I know you guys have probably waited desperately for me to write something positive and get rid of my 2011 curse. And here it is...

My Renault Clio is here and I have to say the colour is perfect for our Scandinavian nature. And nature it has seen already. This was taken on a winding and hilly little road in Lerum.

At first I was paranoid trying to drive it from Mölndal but once I was back in familiar territory I can declare, happily, that car technology has evolved since 1997. This is a completely different experience than my Colt. And when I change from the dubbdäck to summer tires this is going to be even more of a laugh. My Colt used to take off quick from the line but have zero power once I got to highway speed. It was still better than a Peugeot but was useless on hills. The Clio is slower starting and reminds me a lot of VW except that the steering is way more fun and responsive. At highway speeds the 112hk make all the difference and I found myself going a bit fast without noticing and shaking or noise. It is just safe and has a quality feel even though it is not expensive. I understand why there are so many Clios around now...

But my old Mitsubishi Colt was a very good choice as a first car and I have had a lot of cycling experiences with that. I noticed this because I seem to have a picture of it most places I went. So when I have nothing better to write about I can do a little tribute to the car that is probably now on its way to becoming a can of ärtsoppa. Or maybe half a can.

Finally I had that phone call. The one that will save 2011 and make all my cycling goals possible for 2012. The call that will cheer me up even though I am basically sick thanks to my co-workers and their evil plans to spoil both my birthday and Christmas by spreading germs. Yes...THAT call. My car is here! Tomorrow it will be mine!

Yes...my Renault Clio is here! The car that TopGear actually gave 14/20, something they only do for seriously sporty cars. And in true TopGear style they call it 'a huge kick in the balls to the Peugeot 207'. We shall see about that. It appears to be the second most popular car around Sävedalen after the Volvos.

Maybe the subject should say leraning but perhaps some of you are sick of Göteborgsskämt. Anyway, you all know that my training has been extremely uncreative lately. Or maybe repetitive is a better word. So today it was time to throw my brain a nice little trick and see what would happen.

Reversed direction was the theme of the day. Start with the usual tempostyle riding along Säveån (not flooded this time) and then over to Lexby along the road I usually end with. Back along the river in Jonsered and then up the hill of death...halfway up I took a right and went over to that muddy grusväg hill and then continued the rest of the way. Aj. This was more tung than Thåström in Way Out West. Turning left at Knipavägen made things no less tung so by the time I rejoined the road at the top of the hill I was hurting. No more clean MTB either.

I believe that this is the way Tahultsrundan is supposed to go and I can understand. It is much harder in this direction. Those steep uphills I always talked about are short downhills while the rest of the time is a very long gradual up all the way. And then in Landvetter you have to get up to Tahult which is a mother of a hill.

At Öjersjö it was time to turn left and return to the usual route again...except this time with a lot more cycling in my legs. There was no wind today so this was just a transport section until the hill at the golfcourse which I barely managed to attack today. At the start of Delsjön I slowed a bit to have some water and prepare for the rest. This was non-stop and full gas today and by the time I was passing Skatås I was seriously tired. But I pushed on home and now have a nice tingle in my legs.

Yes...a lovely 40km for the legs and under 2 hours. I will probably take a couple weeks off from training now but it is very strange for me to have this much leg strength in December. I think a bit of running would be nice but this distans/hills stuff is perfect for långlopp.

First I want to say how wonderful it was to see everyone on Sunday. It was obvious that Chris Cross has been missed this fall and I feel the same way. Life is crap without MCK. Hmm...maybe we can use that phrase for advertising? Anyway, at least I got to see the season's best CX track.

My car is on the way and is probably at Hedin Bil now but I am not going to relax until I have the keys and am sitting in it. The banks have become extremely tough lately and I am worried that they could put a stop to this whole deal. Of course that would be seriously bad for the car dealer too since I know they will have a hard time selling a Clio automatic in blågrå.

So now it is comment time from someone that hasn't even raced this year...
Here Oscar Ekstam has started the discussions and so far there are some decent suggestions.

It sounds like most are trying to get me to do Sportklass next year and that is fine so long as it is 40 minutes and has points. One of the main advantages with the introcross concept is that you don't have to worry about clubs or a licence. Anyone in this sport certainly has insurance already so why should we force people to pay a load of engångslicens cash just to try things out? No one will do Sport and yet I know from our local races there are lots of people with CX bikes who race for fun and enjoy it. As I see it Sport is as doomed as Prestige with the current rules.

Then we have this thing about races in city centres. I know the goal is to bring in crowds but let's be honest...cykel = nörd and a large group of men in tight shorts are not going to attract any public interest. That is the simple reality. If we look at the classic MTB marathons like Mörksuggejakten or Finnmarksturen, there you get local people watching. But that has taken years and we all know that cycling has a much greater following in Dalarna. My point is that we could have much better tracks in Borås and Sthlm. Ymergården is perfect for cross and the same was true for Frescati, Bosön or Drottningholm. If we are to prioritize good tracks we need to get rid of this 'centrum' thing. And if we want more people watching we should all start our own supporter clubs. =)

While we are starting to compare things to the Danish system, I have always agreed with the A-B-C system and moving people up when they win too much. But that kills the whole cup status since people stay in their class just to win the cup. I am thinking a variation on the stafett they have in Västgötacupen except in reverse. Have one cup and give extra points for being in Prestige compared to Super. So then one has an incentive to not just sit in Super for the sake of winning the cup. In Denmark they also only have two starts in their CX races...the first start is for Sport and younger and then the second is for everyone else (Super + Prestige). Of course it would mean more difficulties for keeping track of people but having everyone race 50 minutes could be a good compromise.

I am sure I will come up with more ideas but this is enough for now...

Sitting here at home on a Friday night is probably not something I should admit to. Especially when my most exciting plan for the evening is to try the new kebab-flavoured calzone while watching the Idol final. But when I listen to the mad rainstorm going on outside I think I have made the right choice.

Just like I predicted we had far too much nice weather before and sooner or later we would pay. Now we are paying. This is the second massive windstorm to hit Götet and this one is much worse since it is raining heavily AND windy as hell. I was completely drenched on my way to work this morning and even more thoroughly soaked on my way home since I had to get my kebab calzone from Allum. Waterproof winter jacket my ass...what is the point when the 3C rain is coming directly at you at 20 m/s???

Someone at work said they would rather have this than snow. That someone must be mad. Or they drive to work and actually never go out.

Good news is that the weather looks pretty good for Sunday which is reassuring since I will be outside all day helping and am already half sick. But the track must be in horrible shape after today. Tire-sucking grass? Oh yes.

Things are getting very routine here on Sveriges minsta cykelblogg so I am adopting the 'less is more' approach. After sleeping in a bit too much on Sunday I had what might be my last ride of the year outside given the quick change in weather here and the emergence of ice patches. But I think some running would be a good thing while I get my old Trek into winter mode and prepare to rebuilding my Full Dynamix.

Anyway, Sunday was yet again an Öjersjö experience but with an extra side tour into the centre and a lussebulle stop next to Ullevi. It was kind of raining and very much freezing so those of you doing CX this weekend will freeze. I will be there on Sunday helping and will try for Saturday also. Friday afternoon I have a meeting yet again. =(

And then last night, just to be completely predictable again, I did CXWORXS30 at Exclusive except this time I had warmed up my shoulders a bit to minimize the muscle pain. Just when I get the hang of the routine they started changing parts of it but the new variation on our dear friend plankan is worth remembering and doing at home for longer. The stomach burns nicely when you lift up one arm and make a circle with it while supporting yourself with your stomach and other arm. Aj.

Next year is also looking pretty good for långlopp so that is nice to look forward to. But, most important of all, I get my car in 2 weeks and can return to normal life again.

It seems like even the gym people have been bitten by the CX bug. Sportlife calls theirs CXWORX30 and I already told you about this 30 minutes of torture before. Despite a long day at work and Sunday's return of my F&%#ing shoulder pain, it was time again...

With only 30 min this is yoga on amphetamine and I just can't believe how tired it makes me. This is all for my core which mostly means my stomach, the part of me which likes to attract food and expand every year. There is also an ass song which is probably also good considering how tight our cycling shorts are. If only there were any women that took even the slightest possible interest in our sport. At some point during the sidplanken I could feel my shoulder start to scream again. It just never seems to heal. Bläää

Anyway, this whole experience was better than the first time. And the fact that it still hurts means I am doing something right. Good good.

I had many plans for today. My first idea was to head off to Borås on one of those double-decker buses since I had no other way to get there. But there is this small thing about watching CX in the rain that was discouraging. Also the fact that only 2 people signed up for prestige. After all the time that people like Mattias have certainly spent to get any permit to race in the most central and fine place Borås has to offer, it has to be a disappointment to see the turn-out. I like the original idea of just having some cup races which you have to attend and then let others just arrange if they want.

Anyway, the real problem is SMHI's little forecast of winds at 37 m/s. Yes...37 metres in 1 second or 133.2 km/h if that makes you appreciate things better! I have no desire whatsoever to get hit with that kind of sidewind on a high bus somewhere out on Rv40. And yesterday's wind of half that speed had me wingy as hell on my MTB. I think the farthest I will get today is Allum. At the same time, one has to experience this kind of storm. So I will do my best to try this without ended up flying over Sävedalen...

I was expecting a weather disaster but that came later in the day. So I was able to take a nice ride and stay reasonably dry. Just to be completely boring I did the same route as last Saturday with start up to Kåsjön as usual. Hills etc etc etc followed by stora klingan out on the bus road parallel to Landvettervägen. I kept at it with the stora even after my right turn at Öjersjö which meant heading west and a wall of wind. So it was time to get into my best tempo position (not really effective on an MTB) but my legs did not seem to mind.

There were a lot of rullskidor types to chase down and for those doing classic that is no big challenge. A couple were doing skate but they are no match for a bike...even a bike with me on it. Back over to Delsjön there is quite a solid rullskidor track on the grusväg but it is a bit tricky since the rut is deep sometimes and my tires got stuck. So rather than take the easy/fast way I jumped out into the rough grus and gave some other muscles a bit of abuse.

Next was a cleaning stop at Skatås which was very needed plus an extra little side trip up the hill to Björkekärr which is lovely and has several nice little circle roads with hills in the middle. Yes...GP on an MTB.

So my winter training is off to a good start except it is time I find some better winter pants and a windproof top. Gloves and shoe covers too. But that will have to be a January present...soon it is car time.

I have heard some people talking about Beach 2012 already so why not start too. Last night I was at Sportlife Exclusive for a nice little styrka session. My goal with this is simply to have a base set of functional muscles so that I don't keep getting injured when I fall.

Despite many theories, I still follow the Nautilus method (or should I say Actic now that they changed names?) 12 reps max of anything at the highest weight I can manage. If I can do that, I increase the weight. But if I can only do 8 reps I reduce the weight. This simple and quick method means that about once a month I go up a weight on every machine. That pace of progress is perfectly fine for what I need.

After the 7 minute warmup on the ass machine it was time directly for the dips and chinups which I managed at a respectable amount over half my body weight. Shoulders are of course a problem and I have no strength at all there. But I will. There was one motion that made some very uncomfortable sounds in my right arm/shoulder which is a sign that I still have some problem there. But the most important muscles for MTB are just fine.

And to end things off I did 500m on the SkiErg thing which is a fine way to demonstrate how weak one actually is in the upper body.

I think it counts as especially ambitious to set a goal on a grey Monday at this time of year. But why not? This one relates to XC which I have honestly always been quite scared of. In 2009 when I had my first real season with MCK I was doing HSport at the Västgötacupen races and then training on Wednesdays with the club. This combination, despite a race time of only 30 minutes, led to my seriously good time at Grenserittet. I see no reason why I cannot use XC for good interval training but there is no reason to kill myself in H30 or even HSenior. Racing is also training.

I realize that HSport is always an unpredictable class and you never know if some Elite is there who just doesn't feel like Elite that day. But until I am finishing top 5, why should I go to any higher class? So that is the second of my 2012 goals...finish top 5 in HSport in a Västgötacupen XC race. Are you up for that challenge Sven? I see you were also in this class last year...

I believe I have just found one of the toughest 2hr distanspass routes I can manage this close to home. My original plan was to head along Säveån on that grusväg and then along Göta Älv and then the old railway path back east again. But when I got to Kviberg I decided to take a lap of the GP course on the hardest gear as fast as possible. That seemed to piss off a few people so it was only one lap but very effective. Then, for some reason, I felt like exploring so I headed up from Kviberg towards Gårdsås and Bergsjön. Fy fan! Not 1 or 2 but THREE nasty gradual hills later I was at the top. Here we have a good hill-training location.

I was following the cykelväg signs towards Angered but came across a sign towards a motionspår and Lärjedalens trail. Knowing full well that I was at the top of the hill and dalen suggests the bottom, I reluctantly started down this nasty little grus bit. The elljusspår was completely empty because the thing was full of hills and would be quite the fun little run. Eventually I made it down to the bottom where the little trail along the river is and that was MTB with a capital M (T and B also)! I fail to see how they could actually manage to put out grus and still have it so rough. They might as well have just left it the way it was originally. So that gave the body a good shaking.

After that was the railway trail with the ever-so-slight grade up to Gunnilse where there are two special little hills just to wake up the muscles which, by this time, were already very much awake. And right after that it was time for Göteborg's own Muur-Kapelmuur up to Angereds kyrka followed by a very muddy road over to Lexbyvägen...my favourite. Today I could even chase a van since they kept slowing down for all the speed bumps.

It goes without saying that by the time I reached Lexby and the bottom of the hill I was completely dead and ready to fall over during the last couple km. And that, my friends, is how it should be.

I have felt full of energy this week which is strange because I haven't even made it to the gym or anything. But having the membership means I can actually go and not have to have some stupid silly obstacle in my way. Speaking of that I still have no clue when my car is arriving. But things that prevent me from skiing are good things...

Anyway, back to the glädje bit. This morning I jumped on the MTB yet again and really nailed the hilly sections up to Kåsjön today. I thought it was good to vary things a bit so I turned right at Öjersjö and went along that rather straight and windy little cykelväg. Just before the golf course there is a pretty gradual but long uphill which I attacked with pleasure and the felt the nice reward of the downhill towards Rv40. Then I turned right and into Delsjön near that little stuga thing where everyone seems to try and find. From there it was grusväg and people-dodging all the way over to Skatås with the occasional hill attack without even changing gears. Why bother when my legs felt so strong?

Yep...training for 2012 is going just fine right now...

Last night was an interesting walk to ICA. Or should I say slide? The little fluctuations in temperature mornings/nights now in Partille have left things a bit slick. So now I can start to think that winter is perhaps on the way.

This will be my forth winter in the Göteborg area. In 2008 it was very rainy through Nov/Dec and then not very cold at all after that. Both 2009 and 2010 were snow and this time last year I believe I was already out making my first attempt at skiing. But 2011 is very different. Here we are mid-November and only now has there been any sort of sign of cold weather yet we have had weeks of perfect blue sky and sun. So I am not complaining at all...

Yesterday was interesting. I had massive träningsvärk in a place I have never had pain before...directly on my stomach muscles. One wonders if there are actually any muscles hiding in and around the fat but apparently there are. CXWORX30 seems to have had some impact.

They had this one thing in the push-up position where you had to move one arm in a circle while supporting on the other and holding body position with your stomach. Another fine moment was changing position from resting on your arms and then up to your hands in push-up postition and then back down again. It's all very good.

So my question now is whether I should torture myself with a step pass or a Bodycombat pass? Both will lead to me falling at some point and generally being uncoordinated in a group of people but, well, I can take it...

I started the day with TV10 and their coverage of STHLM cyclocross from a few weeks ago. There were a few small changes to the course so I would have actually had to change gears...that is a good thing. But I smell a bit of 'fiasko' since it really looked like Wengelin was passed the pit and ran backwards to change his bike. As far as I know, that is a no no in the CX rule book.

Anyway, to keep with the cycling theme I jumped on the MTB for something resembling a distanspass. It was just my usual hill fest up to Kåsjön and then Öjersjö - Tahult - Härkeshult - Jonsered but I haven't done it for awhile so it was long enough. I was freezing so I had to stop for a Squeezy gel in Jonsered so, obviously, the final part went very quickly.

If I have any readers left, what is the best strategy for distanspass? Should it be very long and low intensity or should I keep training hilly routes? I mean 2 hours hilly has to be better than 3 hours flat or?

Naturally the CX part of this training pass caught my eye but the only thing it has in common with CX is the intensity. Sportlife use to have something called S-Core which I really found useful for stability and all that stuff I need now. But that is gone and replaced by CXWORX30 which is the same idea for core training except much much worse. Fy fan is all I can say. Obviously S-Core was easy compared to this feast of balance and muscle pain.

They schedule a 30 min spinning before this all the time and that combination, my friends, is a recipe for some serious träningsvark. Bring it on!

I realize that CX SM hasn't even happened yet but like I have said many times my current cross skills would bring so much shame to MCK that I might just get kicked out entirely. But on the positive side...this season I have never finished last in Superklass. =)

I was looking at the Långloppscupen page where they always calculate your result time as % over Darvell or whoever else happened to win. Over the years I have stayed pretty much constant at 75% over the winning time which in relation to H Motion is pretty far from last but in H30 it is enough to leave a big gap in the result list. If I could improve to be 60% over the winning time I would be essentially in the running even in H30 and 4 years from now when I make my H40 premiere. In långlopp terms this means somewhere between 20 and 40 minutes faster than what I do now.

Half of that time could be saved by being more efficient with the food at the stops (i.e. 10 minutes faster by not stopping for so long). I think I can manage another couple of minutes with bike changes since Sid already improved my time considerably. But it is that remaining 10 minutes which simply requires better form.

Ränneslättsturen was a pretty typical LL experience for me. I started out comfortable and felt quite bad after 20km but then after some energy around 40km I was on fire and could tackle the rest at quite a good pace and finish fast. I lost a few minutes in the typical LL singletrack queues but overall this was the way things normally go for me. My hill training in Partille works great but I need to be out a lot longer. My problem with these distanspass 3-4hr is that I feel seriously ill after 2.5hr. But getting to 60% is going to hurt so I have no choice...

Many have called me a snob since I often live in new apartments. But anyone that has tried to find a rental in a city over the last couple years knows that there are two options: miljonprogram under terrible conditions or overpriced but quality nyproduktion. And I have tried ghetto life and it is not for me. So then if I am not a snob, how can I explain that I just joined Sportlife Exclusive???

First of all, I needed to buy a 3-month card in order to take advantage of a little friskvårdsersättning from work and there was only a couple hundred kr difference between Exclusive and the regular Sportlife. The advantage with Exclusive is the age limit of over 20 which really really helps for anyone who has tried to use any machines on a normal weekday night. I prefer to just use the machine...not sit on it and try and look cool for the fjortisar like most others are doing.

But there is still a bit of inner snob in me because I immediately fell for the fact that it is beautiful in Exclusive. But most importantly the gym has an excellent mix of machines and cardio which is all a part of 'The New Chris Cross 2012' plan...

Well I can be happy that yesterday I finally felt better and Mr Stomach was happy happy fin fin again. But it was around lunch time that I actually realized this because most days last week were okay in the morning. But this delay has meant missing yet another GöteborgsSuperprestige, the last I would have been able to attend anyway. So the good ol' towel has pretty much been thrown in for my CX season this year.

It is time to re-group and start from the very basics. A head start on winterträning I can get and some basic strength training is probably good for injury prevention. Oh, and I need to keep away from the skis...

One very unusual bi-product of these last two weeks is that my shoulder seems to have cured itself and is pain free. How did that happen???

Yes, only 57 days until 2012. And I can't wait to get a fresh start and be over with crap year 2011. So I see this as a very positive inlägg that there are only 57 days more of negativity.

Things are also more positive with Mr Stomach so there will be no new carbon fibre replacement needed. Hopefully I might even be able to do some training tomorrow for the first time in several weeks. That would be nice.

I think it is time to start marketing this site as a motionärblogg so my readers can be fat gubbar that are having even more trouble than I am. But I do have some good plans and they do not involve skiing.

This morning the EU has threatened to stop paying Greece at all if they don't get things straight. And I think it is time to take a similar hardline approach with Mr Stomach. If things are not better by tomorrow, we are done. No more partnership Mr Stomach. You will be replaced with a fancy light-weight carbon fibre model. I am serious because it sounds like Sunday's GöteborgsSuperprestige will be a classic and I want to be there.

I was feeling okay Tuesday afternoon after working from home for two days. Watching cross from Koppenberg helped and one has to wonder whether Stybar wants his Ridley back considering he slid into a brickwall and messed up a remount and that cost him the race.

If this is some kind of food poisoning, my guess of sources is the dodgy american 'maple syrup' I was using. But being at work again yesterday for the usual 5-coffee approach to the day, I wonder if that is the real problem. Still, the Enervit sportdryck is a miracle drink. It has exactly the same ingredients as those rehydration drugs from the pharmacy so why use extra money. Yes...a bottle of Enervit while sitting on the sofa watching TV...it's da new sheet!

On my visit to Cambridge during the summer I learned about all of the special measures to keep commoners from getting near the college buildings. But as a big fan of cyclocross this sign offended me. Do not cycle dismount? Then how will we get up the stairs? Do not cycle dismount was probably what many were thinking at Superprestige Zonhoven with those two super sand drops. Vurpfest indeed!

I am annoyed as usual, this time from catching a lovely magsjuka from someone at work and spending my extra hour this weekend with massive stomach pain. I didn't feel good today until I had a bottle of Enervit which replenished all those minerals and good stuff I have lost. No training at all this week equals not good. Something has to change.

Just like I said, the chance of making it to CX training this morning was extremely low. The hangover is pretty mild but I am pretty stiff after this karate stuff. And obviously the kicking stuff made me wonder why on earth I was out cycling in the morning using the same thigh muscles. But it is good that I did since all I will manage today is a walk.

Most of the people I work with are women and that presents a problem in kampsport things. I just can't hit a woman, even if this was supposed to be for fun and play fighting. But women have no problem whatsoever with hitting men. So I had my ass kicked completely and all I could do is just stand there and dodge. My superkondition helps with that but sooner or later you are going to get kicked, punched or slapped.

So the damage report is this...stiff thigh muscles (probably the cycling), some general non-specific muscle fatigue, a slash mark on my arm from some sharp fingernails and completely bruised and shot knuckles because after awhile I just gave up and went to the punching bag in the corner. But by some very strange bit of fate, my shoulder actually feels better than usual...

Over the last couple of days things have started to work out. I will get to visit my family and not have to do this in December so I can still race at our MCK CX race and also help out. What has changed? Well, I just stopped caring about when my car will arrive. I will get it eventually.

So to save money on spas and things I went on my MTB this morning and collected a whole pile of mud from my usual hill route. Why a nice relaxing MTB ride? Well, tonight the head of our group is hosting a party and karate night out in Bollebygd. Everyone talks about this massive house so I have to see it even though I know it will lead to new and exciting forms of träningsvärk and holes in my pants when I kick.

I am making no promises about CX in Skatås tomorrow morning because tonight will involve beer and, as usual, that will become wine and eventually a fine cognac. So maybe tomorrow afternoon I will take my morning cross training...

I am happy to say that my head is back to normal so it is time for some cycling again. Yesterday, just to get in the mood, I was surfing looking at various cykelporr for 2012 products and there are lots of exciting things to spend all of my money on.

But one thing was disturbing...Cyclecomponents is not selling Ridley. Where did they go? Is CykelCity selling them again or? It would be a shame if this wonderful brand were no longer for sale in Sweden. Judging from the number of Google hits on this site after 'Ridley X-Ride' searches, the demand is there. I have a company...I can sell them if no one else will. I can be fair with my prices. And we could certain use some 4ZA components or wheels.

Yesterday I went for a nice walk. Walks are safe. Well, in theory. Truth is I am now admitting the fact that I am very clumsy when I am not on my bike. I am constantly tripping over stairs and things so I guess it is not the least bit surprising that I tripped over a step while lifting the bike. Anyway, my head seems fine now so I can cautiously return to the bike again.

And back to another recurring theme, my new car continues to mess up my plans. The arrival date is now set to v51 which is not the 'early December' they promised. And I have to pay for the dubbdäck. For the most part these details are irrelevant for cycling except that this potentially changes my plan to visit Canada over Christmas. Work deadlines in January mean I can't delay the trip a bit and the delivery of the car precisely at Christmas means I may need to take the holiday early. That would mean December and missing MCKs own race which is a real shame. So the saga continues...

My head seemed to be back to normal again but right now it is seriously strange. I am lucky enough to not get many headaches but this one I have right now is unique. I might have to waste money on a Vårdcentralen visit afterall even though I already have plenty of painkillers leftover from my last visit there.

Ja ja...things were going very well there for a few weeks. I certainly enjoyed the euphoria stage of CX season when it is just nice to rediscover this wonderful sport and my Ridley X-Ride. I'll be back as they say in B-movies...

No matter how much I try and convince myself that Saturday's head-banging was mild, I can't ignore the fact that I still have a headache. So it is definitely a hjärnskakning. Fy fan for 2011!

But what this does mean is I can enjoy some of those guilty pleasures of B-popkultur. You know, those 'It's so bad that it's good' things like Snakes on a Plane or Paradise Hotel. At work they say that only people with brain damage read Camilla Läckberg. Now is my chance to see what they mean...

Yesterday became a bit more exciting than I was hoping for. Like I said I tripped and fell forwards and thought that my MTB flap took most of the hit. But after lunch I had this pretty unspecific headache and felt kind of off. So immediately I thought hjärnskakning and made an effort to be out all afternoon around people in case I fell over or something. Sitting home alone would have been bad.

There is still something there this morning but it is better. Still, this is scary. Every time I try and challenge my 2011 curse it ends in yet another injury. I am unfortunately pretty close now to just forgetting the year, joining the gym and using my bikes as training tools and race again next year.

Sorry for a negative inlägg. I had no choice.

Since everyone has a blog now, one has to be catchy with titles. Öijer, for example, is writing in French. And I am just swearing. But there will be no ass pictures here, even with grass.

Sometimes completely unplanned CX passes are the best and today was a fine example of that. I started right in Partille C around that slott on the hill which is surrounded by a lovely grass field which needed more tire tracks. There was one trail already but with some creativity it became a 'rundbana of death' quite quickly. I had a slippery grus path with a dismount spot and then 3 steps which became slightly too exciting on my second lap when I stumbled a bit and hit handlebar. Most of the force went to my MTB 'tree guard' which is, of course, a big no no in cross but today I am rather happy I had it. Anyway, I kept going and slowed down a lot in these difficult parts.

In a race situation I tend to fall apart at these obstacles and remounts so instead of being a psycho constantly I will take it easy at these obstacles and be a psycho for the rest of the time. Mistakes at the obstacles cost 15 seconds at least but remaining focused will work. At least for me. Anyway, I continued with some hill running and generally messing up random grass spots along Säveån. But the bike was clean so 'messing up' was not the case at all. Wild grass can take this.

So then it was time to finish up at Sävecrossen and the wet grass of death. There is a hill at the Puketorp bus stop which is sort of half mud and half bad grass which is the ultimate test of technique. 5 laps of this meant 2 cases of sliding but still making it up and the last time I got stuck but overall I do have some power still. This left my bike and my ass covered in grass and mud so my newly-clean apartment is now back to normal again...into the shower with the cross and spread the mud around the hallway. It would not be home without this...

Another busy week is done and I was about to eat and drink my way through the weekend to achieve a complete state of 'oform' just in time for my Cup premiere. My friends in Sthlm caught some nasty magsjuka and cancelled so suddenly my weekend is free for CX training. Unexpected but very good.

Now there was that little matter of tubdäck...

Nej, I am not trying to sneak in dubbdäck for my bike. More just to formally announce my actual top secret hush hush superplan for CX Cupen. Nja, maybe not so superplan but at least I will do a few races.

I plan to race Sunne because it sounds like they have taken to the Belgian spirit and are keen on making a great track for us. I admire Söderköping for that but I won't make it there this year. Then my next race will be Kristianstad and the SM in Åstorp. I will skip over Lund and then make an effort at Värnamo/Borås but will probably just settle for Borås only so it will be easier with travel and hotels. And by Lidköping and our superfinal I should have my car.

So at the best it will mean 7 cup races and gubb-SM which is just fine for a year like this. Right, so now I should be switching my attention to gluing issues...

I have this habit of taking the same rides over and over and over and over so today it was time to break the cycle. Fan...that was almost Göteborgsk. ;) Hisingen makes most people think of gang violence and gubb cycling but I decided to be brave and give it a chance. Today Chris Cross actually left the east side...

I needed something sturdy so again the MTB got some mil. I still believe that at this stage of general okondition any distans on any bike is good for my legs. 2 hours and 45 minutes worth was very good. It started with Säveån along to Kviberg and through Gamlestaden across the Marieholmen train bridge. Anyone that has ever ridden this last stretch knows that it is a depressing industrial area one rides through very fast just to get to anything nicer. And just on the Hisingen side that nicer part appeared. Jaha? Trees! Autumn colours! Najs!

Next I headed over to Backaplan which we all know is depressing but then a bit farther you hit Kvillebäcken which is a lovely hidden spot between two highways. And then we have the highlight of the area...Ramberget! Slight serpentine feel to this hill which was not really that steep compared to Partille but still I can imagine a GP race here. At the top the view was, well, foggy so I saw nothing. But the whole city was there somewhere.

Passed more depressing highrise and then I hit Wieselgrensplatsen which is kind of cool in that 1950s DDR architecture kind of way. After that there were lots of houses. Also najs. I decided to ride up to Tuve which I overshot by a bit but ended up there eventually. My plan was to explore Hisingsparken but instead, apparently I ended up at Volvo and back on Björlandavägen which means I rode completely around it. I guess I missed the actual hood so I will just have to take another trip...

It looks like yesterday was a fun day in Falun. One wonders if that Öijer vurpa in the snow was payback for using the same course as last year except for that snow bit. But it was a great training for Ludvika so I am not complaining.

Yesterday I was pretty busy with other stuff so my cycling didn't start until after 17.00. So it was one of those romantic sunset rides...yes, nothing says romance like a man in tight shorts. =) I don't really prefer this time for riding since everyone tends to give me a WTF look so I just collected a lot of those looks around Skatås and up some hills around Östra. But right now it is time for a longer venture...

I said in one of my three positive posts in a row that things were looking good for some actual racing. And naturally half of cykelsverige is now gluing tubdäck before the big premiere tomorrow. Like I said I have to skip the first two weekends. But Sunne is on.

So far it seems like this year is less organized in terms of the MCK-Cupen, uh, I mean CX Cupen. Or maybe it just feels that way since I haven't managed to make it to any training sessions. So I had to make my own arrangements which is fine. Especially when I found a superdeal on renting a Volvo XC70 (eller liknande) and took advantage of the Sunne Spa special prices for us. So now I am more than ready to mess up some of that lovely grass around their hotel and occupy a prime location in their spa area between races.

While I was at it with the special deals I also booked a car for SM and Helsingborg weekend since I plan to race Kristianstad too and I am sure no one else will. But then I hope things will be more organized for the rest. If someone can bring my bike to Lund I can take the train.

Today would have been a perfect day to ride to work and head off to cross training at Vallen. Naturally, my brain did not really think of this at 07.00 this morning. But I did leave a bit early so I could finally do some mid-week cycling. Everyone at work was paranoid over some newspaper article saying that desk jobs cut your lifespan short because you don't move. So even though most have been sitting at their desk for over 15 years, everyone was up and walking around and in a mood for training. So I said 'I am going cycling' and left early...I can do 'ute o cyklar' and the opportunity was there.

So again it was MTB time for my intense 1 hour loop up the monster hills to Kåsjön and around all the little grus löpspår. Great for the legs and also nice for teknik because the gravel is really loose and covered with leaves and crap. One has to stay awake.

I see also that it is rullskidor season but I am not stupid...I am not trying out my pair which I have never ever been on before. If you remember last year, the day after I bought rullskidor it snowed and there was snow on the ground every day after that.

Now that the bills are paid for the month I can see how things are looking for my car downpayment. The answer to that is skitbra faktist. So bra that I can loosen the purse strings a bit and take a CX Cupen weekend afterall. Yippee!

Let's just see which I choose. Obviously not this weekend and next weekend I have friends visiting. After that is open though. It would be very very nice price if Ck Valhall or Södertälje CK could fix a wee little CX race for 30 okt. Or what about my old club MTB Täby? There were some superb cross spots in Sollentuna.

Tomas said today that this blog is far too negative and I know what he means. So lets change this starting from now. Positive thing #1: It is sunny and lovely outside. Positive thing #2: I do not feel the slightest bit sick anymore which proves, yet again, that CX is good for my health.

It was great to see everyone again so this naturally meant lots of chatting and funny comments here and there. Lasse's course at Skatås today for the next GöteborgsSuperprestige actually was not all that great for Chris Cross. My legs and my Ridley are meant for corners and igångdrag so the long paved trail was to my disadvantage. The start was the usual 'me trying to get out of the way' thing but probably I should have been more aggressive today. To be honest I had a hell of a bad first lap which featured clumsy things like running clear into a pole in the first sand part, landing smack right on the seat on a bad remount (aj aj) and a nasty back wheel slide on the road corner part after the downhill. So it was time to focus on technique and calm down a bit...even if these things were very funny.

By the second or third lap I could see Mikael ahead of me again with his superwheels and it looked like he was just kind of enjoying the sun and not even making an effort. Can't have that. So I made an attempt to catch him and was doing well in the straights and igångdrag so I was getting closer and closer and he could see this. Second last lap I went into the löphinder with too much speed and slid off to the side a bit but did not lose so much time. I was within reach and hoping he would mess up before I did.

Last lap came faster than I expected and I wasn't even lapped (note the positivity!) but suddenly after the sand I was an extra 30 m behind and wondered what happened. Turns out that Mikael rode through the sand that time and I ran so our battle was over. I still gave it everything I had but the gap was too much. But it was a fun race and, thankfully, I didn't feel like I would die after it was done.

I am perfectly okay with missing Vätternrundan but I was considering CykelVasan for next year. Too late for that. They only opened the system a week ago and already it is sold out. So apparently there are now 9000 people in this country with an MTB or it is all Norwegians. So where are they all during Långloppscupen or any of the XC races? It makes no sense if you ask me.

Anyway, I did CykelVasan 2010 and don't really need to do it again because it was not terribly exciting. But easy races are good for confidence. So I guess it will be Way Out West instead...no problems there.

There has been something wrong inside of me this week so I have been dying for the weekend to use my proven 'Training makes you healthy' technique to prevent becoming sick. Not sure how successful that plan was but whatever, it is nice outside today.

I decided on the MTB and the whole Tahult route which I didn't finish last Sunday due to a sudden massive rain storm. But under the threat of clouds I made it around today. Nothing much has changed...the hills are still massive and the forest is soothing and nice. Plus that road still has an unusually high number of Volvo 740s. Knipavägen and the hill down towards Jonsered kyrka are nicely packed now so that was brilliant to get some grusväg training. The water level in Säveån is so high that I had to take a relaxing look over at the lake which explains why I had so much power in my legs for the final wind stretch through Lexby.

I will be at Skatås tomorrow for GöteborgsSuperprestige even if I am sick. I need some social time. But for now I need to get some food and then watch Emma in CPH.

I read the very good news on CX Sweden yesterday about Borås. In general Borås has it tough because everyone is convinced that it rains all the time. But I have always thought that the centre is lovely and so I am superglad that the CX cupen race there will be smack in the centre of it all...Christmas lights and everything. That I am looking forward to! Did I ever mention that I lived in Borås for 3 months when I first moved to this side of the country?

In terms of CX Cupen for myself, I had already decided to skip Falun/Ludvika and now I have some friends visiting for Kumla/Söderköping. And I already dissed Sunne for the cost so I may very well be making my race premiere in time for SM in Åstorp. I have a feeling that October will be tough financially so it may be best to just focus on training so that I can make my comeback in November.

But first I have a nice weekend coming up with GöteborgsSuperprestige on Sunday and Skatås again...yippee!

Yesterday I started doing what a cyclist in the 'Old Boys' class should never do...actually compare the cost of races to other things. We permanent members of what is politely called 'Andra klungan' have to realize that racing is fun and we are never going to get anything for this fun in terms of prize money. This is the largest group of cyclists in the country and many, of course, never join clubs because they can just as well have fun on their own in Skatås or with other happymtb people. But sooner or later one realizes that it is more fun to race on a closed track free from mushroom pickers, angry old ladies with dogs and anyone on horses. So we just continue racing despite the cost and all is well...until I have an autumn like this and actually need to save money.

The price for the spa weekend in Sunne seems to be 1800kr for the fancy hotel and then around 2200kr for the rental car. That price is identical to 3 nights in Brussels and a return flight. Of course I chose the most expensive example but still you get my point. And I think everyone reading this knows very well which wonderful sport one can watch while in Belgium for a weekend. So maybe while I am completely righting off 2011, I should take the opportunity to become a real CX fan...

You are probably wondering why on earth I would take an MTB ride, especially just when it started raining like hell. This is cross season afterall. And riding my MTB just made me feel bad for missing the entire Långloppscupen season because of my car and arm.

Why is the question. Well, I did some calculations and I completely missed something in my budget. Picking up a new car in December means I will need to get winter tires directly and I have a feeling that is why Hedin Bil said my Renault Clio will not be there until December. Sneaky bastards. A quick look around puts a set of 4 dubbdäck at 7000kr which I was not at all prepared for. Fan. That was my CX Cupen budget. And then there is that little trip to see my parents in Canada which is supposed to happen over Christmas. Fat chance of that with a plane ticket at 8000kr.

So an MTB ride is me saying that I want to keep training hills and would prefer to have brakes while doing so. But cross season is looking shite at the moment.

The fact that there are no scheduled cross races/training this weekend makes me wonder what I am missing. So, fine, I will just have to torture my body by myself here in Partille. I started in the centre down by Säveån and rode up the steep little grass hills a few times. Yes...wet grass. Then for more warm-up I rode along towards Hemköp and back to the Sävedalen side to attack the hill up to Frejaplan. Oh fan...that hurt a bit more than I expected.

Up around Vallhamra Torg there are a lot of open fields which are not parks but just wild grass so it is free for me to ride wherever. I found a gem of a football field that is just entirely sucking wet grass...mmm...time for tubdäck. And along a bit I found many steep grass hills which were wet and challenging and certainly high on the list of ways to torture yourself on a bike.

But to top it all off I returned to the part next to where I live which has stairs sort of like Skatås. After 6 laps up that under the watchful eye of my old neighbour and his little dog, I was done for the day. Aj.

Finally that big application is sent in and I can return to having some normal life with no money. But training should be possible.

I was reading through the guide for race organizers on the CX Sweden page and I found it quite good. I especially like that it is clearly stated that this is not MTB and that it should be possible to ride the course carefully on a LVG bike. Did you see that CK Lunedi? Maybe that is why Jkpg disappeared from the schedule entirely.

And then we have the Chris Cross rule...as soon as the winner crosses the finish line, everyone else finishes the lap they are on. So I don't have to hold up the start of the next race by needing to do my extra lap in order to get points. I am generally lapped around 30 min into the race.

It is better to be clear with this since sometimes I did have to do the extra lap and sometimes I did not. Since I like to go full out on my last lap, it would be good to know just when that lap will be. Unfortunately, it also means that you can stay on the course, punka 5 times and just walk around in general and still get points. So I suspect there will be less DNFs.

Well, my hopes of another GöteborgsSuperprestige on Thursday are long gone since those involved in that grant with the deadline Thursday at midnight are in no hurry. So that pisses me off.

But now that Falun is open for anmälan it is high time to discuss CX Cupen strategies. I know most probably have secret plans for equipment or have been training cross all year. My strategy is a bit different. Only 9 races will be included so we don't have to do every race. Assuming that I will finish pretty much last in Superklass as usual, I need to find a way to get the most points I can.

Taktik #1: Choose races no one else will choose.
This unfortunately means no Sthlm which is one of the few races I have people to battle with. But with over 60 starting there were no points left for me. Last year I got most points in Ludvika, Söderköping and Södra Sandby.

Taktik #2: Choose races where people are most likely to DNF.
This is harder to predict because it depends on the weather. Lidköping was a DNF for me and many others and Kumla is just tough overall so people could give up.

Taktik #3: Choose every race.
I would if I had my car and a wad of cash.

Which races will you choose?

I rolled over to Skatås this morning feeling like this was going to be tough. My kondition is still obviously missing somewhere. Maybe it has been hijacked. Oj, wrong day for that word. But the Introcross portion went well and my technique was coming back again, slowly. I had some power in my legs but I didn't want to kill myself before the Superprestige started. The stairs I had trained a few weeks ago so that was fine. The grass also felt fine. But when the race started I didn't feel fine at all.

In usual style I went from first to last within the first 400m but I didn't want to shove my way around the tight corners. Why ruin things immediately when the point of this is training. Or is it? Things moved to VM-status when I saw that I was with 2 others at the back. My whole first lap was basically at max since I wanted to pass and my chance did come at the sand when I managed to run by. But no matter how hard I pushed I could not break away so for the next lap I was looking ahead to see if I could pass the next guy while also looking behind to stay ahead. Then I messed up on a remount after the sand and was passed.

So I was chasing again and trying to push on the grass and over in the second half I was flying on the grus, braking late and trying my best to start quickly after each corner. The problem was the guy in front had superlight high profile carbon wheels and tubulars so he was just cruising along as if nothing was happening while I was behind pedalling my ass off just to keep within a reasonable distance.

On the way around the corner before the tents and finish line the guy in front took a fall. First evidence that,in fact, he was stressed by my chasing. So after the polite 'Are you okay?' I passed and made some attempt at an attack in the wet grass with 2 laps to go. He was there at the sand but then somewhere in the next part he disappeared. At this point my energy was crashing and I was hurting so I know I slowed a bit, mostly to avoid mistakes. Last lap was horrible and I was ready to faint but decided, anyway, to sprint like hell after the löphinder.

So today was far from perfect but if I almost faint then no one can say I didn't try...

We all know that races go better if we have been training a bit the day before. And this leads to the desire to train every day. But I am not at that stage yet. Today I just wanted to get a bit of feel for the Ridley and whether I need to re-adjust the shoes/seat/pedals. The goal was not to kill myself.

Like every time I get on that bike and reach the very wet Sävecrossen area, the desire to just kill myself with massive attacks on the hills, superb dismounts and daring grus corners is overwhelming. But today I was stronger and managed to take it easy. I can remember my cramps at Hondacrossen last year so probably it is best to listen to my body instead of my brain during pre-season.

I have been hoping that GöteborgsSuperprestige would appear in Skatås again. And this Sunday my hoping will pay off. There are no excuses for not making it from Partille to Skatås so it is time for some CX. Even if my body or my bike have a tendency to fall apart, it doesn't matter. Vi ses på söndag!

Athletes have this fascinating tendency to become national heros and there are few things bigger than hockey in this country. In a way that is what makes Sweden a lot like Canada for me. So reading yesterday that Stefan Liv died in a plane crash with the rest of his new team in Russia is beyond tragedy.

For reasons I don't even remember now, HV71 has always been my team so Liv has provided many special moments over the years in hockey finals or VM/OS. And judging from all of the stories and pictures in the papers this morning, I was certainly not the only one. Stefan Liv will be remembered...

Work has entered an even more crazy phase so I don't expect to be able to breathe until 19 sept at the earliest. Meanwhile, I am wondering where my kondition has went. I was in Amsterdam for a great conference and I can see how important cycling is for that country. They also have frites and mayo which is just so bloody fantastic. The whole trip made me want to come back and experience cross there and in Belgium.

But back to my kondition. Johan? Did I leave my kondition at the house in Amsterdam? Or did your spanish friends steal it? Maybe I sent it to Cambridge with the others because from what I could tell that city could use some kondition.

How do I know it is gone? Well, I went on my usual 10km terrain run of death and seriously did feel like I was dying. And now, yes, I have träningsvärk. Yep, my form curve is following the stock market at precisely the time when it should be pointing up. Fan fan.

I have seen a cross T-shirt with the line 'Wake me up when September ends' and it is just perfect. But I think I also need to take a 'blogg paus' since I realize that my writing is just full of complaints and nothing positive. I need to deal with this on my own. The MCK forum has details of our local races starting 28 aug which I will miss due to a conference and then 1 sept and so on. SCF also seems to be settled with the cross schedule now. I will try my best to be at something but I am making no promises.

Buying this car is the second biggest thing I have done in my life. Moving to Sweden was the first. In my view the downpayment is enormous and I now have 3 months left to save that much...I may very well end up living on havregryn and snabbmacaroni (which would, obviously, make me a faster cyclist). Once I get the car the monthly cost is perfectly within my normal range. But getting there is a battle. I want to buy cross stuff and go to every race. But if I do I am fcuked.

And I should keep all of this to myself because only I could actually end up in this kind of situation. Working at a university and living alone means less margin when it comes to money. But both my job and my apartment are great so I have no plan of changing either. It just complicates things.

So, see you eventually at a GöteborgsSuperprestige but for now I will shut up...

Sometimes I wonder if I have a brain at all. Seriously. Just because I have been running for awhile without any pain does not mean that I can jump on the Ridley I haven't ridden since January, ride with massive intensity and also have no pain. All morning I was limping around with a messed up left knee and my back also hurt. Things are better now though but this was not a great discovery to make.

I need to know whether it is my new shoes/clips or the seat height that is causing the problem so the only way to know is take a calm test ride with my old shoes. And it will be calm this time. I have a conference this weekend and I need to be able to walk. But after that I have absolutely nothing planned for any weekend in September. Then I can get serious show up to work dead every Monday.

Watching a brilliant show by Mustasch last night at Götaplatsen meant that I woke up this morning when the CX distanspass was supposed to start. I still felt kind of miserable but decided that Dr. Chris would prescribe a dose of CX to cure this cold. And I am Dr. Chris so I should listen to the advice.

Some quick adjustments and my Ridley X-Ride was ready for the first ride since January and with new shoes, semi-rusted pedals and my constant shoulder issues, this premiere could have gone horribly wrong. But it didn't. Within the first 10 minutes of messing around at Sävecrossen I was covered in mud and a massive smile. Oh how I have missed my Ridley.

Then I rode over to Skatås and 8:an just to get some km in my legs at higher cadence and it seems to be nollning week for those new university students. At 4 different parts there were groups of around 25 impressionable young students which were mostly female so probably they are nurses and I will see them at work. Nice. When I got close they all turned for a cheer which went 'Heeeejjjjj...CYKLA!!!' When one is dressed in MCK clothes one needs to react appropriately in situations like this. So I shot off in a massive sprint each time. =)

And back to the football fields I made the usual lap of hell which included 5 runs up the stairs while some guy on an MTB just stared at me. Which one of us has not discovered real cycling yet, I wonder... A quick wash of the bike and it was time to roll home because I was dead and my left knee started hurting (shoe/pedal issue, probably). But everything else was absolutely brilliant! Chris Cross is back!

I said earlier that you can have hydraulic disc brakes for your CX if you buy a TRP Parabox converter but that there still were not any suitable racing frames with mounting holes. I was wrong. The following pics are from EvaldsMTB but for Specialized I think CC Lasse at CykelCity could fix you up too.

This is the 2012 Focus Mares AX 2.0 Disc which has an acceptable Shimano 105 spec and carbon fork. With a Parabox and the new Shimano XT MTB brakes, this baby would be very dangerous!

And this is the Specialized CruX Comp Disc which is only Tiagra spec but the FSA BB30 vevparti and the carbon fork and colours make up for it a bit. So what is missing now are some tubular wheels with mounts for disc routers and that is something any quality wheelbuilder can fix for you without problem onto the standard Mavic Reflex rims.

Given the seemingly limitless cashflow of so many CX cyclists in this country, probably some of you are already entering your Visa number and awaiting the new toy. Even with the extra weight these two bikes could completely change the face of cross this season. You will go faster knowing that you can actually stop at the next corner. Even I would. My old Merida 4 suddenly becomes a commuter bike and my Ridley is certainly not going to get any part upgrades now. I am not spending any money on it unless something breaks.

So, do you think there will be some of these here on time for CX SM in November? I do.

Since I am such a giving person at this moment, I was wondering if anyone would like this cold? Maybe you have something planned this weekend which you don't really want to do? My gift will help you get out of it.

These days would have been perfect for getting a good start on CX training but apparently that is not going to happen. So some local GöteborgSuperprestige and a few key cup races (e.g. Sthlm, SM, our race) might be all that Chris Cross should even consider given that everything in 2011 has been against me. And I do need to save money for December when my new car arrives...

I am supposed to be on my way to Ålesund today but I need to save money for my car downpayment and trips to Norway do not save. But the holiday reporting system at work is crazy so I could not change my holidays which means, for insurance reasons, I can't go anywhere near the place. But the three hours I save on travel, lunch and fika time means I have three hours to do something else. The writing I have to do today and tomorrow is much easier at home where it is quiet and the coffee is better. Balconies are also good for thinking. But this will not be something that happens often. But working from home on Tuesdays would be very ideal. =)

Right...sooo...sore throat still there. But would a little itty bitty ride on the Ridley make that any worse? Nja.

Yesterday afternoon my body decided to remind me that I could quite easily fall over that delicate line and become sick. I felt absolutely horrible but after a bit more sleep last night I am winning again.

My stress is better now since I did finish two things and have set some more realistic goals for what I can achieve with research this fall. And Göteborgs Kulturkalaset on my way home is excellent for relaxation. I had one of my life's best fish&chips yesterday and I can't understand why or how. But perhaps that is what a fresh fish is supposed to taste like.

A little pryl gossip is always nice and the question on everyone's mind is probably when hydraulic disc brakes will be available for cyclocross. Well, to some extent the answer to that question is right now. TRP, makers of fine CX brakes like the EuroX, are about to release something called Parabox which is a bit of a quick fix until the proper technology is developed.

You can read all of the details in this CX Magazine review but essentially the box converts the movement from a normal road lever into hydraulic force needed to close a normal MTB brake. Smart...but pretty ugly also. The next problem is that your frame needs mounting holes for disc brakes and the only ones I can see so far are on very very cheap CX bikes meant for vinterpendling etc. No proper cross race geometry or carbon forks on those babies. The Stevens bike in the picture is of course an exception to that but I wonder why they run the wires down the tube instead of over the top? Have they never ridden cross before???

Today it became clear that this is not really Sveriges minsta cykelblogg anymore. A link of mine led a lot of you to see a site that you were not supposed to see just yet. Sorry for stressing people who are already stressed enough right now.

It is amazing how fast Google indexes what I write on this site. Within 2 hours of my Way Out West review I was getting lots of hits from people searching for Way Out West reviews. And it now seems like just as many are excited about the CX season.

I am quite stressed now and I have the coordinating of a grant application worth 60 million kr sitting on my head right now, among other things. My strategy to keep calm has been to think 'But soon it will be CX season!' I see clearly now that the more I get dumped on me the more I want cross season to start. Help.

It isn't even 09.00 on this Monday and I am making announcements/excuses already. Blä. I have told them at work that Tuesdays I will have training and I will take my friskvårdstimme and that is final. No more excuses. Tomorrow is the last time anyone is getting away with setting a meeting at 16.45 'because I am usually here anyway'. Jaja...but jobs are good when I have a new car to pay for so I should not complain.

I did take a quick look at my Merida yesterday and there are a pair of seriously rusted SPD pedals on it. Not fun. Looking at the Ridley I saw no pedals at all...hmm. They must be on the MTB. Honestly this week will be good just to actually get the bike in shape. But 23 aug I am psyched.

After standing at a festival for two days I should have took a nice relaxing bike trip. But I decided to run first and then consider the bike. I needed to tackle my hill route again.

At the bottom of the hill there was a group of 3 runners in a club which I tried to keep pace with but as soon as the steep bit started it was avhängd for me. I could still see them but they had the power uphill. They kept on the road but I headed over to the hill of death and my 5km löpspår for a truly horrific climb today. But this time I kept running and was still out of breath because just when I was almost back it was time for another hill. Even in the downhill part in the middle I was feeling alive and that was just in time for the next death hill up to the highest point of the lap.

I was barely managing this time but I did not stop, ever. Compared to last week I kept a decent pace downhill and that meant I had a nice vomitkänsla when it flattened out a bit but somehow I pushed on and kept up the pace to make a beautiful sprint. This was massive!

It is always a tough choice between CykelVasan and the best festival in the country. This year I chose Way Out West. Overall it was worth the money but it had some disappointments. Also it seems like if I am to be a proper musiknörd I need to grow a beard.

Friday
Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros - Their hit Home was fantastic but the rest was what you can expect of a hippie band.
Christian Kjellvander - Great Pearl Jam voice but too slow for a festival.
Jenny Wilson - Less electronic since she brought along the Tensta Gospel Choir. But this was not so bad.
Janelle Monáe - The little girl with the big voice and a whole orchestra. Now we are getting somewhere. I am not much for soul/rnb normally but this put me in a better mood.
The Hives - Somehow I have never managed to see one of Sweden's best live bands live so I chose this over the clear indie choice of Explosions in the Sky. And Howling Pete and his attitude/stage talk was the clear winner. The day was getting better.
Fleet Foxes - And then the day was ruined again. Fan this was boring. Toakö and matkö instead during this hour of mellow mood music.
Robyn - Those in charge of the timetable should be shot because this took it up a notch again with a complete show of massive bass and video, so much that you wonder if it was all playback. But Robyn can sing. It seems the Swedes were saving this day.
Thåström - Videos of gears and machinery to emphasize just how tungt som fan this was. Brilliant.
Prince - By this point I was tired so I expected disappointment but instead got surprise. Prince is one of those artists I grew up with but never really had any opinion about...he was just there with hit after hit. So seeing him was a great memory test and the show itself was masterful. The two hours just disappeared and an otherwise tråkig festival day was saved at the last minute.

Saturday
I was tired so I hoped that the festival day would start better than Friday. It did.
Anna Järvinen - The Finn with the little voice gave a nice show in a style of music I generally like during Autumn/Winter. Good start.
Jayhawks - Fan. Country and gubbrock are two things I hate and this was both with an American accent. I wanted to rip my ears off.
Noah & the Whale - And then the festival was saved. Proper indie perfectly packaged for a festival with the right song order. Finally! GP gave this a 2 but they are idiots. This was the start of festival memories!
Säkert - Annika Norlin has always been a 'säkert kort' for her live voice and jokes between songs. And this was just a show of how much talent there is in värmlandska. The festival trajectory was going way up at this point.
Wiz Khalifa - Yo yo...I'm gonna f&uk your b#tch ho...this was silly. And the guy was a drug addiction poster. But my mood was still fine since I found some unusually yummy festival food.
Pulp - When they announced that Pulp would play I was decided. Britpop was when I was a teenager and while it was a reaction against shoegazer pop (my true love), Pulp somehow felt like more than Blur or Oasis. Jarvis Cocker and the rest are definitely getting old but the magic is there. So standing way closer than I normally stand I was swept away into some concert magic that I didn't think were possible in someone my age. And, yes, Common People was THAT good.
Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti - The name is as confused as them since they were playing every style at the same time in a single song. This could have worked but it didn't work at that point.
Tiesto - This was thumping away during Ariel. One DJ on a stage for over an hour served to turn all the kids into mad mental cases and I was ready to leave.
Kanye West - I stayed for the first two songs which were mostly stage show because he is not that strong a singer. But I could go to the ballet to see better dancing. The crowd was different and the place was full of police so I decided to leave. My second day was just fine so I could leave without feeling like I missed anything.

By now you have all completely studied the preliminary schedule for CX Cupen 2011/2012. But for those of you in a cave or for those few that don't get all giddy as as a schoolgirl when cross season approaches, here is a link to catch up.

Things I like are:
1. The start early October. The snow and ice half of last season was not terribly fun.
2. We can choose 9 instead of every race. Then I can chicken out in Jkpg and Lund again and it won't matter.
3. Ludvika and Söderköping are on the list. Of the ones I raced last year, these two had all the CX elements.
4. MCK is last in the cup. So we can fix the party!

Things I wonder about:
1. In Kolmården will we need to keep ahead of hungry animals? If so, I need more training.
2. Sunne is sort of close to Torsby...does that mean we race around the Skitunnel? How about a winter triathlon Sven?

What does everyone think of this? Is anyone planning to race the whole thing or will you pick and choose close ones? I have no life and no wife so I could do the whole thing if I had my bloody new car. I might have it for the last weekend.

I arrived at work today to see an email about Kanskecross tonight at 18.00 at Slottskogsvallen. Bit of a surprise there. So I showed up without bike for the usual 'snacka skit' bit of this sport. But it became boule-shit since they had taken over everywhere. I don't think Cross Patrik or CC Lasse really expected anyone to show up but I did and Sven was also there with a LVG.

The CX race schedule is coming very soon and apparently there are too many organizers and not enough weekends. So we can have some choice of where to go. But it sounds like everything starts the second week of October. Things are not really set for training days since it obviously conflicts with MTB and most weekends there are still other races. But I don't mind the extra training. I will have to ride to work and then head directly over which means an extra 28km of riding for free. I should be in super shape soon...

I was going to post this entry before but given the tragedy I decided the timing was wrong. Just a week before I was running around Oslo enjoying a really beautiful city that is perfect for us cyclists. And I still think it is worth a visit, particularly to Holmenkollen...the perfect site for a CX race.

You will recognize this from the skiing VM earlier this year. You know, the one where they named a hill after Hellner? This perfect facility is going to waste just sitting there in the summer. So why not do some cycling? Norwegians love MTB and the VM skiing course is one hell of a grusväg up and down so I can't think of a better place for some cycling.

This shot is from the base of the jump tower...Norway's #1 tourist attraction. So a CX race here would be guaranteed a bunch of bonus people just passing by. Having a race on a Sunday when the country is closed would even bring in all the hikers. Plus, all those bridges mean that there are no road crossings so it would be very easy to arrange.

I know I am dreaming but Holmenkollen would be superb for CX. So hopefully someone will Google Oslo sykkelcross cykelcross cyclocross Norway race superklass Mölndals CK ultimate CX club Göteborg etc etc etc and we can get the ball rolling. Google likes this site.

I guess I do usually hit my toppform in August because Friday's run still did not succeed in giving me any massive träningsvärk. But I still need to work on it so that I sprint the first 15 min and then see how I respond for the remaining 45 min of the hour.

What remains is my bad technique on the actual bike. I need some remount training and I may change the vevparti on the Ridley to a proper CX one instead of the compact 50/34 but really that is not going to make so much difference. Of course there is a risk that my arm/shoulder is not healed enough such that lifting my bike will be painful. Then I have a problem...

Finally after enough thought I just went ahead and took up Renault on their car squishy deal. So this is what I bought. It is a Clio with a cool blue/grey colour and 5d instead of the 3d in this pic. Since I wanted an automatic I got their 'Exception' level which essentially is loaded with every option you can get except navigation. So the LM-fälgar are included too. Nice nice. The engine is a 1.6L with a nice 112hp but not terribly good fuel efficiency but it will be fun anyway.

My first experience with a Clio was my halkbana training and it is a peppy little thing compared to the S40 I was training with at the driving school. So I am quite confident that this was a good choice. And the price is unbeatable with their 30000kr discount!

But now the bad news...I won't get it until December. The Japanese factory that sends them electronics for the car is in that earthquake zone so they haven't caught up yet. For my own finances this is good. And locking the interest rate now is also good considering the Americans and their effect on us. But that leaves me without a car for CX season. I can keep the one I have until delivery but it needs inspection at the end of September and I don't want to spend anything on it. And this is why I was reluctant to squish at all.

Lovely rainy weather this morning. Perhaps not the best for terrain. So I took my 'old classic' route instead with just the 5km yellow löpspår at Furulund and then the 2.5km up to it to round out the mil of death. I made things worse by starting right at the bottom in Sävedalen to take the full 1.5km of climbing and the expected massive stomach cramp when I finally did reach the top at the start of the 5km trail.

Most of the rolling hills after that were a display of grace and agility equal to that of a cow but things finally calmed down and I could start hill sprinting again just to push me back into the uncomfort zone. Then I had to run all the way down the hill and that was worse since my calves were screaming (sorry for the cow pun).

As a simulation of a cross race, I guess this could work. I need to really take the first hills at max and then just try and flop my way around the rest. It felt like I was heading in that direction today but I can do better.

I just found a tick on my leg and that bugger had to go immediately even if it involved a walk to the pharmacy to buy the tool. I have had far too much bad luck this year so the last thing I need is TBE.

Of course this is the main disadvantage with my chosen terrain running trail. There are a few spots which are swamp with long grass and my running in shorts makes it easier for bugs to jump over. So when I get home from work I will have to do a more serious inspection.

Welcome to August...month of bug hell.

Today I am actually not stiff so the body is responding well to the running. And a quick Eniro measurement tells me that my route is almost exactly 10km. Good good.

But to help push my car decision, last night I received the next insurance bill. Keep in mind that the dealers said my car is worth 5000kr. The latest quote to insure my prized possession is 4500kr/year and that is also with a självrisk of 4000kr. Where is the logic in that? So if the thing is totalled I might be able to use the insurance money to buy 1 tubdäck for my CX. What the hell???

Definitely in a squishing mood now...

Since I can't 'untake' holidays I was off yesterday anyway despite no Engelbrektsturen. But the blog world seems to be dissing this race a lot. Was it that bad?

Anyway, I thought I would make another attempt at this car situation. I have known of Renault's skrotbilspremie but I was treated like crap both times I was at Bilia in Sävedalen so I gave up on that idea. But Hedin Bil in Mölndal also has Renault and they are much nicer.

The deal is that they lower the price by 30000kr if you buy a new Renault and squish your old car which is more than 10 years old. Since mine is a fjortis, it fits the deal. But this deal is not without some complications so I need to think a couple of days.

The almost complete lack of träningsvärk from running on Saturday made me realize some changes were needed. First, backwards running. I don't mean actually running backwards but rather that I took my normal route in the reverse direction. Today was warmer, more humid and my muscles did have the faint sign of pain plus blisters on my feet but other than that it felt very much the same.

The advantage of starting with the Puketorp hill is that it gets those annoying road 1.5km out of the way first plus it could very well be used to induce some vomit feeling directly at the start. Training that would help my useless CX starts. The blue trail is the same in either direction but Bohusleden had steeper uphills in this direction. I had taken an extra part on the green/white trail but it got to the point where I was just in a groove without too much breathing and in that state I can continue forever. I ended up being out for 100 minutes since I added an extra lap of the running trail to make sure I was stiff this time. Each attack of the rolling hills left me more and more out of breath and then things were becoming effective.

So I think what I will do is continue in this backwards direction but shorten it to somewhere between 45-60 minutes, the length of a CX race. Next run I will time the route and that will mean PB. =) And hopefully I will continue to improve this over the month.

I could start the day by dissing Öijer for calling the Toyota Prius a car but instead I went running. The first 500m is always ego killing since it slopes up gradually and your muscles are cold. I could feel my rib directly but after some of those knee-lift and ass-kicking warmup tricks I felt fine and had reached the forest. Up to Furulund went smoothly and even on the hill of death I was thinking how it is easier to run up this hill than ride up. That was when I reached the steep section and changed my mind. The rolling hills for the next few km had those kött qualities Björn was writing about during his PB run. But training when you are essentially dead IS training with effect.

I turned right onto Bohusleden to get to the proper terrain and then my smile appeared. It is so soft on the knees and dodging all the rocks and roots means a complete workout of my muscles instead of the monotone thuds you get on the road. The km flew away here until I reached the little grusväg which leads over towards Oxled which naturally joined onto my 'favourite' blue trail leading to Puketorp.

I paused at the scene of my MTB accident and immediately felt like an idiot. Any other line would have been better at that stage so why I chose the biggest roots to hit is beyond me. I also know why this fall caused a lot of damage...I did land on roots. Landing in dirt does not hurt like this did.

So this was well over 10km of joy and certainly 3 days of paralysis.

Now that cross weather has temporarily left us, Chris Cross has been finding other ways to be cross. My car search feels like those Top Gear challenges where if I don't find anything I will be forced to take the undiserable option of wasting money fixing my Colt or have nothing at all.

I went to check Toyota Center in Mölndal and was thoroughly disappointed. I have always had a Toyota aversion and I do now more than ever. They had one Aygo+ which I will admit was larger than I expected. But to pay 90G for something that has gone 8000 mil is silly. Then there were two Auris or should I say Arse because you would have to be one to buy either of these examples. 130G for something scratched and abused with completely bald tires on steel rims. Come on. I would need to spend like at least 6000kr to get any of these 3 in shape. And the two Yaris? They were sold already which means they would have been good.

While I was there I walked over to US Center and Gbg Begagnat and found they also sold Fiat. For essentially the same price as the Aygo, I still say the Fiat 500 is a thousand times better. In the used section it was just laughable. There was a Renault Scenic which was a good price but when I opened the door it made two very loud clunking sounds...piece of shit. Naturally they had just sold the 3 cars I went there to look at.

The only way around this may be to start driving stick again. You have no clue about my experience with a crap driving school Volvo S40 which stalled in every busy intersection in Sthlm. I could just not get the feel for that car. Okay, fine, when I drove a smaller Peugeot it was better and the VW Passat I rented once was sweet. But now I have been driving automatic for 5 years.

Maybe I should think of the fact that I sat in the perfect car today for all my criteria except automatic...the Alfa Romeo Mito is stunning!

Maybe it is the mild weather with the clouds? Or maybe it is my sudden rest from MTB due to my arm? But it feels like there is cross in the air now.

So I had a look around and found that Sthlm Cyclo Cross will happen again this year...October 29th in Kungsan. That is excellent news, of course. I also read on Björn's page that a new CX Cupen website is on the way so we will just have to try and be patient to see what the CX group has fixed for us this year. Will Falun move the race to the centre like they were mentioning last year? Will Söderköping continue the winning concept of having the slowest possible track ever? And will we get to avoid snow this time? Can't wait to find out.

But in the nearest future I will try and run just to see if my ribs are injured. It feels much better now and the bruises are fading. I thought that maybe while I am concentrating on being a motionär I could do typical motionär things like Lidingöloppet. Running is rather perfect to prepare for CX season...even if I do hate it.

The last couple of weeks there have been so many times where I needed a car that I think it is time to just buy one. Debt? Who cares anymore. A fresh look at Bytbil tells me that there are a whole pile of Toyota automatics floating around which were not there a few weeks ago. They are naturally all some type of silver but I think I need to drop that criteria.

There are 3 Aygos in more exciting colours and I think I should have a test drive and see. But I think a better choice is a Yaris to solve the bike issue. A price of 120000kr for a 2006 tells me that it keeps value long enough for me to trade it in on something else in a couple of years.

Oh, and there are so many Prius that one wonders why they bothered. I don't have a plug so it is useless to me and it is the same engine in the Yaris but twice the size. No logic there. Still, one has to be impressed by the 1.33L engine they stuff in their iQ gokart...fan that thing must fly! Too bad it isn't even big enough to hold my bike wheels.

There has not been so much to write about these last few days. My arm bruise is quite horrific today since it is healed and clear where I had the scrapes but is surrounded by a dark red mess of colours. Not nice. But the worst part is the rib pain. Unfortunately now it feels like something is cracked.

But that is fine since I start work again tomorrow and my chair there has wheels so I don't need to get up all day.

I have done a lot of thinking about this car issue and the last couple of days I have checked out my financial situation. Just this month is hopeless and next also so there is no sense in getting all upset about it. Actually getting to Ränneslättsturen was something I have tried for 3 years before and this year I finally did it AND finished it. I would have been in fine shape for the other 3 marathons I had planned but shit happens, so what.

I will still make things work for cross season even if I have to do weekend car rentals or become good friends with an MCKare that has a big car. It will work out. And then I will be in better shape financially, plus I can see what 2012 has to offer for cars if I wait until September.

I know I promised lots of gore today but my arm just looks a bit scraped now. No multi-coloured scary bruise. Just a dark ring and the scrape marks. So there is not much point in photography for this small an injury.

And I can also localize the 'rib' pain better and it is actually on my side directly under my bicep. If I breathe very deeply I feel a bit sore but this is nowhere near as bad as when I actually cracked a rib. So things are just fine. One fall should not kill me. Even a spectacular one.

Just thought I would update you on my latest injury. My bicep is turning many different shades now so by morning it should be a horror show. Of course I will take a picture and post it here. =)

The bad news is that obviously I did land on something else since one of my ribs is also sore. Crap. I know all about cracking ribs from 2009. This may be a very tough week. More details tomorrow...

The idea was spontaneous and would have been good if I had followed it. The forecast looks horrible and my bike was too dirty for the 'bucket on balcony' method of cleaning so the plan was a simple rullpass over to Skatås to use their hose. Pure återhämtning. But for a rullpass why was I still pedalling at normal speed??? Especially since my left knee seemed to be protesting loudly to this rude idea so early on a Sunday morning.

And one can really ask why I decided that a quick trip along my blue trail in Puketorp would also be a good form of återhämtning after a pass yesterday which involved basically no singletrack at all. But it is fun. Well, it was fun. I did manage a rocky downhill this time so I was proud of my super technical skills. When I came to this seriously nasty root section which Sid had taken me through flawlessly every time before, my confidence came back to get me. Yes, a classic 'stuck between two roots' case. And suddenly I was flying over the handlebars.

In this situation one has no time to ponder about landing. You just land. And I can deem several body parts more appropriate for me to land on. For example, my head is well protected. Or my stomach and hands are a pretty practical place also. But noooo...I had to land directly on my right bicep in the same freakin' spot I landed on while skiing.

The scrapes at least provide some marking of where I landed and are probably just a surface thing but underneath fcuking hurts. I do not really think my arm has ever healed and this will set me back again. But perhaps this time I can convince the stupid vårdcentral that I did fall and that they should x-ray me and send me to a doctor that is going to treat it instead of give me painkillers.

But to be positive, my bike is clean and I did pass a motionär on a little hill in a rather ego-crushing way. =)