When you’re not looking for one, sometimes a great bike just finds you. I must’ve been aimlessly browsing through the new posts in the “bikes” section on the local seller’s website, and saw this beauty. After figuring out that 1) I liked the Bianchi Sprint 76 too much to use it as a city commuter, 2) the single-speed State Bicycle Co that I brought from the US was not really so much fun to ride, and 3) not only do I loathe locking up the Amp Research B4 anywhere other than at home, but taking it to France to give her a proper mountain to ride on is a much better idea, the idea of yet another bike started to make some sense. In this case, a hardtail mountain bike would fit the bill perfectly, preferably something to which I wasn’t so emotionally attached.

Well, I might not be able to maintain emotional detachment. The more I ride this one, the more I like it.

The perfect bike to blast around the city centre: light, nimble, sure-footed. Some new cables, chain  & cassette, and it’s like new, a really clean bike. The GripShift SRT-400 shifters aren’t great, so those may be upgrade at some point in the future. I like GripShift, but these are just a bit sloppy. Otherwise, I don’t mind getting it wet, jumping curbs, or leaving it locked to a street sign – the perfect city bike.