I realize that most of you out there would never dream of considering anything but tubulars for your cyclocross. And I also understand the benefits of tubulars and know the feeling of when things float along nicely. But Continental just released the CrossXKing tires which are the cyclocross version of the MTB tires that changed my life. On my MTB those things work in every condition and I was flying along effortlessly. Those tires have saved me many minutes in long races. So obviously I had to try the cross version.

The numbers look pretty good. Their RaceSport version is race-legal 32 mm and 3 pli/180tpi is certainly comparable to the Vittorias and Tufos I have tried before. But their suggestion of 3 bar will probably turn off most of you immediately.

After the sliding incidents back in the 2010/2011 season I chose to get a very serious mud tire and use it all the time. The name CX Pro was obviously just a name because these had the steel wire to keep them in shape and treads the size of BMX tires. The grip was amazing even if it felt like 2kg on each wheel. But that was the snow season when organizers made every track into MTB so I needed grip. I threw on the CrossXKings on the only other clincher wheelset I have, the very non-cross Shimano RS20s. But still it was guaranteed to feel better than the bomb-proof rims from my old Merida and the 2kg tires.

Better? Oh yes. Having ridden yesterday with the old tires and today with the new I can definitely feel the difference. And I also know that they have least grip at first and just get better after a few weeks of use. The best thing is that they have a nice line of treads right on the edge of the tire and for the first time ever I was able to lean way down in the corners without any sign of slipping. The wet grass was also quite positive. I could constantly sustain my pedalling 2-3 gears lower than yesterday with the old tires. This was exactly the same improvement as when I first tried my Tufo Prestige tubulars.

But we will have to wait until Wednesday and the 'real-world' testing at Slottsskogsvallen...