Marshalling the 94.7MTB challenge

[Plothond]

Those following the forum the last week or so will recall Ryperd requesting assistance in the marshalling the 94.7 MTB challenge

We had so much fun checking out the route Yesterday & Today that I took very few pics

Yesterday we recce'd the route
This is by far the most fun I've had on my 950 / 990 in a long time
I only got there at 15:30 so I joined the others on the 21 - 40km portion of the route

What a blast !!
Sandy patches, Mud, Marshland, Poughed fields, River crossings, Tracks, Rocks, Whoops, Jumps etc etc..............
Ryperd bought a piece of the track on a Pro-Action bike whilst his bike was "safely" in the hands of Shark
Then it started to rain and we got soaked.

Time to go home. Then I got unstuck  >
Spent the evening with Groenie, Red1 (Manfred?), Tonteldoos at the Bosvelder in Centurion
You know Groenie - We Luv you, but DAMMIT  >


This is where I ended up at 02:00 this morning

at 03:55 the Alarm went off and I got up, abluted, made coffee, put my boots and other wet kit on, woke up Groenie, said gooo bye and met Ryperd and Stephen King in Highveld Park

We then recce'd the 20km route
What a Friggen Blast (again !!! > > >)
Screw the mountain bikes - much more fun on a 990


Here we have Grootseun repairing the bent gear lever on his 640. - Again a KTM SA loan bike - irresponsible Biker Trash !!  ;D
.... and Shark looking on

.... This after he buried the bike in a ditch the previous day .......


This is where he came down and the front wheel washed out at the bottom

Ryperd and Voodoo

Helping poor damsels in distress putting up their banners

Grootseun and Panne being gallant gents 

Now that the fun was over, we helped marshall the event
what took us 20 minutes to do at 05:00, now took us about 3 hours at 07:30

Whilst Shark and I were following the stragglers we found this in the prison groundsthe 20km portion of the route went through the Leeukop prison grounds)

We shortly thereafter saw a prison warder and Shark took him back to collect the evidence


Thanks to Pro-Action and especially Mark Roach for the bikes for Shark (990), Grootseun (640) and Stephen (950 SE) and the T-Shirts
Also thanks to Ryperd for the opportunity and to Think Bike as well

This was just damn good wholesome FUN  ;D


Till we Ride Again !!!

 

[Kev]

A report with a difference! I like the bokkie shots! :thumleft:

 

[SGB]

Shark on a KTM.....  I'm sure I will wake up just now....  >

Thanks for sharing!

 

[JourneyMan]

Well done guys.

Sounds like a fun thing to do.

 

[Miena Moo]

Hey thats my living room. ;D

 

[pierredb]

EENVY ENVY EEEENVY!

This Elitism shouldn't be allowed.......us poor Beemer boys being excluded from such obvious fun!!

I popped in at the finish line of the race and met Ryperd, Voodoo and Bangaduck. It looked like you guys had too much fun. ;D ;D

Next year they better allow other brands as well......or I might have to  take a walk on the dark side. > ;D

 

[Panne]

I definitely agree. It was GREAT FUN!

This was my first ride with fellow WD's and certainly not the last. Thanks Ryperd, Plothond, Grootseun and Shark.

PS. That's me in the pic 5 with Ryperd, I'm only "posing" as Voodoo. ;D ;D

 

[LeonDude]

Nice report. Glad to see you guys had so much fun while 'Working'.

 

[shark_za]

Congrats to Think Bike for getting some exposure out there, letting bikers help where they can.
Also BIG thanks for KTM for the loan machines, they performed fantastically even though a few of us (no names) tried hard to make that not true.

A bit of exposure for both brands, and a safe and fun race.

Doing the course at bike pace was great fun, even when I lost Ryperd, saw the rain and then stole his bike to get home only semi drenched. Thanks buddy.

The 990 Adv (non S) that I rode was really nice, this particular one had a buckled rim or something but it would shake its head at certain speeds. Offroad I didnt feel a thing and its smooth power was a joy to play with.
Once Mark showed me how to turn off the ABS I could really play, its quite controllable in a slide.

This bike threw the perd yesterday but I seemed to prefer its lower COG.  Adv or Adv S, thats a whole topic on its own and I'll research further, maybe a search on the forum.

Steven King had his hands full staying in the lead of those crazy front runners, the 950 SE is a beast and he rode it like he stole it. If I do this again, I will not sweep the back markers, it was painfully slow.
Grootseun enjoyed the 640 Adv and was throwing it around and riding really well, even considering the 2x off's from bad lines. 
Only one tricky moment jumps into my mind, the water crossing this morning we tested to see if it was ridable.
Eish, the whole bike was pushed sidewards, front wheel, everything, you really had to fight to get it straight across to the other side. I think maybe me being on the lowest bike had something to do with that too, the water was strong flowing and more than knee deep.
They diverted around the rivers after yesterdays rain, the neat little bridge they built over the one crossing was found in pieces all over the rocks this morning.

My hero for the day , the little guy who must have been about 6 years old, right at the back, never stopping. His dad helping him wherever he needed.
I saw him last 1km from the finish so I think he made it.

 

[JourneyMan]

2T Scooter
KDX200
KLR650
KTM950/990

Lekker garage that! :razz:

 

[Ou Ryperd]

What fun!!

I know that there were some people that complained about being excluded for not riding a KTM, and all I can say to those individuals... next time, ask before you speak your mind  >  > You could have been there with us, on a demo KTM  ;D

Thanks to all that pitched @ 05:00 on a Saturday morning, to look after lycra cladded peeps sweating like pigs. As always, any ride is a good ride, and I enjoyed every km. Was nice to ride with fellow WD's, and to meet Panne (9/11 - we must go visit him in Polo-se-kwane - 9/11 off)

Moments that I will not forget:
Friday afternoon - Grootseun parking the 640 in the ditch ;D ;D That was funny!!; Me plakking my ass on mother earth when the 990 demo acted strange
Saturday - Grootseun moering the gear lever straight with a brick; the smiles on the faces of the participants; The lady cyclists that refused to surrender. She was waaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyy back on the 40km route, had a buckled rear wheel, lacked technique & fitness, but she pushed through, and finished!!!

 

[Adventurer]

What fun!!

I know that there were some people that complained about being excluded for not riding a KTM, and all I can say to those individuals... next time, ask before you speak your mind  >  > You could have been there with us, on a demo KTM  ;D

ottytrain2: :thefinger: ;D ;D

Wait till I get a test bike for an article............. 8) 8)
IF they can spare one........ : : >

 

[Ou Ryperd]

What fun!!

I know that there were some people that complained about being excluded for not riding a KTM, and all I can say to those individuals... next time, ask before you speak your mind  >  > You could have been there with us, on a demo KTM  ;D

ottytrain2: :thefinger: ;D ;D

Wait till I get a test bike for an article............. 8) 8)
IF they can spare one........ : : >

;D Knew you would take the bait  ;D

 

[Grootseun]

Big thank you to pro-action for handing me the key to one of their bikes.
After my little outburst on the forum about the whole KTM thing.. it was all for nothingâ?¦

That bike��wow�..uhhhh�can you say Kickass?
Iâ??tâ??s such a confidence inspiring bike off the tar, itâ??s amazing. On the way from pro-action to waterfall estate.. I wanted to know how to turn the vibrator setting from max, to bearableâ?¦I could not find it. But off the tarâ?¦.one seems to forget all about the vibesâ?¦as the bikeâ??s handling surpasses every other sensation one experiences.

That bikeâ??s suspension has no bottom.. at least.. I could not find it..and trust me.. I tried.

After this weekend I have revised my dream garage.

KTM 640 ADV (for the rough stuff)
BMW xmoto/ Yammie 660x (for terrorizing motorists)
BMW 1150 ADV.. for the long trips.

Unfortunatelyâ?¦( and I hate to admit this) the Dakar, just does not compare to the 640 off-road. I thought the 640 to be more balanced (can gooi it through a corner)
The suspension is unbelievableâ?¦unbelievable

I rode the 640 into a ditch that I only saw in the long grass last minuteâ?¦I thought I surely farked the forks and head bearings.. but alasâ?¦ the bike did not have any damage.  The â??wrong lineâ? incident that morning left me with a bent gearlever.. nothing that a little persuasion cant fix up.

Then there was the overcooking the corner with the front washing out (who put the front brake lever there???) Nothing fell of the bikeâ?¦.amazing.

I fear the Dakar would have been worse for wear after this weekend in my handsâ?¦

But

On the road.. I thought I was paralised when I got on the bikeâ?¦ I could not feel anythingâ?¦ no vibes no noise.. nothingâ?¦ahhhhhhâ?¦ and that seatâ?¦.my bum almost kissed me when I got on the dak seatâ?¦

I just realized.. the BM is the perfect compromiseâ?¦ it does a bit of everythingâ?¦Will I let go of itâ?¦hell noâ?¦

Do I want a 640â?¦Hell yes.. that bike is more fun than a bus of Swedish contortionistsâ?¦

Whereâ??s my lotto ticket.

 

[Panne]

9/11 on

Was nice to ride with fellow WD's, and to meet Panne (9/11 - we must go visit him in Polo-se-kwane - 9/11 off)

:thumright: :thumleft:

9/11 off

 

[JourneyMan]

Lekker GS!

I need to grow a foot or so before I can attempt the 640. :sad:

 

[DaCat]

The Think Bike folks would also like to thank all involved:

https://www.thinkbike.co.za/talk/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=14961&highlight=

Well done to all involved, awesome job guys  8)