diff --git a/utils/check_repos.sh b/utils/check_repos.sh
index 9863c134..c7bf1b4c 100755
--- a/utils/check_repos.sh
+++ b/utils/check_repos.sh
@@ -19,12 +19,12 @@ check_repo () {
 }
 
 fetch_updates () {
+  cd $1
   if test ! "`find .git/FETCH_HEAD -mmin +$PERIOD`"; then
     return
   fi
   umask 002
   echo "fetching $1"
-  cd $1
   git fetch origin > /dev/null
 }