What starts as a gift meant to nudge Farhad into endurance sports – a single cycling helmet – turns into a life-changing journey that now shapes one of South Africa’s most loved races, the Old Mutual Wealth Double Century. In this episode Farhad shares how a persistent colleague, a tragic diagnosis, and a growing love for endurance sport pulled him deep into cycling, community, purpose and the most important race on all our calendars.

You’ll hear how he went from “team sports only” to Joberg2c, road races and Zwift sessions, why the Old Mutual Double Century became his favourite race on the calendar, and how Old Mutual ended up as title sponsor. Farhad unpacks what the DC really means for riders, small towns, schools and marshals along the route – and why the brand cares more about community and memory than hard lead numbers. We also get into the infamous DC subplots: savage team tactics, the KOTAS rivalry, and the growing wave of corporate and mixed teams using the event as their year-end event.

Thank you for your time and all do for our sport and community Farhad.

What happens when a bunch of Atlantic Seaboard savages, a charity foundation, and a 200 km sufferfest collide? In this episode we sit down with the founders of House of 12 – the loud new kids on the block who’ve gone from “outsiders” on the Savage rides to one of the most talked-about DC teams on the seaboard.

They unpack where House of 12 actually came from, how a small charity foundation became the platform for the team, and why they care just as much about banter and chaos as they do about watts and results. From old WhatsApp group names to the meaning behind the rainbow kit, they explain how the whole project came together in a matter of days – name, design, team, and all.

We get into DC strategy (and anti-strategy), why drafting ethics spark such strong opinions, how far they’ll go to avoid “cheating to win”, and what it feels like lining up seedings-wise against stacked outfits like ECC, LPC and Savage. There are bold predictions, reverse-podium jokes, and even a wager involving road captains, underpants and a very public team ride if things go wrong.

Gravel Burn 2025 pushed riders to the edge of what’s possible on a gravel bike. In this raw debrief, Aaron sits down with David to unpack what really happened out there: from African “champagne gravel” that feels like technical MTB anywhere else, to days of corrugations, hail, heat, and howling winds that literally blew pro riders off their bikes.

Fresh insights from Aaron who is now back in the UK, he takes us through the reality of a seven-day gravel stage race in South Africa: the brutal descents, endless washboard, shockingly unpredictable weather, and the mental battle of waking up each morning knowing what’s still to come. He explains why he told the organisers not to “dumb down” the route, why African gravel is on a whole new level, and how those war stories earned around the campfire might be the real magic of Gravel Burn.

You’ll also hear a deep dive into bike choice and setup for Gravel Burn: what worked, what didn’t, and what Aaron would change next time. From tire width, inserts and suspension forks, to bar/stem choices, torque checks and chain catchers, this is a masterclass in future-proofing your gravel bike for truly gnarly terrain. Then they move into the softer side: world-class catering, shared tents with world-tour pros like Tom Pidcock, and the unique way this event puts everyday riders shoulder-to-shoulder with some of the biggest names in the sport.