Archive | Cycle

endurance sport, Table Mountain, South Africa, cycling, mountain biking

Endurance sport can change SA

The power of endurance sports is often overlooked in a nation obsessed with soccer, rugby and cricket. Many sport fanatics can repeat Nelson Mandela’s quote about the power of sport with their eyes closed:

Sport has the power to change the world. It has the power to inspire. It has the power to unite people in a way that little else does. It speaks to youth in a language they understand.

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climbing tips, Cape Cycle Tour, Clint Hendricks, cycling

Survive the six toughest Cape Cycle Tour climbs

You may experience tummy flutters at the thought of taking on the Cape Cycle Tour climbs, and likely to have heard horror stories depicting how steep they are. Whatever your experience of the event, these key climbing tips from 2016 Cape Cycle Tour winner Clint Hendricks are sure to set you up for a more successful (and faster) Cycle Tour. Rather than listen to whispers of doom and gloom in the spinning class, it’s all about prioritising the […]

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Belgian cycling inspiration

In 2013 I undertook a short cycling trip to Belgium which refreshed memories from 30 years back when I was a young, ambitious rider. Cycling in SA in the early 1980s was a relatively isolated affair compared to today’s global village (TV, cellphone, wi-fi, Skype) and the improved opportunities the new generation of young cyclists have. Growing up in the apartheid days, we were prevented from free movement abroad and could not compete internationally. Die […]

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Faster bike performance in the gym?

Coming from a running background, where weight training has been shown to improve running economy, boost lactate threshold and decrease injury incidence, I automatically think that every other sport can also benefit from time in the weight room. However, entering the cycling arena, I have found that some cycling coaches and scientists are far from convinced that weights produce faster bike performance. Checking out the literature for myself, it is full of opposing view points. […]

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Cycle Tour 2013 peloton photo by Greg Beadle/CTCTT/ Gallo Images

Bunch Riding Tips – The Aha Moment

One year, cocooned within the mass of a tightly-packed competitive peloton at the Amashova Classic in KwaZulu-Natal, the magical, almost imperceptible tactics of cycle racing and especially the nebulous skill of bunch riding, became lucidly clear to me. It was like a religious epiphany, I tell you. The scales were figuratively falling off my eyes on the road to Damascus. Except there was no beast of burden and no shining light blinding me. But wait, […]

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cycling injuries shaving shaved legs

Why The Don Shaves: Vanity, Bike Crashes And Peer Pressure

Public confession: I have been removing the hair from my legs for more than half my life now. I have always hoped that my body would just give up and the hair would stop growing but alas, at least once a week I find myself bending my aging body into positions that I fear it may not bounce back from. All to achieve the silky smooth shave that my brand of razor promises me. In […]

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Train Less, Improve Faster

Coming from the sporting field, I have always been thoroughly aware of the term overtraining. It’s something I thought might be a problem for elite athletes who were routinely training 2-3 times a day and not resting enough; whereas mere mortals like myself, who were only training 1-2 times per day, were pretty much exempt. When I moved to London in 2001 and my boss, also an exercise physiologist, told me I was overtraining, I […]

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Is Pro Cycling Too Clinical?

Cycle racing elicits feelings of tradition, guts, toughness, emotion, passion and excitement. The recent Giro d’Italia showed why this sport is so enthralling. Images of freezing riders struggling in the snow and rain, pedalling up ridiculously steep mountain passes; the speed and adrenaline of the mass sprints; the tactical implications of stage racing; scary painful accidents, these make me a lifelong fan of this sport. But, lately I have become a little perturbed of how […]

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9 Tips For Knysna’s Big 5 Challenge

Do you believe that “Life’s too short for one sport“? If you do, you’ve probably done a whole stack of different activities in your life already. Slowing down, getting old, playing it safe – these are not options for you and you find even thinking about them repulsive! We’re betting that you are very similar to the vast majority of visitors to this site. You’re one of those sorted people that likes to take active […]

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Nic White reveals five major benefits of single speed

5 Major Single Speed Benefits A single speed bike may be considered antiquated by some, but 
Nic White, 2010 Momentum 94.7 Cycle Challenge winner and team manager of the Toyota Supercycling team, says riding one can benefit your geared bike riding. “I am now riding a single speed MTB on some of my rides and there are many benefits. Riding a single speed bike is really fun: one gear and a rigid fork just like […]

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