that I would have smashed all my times on my usual route. The bike climbed eff ortlessly and despite less travel than my usual ride, combined with the FSR suspension system and the big wheels the Camber fl ew down the singletracks. The Profs at the SBCU would have been proud; I dropped the seat and hit drop-off s I had never considered before. The Camber took it all in its stride!

Another point worth talking about is the XX1 drivetrain. I was seriously worried about running out of gears – at either end of the cluster – but was pleasantly surprised. Climbing was brilliant; although the bike weight, shock/suspension and geometry defi nitely helps this gearing system.

Having spent some time with the bike I can categorically say that the Camber is defi nitely a bike you seriously need to consider if you’re into longer or stage rides. It’s comfortable for the long road, amply plush on the trails and climbs masterfully. I would highly recommend you try this smoother ride if you are considering the harder ride of the Epic, I believe you will be pleasantly surprised and as a side-bet I am prepared to wager you will probably end up being faster on this machine. Now that’s saying something…

I am fi rmly in the camp of Francis Cebedo – founder of the website MTBR.com, his favourite bike is the last bike he’s ridden - ditto. The Camber S-Works is a special bike, light, effi cient, fast and comfortable. It comes at a premium and if budget is not a factor then I say go big or go Camber.

The GeometrySUSSUSMedium frame:

All measurements in mm or °

Seat Tube .......................... 430

Top Tube .............................562

Chain Stay length .......... 450

Bottom bracket height ... 335

Head tube angle ..............70°

Seat tube angle ..............70°

Wheel base .........................1131

Stand over height ............ 745

Stack ...................................600

Reach ...................................428

IT’S COMFORTABLE FOR THE LONG ROAD, AMPLY PLUSH ON THE TRAILS AND CLIMBS MASTERFULLY.

Above: The XX1 drivetrain is simple but super-effi cient, producing a range of gear inches you need to experience to believe. Left: Specialized’s command post dropper seat post. 16

Riding the perfect Camber

The Fox CTD shock attaching with a solid yoke to the FSR suspension system.

SWAT Technology Acronym for Storage, Water, Air and Tools.

Specialized have put all the essentials on the bike

so you have minimum to carry elsewhere. The

emergency multitool sits neatly under the Zee

Cage and the top cap doubles as a nifty chain tool

with space for spare chain links – so damn clever!

Courtesy Helderberg Cycle World – 021 8500082 www.helderbergcycleworld.co.za◆ S-Works Camber – R99 999 ◆ Expert Carbon – R62 999

(Sram XO – 2x10)◆ Comp Carbon – R39 999 (XT) ◆ Camber Comp (Ali) - R26 999

Sram X5◆ Camber 29 – R21 999 (Deore) For all the specs check out www.specialized.com

The Camber SUSSUS2014 pricing

When you get given a bike that costs close to R100 000 and you’ve been through

their squint squad varsity expectation is high. So it was with a little fl utter of the

stomach that Shayne Dowling sat astride the Specialized Camber S-Works.

Photography by Julia Andrade.

18

for a race at altitude may benefi t through acclimatization in a simulated altitude facility.

Live High/Train Low (LHTL)The LHTL protocol was originally favoured as it allows the benefi t of living at altitude, while still being able to train at maximal capacity at sea level. A classical study by Levine and Gundersen compared the LHTL model to the LHTH and live low/train low models. The results demonstrated far greater performance benefi ts to LHTL. The LHTL model demonstrated increases in VO

2 max, exercise

performance, red blood cell and haemoglobin mass. A further study proposed additional benefi ts to performing all “base” training session at altitude and only very hard interval sessions at sea level. Further well controlled studies are however required. A simple way to implement the LHTL model may be to sleep in a hypoxic tent at night.

ConclusionThe evidence to support the performance benefi ts of living and training high, and living low and training high protocols is limited at best. The living high and training low model, meanwhile, has scientifi cally demonstrated the greatest benefi t to endurance performance.

FS Coaching

Dr. Mike Posthumus is an accomplished academic with UCT’s

Exercise Science and Sports Medicine faculty and a coach with Science 2 Sport. He was a provincial rugby

player before switching togs for cleats and taking up competitive mountain

biking. He has an exceptional knowledge of training periodisation and scientifi c training principles. Find out more at

www.sciencetosport.com

Altitude / hypoxic (low oxygen) exposure has been proposed to have a signifi cant

performance enhancement eff ect. It has been proposed that altitude exposure results in decreased oxygen availability and thus a lower partial pressure of oxygen in the blood. A decreased partial pressure of oxygen stimulates the kidneys to produce erythropoietin (EPO). EPO then stimulates the marrow in the long bones to produce more red blood cells and therefore increases blood volume and oxygen carrying capacity, thereby enhancing cycling performance.

This all sounds very simple, right? You go to altitude, train and become much stronger? Well not quite. Firstly, there are various protocols to consider. Are you only going to train or sleep at altitude? Or are you going to train and sleep at altitude? As the research has highlighted, these are all critically important components of designing an altitude training block. The primary protocols which have been investigated include: live high/train high (at altitude) (LHTH), live low/train high (LLTH) and live high/train low (LHTL).

Live High/Train High (LHTH)This is the more traditional approach to altitude training. Although initial studies found a performance advantage to LHTH training camps, these studies did not effectively control for the

training effect caused by the actual training in the high altitude camp. Further, well controlled, studies have shown no benefit to this LHTH approach.

Live Low/Train High (LLTH)As it’s hard for athletes who live at sea level to move to altitude to train, it has become increasingly popular to perform training sessions in synthesised altitude or in hypoxic training conditions. Altitude training in this context may also apply to training in hypoxic facilities, or using altitude masks. The majority of studies investigating the LLTH protocol have failed to show a performance improvement though. One of the limitations of the LLTH protocol is that most athletes are very restricted as the training is predominantly restricted to an indoor cycle due to the equipment used to simulate the altitude. The limitation to the LLTH, as well as the LHTH model is that exercise capacity is severely impaired at altitude. The fact that most athletes are not able to train at maximal capacity is more than likely the reason those two models have failed to show performance benefi t. Further research is required to investigate the performance eff ects of the LLTH model. Important to note that these fi ndings are limited to sea level performance and does not include the eff ect of LLTH on performance at altitude. Training at altitude has a signifi cant eff ect at improving performance when preparing for a race at altitude. Athletes preparing

The ins and outs of altitude training altitude training

In this issue Dr Mike Posthumus discusses the use of altitude to enhance cycling performance. It may not be as simple as we think when we are faced with the various options.

“THIS ALL SOUNDS VERY SIMPLE, RIGHT? YOU GO TO ALTITUDE, TRAIN AND BECOME MUCH STRONGER? WELL NOT QUITE. FIRSTLY, THERE ARE VARIOUS PROTOCOLS TO CONSIDER.”

To get the most out of the live low/train high model, it is recommended to spend eight to ten hours per day at altitude ranging from 2 000 to 3 000 meters above sea level.

The live high/train high, and live low/train high models may have specifi c performance benefi ts when preparing for a specifi c race at high altitude.

FSNutrition - Sponsored by

STEP UP A GEAR WITH A POWER BREAKFASTJust like your mom always told you, Rochez O’Grady says: “breakfast is the most important meal of the day.” We’ve all heard this before, but what happens if you’re not hungry? Should you still eat breakfast then? And why aren’t you hungry? Is it because you had a big dinner?

Rochez O’Grady(pronounced r-OH-shay)

is a registered Dietitian and runs her own practice called Mun chWize.

She focuses on educating and motivating her clients in practical ways to follow

a healthy lifestyle and achieve personal health goals. You can fi nd out more

about MunchWize at www.munchwize.co.za or ask Rochez your nutrition

related questions at [email protected].

If the answer is yes, maybe you had the all-you-can-eat Monday ribs special at Spur or decided to dish up

a third helping of the wife’s casserole. Then contemplate to yourself...

Why were you so starving in the fi rst place? The most common scenario is because you were running around at work and ended up being so busy you lost track of time. Do you often ending up only eating at three pm, because that’s the fi rst time you’ve looked down at your watch? This can form a vicious cycle of eating too much in the evening and then skipping breakfast the next morning.

Eating breakfast, making time to nourish your body, is the most eff ective way of breaking this cycle and starting your day on a healthy note. In the beginning if all you can stomach is a small meal to start off your day, go for it, it is better than nothing. The benefi ts of including breakfast can help you reach a number of goals; it can promote weight loss and healthier eating – as you include more nutrients in your day and allow for better food choices.

When you wake up, your body craves refuelling. This is because the liver’s stored energy has been converted and used to fuel your brain while you were sleeping and is depleted by the time you wake. It is the organ that is going to help you function optimally throughout the day, so it makes sense to feed it.

If you skip breakfast your metabolism will be sluggish as your body tries to feed your brain with

energy and not use it for any other functions. A sluggish metabolism will leave you feeling tired and irritable. We all wake up to a Monday morning feeling the blues, so help yourself to a breakfast to get off on the right foot.

Before hitting the road, whether in the mountains or in the real world, fuel up with a power breakfast. Going out hungry leads to an increase in stress hormones being released, which has been shown to increase muscle breakdown and have a negative impact on your immune system. There is an erroneous belief that not eating before a ride will promote fat loss. The irony is that no fuel in your tank will mean sub-optimal performance and a reduced number of calories burnt. Isn’t that great news; you don’t need to starve yourself, so go ahead and power up.

I am sure you’ve now made a decision to eat breakfast after that informative lecture. Time for the practical side of things: what should you be eating for breakfast, and does it matter?

Yes, it most certainly does matter, as it would for any other meal. If you start your day off with sugary foods or high GI foods (carbohydrates that get digested and absorbed quickly), it will result in a sharp rise in blood sugar levels followed by a nasty crash, resulting in hunger and possibly irritability, (aggravated by the sight of your boss), reduced concentration, fatigue and headache.

In order to prevent these mood swings, go for something healthy and delicious. Healthy: meaning low-

SUS the Top TipSUS the Top Tip

If this is all sounding a bit hectic

for you, and you aren’t a hungry

morning person. Start your day

with a smaller meal (a snack)

rather than a larger meal. Then

when you’re hungrier later you

can enjoy another smaller meal

or a larger meal. The trick is to

always aim to eat breakfast

(smaller or larger meal) within

one to two hours after waking up.

Ideally before nine am.

sugar breakfast consisting of whole grains, low fat dairy and protein (the quality kind). Here are some fast and easy ideas to rule out any excuses for skipping breakfast. With a little bit of planning you can enjoy breakfast every day.

Quick breakfast ideas:◆ Make instant oatmeal (original

fl avor) with low-fat milk instead of water. Toss in raisins or dried cranberries and chopped walnuts.

◆ Layer low-fat plain yogurt with your favorite high-fi bre cereal and blueberries.

◆ Blend a breakfast smoothie with low-fat milk, frozen strawberries and a banana.

◆ Make one packet of microwave oatmeal with low-fat milk. Mix in chopped up apple and sprinkle with cinnamon.

◆ Fill a whole-wheat pita with a sliced, hard-boiled egg and low-fat cottage cheese.

◆ Spread a fl our tortilla with peanut butter. Add a whole banana and roll it up.

◆ Spread low-fat cottage cheese on a toasted slice of low GI bread. Top with sliced tomatoes.

◆ Add lean ham, low-fat Swiss cheese and cucumber to a toasted whole-grain English muffi n.

FS Conservation

20

Jeanne-Louise Wiese is a Senior Environmental Practitioner for

engineering, management and specialist technical services giant Aurecon.

As an avid MTBer she has the good fortune of consulting on the Provincial

Department of Transport to upgrade and maintenance programme for gravel roads, so she gets to visit secluded areas

and take her bike along.

Isabel, Lowinda, Susan and Marni celebrating their heritage on a trail around the Cradle of Humankind.

LOWINDA JAQUIRE

The Cradle of Humankind, west of Johannesburg, is a 53 000 hectare area and one of South

Africa’s eight World Heritage Sites. It is renowned in archaeological circles as the world’s richest hominid site, with around 40% of the world’s human ancestor fossils found in the limestone caves of the Cradle. The area was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1999 and includes the Sterkfontein Caves and the Wonder Cave.

Is was in The Sterkfontein Caves, in 1947, that the 2.3 million year old fossil, Australopithecus africanus (nicknamed “Mrs. Ples”) was found by Dr. Robert Broom and John Robinson. Within the last 20 million years, the Sterkfontein Caves have been sculpted into an underground wonderland within the dolomitic rock, as slightly acidic groundwater dissolved solution cavities beneath the water table. As the water table started to drop, these caves filled up with air and allowed for the formation of stalactites and stalagmites. It’s sad to acknowledge that the area was exploited to a large extent for the mining of lime in these caves and a number of palaeontologists and archaeologists have recognised that most fossil records have been damaged or lost due to the mining activities in the area.

But you don’t have to be underground to really appreciate the Cradle, these days you can get

on your bike to explore, just make sure you take your scientifi c savvy with you. The area straddles two provinces and stretches from the Sterkfontein Caves to Pilanesberg. Interestingly the features of the landscape originated as coral reefs in a warm, shallow sea about 2.3 billion years ago. On a bike you can explore the rolling Highveld grassland or the indigenous bush-lined valleys. Or you could follow the trails which climb their way through the textured dolomite rock formations and enjoy a lovely breakfast with a view at The Cradle Restaurant from where one of the trails start.

The landscape of this area is associated with the Rocky Highveld Grassland and supports a great diversity of common and endangered plants and animal species. These grasslands are known as “fi re climax grassland” and are constantly trying to maintain the balance between trees and grass to create a perfectly balanced habitat for animals such as various antelope, leopard, brown hyenas, jackal and most importantly, the rare Roodepoort Copper butterfl y, which are endemic to this area. The caves also act as roosts and dens for animals such as owls, bats, rodents and larger predators.

With the area situated in the summer rainfall region of South Africa where thunderstorms are common, it is theorised that the frequent summer lightning strikes

Cycling back in time through the

If you could hear Jeanne-Louise Wiese’s pronunciation of “strandhuis” she’s a born-and-bred Gauteng “boere meisie”. So we got her to reminisce about the trails that wind through the Cradle of Humankind.

Cradle of Humankind

could have facilitated the initial controlled use of fi re by hominids in the area, as far back as 1.3 million years ago.

The Cradle of Humankind is rich in fl owering plants, and even though it cannot be compared to a Namaqualand spring wonderland, it can still present a colourful array of fl owers and pleasant smells as you whisk through the grasslands. The area is matted by a network of natural springs, watercourses and streams which all feed into the Magalies and Crocodile Rivers. Unfortunately, since the 1890s the land use practices in the area have led to the degradation and loss of the natural environment to a certain extent. Waste dumping, pollution of water by agro-chemicals and over grazing have all made a mark on this beautiful landscape. Today,

sustainable land use practices could help to prevent further degradation in order for our children to also enjoy this beautiful scenery on their bikes one day.

WWW.MAROPENG.CO.ZA

Australopithecus africanus

21

When I say hills, I mean hills that are too long to simply sprint up in one big gear!

The hills I am talking about, take roughly fi ve to twenty minutes to climb. Climbing a decently sized hill, on a bike, is always going to be tough on the legs, irrespective of your skill level. As one of my cycling heroes, Greg Lemond, says: “It does not get any easier, you just go faster.” The diff erence between the good climbers and not so good, generally boils down to a combination of technique, rider weight (power to weight) and general level of mountain biking fi tness.

The latter two you can change and improve yourself, through training and diet, but “mountain bike hill climbing technique” has to be learned. Climbing is therefore a learned skill, making use of your gearing choices, cadence (pedal revolutions per minute or rpm) and your body position.

I always break down a hill into three main sections: the bottom, the middle and the top, as each section requires a slightly diff erent approach:

The bottom section:◆ Gearing: When approaching a hill ensure you’re in a lower gear than you think you’ll need. Shifting down on a hill will nearly always cost you momentum and can cause derailleur hangers to snap off or bend.

◆ Cadence: This is your pedal frequency (revs per minute). You’ll fi nd your cadence drops as you start climbing. If you are in a low enough gear you should fi nd your cadence fairly high (i.e spinning 80+ cadence) before settling into a slightly lower cadence as you settle into a good rhythm and move into the middle part of the climb.

◆ Position: Remain seated on a climb if you’re new to mountain biking. It’s best to always get the seated position sorted and be used to it before learning the standing technique. Most cyclists will remain in the seated position for the fi rst part of the climb to conserve energy. Getting out the saddle almost always uses more energy. Your goal, is to be as conservative as you can with

MTB Skills Guru FS

James Thornhill-Fisher, the MTB Guru, has over 25 years of cycling

and mountain biking experience and has ridden over 60 000km’s in the last 5 years leading numerous Cape Epic trial rides along the way. You can book a one on one skills session or fi nd out more by

going to www.mountainbikeguru.co.za.

Do you struggle up hills and always want to avoid them? James Thornhill-Fisher is here to help take your climbing to the next level because without going up you can’t go down…

HOW TO

your energy, so remain seated here, get into a good rhythm and enjoy the challenge ahead!

The middle section: ◆ Gearing: Once you’re moving into the middle section of the climb, you have two choices: either step up to a higher gear, or remain in the gear you’re in. You really want to be in ‘maximum cruise mode’ on this section. This is where your ‘anaerobic threshold’ training comes in. You want to be able to cruise fast up this section, but not so fast you ‘blow up’ (go into the red and ‘bleed out your eyeballs’). Practice here will improve your pace judgement at threshold pace, as will knowing the climb well.

◆ Cadence: Moving from the bottom section to middle section, your cadence will drop somewhat (to around 60rpm). That’s fi ne, especially if you’ve changed to a higher gear. You now want to hold onto this cadence and not let it drop any further. If you feel your cadence slipping, change down. If this is done correctly, you’ll immediately feel in control. It should still feel damn hard though, that’s the ‘sweet spot’.

◆ Position: This now depends on the slope and how strong you feel. You can alternate between seated and standing, to rest alternate muscles – although this is really reserved for advanced riders. If you’re new, just continue riding up in the seated position and focus on fi nding that ‘sweet spot’. You want to adopt an upright position so you can get enough oxygen into your lungs. Breathe from your abdomen and keep as relaxed as possible. Relax your shoulders and arms and, if you have to pull on the handlebars, pull on both sides every time you push down on the pedals. This will keep you stable and prevent your bike

from snaking side to side and propel you forward instead of sideways.

The top section:This is where you can make or break a climb, especially against other riders! Really, this is where most cyclists suff er the most because they’ve gone too hard at the bottom, or even in the middle part of the climb. Your goal is to be at your fastest nearing the summit of the climb. If you’ve paced it right you’ll be passing many riders at the end of a climb.

◆ Gearing: Again, you could increase to a higher gear and start to accelerate as you see the top of the climb. It depends again on your fi tness level and experience, but if you know the climb well and you’ve got enough in reserve, then now’s the time change up a gear or two, and push harder to the top. Once you crest the hill you can change up to a bigger chainring and get ready to descend.

◆ Cadence: You should maintain your cadence even if you change to a higher gear as you approach the summit. Once you crest the hill, you should start to push harder to increase your speed, so your cadence should be increasing too. Summit acceleration is the hardest part of climbing. But by starting out at the foot of the climb slower than you think you should, you should have enough in reserve to storm passed everyone in the last part of the climb.

◆ Position: You can either get out the saddle to accelerate or remain seated. Most riders once fit, will get out the saddle to accelerate. But don’t lean to far forward, rather try and keep your weight centred over the bottom bracket, to prevent the back wheel from slipping and losing traction.

Easier said than done:In reality, hills have varying slopes, surface terrain and the challenge is always to try and find ‘your optimum efficiency’ on each one. You’ll find that as soon as your cadence drops too low, your speed decreases – it’s a fine balance that comes with practice.

One other thing to note is that you actually have enough gears on your bike to start with. I think the biggest problems I see in riders, is not gearing low enough to start with, then having to slog up climbs when they could actually ride up faster if they used the lower gears earlier.

Last words:To get good at climbing hills you need to climb hills. OK, you need to get your weight down too if you truly want to start ‘racing’ up them, but really you can gain a huge amount of time as a beginner cyclist by improving your technique fi rst.

WWW.OAKPICS.COM

HOW TO

CLIMB

CLIMBHILLS

22

FS Die Stand(er)punt

Cherise Stander het baie min bekendstelling nodig aan SA se

bergfi etsry-entoesiaste. Sy het al baie bereik in haar 24 jaar, onder andere ’n aantal padfi etskampioenskappe,

tydtoetstitels en ’n nasionale titel vir ’n Bergietsmarathon. Sy ry in die USN- en Specialized-kleure en raak deesdae weer baie kompeterend met 2014 se

Wêreldmarathonkampioenskap haar volgende groot doelwit.

CHERIE VALE / NEWSPORT MEDIA

Ek het my wonderlike liefdevolle ouma en die man saam met wie ek moes oud

word in een jaar begrawe, iets wat ek nog vas glo een mens nie moet deurmaak in een jaar nie.

Maar ek het ook besef dat die Here jou nie op die rowwe pad in jou lewe alleen los nie. Hy het mense oor my pad gebring wat my op hul hande gedra het, wat nou nog deur elke emosie saam met my gaan en wie ek in die middel van die nag kan bel wanneer die verlange net te veel raak. Ek het die ware kleure van mense gesien en besef dat daar waarlik engele op aarde is.

Die volgende woorde van die Eminem-liedjie het my soos ’n boek oor die kop getref: God het vir jou skoene gegee; trek dit aan en wees trots op jouself. Dit is my lewenswoorde vir 2014. Ek vat elke dag soos dit kom en lewe om myself en Burry trots te maak. Om te glimlag deur my trane en te kies dat sy lewe gaan aanhou om my te inspireer. Ek weier dat sy dood my menswees gaan vorm en my in ’n negatiewe persoon gaan laat verander.

Die jaar se fi etsry het bestaan uit ’n hele paar toere: Grape Escape, Epic, Jobe2C, Sani2C, Cape Pioneer Wine2Whales. En elke bergfi etstoer het sy eie storie en ek sal die

20132013 was loshande die moeilikste jaar van Cherise Stander

se lewe en iets wat sy nooit vir haar grootse vyand sou toewens nie. Dit is moeilik vir haar om te glo dat

die jaar uiteindelik aan sy einde is.

“EK VAT ELKE DAG SOOS DIT KOM EN LEWE OM MYSELF EN BURRY TROTS TE MAAK.”

Totsiens

herinneringe vir altyd koester. Ek kyk vorentoe met ’n hart wat steeds swaar is, maar glo dat dit met tyd ligter sal word. Ek het besef hoe groot deel fi etsry van my lewe uitmaak. Hoe gelukkig ek is om so ’n talent te kon kry. Ek kies om die positiewe in elke situasie raak te sien. Ek kies om te glo dat Jesus ’n pad met my stap en glo dat Hy my in ’n rigting sal neem waar die lewe weer gaan sin maak.

Ek los julle met die volgende gedagte: Waardeer elke oomblik saam jou geliefdes – moenie altyd

die toekoms injaag nie, geniet die tyd wat jy nou het. Onthou dat solank jy ’n dak oor jou kop het en kos het om te eet, is die situasie waarin jy is nie so erg nie. Maar enigiets kan gebeur. Wees lief vir jou medemens en glimlag. ’n Glimlag kan enige persoon se dag opkikker.

Cherise saam met Hanlie Booyens en Sharon Laws op die Pennypinchers Origin of Trails podium

CHERIE VALE / NEWSPORT MEDIA

mountain bike enthusiast.The ruling may seem harsh,

but landowners are fed-up and AmaRider will also be working on rolling out the system to include the rest of the country.

Also discussed was the Trespass Act of 1959, a nice ‘short and sweet’ piece of legislation that can easily be enforced and have a transgressor in court in no time. Considering that many riders are not only trespassing, but in many cases bypassing pay points, further elevates the gravity of the transgression as it now includes theft.

The workshop highlighted two issues that riders should take note of:◆ Riders must urgently review historic permissions with their landowners. In many cases these permissions were granted to friends before trail systems were formalised on the properties. Confi rm your access status ASAP!◆ Riders must be especially cautious of GPS based activities like Strava and rather remove any trace of illegal activity from the internet. Your online alias is not as anonymous as you think!

A further worrying trend is that of riders embarking on adventures that include hiking trails that, although not signposted as such, were defi nitely not intended for mountain bike access. Cape Nature, who manages almost all hiking trails in the Hottentots Holland, Jonkershoek and Limietberg (Paarl/Wellington) Reserves, has confi rmed that these trails are defi nitely out of bounds to riders.

There is no way that landowners can be expected to post ‘no cycling’ warnings on every trail or route so the onus must be on the rider to determine the legality of access in each situation. With more than 100 routes and trails in the Western Cape there is more than enough legal riding keep you busy without having to trespass. Should you wish to venture outside of the formalised trails environment, make sure to investigate, and ask for permission. We certainly don’t want to eliminate the spirit of exploration that comes with mountain biking, but we cannot endorse a free-for-all riding culture at the expense of the privacy of private land owners or the eff orts of conservation agencies.

Meurant Botha is the founder and director of AmaRider. AmaRider is a South African non-profi t company

with the aim of improving MTB opportunities on the African continent.

Contact them at 021 8844547 or [email protected] or visit the website

at www.amarider.co.za

Amarider FS

On the 3rd of December, AmaRider hosted its fi fth Trail Management workshop

at Delvera outside Stellenbosch. As with previous workshops held in Hilton, Karkloof, Cradle of Humankind and Mankele, the workshop was well attended by over twenty representatives from trail systems around the Western Cape, as well as reps from the Cape Epic, Wines2Whales, Dirtopia and Pedal Power Association.

Rogue riding was the hot topic on the agenda, after trail systems have had to accept the closure of three properties in as many months due to riders not adhering to the rules and regulations of the respective sites. The most worrying incident, however, was one where a registered club member verbally abused a landowner,

On the 3rd of December AmaRider hosted its fi fth Trail Management workshop at Delvera, outside

Stellenbosch and one of the major topics of conversation, writes Meurant Botha, was rogue riding.

“A SECOND WARNING FROM THE SAME OR OTHER TRAIL SYSTEM, OR EVENT, WILL IMMEDIATELY INSTITUTE A BLANKET BAN FROM ALL TRAILS OR EVENTS THAT FORM PART OF THE NETWORK.”

Western Cape trail systems stand firm

against rogue riding

causing the closure of the Kliprug section of the Tygerberg trails.

There seems to be a growing culture of entitlement amongst the riding fraternity and this should be very worrying to both trail managers and event organisers. Riders forget that access is always a privilege, never a right.

The Delvera workshop attendees unanimously agreed on an integrated blacklist system – whereby riders who receive warnings on one trail system or event, would be placed on a database managed by AmaRider. A second warning from the same or other trail system, or event, will immediately institute a blanket ban from all trails or events that form part of the network. The network includes most of the Cape’s major events and trails, so it will be a lonely place for any blacklisted

The Western Cape trail builders and race organisers standing together against rogue riding.

ART DE VILLE

24

And here’s my thought about mountains, where we like to ride: they are like Ireland,

or Newlands, in that it rains a lot there; which in most cases leads to them being covered with trees. Trees are nice, they make shade, they break the wind; baboons, birds and squirrels like them and they make places look pretty.

When that famous champion of trees and writer of books about the Boer War and trees, Thomas Pakenham, heard the powers that be were hacking down some of the large old gum trees around the Tokai Arboretum (a place I like to ride), he called them “tree Nazis” and I had a

lot of empathy with him in that. I know about SANParks’ motive

for chopping out non-indigenous trees, and I know that companies like Sappi, or Mondi, or Safcol or whatever they’re called now, will cut down trees where and whenever they can because that’s what they do. But sometimes I have to shake my head.

In the Cape and KZN Midlands most of the places we ride are covered with trees, and we know most of those trees will in time all be cut down. But you’d think that when it comes to areas utilised by the public for strolling, dog walking and even mountain biking, they’d consider leaving an avenue of shade trees. Even just on one side maybe?

I’ve seen Working for Water contractors indiscriminately cutting down old trees lining main roads in little towns, because they were alien species. Or along the banks of streams, even when raptors have nests with eggs those trees.

And then I wonder how long it will be until all the oaks of Stellenbosch are targeted by the tree xenophobes, and all the lovely stone pines on Devil’s Peak and Lion’s Head (they’ve started on those ones already). In Tokai they’ve even mowed down trees that were not on their property, but on the road reserve (sidewalk) leading up towards the manor and forest.

Robert Mazibuko was known as the Tree Man. He taught the people around Maritzburg about the miracles of nature that are top soil, compost and trees and how to grow organic food. “After 2 000 years of civilization,” he once said, “how can you make a road without trees on either side?” I’ve got that quote on a fridge magnet in my kitchen.

I think a lot about trees while I am riding, mostly about how to avoid riding into them, but I’m not always that fortunate. In fact right now, as I write, I sport a few bloody scars from my tryst with a fallen pine log on Sunday, and the week before on a bit of long-lost single track. I think about Cathy (née Lanz) Hofmeyr’s father who cut short his useful life by riding smack into a pine tree on the tight bottom turn of My Roots track just after the old log bridge (it’s not nearly so scary now).

With a little bit of arithmetical extrapolation, I reckon Parks takes in something between R800 000 and one million Rand a year from mountain bikers in Tokai, and you have to wonder what they do with the money. So here’s an idea: how about planting some nice indigenous trees along the jeep tracks on Table Mountain.?

Oh, silly me, of course not. That would not be pure. You must be pure and make war on all impure races.

You must hate trees where before there were no trees, according the custodians of our beloved mountain park. So here’s a closing thought.

When the fi rst foresters started working here they spent most of their energies planting trees that would spread the best, like acacias, pines and hakea. Now we spend millions each year trying to cut them out. Ideas change. Maybe at some time in the future some bright spark in charge will say, hey, how about we plant some avenues of nice indigenous trees, because they provide shade, food and shelter for many creatures and they look so nice, especially like now, when species such as the Cape ashes are covered in magnifi cent sprays of fl owers.

The USA parks service pays college students to plant seedlings in deforested areas. Just an idea, in case SANParks cannot fi gure out what to do with all the money we are giving them.

“AS I WRITE, I SPORT A FEW BLOODY SCARS FROM MY TRYST WITH A FALLEN PINE LOG”

Here are David Bristow’s thoughts on trees… (Bearing in mind that the fi rst time he got

his paraglider airborne, on a mountaintop in KwaZuluNatal, he fl ew straight into a big pine tree

and it took his mate Donald the best part of an hour to help him out, he was laughing so much.)

I have known (and ploughed into)

David Bristow has buckets of MTB experience having ridden and written

“The Spine of the Dragon.” He’s also the webmaster of www.dragontrax.co.za, a site which aims to be the country’s go-to, free, repository of GPS’d MTB tracks.

FS MTB Flora

TreesI have known (and ploughed into)TreesTreesTTrees

Steve Thomas enjoying riding amongst the regrowing

trees of Jonkershoek.

The inevitable logging of plantations is still traumatic

The denuded landscape, not ideal for mountain biking under our hot sun.

DAVID BRISTOW

DAVID BRISTOW

DAVID BRISTOW

25

Ride report Fair Cape Dairies FS

We arrived at Meerendal with fresh Atlantic ocean air and the question: “why are we

doing this again?” being blown in from the south east. Having survived the wind wrecked 2009 Argus, cycled into Die Hel and completed the 200km Double Century (the week before on my brand new road bike), I have endured many windy hours on a bike. So I fi gured, bring it on – how bad could it be?

But looking back I can honestly say that the wind was actually the least of my worries during the fi rst 20km of the Fair Cape MTB race. It started off with the famous Dorstberg climb, which I suppose was meant to be a decent warm-up for more experienced riders – but the rocky climb placed some serious strain on my tired legs. From the top though, we enjoyed a long downhill bomb into a quarry where many riders picked up punctures. Fortunately we avoided the issues and were soon enjoying the brief relief of a stretch on tar.

Turning off the tar, the smell of lavender fi elds distracted me from my tired legs, before the climbing began once again. With the magnifi cent single track in the region, it’s well worth a visit even for the less experienced rider. I found

myself believing my husband when he encouraged me with calls of: “You can do it!” And charged with confi dence, I went roaring down the Cape Cobra downhill, treating the occasional danger sign as if it were only there for decoration. I decided to try my luck (I’m too scared to stop and have fi ve kamikaze pilots crash into me from behind anyway) and after navigating a few drops and switchbacks, I nearly fell straight into Narnia when I made the mistake of leaning forward on a sharp turn. Then I realised why there are so few other girls on the start line.

The fi rst water point awaited us after 21 gruelling kilometres through the hills. From there the roads wound through some of the famous Fair Cape Dairy’s fi elds and barns – which brought back wonderful childhood memories of growing up on a farm. The route then took us along a tributary of the Diep River which is lined with Blue Gum trees. Leaving the cooler and sheltered route along the river, the road led us to a short tar section and then on to a long ride on a gravel road to the East – almost straight into the wind. Just when I thought me legs had recovered, the organisers treated us to a long climb through old wheat fi elds, where the wind blows any slipstream you might

have hoped for, into oblivion. The friendly local farmers off ered

oasis’ of relief with water point tables under shady trees. It takes a special kind of person who can cheer up exhausted cyclists on a day like that, and we were therefore very grateful for the emotional recharge. Hydrated and fed the farmers sent us out with words of warning for another steep climb up ahead. We reached the lower slopes at the 50km mark and had to just put our heads down and keep pedalling. Pedalling until we couldn’t anymore that is, and we ended up pushing our bikes to the top of what felt like a mountain. Just before the top, a friendly red arrow pointed us to the left and onto a contour road. With the bliss of level ground we could enjoy the amazing scenery below, before turning for the fi nish. As the wind blew through the lush green pastures we looked forward to the last short downhill track we could see down below. But the run in to the fi nish wasn’t to be easy. After the fun downhill we were met by another challenging zig-zag

routine through the vineyard blocks, before sighting the fi nish line at Meerendal Wine Estate.

It was a race scattered with beautiful views and exciting single tracks. It’s tough enough to have challenged even the strongest riders among us and reminded me that I need to spend as much time on my mountain bike as I do on my new road bike.

RIDING THE WINDS OF

fair cape

Jeanne-Louise Wiese and her husband have recently been taking part in a few very

challenging road races to try and boost their fi tness for the trails. So when they headed out to

Meerendal (wobbly legs, dodgy cycling tan and all), they thought the winds of Durbanville Hills couldn’t possibly match those that howl down

the streets of Cape Town. Rookie mistake…

“I NEARLY FELL STRAIGHT INTO NARNIA WHEN I MADE THE MISTAKE OF LEANING

FORWARD ON A SHARP TURN.”

SO

U

TH AFRICA

where are we?Fair Cape Dairies is one of South

Africa’s top dairies. Owned by

the Loubser Family, who have

been farming in the area for fi ve

generations, they’re very proud of

their sustainable farming and carbon

footprint reducing practices.

Western Cape

Cape Town

N1

N2George

Meerendal

The organisers put on a great day out for the whole family.

Enjoying a Fair Cape recovery drink – chocolate milk.

TANIA HORSFORD

TANIA HORSFORD

As the season winds down it was a case of social racing at the front.

TANIA HORSFORD

26

Stirling Kotze, aka Stirling Senior

Years in the saddle: 27 Favourite ride/trail:

Table Mountain, Cape TownRecurring MTB nightmare:

Dirty, worn chains

The Stirling Revolution BioThe father and son combo of Stirling

senior and junior are avid cyclists and owners of a local bike shop in Cape

Town. In their monthly column they’ll be off ering their uniquely phrased views on the ins and outs of mountain biking from negotiating a discount to locating

that weird noise your bike keeps making, but won’t make when you take it to the

workshop, they’ll cover it.

I woke up this morning feeling old. And tired. I suspect a 5.30 a.m. wake-up call and a tough four

hours in the saddle had something to do with it. Yesterday I rode the fi rst stage of the inaugural Origin of Trails event in Stellenbosch.

I imagine Shayne Dowling (who I beat by 13 minutes and am older than by 13 years), will tell you more about this challenging, hot, dusty ride with spectacular, newly-cut singletrack and a huge four kilometre climb! It was my fi rst ‘race’ on my R70K-plus lightweight, full-suspension Epic World Cup 29’er (carbon-fi ber frame, handle bars and wheel set. Dropper seat-post, XO1 groupset and tubeless of course).

Another reason for my feeling old this morning is that Paul Valstar, the start-line commentator announced to all assembled ‘welcome to Stirling Kotze, a mountain biker for many years and the oldest rider in today’s event’. A harsh reminder that I am 59 the next time my birthday rolls around. I am happy to report that I fi nished in 34th position out of 67 riders. I was beaten by 33 riders and I beat 33 riders (all 66 of them younger than me).

It’s the next day and I am sipping my morning espresso and lovingly preparing my new 853 steel, belt-drive, single-speed hard-tail MTB for an easy 16 kilometer trundle around Pringle Bay and Rooi Els. It’s a simple bike reminiscent of my fi rst MTB back in 1989. Back then, it cost me just short of R2 000. And it was not your cheap, entry-level Bridgestone! What did I get for R2 000? Chromoly frame, centre-pull brakes, 7-speed cluster, rigid fork and indexed top-mounted shifters (all Shimano something-or-other). Exaggerated knobbly tires and heavy, bomb-proof wheels. Knarly platform pedals and a huge saddlebag under a

phallic-like saddle.How things have changed since

those early days. Riding this 1989 MTB over the rough Table Mountain jeep track I thought I was pedalling a technical marvel that couldn’t possibly be improved. In that fi rst year of my mountain biking life I didn’t foresee for a second what was to come over the next 25.

This got me thinking: what are the technological changes to mountain bikes that have contributed signifi cantly to our riding experience? To making us faster, safer and more comfortable. There are so many but when it gets down to it there are only a handful of developments that really count. And, yes, my conclusions are subjective (even snobbish) and many readers will take me to task.

First off , those early ‘technologies’ that were just plain dumb and, surprisingly, some are still used today…◆ SUSPENSION SEAT-POST. Imagine your saddle bouncing up and down while you’re tackling a steep drop off !◆ THOSE EARLY ‘BULL BARS’. The ones that wrapped around your hand and almost reached the stem. Hook that ‘bull bar’ on a bush and you’re eating dirt!◆ HEAD SHOCK. The logo was a guy with a really fat head. Ugly. An aberration in design that gave less travel than the Titanic. And was almost as dangerous.◆ STEM SHOCK. A ‘bouncy’ stem with a polymer contraption that assisted you into a dramatic endo! It was possibly the worst MTB invention of all time.◆ TYRE LINERS. Great for real farmers. Not for real riders. Useful for Africa Burn.◆ PERMA TUBES. Great for real farmers

but more expensive than tyre liners. And heavier. The only good thing is that they fl oat, so they’d be great for the Imana Wild Ride.◆ MECHANICAL DISC BRAKES. Cheap con job for gullible riders. Now only found on kids bikes because it looks like dad’s bike. Even V-brakes are better.◆ GEL SADDLE COVERS (THE ONE WITH THE LITTLE DRAWSTRING). Looks like a turd when it falls off your saddle. Don’t bother to pick it up. Your bum and other bits will toughen up!

Then there are those products that, today, are no longer relevant to any real mountain biker.◆ SADDLE BAG. On a mountain bike? They rattle. The zips break. You lose your tools. Put your stuff in your cycling shirt pocket or a hydration pack or tape it to your bike.◆ BAR-ENDS. Will still give you a Judo throw when you least expect it. And I’ve seen a bar-end shred a guy’s thigh muscle like a butcher’s knife. Took a long time to recover. Only single-speeders should have bar-ends.◆ NARROW, RISER HANDLEBARS. Found on low-end bikes. On old bikes and messenger bikes. And not on real mountain bikes.◆ TRIPLE CHAIN RINGS. Why, when you can have two? Or even better, just one chain ring.◆ TUBES AND PATCH KITS. Unless you’re on a tight budget, or just tight, or only ride once every few months. Or the tube is an emergency item for tubeless failure.

Now for the winner developments that have made us faster, safer and more comfortable – the heroes of today’s mountain bikes:

DIARY EXTRACT OF AN AGEING MOUNTAIN

BIKER – SATURDAY 30 NOVEMBER 2013

For all of you feeling the years in your limbs and hindquarters, here’s some light relief gleaned from the pages of Stirling Kotze’s diary. Penned on the morning after a tough ride, it’s a walk down MTB

technology memory lane.

◆ TUBELESS TYRES, SEALANT AND CO2 ‘BOMBS’. Run lower pressures. Better grip. No more patches.◆ LIGHTWEIGHT WHEELS. More important than light frames. But only as light as the application and your weight allows. ◆ HYDRAULIC DISC BRAKES. Go fast. Stop fast. Beware, not all brakes are created equal.◆ SINGLE-CHAINRING. Now you can use your left hand for operating your dropper seat post and your right thumb for the gear that you want to be in.◆ AIR SUSPENSION. One in the front is nice but two – a short one at the back and a big one in the front – is even better.◆ CARBON FIBRE. Just about anything is better in carbon fibre. Frames. Wheels. Bars. Stems. Crank arms. Bottle cages. Etc.

But the winner, numero uno, top of the pops and Bonnie’s best buy…◆ DROPPER SEAT POSTS. Lowers your centre of gravity. More control. Faster and safer. Wait for the 27.2 dropper posts and XC and marathon guys will also be doing it. Get one and reinvent the way you ride. You’ll feel like a kid again. Your best upgrade. No debate.

WINNER

DUMBOBSOLETE

Stirling Revolution FS

CYCLING TOPSWith the hot summer months ahead of us, we’ve looked into a few quality shot sleeve cycling tops to consider when updating your riding kit. It’s not just about functionality; you need to look good out there too.

What to look for in a top?Comfort is your main concern so, unless you have a top by the same manufacturer, always try the top on before you buy. Then do some stretches, mimic your riding position to make sure nothing crumples up in an annoying spot or rides up your lower back.

Sizing is the next big issue. Some of the Italian brands in particular seem to be sized smaller than the general leisure t-shirt sizes in South Africa. If you’re shopping online it’s worthwhile

to check the returns policy or play it safe and go with a brand you already know fi ts.

UV protection is essential given our hot African sun and the time you’re going to spend in the saddle. Look for the Ultraviolet Protection Factor (UPF) standard rating. UPF 50 for example provides 50 times better sun protection than your unprotected skin.

Ventilation without compromising the UV protection is another concern to bear in mind. A high tread count cotton shirt will give you great sun

protection but you’ll be sweating buckets, so go for something a bit more high-tech.

Safe storage pockets located on your lower back are more than just handy. If you’re not using a hydration pack you’ll need the pockets to keep essentials like snacks or a multi-tool. The pockets should be elasticated at the top to keep the contents from bouncing out at the very least and a separate zip sealed compartment, for expensive valuables like a credit card or phone, is a key feature too.

Newline Bike Vent Jersey

Features: Slim fi t, stretch fabric, airfl ow mesh, full chest zip, anti-glide elastic

back and four rear pockets, one with a zip closure system.

Constructed from a non-restrictive, elasticated, airfl ow mesh combined

with Spandex for a slim fi tting and highly breathable cycling shirt. In

addition to the above listed features the Vent Jersey features refl ective

logo prints and fl atlocked seams for added comfort. It’s designed for race

orientated riders to be easy to care for and to be fast-drying. Available

from www.evobikes.co.za for R750.

Zerorh+ Vario JerseyFeatures: Pre-formed anatomic construction, ventilation “air through

technology”, ¾ chest zip, 6 rear pockets (2 side mesh pockets and 1 with zipper), dual fi t pocket locking system and grip fi t non-allergic jersey bottom.

Constructed around the “air through technology” system, the Vario cycling top allows for great moisture wicking and cooling when riding under the hot

African sun. It’s packed with pockets and features a non-allergenic grip fi t strip to ensure the top doesn’t slide up. Available from www.cwcycles.co.za for R670.

Assos SS Mille JerseyFeatures: Full chest zip with zip protection, slim fi t, clima regulation, rear ventilation system with Assos patented stabilizer panel, UV protection 50+, zippered safety pocket with iPod

compatibility, back elastic hem and refl ective visibility stripes.The SS Mille Jersey is superbly designed, as you’d expect with the price

tag. With larger riders taking part in endurance events in mind, this is the top for local riders in local conditions. The iPod compatibility is a really nice touch and shows the thought that went into designing the top. Available from www.cwcycles.co.za for R1 700.

First Ascent Radar JerseyFeatures: Moisture wicking Quik-Wic fabrics, refl ective prints, extended

back panel with silicone hem grip, full chest zip, three plunge pockets and a zip secured, water-resistant lined secure pocket with earphone cable routing.

Constructed with Quik-Wic Bamboo Charcoal material this First Ascent cycling top off ers great value for money, featuring everything you need in a well-considered

design. The secure pocket lined with a water-resistant shell isn’t going to keep your phone dry if you fall off a fl oating bridge, but it’ll keep the sweat and a bit of light

drizzle off your valuable electronics. Available from www.fi rstascent.co.za for R549.

Zerorh+ Vario Jersey Pre-formed anatomic construction, ventilation “air through

technology”, ¾ chest zip, 6 rear pockets (2 side mesh pockets and 1 with zipper), dual fi t pocket locking system and grip fi t non-allergic jersey bottom.

around the “air through technology” system, the Vario cycling top allows for great moisture wicking and cooling when riding under the hot

African sun. It’s packed with pockets and features a non-allergenic grip fi t strip to Available from www.cwcycles.co.za for R670.

Full chest zip with zip protection, slim fi t, clima regulation, rear ventilation system with Assos patented

Moisture wicking Quik-Wic fabrics, refl ective prints, extended back panel with silicone hem grip, full chest zip, three plunge pockets and a zip

secured, water-resistant lined secure pocket with earphone cable routing. with Quik-Wic Bamboo Charcoal material this First Ascent cycling top

off ers great value for money, featuring everything you need in a well-considered design. The secure pocket lined with a water-resistant shell isn’t going to keep your

phone dry if you fall off a fl oating bridge, but it’ll keep the sweat and a bit of light Available from www.fi rstascent.co.za for R549.

Craft Performance Bike Tour JerseyFeatures: Ergonomic construction, classic race design, functional fabric to enhance cooling and moisture transport, full chest zip, elastic fabric for perfect fi t, bodymapped mesh inserts in hot spots with elastic hexa-channel fabric for active cooling and moisture transport, silicone bottom hem, four rear pockets one with zip and earphone cable routing.

The understated but immaculately constructed gear from the Swedish designers at Craft will keep you as comfortable as possible on the bike. The Performance range of clothing is their mid-range off ering and the Performance jersey features all you could need in a cycling top. Plus you can get a fully customised kit from Craft (minimum order of 10 units) for your business or club. Check out www.thebicyclecompany.co.za for more info or drop into your local Trek dealer. RRP from R700.

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Gear FS

28

FS 2014 Stage Race Calendar

May:

February:

FS 2014 Stage Race Calendar

TRAINING PROGRAMMEHarness the advice of

Dr Mike Posthumus, Rochez O’Grady and

James Thornhill Fisher and customise this

Stage Race Training Programme to

maximize your riding pleasure in 2014.

What To Do:Pull out the page, mark the races you’re doing this year, fi ll in your

training schedule and stick it up on the wall. Then you can tick off your

achievements as the year progresses or add your single day events to keep

track of your year of riding.

The Coach Says:Periodise your training by dividing

your training time into a base phase, intermediate intensity phase, high

intensity phase and a tapering phase. Train smart by setting heart rate

training zones and then polarising your training.

Natural Nutrition Tips:Eat and hydrate smart, before, during

and after a ride. Try to stick to ‘real foods’ to reduce food boredom on

longer rides and drink a 500ml bottle of sports drink every hour on a three

hour plus ride.

Skills Pointers:Most of us can benefi t from a bit of skill coaching, so don’t be too

proud to book yourself a session in preparation for a big ride. Remember

you’ve worked hard to gain momentum, braking unnecessarily

to navigate a corner or drop will cost you precious energy. Stage races are

also notorious for long climbs too, so brush up on your climbing

skills by reading the skills column in this issue.

Refresh Your Memory:The Coaching, Nutrition and Skills

Columns are archived online at www.fullsus.co.za, bookmark it and recap

on the professional advice.

Note your training goals here:

2014

March:

April:

June:

October:

November:

August:

September:

July:

February:8 – 9: Lighthouse To Lighthouse (www.discovercapeagulhas.co.za) 7 – 9: ISUZU Ride the Rock (www.stillwatersports.com)14 – 16: Du Toit Tankwa Trek (www.tankwatrek.co.za)21 – 23: Garden Route 300 (www.gardenrouteevents.co.za)22 – 23: Soaring Eagle 2 Day MTB (www.trisport.co.za)

March:23 – 30: ABSA Cape Epic (www.cape-epic.com)

April:9 – 12: Lowveld Quest (www.lowveldquest.co.za) 11 - 13: 36One Challenge (www.the36one.com) 25 – 3 May: Old Mutual joBerg2c (www.joberg2c.co.za)

May:3 – 4: Houw Hoek Tour (www.mtb-adventures.co.za)13 - 15: Sani2c Trail (www.sani2c.co.za) 14 - 16: Sani2c Adventure (www.sani2c.co.za)15 - 17: Sani2c Race (www.sani2c.co.za)18 – 23: Windhoek Namib Quest (www.africanextremepromotions.com)

June:

4 – 8: Grindrod Bank Pondo Pedal (www.pondopedal.com) 6 – 8: RE:CM Knysna 200 (www.recmknysna200.co.za) 11 – 15: Vic Falls MTB Challenge (www.vicfallsmtbchallenge.com) 21 – 22: Dusi2c (www.dusi2c.co.za) 29 – 4 July: Cape Country Tour (www.mtb-adventures.co.za)

July: With no major stage races in July it’s a great time to take a mid-season break, work on your technical riding skills and reassess your riding goals for the rest of 2014. Or take the time to tick a few trails off your Big MTB Year to-do-list - www.bigmtbyear.com.

August:1 – 6: Nedbank Tour de Tuli (www.childreninthewilderness.com)8 – 11: Storms River Traverse (www.stormsrivertraverse.co.za) 9 – 10: Potberg & De Hoop MTB (www.gardenrouteevents.co.za)23 – 29: Altech Autopage Jozi2Kozi (www.jozi2kozi.co.za) 30 – 31: Greyton MTB Tour (www.mtb-adventures.co.za)

September:10 – 14: Momentum Pondo Pedal Adventure (www.pondopedal.com)12 – 14: Ride2Nowhere (www.ride2nowhere.co.za) 18 – 21: Dr Evil Classic (www.drevilclassic.com) 26 – 28: Resolution Ride the Rhino (www.renosterveldmtb.co.za)

October:3 – 5: ISUZU 3 Towers (www.3towers.co.za)12 – 18: Bridge Cape Pioneer Trek (www.capepioneer.co.za)10 – 12: Berg & Bush Descent (www.bergandbush.co.za) 14 – 16: Berg & Bush Great Trek (www.bergandbush.co.za)18 – 19: Berg & Bush 2 Day (www.bergandbush.co.za)31 – 2 Nov: Wines2Whales Adventure (www.wines2whales.co.za)

November:3 – 5: Wines2Whales Ride (www.wines2whales.co.za)7 – 9: Wines2Whales Race (www.wines2whales.co.za)15 – 16: To Hell and Back (www.tohellandback.co.za) 28 - 29: Pennypinchers Origin of Trails (www.originoftrails.co.za)

Here’s your 2014 stage race

calendar, cut it out, stick it up

and makes notes. Good luck for

all your riding goals in 2014

from the Full Sus team.

29

CALENDARAdvertise your event in Full Sus and we will send you copies of the paper for your goodie bags or registration table. Call Julia on 021 685 0285/6

■ 3 & 4 January: Burry Stander MemorialOn Friday the 3rd of January there will be a memorial service for Burry Stander, at the Bali Hai Farm outside Port Shepstone, and on the morning of Saturday the 4th there will be a 30km memorial ride. The ride will also mark the opening of the Burry Stander Bike Park and the organisers would like you to bring the family for a day out to celebrate the life of South Africa’s greatest mountain biking son. Entries are R75, there are no pre-entries and registration starts at 6:30 on Saturday morning. There is also a 5km kiddies ride (R30) and a memorial walk around Burry’s XC course (R20). Find out more at www.kznmtb.co.za.

■ 11 January: Ezulwini MTB Go ride in the Kingdom of Swaziland

this January, by taking part in the Ezulwini MTB race. Starting and fi nishing at the Mantenga Falls, Ezulwini (south east of Mbabane on the MR3) the Ezulwini race features 50km (R180), 30km (R150), 18km (R80), 10km (R80) and 2km (R50) distances. You can enter online until the 10th of January and while the entry fees are quoted in Emalangeni, your South African Rands are just as good across the border as they are here, as their currency is tied to ours at a one to one rate (like Namibia and Lesotho). Find out more, or book online, at www.outthereevents.net.

■ 12 January: Summer Fast One MTBThe Summer Fast One MTB is hosted by the Lido Hotel in Eikenhof, Johannesburg and takes place on

Sunday the 12th of January. There are 60km (R160), 35km (R120) and 12km (R20) distances on off er and the racing starts at 7:30am. It’s a CSA sanctioned event mind you, so remember to list your CSA race number or budget an extra R30 for a temporary licence for the day. Entries are open until the 10th of January on www.cycleevents.co.za and you can register on the day from 6:30.

■ 26 January: Bouckaert-Soenen MTB Cycle Race The annual Bouckaert-Soenen Cycle Race has become a fi xture on the Paarl cycling calendar, with the local Paarl Rotary Club, and Pedal Power Association (PPA), using the proceeds for many charitable projects. The day features 126km (R165), 72km (R155) and 45km (R145)

road races and 47km (R145), 36km (R145) and 13km (R60) mountain bike races. The entry fees listed are for non-PPA members who enter before race day, but late entrants are welcome too, with a R35 late entry penalty. There is also a discount for PPA members. Find out more at www.paarlrotary.co.za and follow the links to enter online. Entries are limited to 2 500 for the road race and 500 for the MTB events.

SUS THE BEST OF February 2014

MPUMALANGA 8 MTN National Series - Dullstroom 22 MTN National Series - Sabie

GAUTENG 1 XCOSA Race #1 5 Kia Over the Moon MTB Series

WESTERN CAPE 1 24 Hours of Oak Valley 1 WCAD Summer Series #1 2 Avis Downhill Challenge 7 ISUZU Ride the Rock 8 Lighthouse to Lighthouse 8 99ER Cycle Tour MTB 9 Spur Adventure Duo &

Sprint Race #2 14 Du Toit Tankwa Trek 21 Garden Route 300 21 Totalsports Xterra South African

Championships

KZN 2 Jowett’s Cycles Subaru Classic 15 Newcastle MTB Family Race 1 of 4

15 KZN Provincial Series # 2 XCO, DHI & Enduro

22 Illovo Wartburg MTB Classic

NORTH WEST14 The Bridgestone Route 66 MTB

Experience21 Hartbeesfontein Mieliemyl

EASTERN CAPE 1 The Herald VW Cycle Tour

FREE STATE 1 Trans Draak 24hr MTB Quest 22 The Bielie Mielie Fiets

OUT IN AFRICA 3 Laikipia XC (Kenya) 22 Soaring Eagle 2 Day MTB (Lesotho)

March 2014RACE CALENDAR MPUMALANGA 22 Sappi Mankele MTB Challenge

WESTERN CAPE 1 WCAD Summer Series #2 2 Cape Argus Pick n Pay MTB Challenge

Mpumalanga

Limpopo

Northern Cape

Gauteng

Eastern Cape

Free State

Western Cape

KZN

North West

Out in Africa

CALENDAR KEY

JANUARY Must do events

List your Event in the Full Sus

CalendarGet your event, big or small,

from the ABSA Cape Epic to your LBS weekly training

ride listed in the Full Sus calendar. If it’s a MTB event,

be it a ride or race, we want to list it. And it’s free!

All you need to do is go to www.fullsus.co.za, click on

‘Event Calendar’ and fi nd the submit event bar, fi ll in your

event details and click submit. Then Bob’s your uncle, your

event will soon be live on FullSus.co.za to be seen by

thousands of mountain bikers from the furthest corners of

South Africa. It’ll automatically be included in the newspaper too. And best of all, it’s FREE.

Just like Full Sus.

Get your MTB fi x online now at www.fullsus.co.za.The Full Sus website features all the great content that you’ve come to expect from Full Sus along with an extensive mountain biking calendar and a portal through which to contact biokineticists, physiotherapists, dieticians, sports masseuses, sports doctors and MTB coaches. Go check it out now at www.fullsus.co.za.

15 MTN National MTB Series – Tulbagh 16 Spur Adventure Duo & Sprint

Race # 3 21 West Coast Warm Water Weekend 23 ABSA Cape Epic 30 Spur Kid’s @ Lourensford 30 Lourensford Vineyard races

KZN 1 KZN MTB Provincial #3 XCO,

DHI & Enduro 7 Bisley2Baynefi eld Out-and-Back 8 North Coast – Zululand Great

Trail Race 9 Intaba Ridge MTB Classic & Trail Run 15 SA Cup Series XCO # 1 16 SA Cup Series DHI # 122 Bonitas Sunday Tribune Giant’s

Castle MTB 29 Newcastle MTB Family Race 2 of 4 29 Safi re Notties – Himville 100 29 Royal Drakensberg MTB Challenge

GAUTENG 5 Kia Over the Moon MTB Series 9 Babbas Lodge MTB Series # 3

FREE STATE 15 Spur Tour de Parys #1

MTB ONLINE

full sus

30

FS Classifieds

CLASSIFIEDSfull sus

Too busy to take your bicycle in for a service?We Collect, Repairand Deliver!Available in the Cape Town areaIn association with BMC

Call: 083 452 0242Email: [email protected] Book: www.getafixcycles.com

ULTIMATE CONVENIENCE! Getafix CyclesWe have a tour just for you!www.daytrippers.co.za

Bicycle Tours

021 511 4766

FS photo of the month

Oakpics is a Strand based photographic company.

They shoot a vast array of events, covering everything from wild horses to weddings. But it’s in MTB that they’ve carved out a niche as one of the leaders in the fi eld. If you spot them on the trails, usually when you’re picking yourself up after an unexpected brush with the ground, you can purchase the photos directly from their website. Or book them to shoot your event. www.oakpics.com or call them on 021 854 8723

FS FS FSBuilt in 1853 by Andrew

Geddes Bain and his son,

Thomas, the Meiringspoort

Pass was one of the scenic

highlights of the 2013

Bridge Cape Pioneer Trek.

31

GOT YOUR BACK.We’re with you, every stage of the way. From the moment you purchase a Trek, you qualify for professional technical support from the people who understand your Trek best. Sign up now for the Trek Riders’ Club and rest like you ride, like a pro. Sign up at www.thebicyclecompany.co.za/trek-riders-club and qualify for full-service technical support

at every stage of all major stage races.

WWW.GR300.CO.ZA

POWERED BY

ENTRIEs CLOSE 1 fEB 2014

AN ENTRY

full sus january 2014

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