That’s right, look out Fred Parker I’ve been at it again, this time it was delicious Beef Garlic and Red wine pie.

Had another cross-country race on the weekend, this one was over at the MTN park (Jo’burg). We’ve ridden it a hand full of times over the past year, it’s an alright track but not my favorite… at least it’s mostly single track.

For some reason my lungs just didn’t want to play the game on the first two laps, I was coughing and snorting all the way around. Finally on the 3rd lap they let some air in and I was able to put in some respectable lap times for the rest of the race (and fend off the guy passed me on the second lap and whom I passed on the third lap wallowing in the bottom of a ravine with his bike on top of him).

I managed a 6th place, not bad seeing a few more fit looking blokes turned up this time.

Poor Henry busted his MTB XC cherry by getting throw straight in with the elites who had to do 8 laps… he managed to do despicable 5 before the leader finished.

Zett did her usual awesome job as support crew, cheering me on every time I finished a lap.. I bloody needed it the first two laps. 

Apparently Hein and Kiwi were there to race, I’m still not convinced though, with both of them pull out after just two laps… one with a “mechanical” and the other with a “bowel” failure.

We’ve got a 70km race the weekend after next, I hope to see some better efforts from the lads then.

Update: You can check the official results here, check the Sub-vets A

The weekend before last was fathers day here in South Africa so we took Neels to the Kloof for a lekker braai (nice BBQ).

We/I was a little hung over from the night before, but we still managed to drag WP out for his first bike ride in 11 years.  He did bloody well, he was pretty lippy the night before, saying how he was going to “smash the Kloof” so we didn’t exactly take the easy route.

After the Braai (BBQ) Neels, Zett and I took the yellow jeep around the 4×4 track, I’ve ridden plenty of it on my MTB but never driven it. The Jeep made a mockery of the track passing everything with ease.  It was nice to finally get it proper off road.

Oh and we took a photo of an ostridge.

On the weekend Celeste organised a baby shower party for Zett and the peanut, I can’t elaborate on what went on, WP, Kiwi and I helped setup then got the hell out of there.

Sounds like everyone had a good time, thanks to everyone for all the gifts, we’re sorted for baby stuff now, not long to go!

The weekend before last Hein, Cal and I headed over to Mankele Mountainbike Park, one of South Africa’s best MTB parks. After Gibba Gorge our expectations were set pretty high… it didn’t disappoint.

Hein and I had a pretty casual road trip over on the Friday arvo, arriving with enough time to set up camp in the last remaining day light then suited up for a night ride.

Subscribing to the “straight in, no vas” school of preparation, we jumped straight on the Nation series XC track! Savage pinches, plenty of bridges, a decent climb section with really variable grip across the whole track (read f’n greasy).

One particular section you drop off the road, down a very steep slippery cocky chute only to find a bridge and corner at the bottom.  Somehow we both managed to negotiate it unscathed, but it had put the wind up us both, so at the next double black obstacle we decided to take the signposted “Cicken walk”… note the word walk…  we didn’t and both nearly died trying to ride down the greased rock staircase that was 10 times crazier than the double black run we were trying to avoid!

All’s well that ends well and we got back without injury, having worked up a mighty thirst we showered up and hit the beers. Somehow Cal ended up more tired than us even though he didn’t do the night ride and slept most of the evening around the fire… much to our amusement.

The next morning we cooked up some hangover cure food and saddled up for the “Red” route, a 30km loop containing the longest section of single track in the park.

And so so sweet the single track is… but you have to earn it, the first 15km of the ride you barely get out of granny gear, grinding away up and over the hill, out around the back to take in some great Sabie views, right around to a telecomms tower (see the pic below, taken from our camp, if you look carefully you can see a orange and white tower on the hill in the distance) then down through some plantations (nice gum tree plantation, felt just like home)… only then do you hit the good stuff!

The first section is traversing and smooth dotted with some rocky obstacles, then it steps up a notch switch backing down the side of a hill into a series of bridges and burms. It just gets better as you literally drop into the “Bush tunnel” and rail the bottom of a gully till you get back towards the trails around the main park area, zigzagging across creeks and in and out of bush… so much great single track you almost fatigue your reflexes as much as your legs.

Can’t wait for another trip back there.

The other week I went to Lenasia to check out a second hand canopy we spotted in the junkmail (local equivalent to the trading post).

The dude who owned it was a Indian/Paki with a thick accent that made interpreting his directions hard, at one point I ended up in a not vey nice area… I could tell it wasn’t very nice by how much I was sweating (the bodies natural reaction when it realizes it’s a rich white guy in a fancy 4×4 driving through a very poor very black neighborhood!)

Unfortunately I was too focused on getting the F out of there and didn’t take any photos, all’s well that ends well I did eventually find the place and buy the canopy, it’s in getting re-sprayed, we should pick it up some time this week.

Here we go, proof that Zett is in fact pregnant and this isn’t all an elaborate ruse.  We had a check-up yesterday and we’re on the home straight, roughly 6 weeks to go.

Zett, as always is taking it in her stride, though she’s finally stopped riding… much to her disappointment.

Still sorting out some old photos, these ones of the pre-party we had in our cabin the night before the wedding turned out great.

I didn’t think it was that loose a party.. then again we did nearly get booted out of the park, cancelling the wedding… it might have been because we setting up the PA system for the wedding in our kitchen and our paper thin wall cabin was right in the middle next to the camp quality kids with cancer.

Or the 50+ people in the one cabin.

Oh it could also have been Moorey relaying his disappointment at the park party organisation by coined his new catch phrase “I’m going to smack the fuck out of someone soon!” with his face about 10cm from the park manager.

Who knows? The pics are good!

We’ve had it for a few months now, but this is our newish ute. 2005 4×4 Dual Cab Toyota Hilux 4D (3 litre turbo diesel) with 70,000km on the clock when we got it.

So far I’m very impressed with it, the ride is incomparable to the old “red caboose” no more rattling of the kidneys, it’s got heaps more grunt. We hit a pretty rocky 4×4 track on the weekend (no photos as I forgot the camera.. douh) and had it in low range 4×4 (Auto locking hubs are cool), it cruised up.

The best feature of the whole car is the cooling vents at the front blow straight across where the cup holders are, when coupled with a stubbie holder your beer stays nice and cold right to the end… perfect for game driving!

The only thing I’ll say against it is that the standard diff ratio is set for top speed (I presume around 180km/h) making 1st gear a bit boggy at the lights, if we get bigger tyres for it I think I’ll look in to changing it.

We’re looking for a canopy first up, then we’ll try and find a descent aluminum bull bar to replace plastic at the front, I don’t want any of that springer bar BS, I want something that will stop a descent sized buck… if you’ve seen an Kudu or Eland you’ll know they grow them big around here.

I’ve been sitting on these ones for a while, things have been a little hectic around here with a trip back to Aus and a house move as soon as I got back.

Pilanesberg is an awesome game reserve just next to Sun City, we’ve not been disappointed by a visit there, this trip we still saw pleanty of game even though it was the worst time of the year for spotting (the grass grows very tall in summer).

Angry Zelbra

The good ole Black Face Monkey (may not be it’s real name)

Mountain Climbing Elephant

Female Kudu

Wildebeest

Stripy Zebra

Blue something or other bird

Weird albino giraffe, with normal giraffe for comparison

My little Zebra

If you have a close look at this one the giraffe is munching away on a rib bone, if you look even closer it’s got a big wound on it’s neck, looks like it’s eating itself!