I suppose many of you are wondering what my excuse was this time for missing practice. And probably there is some speculation about secret plans and special training in preparation for Branäs. And that is kind of true.

Sooner or later those of us lost to CX start to realize that a race weekend requires two bikes because if you trash the bike the first day you are left watching on the Sunday. I started with my Merida Cross 4 which I bought at CykelCity Sthlm quite a few years back and this was enough to get me hooked on the sport. But I soon realized that to fit in here in Gbg one had to have a Ridley and building my X-Ride was the start of a new era of cycling experiences. The point of this story is that tonight I had to get both bikes in race shape.

This is the first time I have ridden both back to back and what an incredible difference. The Merida felt like it was 20kg and was slow starting and had a geometry that was all wrong. Maybe this is what a 29er would feel like for me? But after a few minutes it felt okay and things were in top shape so it was time to switch. Yes, I made the right choice indeed. Ridley X-Ride is da shit. The difference was absolutely incredible! And the good news is I fixed my bottom bracket noise so now it is race ready.

The moral of this story is that I need another Ridley X-Ride and when I do get one my Merida Cross 4 will be retired to being a commuter bike...