Cape Argus Pick n Pay Cycle tour 2012 - done and dusted!

The weather today was almost perfect! Except for a slight bit of wind out towards Simonstown (mainly on the blue route), and the extreme heat a little later in the day, it was perfect cycling weather!

I was fortunate to head out in Group J at 6.51AM and managed to complete the 110 km ride in 3h35mins (according to my Garmin 705 - official times are available tomorrow).

As always the scenery along the route was a real highlight.  Even though I live in Cape Town we seldom take the time to spend a few hours cruising around the coast.  What better way to do it than with 40 000 other cyclists!?

It was a fairly uneventful ride for me.  I was a little less fit this year compared to last year (I was in England the week before the race).  And it showed in my time which was a few minutes slower than last year.  I had put in some distances in my training rides.  Yet, I still cramped going up Suikerbossie.  As I was climbing I decided to get out of the saddle and stand... That was when I felt my quadriceps twinge.  I made the top of the hill within the 3h30 split, but I just didn't have the legs to push it home for the last 15km's or so.  So, I ended up in a slightly slower bunch watching my right quad and enjoying the crowds into Sea Point and the finish.

The lead ladies (about 30 minutes ahead of me) had a serious crash in the final sprint! Wow, I watched it on television.  I believe someone shattered a pelvis and there was a person with a broken colarbone, and some very bad scrapes and cuts.  That is always the danger of high speed, super dense bunches, in the final sprint.

I was fortunate to be back at the finish, safe and sound, by about 10.20 (about 20 minutes after the last group of riders started the race! Yikes!) so I missed the heat of the day. When I got to my car about an hour and a bit later it was 35 degrees!  I can imagine that it got even hotter past 1 and 2pm.

I got my special green number for my 10th Argus, and also received a special medal at the end.  Super!

So, tomorrow it is back to work.  I'll take the day off cycling.  But on Tuesday morning I'll be back on my mountainbike!!!

I've added a few pictures from the race in this post.  They were taken with my GoPro HD camera mounted to my handlebars in 30 second stop motion throughout the race.

The first day of summer in Cape Town!

Today was the first summer's day that we've had in Cape Town! It is amazing that summer has come so late - last weekend the last day of the Wines2Whales ride was cancelled (much to my disappointment) because we had snow in Grabouw and they couldn't get the emergency personnel onto to the route from Grabouw to Hermanus!

However, I woke up at 5.30 this morning to glorious sunshine and joined some friends for an awesome ride on Lourensford farm. As I left my gate and rode up Lourensford road towards Erinvale it was quiet, cool and clear!

We only did about 25km - I'll confess it hardly felt like a worthwhile ride. But it was great to be on the trails, climbing the jeep tracks an whizzing down the single track. I didn't have a single fall in last week's race. Today, I took a gentle little tumble rounding a hairpin bend.

The picture a above was taken with my iPhone as we were climbing towards the first piece of single track (I think it is called Eagles View).

I love this place! I give thanks to God for the beauty, safety and opportunity to ride!

Bring on summer! Let the South Easter begin to blow... And it will!

The Karoo to Coast 2011 Mountainbike race - an amazing ride!

Last Sunday we set out from Knynsa at just before 4am to drive to the small Karoo town of Uniondale for the Pennypinchers Karoo to Coast 100km mountainbike race.  My friend Greg and I have been looking forward to this race for the whole year!  Last year I couldn't ride since my daughter, Courtney, had just come out of hospital after her brain surgery.  Praise God that it was a year later and all is well!

Greg and I have not been doing as much training as we should.  I have had quite a bit of travel with work, and Greg is commuting between Somerset West and Johannesburg every week with work.  So, 'team telletubbies' was ready for the ride.

By some amazing accident I was seeded with the Elite Men's group (rider number 198!)  When I got into the shute I realised just what a mistake that was! I was the only guy with a body mass index over 4% and unshaved legs!  Ha ha! It soon became apparent that I was out of my league.

Still, I was donning my Power Group, Unashamedly Ethical kit and wanted a good day in the saddle.

It was a great ride - one of the best, most fun, rides that I have done in a very long time. I must confess that I was not well prepared at all.  In fact my legs reminded me of it when they decided to both start cramping at 75km into the race! At that stage I was poised for a fair ride - I had an hour to do the last 25 km's.  However, with cramps I ended up doing another 2 hours and 9 minutes for the last 25km! It has tough!  The heat was also a bit of a challenge.  But, as I say, it was a heck of a lot of fun.  Lots of climbing (1800 m in total), some of the most amazing scenery as you ride along farm roads and trails from Uniondale to Knysna.

Here's a picture of Greg and I at the finish line. It was a hot, dusty day in the saddle for both of us.  Greg has incredible technical skill.  He's the kind of guy that flies down those hills at over 60km an hour!  My fastest speed on the day was 64km an hour - frightening to think that one would go that fast on dirt!  But this ride is suited for fast riding.  Be warned, there are some dangerous corners, so pay close attention to the marshals and warning signs that are posted.

The race was exceptionally well organised.  There were plenty of water points, and even a food point along the road.  There was a lot of medical support and motorcyclists along the route to help anyone that got into trouble.

If you're interested in seeing the route you can download the *.kml file (for Google Earth) from here. I have a Garmin 705 cycling computer - it is great to keep track of all my rides and routes.

And then, just to prove that I wasn't going slow ALL the way here's one of the ActionPhoto pictures of me heading down a pass somewhere along the ride... At least I look fast (ish)!  ha ha.

I'm looking forward to a better ride next week!  This weekend I'll be riding the Spur Lourensford Classic 60km ride.  One of my favorite rides of the year, right in my back yard!

I have to keep my riding up for the Wines2Whales - Greg and I are riding that in the second week of November.  However, I leave for Malaysia and Hong Kong on Tuesday and will be away for 2 weeks without any riding (I'll take some kit along to ride in the gym or go for a few runs).

An institution - The Noddy Party at Vergelegen Somerset West

The Noddy Party (Noddy's Party) is a real institution in Somerset West. It is arranged by the Round Table 31 of Somerset West and takes place on the historic Vergelegen wine farm.

Such a lovely family event at an incredible venue.

We've been attending for years now! Our kids love it. And the picnic is great for the adults. Best of all it is a great cause for charity!  The proceeds from the party (which runs every night for a week or two) go to the Masikule Child care project that caters for disabled children from dissadvanted backgrounds.

Does your city or town have any annual events that have become a local institution?  I'd love to hear about them, and please post a link or two, so that I can check them out.

Thanks!

Dion

Moo! I'm a legend in Japan and my beard tastes great...

Courtney and Mertyl

Courtney was born in 1999. Mertyl was born in Italy in 1967. I love both of them! Both of them make me smile! But, I love Courtney so much more than Mertyl!

Courtney also happens to like Mertyl... So it is a winning situation for all of us!

Mertyl is a 1967 Vespa Sprint 150cc, VBB. She has been restored twice.

First in 2007, and then again in 2008 after a truck driver rode over me (breaking my left knee, ankle, tibia and fibulae also see this post on the accident). She is worth every cent I've spent on her!

This is what Mertyl used to look like before she was restored (she was a bit old, rusted, silver and ratty). And here are some pictures of the first restoration (stripped down, resprayed, looking great!).  This post was written on the day I took delivery of Mertyl after her SECOND restoration in 2008 - I could not ride her since I was still in cast with my broken leg.  One of my kind friends, Paul Oosthuizen, did the honours!  Thanks Paul!

This photo of Courtney and Mertyl was taken using a Lomo effect in Instagram on my iPhone 3GS.

Partnership is about friendship

Perhaps this post is an expression of my age, an insight into my generation.

This week at the Lausanne Congress has been truly wonderful in most ways! The connections, new friendships, and deepening of relationships have been great!

But among that I have also encountered some folks here who have been much more interested in themselves, their ministry, their 'big idea', than they are in others.

Their approach comes across as functional - they engage me so that they can use what I have to further their cause. I can tell that they want to be connected with someone more important than me. They have little interest in me, my family, and God's calling for my life - I'm a tool, a stepping stone, a connection along the way.

I want to encourage Christians to adopt the attitude of Christ that Paul writes about Phil 2.3-4, "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others".

So here's my point, I would love to serve you. I recognise that I too am prone to putting tasks and goals above relationships. I'm trying to adopt the power of the trinity's life - power in relationship. So please do contact me if I can connect with you. Please drop me a note if I have something that can help you in any way. But please let us remember that partnership is about friendship first!

Everybody is good at some things, and needs the help of others with some things. In God's eyes we're all valuable in spite of our titles, positions, influence, opportunity or lack thereof. I pray that I will recognise that truth in the lives of those among whom I have the privelage of living each day!

This picture shows a few of our digital communications team having fun together!

. They are such a wonderful example of a true partnership. Good friends who get things done for God's Kingdom. It has been a blessing to serve in this team!

Making memories

This weekend was a gift to our family! Since all travels have been halted until after Courtney's surgery we enjoyed a rare weekend at home without any commitments!

We slept in, went to the beach, rode our bikes in the back yard, went to Church and also drove through to beautiful Hermanus to see the whales.

Megie and I needed the 'space' and time to catch up with one another and chart the course ahead. We are both feeling bruised and a little weary. And of course our hearts are very tender for our little girl and what lies ahead for her (see this and this for details). However, we are encouraged and strengthened by God's unfailing love and mercy! We have experienced His love, mercy and grace through to kindness of so many friends and family.

Both Courts and Liam are getting healthy again. Liam may return to school after his bout of tonsillitis, pneumonia and ear infection (which all seem to be clearing). Courts won't return to school until after her surgery. However, she will participate in the school concert this week and also in the guitar concert on the 20th.

Thank you for all the love and support we've received!

This weekend was a chance to make memories. These are a few pictures from the weekend.

On fire!

My friend Gus sent this through today. I thought it was quite funny...

Proof at last!

Indeed, there is proof! For the record, I am NOT platform agnostic!

I wonder if we'll be using iChat in heaven!? Thanks to Kevin for sending this through!  He knows that I am both passionate about Christ, and quite passionate about Apple Macs!

World cup soccer 2010 Fixtures and Scores

This afternoon the FIRST game of the World Cup Soccer, also called football by some nations, Tournament in South Africa will kick off with a match between Bafana Bafana (of South Africa) and Mexico! My friend Wessel Bentley will be at that match! I will be going to the France versus Uruguay match at the Cape Town stadium in Greenpoint!! I can't wait. While searching for some info about today's matches I came across this great little widget below that gives you soccer scores, match fixtures, etc. It might be a nice little widget to stick on your blog to keep your readers up to date with the World Cup Soccer results!

Gigapixel image of Newlands Rugby stadium 22 May 2010

This is an incredible technology! I had heard about the Gigapixel technology, but hadn't realised how impressive it truly is!

Gigapixel image of Newlands Rugby stadium 22 May 2010 from Dion Forster on Vimeo.

In this video you'll see an image of the WHOLE of the Newlands Rugby stadium on the 22nd of May at the Stormers semi final match. It opens on our company's Box, I then zoom back and go to the half way line and zoom in to a picture of myself (just above the flag in a blue Rugby shirt). Incredible! 

Here is the URL for the image.