The Brake thing- Kpicha, it's all brakes. It's about the difference between some bozo working in a bike shop and a bike mechanic who's a true citizen of The Bicycle Nation. You can have all the spiffiest parts in the world but you need somebody with the magic touch to really bring out the bikes potential. You can develop it, it's a practice and experience thing. But once you have the bike whisperer work over your ride your expectations and understanding will rise because you know what's possible. Same game with derailleur tuning. You just get spoiled and want it that way all the time.
And yeah, SRAM is awesome stuff. I have a new drivetrain that defines the term "like butter". Sweet.

missliz