Ready 4 Girona

What I had in mind for August got changed, now I’m going to Girona instead. 5 days of vacation hopefully with great people, awesome roads and good coffee.

Fixed my bike yesterday with new 28mm Specialized Turbo Cotton tires and a new white Fizik 2mm superlight bar tape (the best) so now it’s beautiful and ready to see the sun.

If you are in Girona, Spain and want to ride with me Monday-Thursday, write a comment. So far no plans than enjoying. On my dreambike, let’s see how good it is on real roads in some heat 🙂

Trick or Gravel

Selfiegame went strong on todays ride. 3-4h gravel for everyone from Le Mond was announced. Started like this:

Then we hit the gravel with smiles like if it was dry and the spring came

Awesome weather and with some fast and some slower sections, sometimes we had to get off or just wait for friends:

We also rode into the mist before coming to the gunfire with big guns.

mostly riding nice gravelroads in the sun:

Turning around before Häringe slott back to Stockholm, got up some speed to Västerhaninge and then it all went into pieces. People started to long home and the group got split into 3 groups riding and 1 group taking the train. I rode with David who got to see a very tired and low on energy Jonas. Had to take a gel with less than 5km to go to Le Mond as I couldn’t ride straight…

But all in all an amazing day. Feels in my heart and my legs. My bike managed it all great even with me getting it all dirty

Thanks to Emile for pictures and to all who joined for a great Saturday ride 😀

Map and stats: Strava

SCS adventure

Stockholm is surrounded of gravelroads, some of them are surrounded by Stockholm. Christer and Johnny found some new roads, shared with Magnus who fixed Johan as a Garminguide for todays ride. Me and Viktor joined and helping making it an adventure:

Everyone had the best bikes and smiled more than the hills where steep 😉

My Diverge tackled every obstacle better than its rider too 😉

Not every day I got use of 44-42 but that’s the good thing with it and new roads, ready for everything 🙂

Map and stats if you want to do the same awesome ride: Strava

Le Peloton #170

”The biggest influence in enjoying your ride, or not, is your state of mind. Some days you can’t wait to fight the elements, other days you just want to hide under your duvet. We all know how it works.” – I R I S

Got that in an e-mail today and it felt so perfect to describe this morning.

It was wet, was raining a little from the side and my motivation floated away on a leaf. I had a plan of riding easy with Emil and after going full gas up the first climb he waited for me and we rode together more or less to Erstaviksvägen. Stopped for fixing our handlebars and I decided to once again go for the shorter loop, Emil went on with the full loop.

It was such a day I wanted to ride in one way but my mind didn’t. I may not be overwhelmed by the result but it hopefully made my mind a little stronger going out and I would have regret if I didn’t go. I hope for a dry ride next one 😉

Map and stats: Strava

Then we had breakfast and all mistakes was gone 😉 And I did something strange while Kalle took a picture of us and a bottle of parts:

Specialized S-Works Diverge a.ka. Divergett

2 years ago when I sold my Crux and got a Diverge Comp Carbon I felt like I found right. Last year I heard rumors they would come with a new Diverge and as it felt a bit boring to get the exact same bike 2 years in a row I changed to a Sequoia. Bigger tires was a lot of fun but I was missing the roadbike feel of a Diverge.

When they released the new Diverge I knew I had to have one. When I read about it I felt even more that I had to get it. And thanks to Specialized Nordics I got the only (?) S-Works frame in size 52 that is coming to Sweden. Thanks to Specialized Concept Store Stockholm it ended in a top of a line bike that felt awesome from the first pedal stroke:

Specialized S-Works Diverge size 52 frameset

Specialized S-Works SL seatpost

Specialized S-Works Toupe saddle

Specialized S-Works Shallow handlebar

Specialized Trigger 38mm tires

Specialized S-Wrap Cork bar tape (will be changed)

Sram Red Etap HRD levers/brakes with 140mm rotors

Sram Red Etap Wifli rear derailleur with a Wold Tooth Roadlink

Sram XG-1195 10-42 cassette

Sram Red Quarq 170mm BB386 crankset with Ceramic Speed bearings and a 44t Garbaruk chainring

Sram Red22 chain

Challenge latex tubes

Fizik Cyrano R1 110mm -20° stem

Roval CLX32 disc wheels with Enduro Zero Ceramic bearings

Time Xpresso 12 pedals

The Futureshock may look a bit odd but it feels really nice. And the bike in total feels really awesome! Will vary with wheels as I got a set of cheap tubulars too for road mostly. And will probably change for a 3T Bailout cassette when it is released. And am waiting for my Berk saddlecombo from the mtb to come back from repair to have the possibility to save even more weight.

But as it is now it feels really really good. Road it on gravel yesterday and it’s just what I wanted and dreamt about. Can really recommend it to everyone wanting a fast gravelbike suitable for every terrain (except terrain) 🙂

And as everyone asked, the totalt weight as on the picture but with the right cassette which I changed for today: 7,72kg

Le Peloton #169

Last Peloton I did was the 26th July, a long time ago so going back today felt new ;).

I was dark, I knew almost everyone and we had lights and knobby tires. Feels like really long time ago. Last time like this was in the spring on a Specialized Sequoia. Now on a new bike never been in the beautiful forest before. A dreambike worth waiting for.

Sometimes the wait is almost better then when you actually getting the bike/thing you wait for, then it feels like it’s all over and you start thinking of something new. Something ”better”. When I finished my Diverge yesterday (more about it in a blogpost soon) and rode home in regular clothes it felt like home.

I wanted a new Diverge last autumn but it never came. Now when it came I got an S-Works thanks Specialized Nordic and Specialized Concept Store Stockholm. It’s built with so much perfection I got a bit depressed not getting the best bartape in time…

To have such a masterpiece and be able to push full speed at a Le Peloton CX is a special thing. 38mm tires, bad legs and out off shape made it different compared to last time.

Started in front, let Magnus pass before the gravel started and in the first climb at Lilla Sickla a lot of people passed me, I didn’t want to blow everything in the first climb. I pushed on as hard as I could and it felt hard, with a high heart rate but working legs and body. In a climb after the 3rd bridge Johan passed me, he haven’t been passing me in over 2 years… In the longer not so steep climb I tried the speed on my Diverge and flew by Johan like a rocket :p Blew up with a peak heart rate at 191 but it was fun. Then we had to stop and step over a big tree laying over the road and while having trouble clicking in my roadpedals Johan passed me and disappeared. I was alone again but pushed on good. Decided to take the shortest loop and sat a PR on a Strava section chasing Stuart who was in front of me but never caught him.

The futureshock did an amazing job down back to Äventyrsbanan and in some way I was smiling.

Passed the finish and rolled a bit easier to Le Mond for breakfast. I wasn’t so fast, I was suffering as much as I think this was the hardest Le Peloton this year according to suffer score 😉 But I’ve been longing so much for this. Push to my limit on a bike working just as I want it to work and feeling light. Even not being able to eat breakfast properly because of lactate acid in all of my body I was happy, this was a big win for me 😀

198 Watts and 174 in average heart rate on the Le Peloton CX shortest loop today. Extra fun with a Quarq tracking my progress with my left leg too. Not 50/50 yet but could have been worse. Map and stats: Strava

UCIWWT Ronde van Drenthe

Great racing yesterday. If you missed it there are some highlights here:

Giant TCR Advanced SL Disc

Specialized Tarmac is getting more competition and the development goes forward, love the that the disc brake options is getting more and more 🙂

Discs are for racing, not just ”boring” endurancebikes. Formula 1 cars got super brakes, same is should be for for racebikes.

I like the look of TCR too, a nice frame I noticed when I worked for Team Joker.

This bike gets Flat Mount for discbrakes making it tight and nice. 12x100mm axle in front, 12x142mm axle rear but with short chainstays like before. We’ll see how it works with healclearance… Then standard small Pressfit bottom bracket and Giant’s Overdrive 2 stem/steerer tube.

It comes with Tubeless wheels and tires which is supposed to be fastest on road.

Sram etap with hydraulic brakes

Finally they show it. Some have used it since February but now it’s out. Sram HydroHC

More adjustable and sleeker for smaller hands compared to the regular Sram hydraulic levers. Available in October

Strade Bianche

The Spring Classic I really want to ride. So beautiful and always great racing. Stybar isn’t perfect as he couldn’t repeat his last years victory but ended 2nd after Cancellara.

One that seems perfect is Lizzie Armitstead, check the highlights from the race yesterday:

But she isn’t perfect either, she needs to learn by Tony Martin how a proper cycling cap looks like and how to wear on the podium. But awesome racing 🙂