RearWheelDrive

I'm not sure I should say anything here🫢 But I'm on the other end of the spectrum. Got seeded in A. Never been in A in my life. Usually D,E sometimes C But never A. Only did a 3;20 last year and I don't think I'm even as fit as last year. (Kids keep you really busy). So I'll be the slowest guy in A. I know I can drop back but that 6:35 start time looks really appealing🫣 But ja, there must be a glitch in the matrix somewhere. And I only entered on Tuesday evening.

I don't like beer, the only beer I ever enjoyed was that one after Trans a few years ago. They handed it to me opened as I crossed the line, I took a few sips and it was gone. If they offered me Coke or Steri Stumpi I probably would've picked that. I was that spent guy when I finished, I was chasing my mates from CP7 and didn't get chance to drink. They were gatvol and didn't hang around for me 😁

Realistically there is no right or wrong call here. I will say I suspect the guys that started earlier might have had it better. We started at 5:20 and had rain, but not that bad that we wanted to turn back. My Dad drove the car to Jbay but waited for daylight, he said it really started to come down after we left. In our club there are some really strong riders that turned around after 20 km, to my surprise. They started later because they didn't want to put lights at the start. Make no mistake, it was an absolute misery and I felt really sorry for myself but somehow we made it to CP1, then I saw people with real issues. We were a bunch of friends with a 4 man team and a husband and wife 2 man team. We made a conscious decision to slow down because of tricky descents and mud. The goal was survival and safety. And the 6 of us rode together. Probably faffed more than we should've because we had a total of 5hrs stoppage time. But we made it in19 hrs also 5 more than expected. For us the rain stopped at about 70 km and we had tons of mud until CP2. The hills were ok. The weather surprisingly got better after Bergplaas and dare I say Neverender was "Pleasant" or more like normal weather. We were super chuffed with a finish. Got my 5 medal finisher. It will be wall mounted because I deserve it😊(Don't care what the wife says) The reason I say there is no wrong or right call is, If you continue and someone crashes or the weather really doesn't let up and you get sick, you get all those 'No bike race is worth it' arguments on the other hand you push through and overcome something immense and feel like such a conqueror. So what ever you decided, given the circumstances, It was the right call. ps Chatting to my mates on why we didn't turn back. Maybe we were too stupid, but not one of us even thought about it😆 They mentioned it at CP1 wasn't going to do 50km back in that.

Hey I think I saw you. You still asked if someone had a metal tire lever, or a spoon, brought back memories of BMX and my mothers spoons (and then the wooden one on the buttocks) I was thinking maybe someone will lend you a wheel but it was chaos there and the people were in bad shape, they were more worried about space blankets. Sorry you couldn't finish. I have lefty and it didn't look like a lefty but I used mine any way. We plodded along.

Been a long time Modder fan purely because I stay in Greenstone and its close. I think there are some nicer or different trail around but I'm not a fan of driving somewhere to cycle. So it is really cool to have something on our doorstep. I have always found Modder a tough ride, done plenty of double red loops training for various events and even a single red can break you a little. (The old Red) I've been there twice since last week. Been avoiding the place since Jan because it was really un-ridable. I like the changes they did and you can see they are trying and doing well. It amazes me how quickly the old trails are overgrown. I can only imagine what the Red/Yellow bits look like. I'm not brave enough to go and look. I would like it if they could do a 'Long distance type" route along the perimeter so that you can get some of that Trans type terrain. Not single track and jumps etc. Like along the fence and the old green route finish then up the hill to the gate. Don't know how long that would be 10/15km. Do a few laps of that at night would be cool. I'm also keen for that 24 hour story, Don't know if I'm ready for it so I might just do the 12 hour. But if they make me ride that tar road climb over and over they cam keep it 😁

I have done 4 TB this will be my 5th. I have had the whole mix. I also really enjoy the thrill of descending in the dark and the challenge for me was to get up MAC in daylight. I made it once 🙂 But then last year it was a nice change to see sunrise in the kloof. Climbing MAC at 2pm was hot. The Dipper 😲 what the hell was I doing all these years?? There is literally nothing to stop you from flying over the edge. We never made curfew cutoff, so we saw another sunrise on Never ender. Jaffels for breakfast was awesome, really nice. So this year I might see sunset on never ender. Going with a stronger team again. Its such a magical ride. No bike ride is ever bad (unless you crash) wind, heat, cold, corrugations, mud, rain all just add to the story afterwards. And you're always happy when you're home. I enjoyed them all (But having said that, I hope it doesn't rain🙊)

Sorry maybe a little off topic... My funniest "Are you going the August" conversation. My buddy and I were out riding and stopped at a Wimpy for some breakfast. This guy walks past us "You okes doing the August?" We're like "Ja" He replies " I have a mate that cycles hectically, he cycles to work 8km there and back everyday" We're like "Oh Ok" He says " He should probably do the August, He'll do well, might not win but he'll be up there" Once again we're "Oh Ok" He says " He's got this fancy bicycle, paid R3000 for. I'd never pay R3000 for a bicycle. Good luck with the August" We reply " Ok thanks" and off he goes My mate just bought Lance Armstrong Nike special edition shoes (this was 2008 or something) I ask him if we should tell the guy he just spent 3k on shoes let alone the bicycle. we just decided to leave him be. That story still makes me smile

Here is the port ride report. Well the short of it is we managed to officially finish in 16:53. Had to camp over but we planned on doing that anyway. considering we had 16:30 to complete the whole thing it was the right call. My wife's first TB, she waited for me to come in all these years and decided she wants to try. She said it was tough but she knew it would be. we were doing quite well (all the way in fact) but especially until CP3. the ride in the Nuwekloof was amazing, vibe was good even the Baviaans back was manageable. We got to CP3 just after 1pm thinking maybe we can make it. 16km to Bergplaas, if we could leave there just after 3 we will give it a go. WOW those 16km took over 2 hours first the fangs and then the MAC, we only reached Bergplaas at 15:30, rested, had the most amazing soup and left again at 4. It's the first time I did that drop in daylight and looking at the edges I was wondering what have we been thinking all these years flying down that thing in the dark. We got to CP 5 at 17:35 and decided straight away not to carry on, didn't want to get caught out. Camping was a different experience coldish showers but a lekker vibe. we had some coffee, Prego rolls and were in bed by 8. It was a bit of a rush in the morning to leave at 4:30, got late very quickly but once we were on the go it was fine. Saw a beautiful sunrise on the never ender and those Jaffels are even better for breakfast. Riding from CP5 in the morning was also a different experience, they moved CP7 so it was a bit weird in the day and that single track bit they could've left. I sort of recognized it because we usually used to come out of something like that. And then Mini Mac in the day had some nice views and you see most of it from the bottom Flying in Jbay was awesome as always, Railway single-track was Meh as always after 200 km but the mall was a welcome sight. No burger and beer though (and I don't even like beer, but that one was always refreshing) I think the organizers did a stunning job, volunteers were friendly, food was good. Covid is still like a dark cloud waiting for the storm to start, and everyone knows it. It is not easy, they did the best they could. It's really like trying to get a ride in before it starts to rain. Some people mentioned it is not a true trans if you slept over. To those I say, We would have done it in one shot if we could, we probably needed 18hrs got 16.5. The organizers did all they could to get everyone to the finish, If you want to race join the elites and race. To everyone else just get there enjoy the ride. We live in a magical country. Choc-o-lit plees (we all have a choc-o-lit we're looking for)

I'll do a pre race report. You guys with your sub 11 sub 12 talk make me feel like a beginner???? I've done this ride 3 times. 15;30,15:09 (serious mechanical issues) and 14:20. I'd love a 12 hour trans, but the sosaties and jaffels are way too appealing. This year however my wife decided she wants to try she saw all the guys coming in and had some fomo. Now that we've entered she is questioning her life choices. I've always estimated that we would be about 18 hours but now this whole camp story puts a bit of a damper on things. it will be a very unique experience and I'm sure we will have a blast but the idea is to finish this thing in one go. But any way we are going to pack an overnight bag get the supporter to CP5 and make the best of it.

My 4th TB. First one for the wife. We're doing the repeat. I decided to ride with her she was keen on trying. I'm still really bummed about the curfew situation, by my calculations we need 1-2 hours grace, max. Anyway we'll see how the whole camp over thing works, unless we're super lucky

Seeing as there are a few snake stories here, here is mine. I did 36One in November. towards the end I know it was in between the last 2 water points. I was tired and sort of just rolling down one of the (very few) downhills (those who did 36One will know what the last 80km are like). Out of the corner of my eye I spotted something. The most amazing copper/gold shimmer probably 1.5m long. When I got close I realized what it was and he was in the strike position. I shrieked like a 12 year old girl at a Justin Bieber concert, luckily no one was there to hear me and I managed to pass him on the right. So now here is the strange bit, I'm convinced it was Jesus and the Holy Spirit and the angels warning me. I was watching every little stick and rock after that and as true as bob, about 45min later I spotted another one also about the same size but this one was slithering across the road right in my path. I slammed on the brakes, locked up the back wheel and stopped about 3m away from him. He stopped, we checked each other out and then he carried on into the grass and was gone. I was wondering what would've happened if I rode over him. It was such a weird experience, I asked the guys ahead oh me if they saw anything. No one saw any snakes. The lady at the water table said it was probably a cobra of some sort.

While I'm also a little miffed, like everybody else, and I also feel they could've probably delayed the Aug entries until Jan (or whenever) was done and dusted. Worse things have happened to people this year. Epic cancelled the day before, Sani day 2 rained out (the whole reason we do Sani is for day2) People lost their jobs etc. Here we are complaining about loosing R2K-R4k or whatever your portion of the entry was. We are super fortunate to afford a MTB in the first place, never mind enter races and service the thing afterwards, at least there wont be those bills and travelling etc. And then there's the health and well being to actually attempt events like this. Maybe Ecobound dropped the ball a bit on this issue, but then again I don't have an event that has sold out to a thousand plus riders within an hour year after year so who am I to judge. Imagine owning a bottle store and being told on Monday evenig "You're takin (At least) a 2 week sabbatical" during your busiest time of the year. Like I said worse things have happened to people this year

Brake vs Break Because when brakes break they don't brake

I don't really understand why they couldn't make some sort of plan. Maybe it's a WC vs EC government thing and I'm really not in the business of comparing organizers, I just want to ride my bike. At the 36One they organized permits for the riders and even the support guys. They issued it to us and my wife who drove around all night got one as well. Maybe it is because the event is much bigger. Maybe Ecobound must phone Dryland and ask to whom they asked what to get it sorted. But anyway. I've entered and I'll try and make whatever plan needs to be made.

Well I'll do a bit of a report, doesn't look like many people did this race. I decided in September to do this ride. 947 got cancelled, I was thinking about doing it next year but the dates clashed with Sani (which I moved from this year). So in a moment of temporary insanity I click the "Enter" button and I had 2 months to get ready. Being a first timer to get tips I only had YouTube videos and I know one other guy who did it, who kind of looked at me like I had an ugly baby and didn't know what to say when I told him I'm doing it. Getting ready I did the Mini Mungas and as much intervals on the indoor as I could. Tried to get long rides in over the weekends but it wasn't always possible. Watching the weather app seeing it was going to be hot I did a few midday rides to get used to the heat. The 3o'clock start time is also something to get used to, hanging around all day makes you feel like you're on death row. The vibe was a little dull because of Covid but I suppose it was to be expected. 15:00 came and we were off. it was HOT. the app said max 42, my Garmin said 52.8 it was the highest I saw it, but it hovered around the 48/50 mark for a long time, then it cooled a bit (To the upper 30's) and the wind started. I think we had to survive about 70km in a head wind. Stage 2 was lekker, it cooled down at night but the field was all over. I rode the 100km pretty much alone in the dark. Me, Myself, My bike and my light. But it was the easier stage. Stage 3 was the big one with Rooiberg coming. I got to the base at 6am and could climb it in the light and while still cool. The descent on the other side was hectic. Really steep, lots of lose rocks. I cant believe they don't have an ambulance waiting at the bottom. Stage 4 I underestimated. You think only 80 km to go I can do this. It's supposed to be less climbing than stage 3. Man alive did it go on and on and on. I lost my sense of humour at WP11. I told the Marshall he's lying when he said the climbing is done, because that's what the last guy said. But if they told me the truth I probably would've given up. At the last WP they said 13km to the tar road and 7km into town. I was gatvol, whatever legs i had i used and gunned it as fast as i could back home. I finished in 24:09. It was weird to try and aim for a sub 24. All things considered I wouldn't change much. I am a first timer but I think I prefer a 3pm start. It eliminates the risk of needing a light again for many people. The heat was an issue but not much the organizer can do about it. I put an extra bottle on my back pack. From my perspective we just had to survive the first 100km. It got better, Hard but better. I am not sure surviving a cold karoo night is that pleasant anyway. It's a pity it clashes with Sani next year, I would've liked to consider it again. What a ride.