Ritchey WCS Carbon Wheels

I had a chance to take my new Ritchey Carbon wheels for a light spin this morning. Initial impressions are that they are super smooth! Even though it is probably not really possible, they seem to really damp trail chatter. The have an extremely quiet ride. I will update with a full review, as soon as I have done some miles on them.

2010 Fox Float RLC 150mm

I have been lucky enough to be riding Fox’s new offering for about a month, and while I am still a hesitant Fox front suspension fan, I am really starting to like my new fork.
The fork works extremely well! So this is not so much a review, as some advice that I have picked up on the set-up of the fork. This is by no means my own discovery, but rather some advice that I read in the MB Action magazine. They had an expert from Fox answer a letter from a reader and he gives some advice on using the RLC forks.
It is at this point that I have to admit that I never really new what the low speed compression was for on the Fox forks. On my previous forks I used to dial in 3 clicks from full minus and then never touch it again. The advice given in the magazine; has changed my life forever.
The best way for me to explain what the compression adjuster does is to say that it is like having a shock pump with you on the trail. You can effectively increase the “pressure” in your fork.
So here is what I tried this weekend, and it worked really well. I have never run the recommended amount of sag on a Fox fork, I have always thought it made the fork feel too soft. So, for starters, I dialled the compression adjuster to full Minus (off) I then, using a shock pump dialled in 20% sag. Yes, the shock felt too soft, but by simply turning the compression adjuster you can make the shock harder.
So while riding, when things got ugly I turned the compression down and had the full advantage of the most plush travel you can imagine. And when I was climbing or on flat sections I turned it up for a pedal platform type feeling.
I hope you find this handy! I sure did!

MTN Blockhouse Marathon

Despite trying to dedicate myself entirely to the freeride movement, I still find myself drawn to racing events. I found myself at the MTN National Marathon race at Blockhouse, south (very south) of Johannesburg this weekend.
After being freaked out by some very strange looking circus people at the start line, we set off with what looked like about 300 000 people! The dust was really something to behold! As I was only in training ride mode, I was happy to start at the back. There was a some really twisty single track to get away from the circus people which was pretty fun.
The course was extremely flat, which in my current form suited me perfectly. There was plenty of single track and even some rocky stuff to keep it exciting. The YETI handled the course brilliantly, as usual. My new 150mm Fox fork did not hold me back at all and I still managed a pretty fast average over the flat course.
Apart from the DUST it was a great race, whether it should be on the National calendar is debatable, but for me it was a great day out.
Thanks again to Regent Lighting Solutions for the support.

Trek Fuel EX - Friday bike pron from Chris

Chris our resident Bike Pron expert is a regular supplier of the latest equipment news on the web. Today the new Trek Fuel for 2010

 

Check out the new Trek bikes. They look very cool. One day when I am all grown up I'll buy myself one of those fuel ex bikes...

 

http://www.mbaction.com/ME2/dirmod.asp?sid=&nm=&type=news&mod=News&mid=9A02E3B96F2A415ABC72CB5F516B4C10&tier=3&nid=A306472B9AFD49EDAA8D4C6A3EA4545E

 

And a budget khs that these reveiwers quite liked. I didn't even know khs still made bikes.

 

http://www.bikemagic.com/news/article/mps/uan/7225

 

Later dudes.

IBIS HD

Big Ibis News
Mojo HD Hits the Slopes
It's time to let the "HD" out of the bag.
Over the last couple years, we've been working on a new 160mm travel big brother to the Mojo Carbon and Mojo SL (each with 140mm travel), we're temporarily calling it the "Mojo HD". And now we think it's about time to tell you about it.
Introducing the Ibis Mojo HD
Before we tell you about what nitty gritty details we're willing to divulge, we want to let you know that we've already been putting this bike through the paces, some of them rigorous.
Already a Race Winner
Brian Lopes spent the last week in Vars France, getting ready for and then competing in the Enduro Trophy des Nations. This is an enduro style race, becoming quite popular in Europe these days, where riders compete in a number of stages over a two day period with "beaucoup" downhill. This particular event had 10 stages over two days and featured over 10,000 M of descending. If you're bad at math (or don't like the metric system) that's 32,808.4 feet of descent. Or 6.21 MILES straight down, measured vertically! This race also had a bonus stage at 10PM on saturday night that didn't count for the overall time, but the winner got an extra 500 Euros of party money.Brian teamed up with WTB's Mark Weir and Jason Moescheler to form Team USA 1. Brian notched the first win for his prototype Mojo HD on its first day of racing by winning one of the stages on Saturday, propelling the team to second overall on Saturday night.
Brian is very happy with the bike, and told us a couple things in text messages received over the weekend.
"bike is awesome"
OK, we understand typing is not that easy on a Blackberry.
Brian's Sunday Night ReportSeriously though, here we we have an extra long Blackberry missive from Monsieur Lopes:
"The Enduro race was a lot harder than I expected. The toll it took on everything: wheels, tires, brakes, suspension, the body, and of course the frame were beyond what I imagined. The new "HD" Ibis never missed a beat. For only getting the frame one week ago & with only one ride on it before packing it up for this race, it couldn't have gone through any more of a test than the abusive one I gave it here in France. With 10 demanding races, 3 of which ended with flat tires, the French won all but one race (which I won!). It was hard to beat them on course they knew better than all the rest, basically they were on their home track at times, where knowing the course saved them time. It's hard to believe that this bike isn't much heavier than the standard mojo, as it was eating up courses that were worthy of full-on DH rigs. The added travel, stiffness, clearance for larger tires and a 8" rotor allow you to take on the toughest terrain you can throw at it, but it's still efficient and light enough to pedal up any hill. Another weapon is added to the ibis line up...
Wow, so there you go. The only non-French winner of any stage was Brian, and they ended second overall. We think that's pretty impressive. Without further fluff, here's a bit more about the bike.
Mojo "HD" Prototype Specifications
· Price and delivery date are both to be decided.
· 160mm of rear wheel travel.
· DW Link Suspension.
· 26" Wheels.
· Target weight for the frame and shock: 6.2-6.5 lbs. (we're not there yet but are fine-tuning the layup).
· 67 degree head angle with a 160mm fork (Brian was running a 170mm fork this weekend, you can also run a 180mm).
· Chain stay length: 17.125".
· Top tube lengths are the same as regular Mojos.
· 12 x 135mm Maxle rear axle.
· Post mount magnesium left dropout, carbon right dropout.
· Compatible with the new tapered steerer standard: 1 1/8th hidden upper, 1.5 traditional lower.
· Compatible with both Chris King InSet and Cane Creek Frustum headsets.
· If you want to run your current straight 1 1/8" fork, we've got you covered too. We will have an adapter available, and you will be able to use a King headset top and bottom.
· 2.35"-2.5" rear tire depending on brand and height of cornering knobs.
· Dual row angular contact bearings in the front of the lower link that have less play than standard sealed bearings. Preload adjustment is not necessary. Large 28mm x 15mm x 7mm radial bearings in the rear for stiffness and long wear.
· The leverage ratio, like the Mojo and Mojo SL is designed for air shocks. The Mojo HD comes with a 8.5" x 2.5" Fox RP23. A DHX air will work on all but the small size. A coil shock is not offered because the linkage rates weren't designed for it. We lowered the top tube to get slightly better standover than the regular mojo while having a higher BB because of the longer travel (we managed to retain the DHX air compatibility in 3 of the 4 sizes).
· The Bottom Bracket height is 13.8"-14" depending on tires.
· Chain guide development is well on its way, we'll announce compatible brands soon. The frame will not have ISCG mounts so it will not be Hammerschmidt compatible.
· The HD runs full cable housing. Rear brake and rear deraileur run on the down tube, with hidden swingarm housing for the rear derailleur.
· Front derailleur (if you use one) and adjustible seatpost housing (if you use one) run along the top tube.
· And once again, just to make sure you got it, price and delivery date are both yet to be decided.





Care of the IBIS newsletter.

Lezyne Alloy Drive M and Pen Guage – Review

Over the years I have gone from pumps to bombs and back, probably 1000 times. Each time I see a new pump that looks cool, I buy it and turf the bomb idea, but I always come back again. On our recent trip to Mankele, I was reminded of the value of a good pump. I got a small cut in my tyre and lost a bit of pressure before it sealed up. I had no other choice but to use a bomb. 25 bucks, just to top up the pressure! It was time for a pump.
I have had my eye on the Lezyne pumps for a while, they just simply look cool! And when the colours were launched here I decided that I could wait no longer!
After getting the pump, I actually spend some minutes just looking at it! It is a beautifully constructed piece of equipment! The entire pump is CNC machined. Holding it in your hands you get the feeling that you will have this pump for the rest of your life. It is super solid! The system it uses, takes me back to my school days, when we had racing bikes with the two brackets under the top tube that would hold your long white sks pump. Inside the pump was a little hose that you had to screw onto the pump and onto the valve to inflate your tyre.
The Lezyne Alloy drive works exactly the same. I hit a rock and burped my tyre on my weekend riding and it was my first opportunity to use my new pump on the trail. It takes a few moments to attach the valve hose, but I am sure that once you have this a few times, it will become quick and easy. I bought the pen gauge as an extra to the pump. This features a nifty, integrated pressure gauge. When I screwed the valve onto my presta valve, I realised the advantages of checking your equipment before you attach it to your bike and ride off because the pressure gauge had unscrewed itself and pumping had no effect. 2 seconds later I had tightened everything up, and the pump worked, well like a bomb! It took about 8 strokes to get the tyre to my favourite (secret) pressure. And the visual confirmation from the integrated gauge is a treat!
You may think that attaching the valve hose is a hassle, but to be honest, I have bent and broken so many valves using pumps that attach directly to your valve that I am more than happy to take a second to attach everything. You can pump with all the vigour you need and not risk damaging your valve. One tip I can suggest it first attach the hose to the valve on your bike, then screw the pump on. This way you can’t inadvertently unscrew any of the pump parts when attaching to the valve.
I think this is a great product! And it seems that I will have it for MANY years to come!

Mountainbiking singletrack video at Mankele

Check out this cool mountain bike video we made on the Mankele singletrack.

See the other posts below for the review of the mtb trip or watch the video below

What it the opposite of 5"?

This weekend the 5” experiment took a total 180 degree turnaround! On Saturday afternoon I assisted a friend in building up his Niner S.I.R 9 frame. This is a Reynolds 853 steel frame that is designed specifically for singlespeed use. It has regular drop-outs but features an eccentric bottom bracket for tensioning the chain. It was super easy to build up!

The frame is simply beautiful! The welding is perfection and the root beer colour sparkles in the sun! Having said all this, I did think that you would have to be absolutely crazy to ride one of these things! Since I am now a converted big travel, one bike guy, the idea of a fully rigid singlespeed is preposterous!

And then I rode it...

Big wheels really do roll over trail obstacles easier. On my short, but eventful test, I simply loved the bike! I rode it up a steep hill, which proved that you need some serious lung capacity to pilot a machine like this! We fitted a 32 front chainring with 16 teeth at the back. This seemed good ratio for the Groenkloof and your average Pretoria hacking.

Then I got to take it on some cool singletrack. It was a blast! The 29 inch wheels love to keep going once you have them up to speed and you find yourself pushing harder and harder, it is extremely tiring but great fun!

I am hoping to get my hands on the bike for some more extensive testing, but Matt loves his new bike so much, I am not sure it will be really soon. Watch this space!

Induna and Mankele

I am just back from taking the 5” experiment to Mpumalanga. We took a long weekend and did the MTN Big Induna race in Hazyview and then spent 2 days staying and riding at Mankele. South Africa’s own MTB park.

 

The race was a challenge, as usual. Anyone who underestimates the second half of the 75km Marathon is in for some pain and suffering. Some wet weather left slight muddy patches, but nothing that could not be ridden. The Yeti again, performed amazingly well. For the first time I found myself using the pro-pedal on some of the smoother tracks. After the hard riding of Magaliesberg and Rooiberg, the tracks at Hazyview seemed like groomed super tubes! The first 45km is fast and fun and the second 30km will leave you exhausted if you pushed too hard in the beginning. Again, the bike did not disappoint, and I found that I was riding the final quad trails faster than ever before.

 

We spent the next 2 days riding at Mankele. We also stayed in the 3 bedroom chalet, and I must say that this is really awesome accommodation. The facilities are clean and really first class. The establishment also has a bike wash area with hoses. All an MTB’er could ask for.

The riding is unbelievable! We only managed to take in the XC course and the singletrack around the huts. This was all challenging and great fun. I had dialled a bit more sag into the YETI 575 giving it a more supple feel. I then set the pro-pedal to the number 1 setting, giving a firm but comfortable ride when it was on. This allowed me to bomb through the rocky technical sections and still allowed me to climb the 30% inclines with great ease.

 

Be sure to take some spare with you, they don’t have anything that I could see in the shop and I did cut a tyre on the last run on the last day. The Bush Tunnel is one of the greatest pieces of singletrack that I have ever ridden and it begs to be ridden multiple times, so make sure you are fit but the time you make your booking to get the most out of the riding.

 

This weekend, I will be riding a local race in the east of Pretoria. Tygervalley. It is part of a new Nissan series. See you all there!

Mankele Pictures

Rooiberg EcoRide

This weekend saw the continuation of the 5” experiment on the rocky slopes of Rooiberg. The relatively new 2 day stage race is held just outside Warmbaths near the now ghost town of Rooiberg.

I must thank my sponsor; Regent Lighting Solutions for making it possible for me to attend the event.

It seems that my last 2 outings; at the Magalies Monster and now at Rooiberg, the YETI 575 was the perfect bike. Day 1 is a hugely rough ride! There are plenty of rocks in the area, and the route was probably 85% single track, sometimes over some very cool off-camber sections and traversing big rocks and rocky dry river beds. For me it was a blast! The bike performed like I would have expected it to. I never lost momentum no matter how rough the track was. The great thing about the 575 is that you can stay seated and power through the hardest sections on the trail.

The day’s highlight was definitely a section called “Donga” I only wished I could have gone back and ridden it again! For some riders day 1 would be slightly disappointing, as a rather large fire broke out along the route. Meaning that most of the mid to back pack had to get re-routed. I was lucky enough to make it through before the fire became an angry beast, forcing riders to turn away and re-route.

Day 2 is a far more flowing affair. After averaging only 16.6km/h on day 1 the fast jeep track of day 2 was very welcome. Here again the YETI surprised me. On the long flat sections the bike still pedalled extremely well. I was also never aware that I was riding over 12kgs of bike. And when things turned rough again near the end of the day, the 575 simply danced over the rocks and gained me a few positions in the last kilometres, notably over very exhausted looking hard tail riders.

So far the 5” experiment has been a huge success for me. We now move to the Big Induna and some playing at Mankele this weekend.

It would be remiss of me not to mention Grant Usher at this point. While I am moving swiftly towards a 5 inch bike as my bike of choice for all riding along comes Mr. Usher. Cool Heat built his fully rigid Niner single speed on Friday Night before the event. He then proceeded to beat most of the field on what can really only be described as one of the hardest courses in the country over 2 days. So if you feel that the 5” revolution is not for you, have a hat to Grant next time you bump into him. He loves telling you about how happy he is with his new bike!

The 5 inch Experiment.

The hard tail is dead to me! Somewhere between old age and bad form I decided that I was not able to ride the hard tail format any longer. I recently revived the machine that I had done the TransBaviaans on last year, and for one weekend I suffered behind my mates, feeling every bump in the trail, and vowing that it was the last time I would ever ride a rigid rear again!

In fact, I believe that the 4 inch bike’s days are also numbered for me. I started riding an old 125mm rear bike with a 130mm front end more and more. I started noticing that I was having much more fun on my rides, and to my amazement, I was not really getting left behind by the group. There were things that I was not entirely happy with on this bike, and I started searching for a 5 inch bike that would suit my needs.

I settled on the YETI 575. True, this is almost a 6 inch bike and with my 130mm fork it is a little under-utilised, but man! Does it ride sweetly! I have not had it long, so watch out for a full review, but I decided to go and ride the Magalies Monster on the YETI this weekend. I had my reservations; after all. I do have a svelte 4 inch carbon race bike in the garage that weighs 11.2kgs. The YETI tips the scales at 12.5 kgs! Needless to say I was nervous that the bike would be too much for me and I would suffer on the climbs.

I can honestly say that I was not sorry for 1 minute that I chose the 575. I certainly would have been no faster on the 4 inch race bike. The terrain is so rough that I was literally floating over all the rocks and boulders. My body was much less fatigued at the end, except for the bruises sustained from 2 crashes. (It was only my second ride on the new frame, and we were still getting to know each other.)

I have some more races coming up and I believe that I will choose the big travel bike again. I will let you know how it works out. I am not sure that a 12kg + bike is on the cards for most of the skinny race snakes out there, but for a big guy like me, I really believe the extra travel to be an advantage. Obviously when you are 93kgs the weight of your bike matter a little less, but I truly believe that there is benefit for me in the extra travel.