This week’s Readers’ Rides comes from Theo and his custom finished Cannondale CAADX ‘cross bike. Read on below for Theo’s words and photos…

Here are a few shots of my custom painted Cannondale CAADX, thought you might like to see it.

I picked the bike up stock a while ago and always had a plan to repaint it and rebuild it but the idea for the paint job only came when a friend offered me the Wound Up fork cheap. With that fork out front, I knew it had to be painted as an homage to my favorite frame of all time, a ’95 Cannondale Track in polished. It’s a bit like the blue SuperSix Track ORNOT you featured a few years ago.

The build is Thomson stem and post (of course), Salsa bars (now swapped to some less flared Ritchey’s), and Fabric tape and saddle. Shifting comes from a Shimano GRX RX800 rear mech and some Ultegra R8000 levers. Wheels are hand-built goodness from Noble Wheels (DT Swiss to Bitex via CX Rays). I currently have a Radavist x 44rn chainring wanting to go on it but need a crankset for that one.

It gets interesting with the brakes as the frame is a few years old and is post mount. Helpfully all Shimano’s road disc brakes are flat mount so the guys over at Seabass Cycles (check them out if you haven’t before) gave fitting some XT M8100 calipers a go and it works, like really really well.

I love this bike, had a wicked CX season on it this year and I’m enjoying taking it off road this summer, getting ready to get dirty again when racing comes back to the UK.

We’d like to thank all of you who have submitted Readers Rides builds to be shared over here. The response has been incredible and we have so many to share over the next few months. Feel free to submit your bike, listing details, components, and other information. You can also include a portrait of yourself with your bike and your Instagram account! Please, shoot landscape-orientation photos, not portrait. Thanks!