Thanks so much for your response - It's good to hear that the tricross does what I thought it did! And thanks for the extra comment about the tyres. If you can bear to put fingers to keys again, could you tell me whether you ride the 25 gatorskins on stonyish 'green lanes' or just keep to tarmac?
I reckon you've been having far grimmer weather down your way than I have, here on the coast of Northumberland... we're due some sunnier times, but I'm not holding my breath!