4 Reasons People REALLY Don't Like Gravel Bikes
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 21 มี.ค. 2021
- I get comments everyday of people who hate gravel bikes. This is why.
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I'm a polycyclist. Road, gravel, mountain, touring, recumbent. Even cargo bikes or ebikes! Just love them all. Life is too short to be a purist.
N+1, and drifting cargo bikes on mtb trails is amazing.
YEESSS!!
Agreed, but it seems kind of weird to me to have all these different distinctions, a gravel bike vs cyclocross vs touring vs cross country... Why not just mix and match the parts for the kind of riding you like to do rather than have some kind of specialty bike that has to conform to whatever the definition of that specialty is?
You just can’t commit. I’ll bet you’re not married either! Poor SOB!
Just kidding. Couldn’t help it. Forgive my cheekiness. 😁
Damn Jeff. I don't know you but the world needs more people like you. :D Every time I see someone commenting on how bad fixies/aero bikes/E-MTB (insert random bike family here) are, I always think to myself: Why comment if you don't like it? Just ride what you love and get on with your life.
Ride the bike you have. Love the bike you ride. Ride slow or fast. Have fun.
But don't hesitate to modify it. Make it truly yours.
Totally, I’m so done with trolls complaining about anything....haters on gravel....go over to another channel and they hating on MTB....find another and they hay roadies....I love any bike I’m on when I’m riding it....
I agree. Cycling is good for health, good for the environment and in comparison with cars, cheap. Just get on with life. There are more important things to worry about!
Just ride. Like when you were a kid. Enjoy.
BB " Bottom Bracket" King ?
Most roads are gravel roads!
In a lot of cases the authorities glue the gravel together with tar.
That is the most creative response yet.
True that. If I were buying my first bike today, I’d probably buy a gravel bike. For now, my 8 year old Trek DS 8.4 works fine for the type of riding I do.
outside North America and Europe its fairly true almost literally most roads out of town are packed dirt.
@@logtothebase2 Yeah, I should've started with "Where I live"
Many of the UK country lanes I cycle on are more gravel than tarmac. I would be reluctant to take a road bike out on them. I ride a light CX bike (Lynskey Cooper) rather than a gravel bike as it gives me a more aggressive riding position.
Gravel bikes *are* just 80s MTBs (with newer tech) - and that's a GOOD thing. People loved 80s MTBs. They sold in huge numbers and most people used them exactly the way we use gravel bikes today - a sporty bike that didn't mandate lycra and snobbery. Then racing came and the bike industry dropped the needs of real people like a hot rock. Gravel has, in many ways, been a populist journey back to MTB's roots.
Right, Industry doesnt look and hear the need of normal people, they hear the whines of racers and racers wannabe
Will the UCI mandate tire and wheel size for gravel racing or just sock height?
Not a gravel bike fan, but agree with the above. The snobbery of roadies is disgusting. Seems like half of the roadie goal is to look like a pro racer and look down on anyone who doesn't have super expensive clothing and kit. For the most part, this doesn't exist in mtb, except for dentists.
Also...
Looking at the intro video we have a gravel bike with those narrow ass road bars and nearly locked arms. Looks like a recipe for a crash. Put some wide bars on it and suddenly you have a more stable steering platform. on a loose surface. Along with not mountain bike forks (still can't figure this one out) and mild knobby tires, and all of a sudden you have a hard tail mtb....
I have a 80's something nishiki saga, it's like a gravel bike with 26"x2.00 inch tires, drop bars, came with bar end shifters that I changed to brifters. Basically it's exactly what you're talking about.
It doesn't matter what roadies or anyone else 'think'. Many are just posers and the 'suckers born every minute' that marketeers depend upon.
I don't care who passes me.
Get comfortable and enjoy the time you spend on your bike. Whatever THAT is, THAT Is what's important.
Most "road" bikes aren't "road" bikes, they are "road RACE" bikes. Most of the people I see riding them are not racing. Nor will they ever race. I bought a gravel bike because of it's versitility, not it's resemblance to what a pro racer rides.
i guess it is kinda off topic but does anyone know a good site to stream newly released tv shows online ?
@Brooks Salvador Flixportal :)
@Clayton Eden thank you, I went there and it seems like a nice service :D I really appreciate it!
@Brooks Salvador you are welcome :D
i recently got a triban 100rc, and it doesnt really look like a race bike, its less expensive and good for a budget bike, so i dont think most road bikes are racing bikes, it depends, some road bikes are just built with racing in mind.
I think “gravel” bikes are a long time coming and fill a niche where most people actually ride which is rail trails, dirt/gravel roads, tarmac..... not everyone is a mountain biker or a roadie, most people ride a little bit of everything. I come from a mtb back ground and used my mtb hardtail before my gravel bikes. I ride so much more and enjoy all styles of riding thanks to the “gravel bike”, I don’t care what you call it but I love it.
Same here! And I still bring my MTB to a gravel ride if I know there's going to be a lot of deep sand or endlessly rutty miles that will beat me up.
In my area, there's almost no point A to point B path that doesn't involve moving off the paved road and into other things... The road bike is useful if you never leave downtown... but you need something beefier for anyplace else.
People put drop bars on mountain bikes almost as soon as they were invented. I have a magazine cover from the early 1980s with an MTB racer on drops. Those mountain bikes did not resemble the behemoths MTBs later became, they had skinny cro-mo tubes and relaxed road bike geometry. They were in all ways that matter, "gravel bikes". There's nothing new under the sun.
I used to put more relaxed tires on an xc mountainbike and is kind of the same...I guess there are different ways of achieving this multi-surface bike feeling... all amazing at end :D
@@gabriele223 I do the opposite - I have thicker tires (Paselas) and some low-end 80s ATB-era bullmoose bars on an old ten speed road bike. It handles actual gravel acceptably and is really nice for going over grassy, rocky, silty, root-ridden landscaped "between road" zones. I have a plan to upgrade it from 27"x1-1/4" wheels to 29er x 50mm, which by my measurements should fit. Just requires finding a wheelset with a narrower front hub, freewheel rear and rim brake surface for not too much...
"Gravel bike" is a category that hasn't been ruined by the UCI yet.
uci?
Only a matter of time. USAC was trying hard to get their fingers in the pie before the pandemic put everything on pause.
They're about to. UCI already has plans for the next year or two to start a sanctioned gravel race.
No rules, that's why I love it
let's keep it this way too!
Bikes are to be enjoyed,don’t get caught up in “names “
Exactly.
Hopefully, relatively round wheels all roll just fine. Its the RIDER, not the bike.
A bicycle is an inanimate object. It goes nowhere without the rider motivating it.
Hard to argue with this!
Sold my road bike and mtb, and bought a gravel bike - I've never had so much fun on a bike and I'm in love with cycling again
totally agreed. Bought recently road bike , rode for 2 weeks and then bought gravel. Now I’m selling my road , bs gravel gives so much fun and decent speed . Before I was hardcore fixie guy for 3 years, but skids destroyed my knees and now I just enjoy my commuting . Cheers
Gravel bikes are among the most versatile bike someone who's into riding longer distances and with drop bars can get. There's some marketing bullshit to go along with it but every cycling discipline has that. I love that my 650b gravel bike can handle gravel, touring, and pretty fast road rides comfortably, and carry what I need. When I was younger I chased that versatility with a cyclocross race bike but it was not as fun.
it is exceptional to spend an entire day on the bike and not be constantly buzzed by cars. but also to be out on something safe enough to do alone.
Giant pickups are the worst ones.
Low traffic is ones of my favorite things about gravel riding. Watch out, gravel cars are the next thing.
my Diverge quite literally changed my life for the better.
Me too !
The People's Bike is the way. I don't get why folks need to hate on bikes that are more comfortable for the any-day ride without cutting deep into performance. It's a welcoming genre to everyone who was scared that the skinny saddle is gonna hurt.
I've never seen it. This is like complaining why don't people like puppies.
Im sitting here with a broken knee because I motorcycle hit me while riding back from the supermarket. Whenever I ride mu gravel bike on the local dirt roads I don’t have to worry about cars or motorcycles, love gravel bikes.
Exactly! Vehicles are rare, And when we see them, they're not in a hurry, and they are very friendly and considerate compared to motorists on the paved roads. Hope you heal up quick and can get back to gravel riding again soon.
Lots of motorists are distracted and ignorant of the fact that they operate 2 ton death machines.
I'd rather stop to look at and smell wildflowers, rather than breathe exhaust, dodge potholes, debris and be reminded of the pigs that use and abuse public roads.
My second year of mountain bike racing, I was trying to keep up with one of the top experts going up a hill, and he finally managed to pull away from me at the top of the hill. As he was about 50 ft in front of me, a motocross rider came flying out of the woods and barely missed the guy I was chasing. If I had been on his wheel, that motorcycle would have taken my head off. The motorcycle guy was like, “where did these mountain bikers come from?” I’m sure he was used to having the area to himself. Even in the middle of nowhere, the motorcycles can still find you! This was in Alaska BTW.
drivers suck they really think they own the road and youre a nuisance just in they're way smh
Buy a velomobile
I think the '80s mtb. comparison comes up so often because '80s mountain biking was very similar to today's gravel/CX riding. Today's mountain biking has evolved into something very different to keep up with the evolving technology. I just wish I had gravel to ride on.
EDIT: Sorry I meant 'gravel/*XC* riding'.
I raced XC in the early to mid 90s, and it was definitely more than just “gravel” biking. We may not have been able to bomb down the rocky trails they do now, that doesn’t mean that we didn’t ride technical, difficult trails or bomb descents.
@@keirfarnum6811 that's why I said similar. Sounds amazing.
@@keirfarnum6811 I think part of the problem is that there isn't a clear definition of what a "gravel ride" looks like - I think some would say the 90s XC riding you did *is* the same their "gravel" riding. To Russ's point around 4:44 - 5:30, some "gravel" events do involve techy singletrack, while others are more of the "unpaved road ride" that you might be thinking of.
@@chrislukes9037 and the gravel that most people ride vs what's in events is different too. There's gravel biking on dirt fire roads and such that are basically railroad ballast, and then there's riding on rail trails that vary from nice stone chip, to pavement so rough that it's even worse than most gravel, to trails that are getting old now, and the stone chip has brushed to the sides and pushed down into the dirt enough that they're mostly wet sand now. But then you get road sections thrown in too sometimes. You really need to find a good balance point in there somewhere, and find a middle ground that works well for your local trails. And everyone's local trails being so different, plus everyone's riding styles being different, means that everyone needs to build and spec a bike to their own custom likes.
Personally, I like my flat bars, and love my new bullhorns that I just added. And there's enough potholes and such that I needed a suspension fork. (Not much of one bc my bike is a 1" threaded headset and good luck finding something better than Walmart spec for that. But it serves me just fine.) And I ride 26x1.95 low rolling resistance Kenda Komfort tires because that is what's good for riding distance. But other gravel riders need their drop bars, beefy tires, and lightweight rigid forks. All depends on what you as a rider like and like to do.
I'm a big fan of the "all-road bike" nomenclature as it more accurately describes where people tend to ride them. In the end, more butts on bikes is a good thing, no matter what the surface is. :)
For almost 2 decades I rode my cyclocross bike everywhere, now I ride a gravel bike with even chunkier tires. I just love the ability to go anywhere and explore.
I almost died on a gravel bike. Gravel bikes kick ass.
I agree with Jann, call it "all road riding" and everyone has the FREEDOM to ride what they want where they want. I sold my Trek Madone last year to a Mtb. guy who is now riding with his roadie friends. I then bought a Trek Checkpoint and absolutely love the versatility. I will never go back to 25mm tires. Long live all road bikes.
Love the Checkpoint too. Never going back to a road bike. Hell, even in the city it's a better bike because you don't feel every damn pothole in your wrists and butt.
Any bike can be ridden on dirt. Ive been riding trail on road bikes with fat sew ups before MTBs were ever invented.
But I agree, pinner tires are pretty stupid for the vast majority of bicycle users.
Ignore marketing BS. THINK for yourself.
@Timotei of Bollow We just wanted to explore. We rode all over the Santa Cruz mountains and found it difficult to pass a dirt road or a trailhead. Getting lost was fun. In the '70s there weren't too many people using trails. Our encounters with hikers and equestrians were very rare, but they all looked at us like we were aliens from another planet. I always thought it was pretty funny, but it didn't take long to figure out these lots of these people didn't want to share. Sadly, it eventually got confrontational. It landed up taking over 20 years and lots of hard work for MTBers to gain respect as trail users.
"Gravel bikes are the best thing to happen to road bikes since road bikes"
~ BikeBikeYYC Proverb
Amen my friend. I got all these types of comments in my latest video.
Welcome to my daily pain for the last 4 years :)
These must be first world problems, yes?
@@markg7834 That’s a Big 10-4 good buddy!
I really can’t imagine being critical of your videos, I have learned so much watching your channel and have watched many more than one time!
In the 60s when all of us were cruising gravel rivers city streets on stingrays
All we knew was they were bikes
Gravel Stingrays ? Road stingrays ?
Maybe hybrids
Great video, as always. You make great points that can be shared with our road and MTB friends at coffee after we ride when they start asking questions. I love your philosophy. Party pace and just getting out there and enjoying the riding, and no elitism or bike snobbery here. You just give lots of great information. We have people riding road bikes and MTB's, as well as gravel bikes on our group gravel rides. As a local ride leader in our cycling club, I'm trying to gently turn people on to gravel riding as a much more fun and safe alternative to road cycling, and to some extent, even to riding the technical MTB trails...
And I'm trying to turn people on to your great website and TH-cam channel!
I can’t afford to buy every style and emphasis of bicycle out there. I really enjoy your channel , seeing the difference in geometry, tires, gearing, and style. I love my recumbent touring bike and I really enjoy my road bike too, getting so many good vibes with every time I ride. Keep up the great videos!
We get this silliness over the pond too. One of our favourites is
"there's no gravel in England".
Well, leaving aside the 1.7 million acres of Forestry Commission land, this line is often trotted out by mountain bikers. The tallest hill in England is less than a thousand metres. How many mtb's ever see a mountajn?
Not to mention hundreds of miles of old railway track beds. Thank you Dr Beeching!!🤔
I come from more of a mountain biking background, and I love gravel riding and gravel bikes. I never understood the hate from the mtb community. Single track on a drop bar gravel bike is something any mountain biker should appreciate.
In the UK the sentiment used to be "it's all rideable", the question was how quickly you got off and pushed. The sweet spot is a bike that rolls on mixed surfaces, carries food and keeps your backside dry. If it avoids shaking you and itself to pieces, and doesn't feels like you're pushing a steam roller on tarmac, you have a winner, whatever name you give it.
Gravel bikes just don’t make much sense for actual gravel roads though. The first time you hit washboard, you’ll be jonesing for your suspension forks. Mountain bikes make more sense as an all around bike. You can do everything with a mountain bike whereas a gravel bike is much more limited. It doesn’t ride off road well, nor does it ride the road very well.
@@keirfarnum6811 Agreed. My only MTB is a 26" hardtail. Shod with 1.75 mixed tyres it'll take on most things. For serious off road I fit knobblies. Most of the time I ride trad steel "club" bikes, with 32-35mm tyres, 'guards and a Carradice. They handle a few hours of hard pack railway or forest trail, and roll sweetly on tarmac.
Very few people "hate" gravel bikes. They might hate the hype and lifestyle nonsense, but it's just a bike. People will find a use for one or not, as their enthusiasm dictates.
I’ve got a specialized rockhopper from the early 90s... If I was to attach a Dropdown handlebar it would really be a great gravel bike
Nice. I've got a 92 GT and thought about drop, but the geometry just doesn't jive for me cuz of how far down you'd have to reach to get into drops. I have a 5" high swept riser instead. Watch old shovel channel for restorations.
Better check out spindatt for a prime example of your gravel dream bike
My late 90s MTB is a perfect gravel bike, with its flat bars and bar ends. Might try alt bars, but I like what I have. Don’t want drop bars, and riding party pace, my cantilever brakes work just fine. I don’t see the need for a new bike.
Dennis Olmstead Really the only critical difference between our old hard tail suspensionless mountain bikes and gravel bikes is the speed. They are slower, but if you are not in a race to go anywhere, who cares? Reusing and repurposing bikes is better for the environment.
Had the same bike, but put slicks on it and used it on the road. And I threw it away when I got my gravel bike, it's awesome.
Did my first gravel ride yesterday and absolutely loved my new Surly Midnight Special, especially while descending on gravel. I don't need to prove my manhood, I would rather just have fun. Thanks Russ for your review on the MS, I absolutely love it.
Excellent thoughts and video! I think you were a few years ahead of the curve with your "Path Less Pedaled" philosophy. An observation from San Diego, I see more and more gravel bikes on the routes around town like the Coast Hwy, and bike paths. This past weekend I pulled up on a group of five gravel cyclists on the 101, (myself on 700x38's), I asked them, "Is this the gravel bike tour group?" We had a laugh together. My take on the gravel movement: 1) Many riders are sick of the aggression and competition amongst ourselves, so they opt out with non competitive wheels and geometry while still able to knock out miles in comfort. 2) Cyclists are also becoming tired of poor roads, cell phone distracted, aggressive drivers. In spots where there is no shoulder or bike lane, riders hop the curb for a stretch. I saw a rider on a Pinarello Dogma cross at a light near the freeway, rather than deal with drivers he cycled up the sidewalk on his Pinarello in full kit. I sold my last two carbon fiber road bikes, and my trusty overbuilt and bloated Long Haul Trucker. Now I ride one gravel bike, and one cross country mtn bike. Thanks.
Wohoo
Finally a 90s MTB to Gravel series by Russ
I'm hyped
It's mud season here in Vermont, but yesterday was glorious riding weather: low sixties, bright skies, little wind. My first opportunity of the season to get in a longish ride. I figured four hours would be about the right length considering my ass is still in winter mode and my waist a couple of inches wider than it was six months ago.
With all the mud, it was obvious to me that a tarmac ride was the order of the day, and three years ago I would have been fine with that. But while we have really nice paved roads here in Vermont, and they are not heavily travelled compared to those in many states in the union, I realized that if I didn't want to drive far, my choices were quite limited; and none of them really tickled my fancy. One had a short section without a shoulder where I often get buzzed by traffic, another was a ride I've taken so often that it was less than intriguing. I realized then that in the past three years how much my horizons have been expanded by gravel. Vermont has literally thousands of miles of incredibly beautiful gravel roads.
In short, gravel riding opens up a whole world that pure tarmac doesn't reach. To the gravel haters, I say, you don't know what you're missing. I didn't either until I did.
I agree 110%. However, I have found that a can of Halt comes in handy for all the untethered dogs. It seems the farther out the county, the farther the space between the dog bylaws. I guess a small can of Halt is better than a large can of bear spray though...
@@justpedal65 Don't know Halt, Charlie, but I'll check it out. Dogs are an ongoing fear on the backroads around here, the further off the beaten path the worse. My friends tell me to yell at them aggressively and they'll back down, but I never seem to have the cajones to do that. Instead, I stop, get off my bike, and keep walking with the bike between me and the dog, talking calmly all the while. To date, I haven't been bitten, but I was knocked off my bike years ago by a pit bull who leapt on my bike. This was on pavement with me doing 20mph. I was knocked completely out and dislocated my shoulder but weirdly, not bitten. No fun. Anyway, thanks for the tip.
Nice vid. I just ordered a Checkpoint SL5 in dark olive and can't wait to ride it. I already have a carbon road bike and mountain bike, but wanted a gravel bike to ride fast and comfortably on trails that are both smooth paved and gravel.
Great breakdown! I just bought my first gravel bike this winter. A little background. I ride 5000 mikes a year primarily road on a Carbon TREK Domane with rim brakes, compact and 11/32 cassette. It’s an awesome bike and continues to serve me well. I have used it with an 11 liter seat pack and a gas tank bag to bike pike at state parks over the past 5 years. That said, last May I took 11 days to ride 730 miles from Bristol TN to Memphis TN. And dispute cramming 28mm tires in the frame (I actually wore away some carbon) I came across a couple of stretches of road that would have been far less heroic if I’d had 38mm tires! In fact, there was a 15 mile section of road that no longer existed and we had to ride and hike a land management gravel ( read loose rocks!) road LOL! I love my new gravel bike, because it’s an excellent all road vehicle . It will not replace my road bike as my primary and even for bike packing if I know the conditions. But the gravel bike is an excellent tool that allows me to be “aero” enough on smooth roads and opens up a whole new world of adventure and sure footedness when the unexpected presents itself. Keep up the great content!
I was one of the first to get a gravel bike between my roadie and mtb friends, now there are 12-14 of us all within the last 18 months. The roadies will tell you they like being out of traffic and the backcountry adventure. Mtbers will tell you they like the efficiency and distances you can travel. Personally, I love being underbiked.
Love my gravel bike. I bought the Marin Nicasio + on your recommendation 👍🚴❤️
Same here! I enjoy mine.
Well done Russ. You inspire me. Keep up the good work.
“Because cars” YES! I love gravel and I love my gravel bike. Steel is real. Love the utilitarian aspect
CrMo is real..
All the things in the world to get upset about and people freak out about "gravel bikes". Silliness.
That's partly the point I think. This is something the ego can get it's teeth into, but no-one's life is at stake! Debating this stuff is harmless "fun".
Gravel is a vague term, Seems like we have everything from "almost a road bike" to "drop barred mountain bike". Yeah you can ride a XC mountain bike on dirt roads, I just found that long road stretches with flat bars (even with Ergon barend grips} produced a lot of hand pain and numbness for me that I never got on drop bars. I just like to get out and explore, everything from rail trail, logging and fire roads and some singletracks. Perhaps they should be called All Terrain bikes, kind of like the original mountain bikes LOL
Just wanted to bring in the idea that gravel is sometimes hard to find in the states! You did touch on this a bit Russ - much appreciated! Sure, there is plenty enough of the surface in places from Missouri west-ward, but it sometimes gets pretty sparse in the east, so it’s tough for folks there to fully understand the different flavors that the medium has to offer. Not tomention how different a gravel descent may differ from singletrack or road descent.
I love the "all-road bike" moniker. It's how I ride and why I like my gravel bike (or other CX bike). I can ride a combination of roads and trails without using flat bars or risking flats or overly harsh rides. It also is not as heavy as a touring bike so I can keep up with other (moderate) riders on road bikes. If I see a gravel or dirt trail off a paved road, I can explore it. Love the versatility.
I started riding mountain bikes in the late 80's and some of us referred them as All Terrain Bikes. I rode my mountain bike everywhere, on the road and on the fire roads of Southern California. The riding wasn't overly technical because of the limitations of the bike. That being said, I do feel like modern gravel bikes are the love child, not hybrid, of 80's mountain bikes and modern bikes. That's the reason why I love gravel bikes. They remind me a time that we rode bikes to explore the roads/trails/paths. We didn't go to the woods to build big stunts. gravel bikes bring me back to a simpler time.
This is a good point. If you find scans of old bike catalogs, tons of brands used "ATB" opposed to "MTB"/"Mountain Bike" as they introduced these new offerings. This is what the manufacturers were calling them, not just the riders.
@@chrislukes9037 According to some old timer I read from: He claimed "ATB" was a marketing term to sell the lower ends of MTB offerings to people who lived nowhere near mountains (cities, middle america, etc...) because "why would I need a MOUNTAIN bike if there's no MOUNTAIN here??". Once they got a foot in the door and learned what it _actually_ was they could buy a "proper" MTB.
@@Aubreykun That may be true for some brands and specific timeframes in early mountain biking, but I've seen some older catalogs from certain brand that represented the full range as "ATB" all the way to the top-end models. Possible that these brands were anticipating your point and didn't want to alienate a potential buyer in the flatlands regardless of price point. Frankly, there are still reasons to ride mountain bikes on non-mountainous but off-road terrain, so ATB may be the better term even though we know what MTB means today.
@@chrislukes9037 Well yea, the original "mountains" that West Coast klunkers were ridden on were more like large hills (at least from pictures I've seen) done for the ride-down. I have heard that East Coast equivalent rides were very different, wetter and messier. More like where you'd want a "true ATB". Over time the designs morphed to what you have now I guess. I wouldn't put it past some manufacturers back then to try to anticipate ATB sticking as the name for it, and losing the bet.
I love gravel bikes and 80’s mtb. everything can coexist
Exactly. My only bike is a late 90s MTB I ride everywhere I can, and I'm pretty happy with it. The main thing is to get out and ride, whichever niche bike you choose or happen to have.
@@kevinsmith9836 late 90s MTBs were the apex of hardtail evolution.
Just got a Jamis Renegade S3! I’m stoked to get out on all the mixed terrain!
Great content! I love to gravel! For anyone wanting to upgrade some frame with v-brakes to a gravel setup to try it out. trp cx 8.4 or 9s have worked pretty well in my experience with road shifters and still coping with 43s. Sure it’s no disc brake but i haven’t felt afraid on bike packing tours with a total of 18kg weight for bike and luggage.
I think people subconsciously have a visceral reaction when people try to sell them an aspiration for buying into a lifestyle that they'll likely never partake in to any significant extent. Like you can buy a gravel bike and just ride it wherever you'd ride any other bike. Around the park, down the bike path, back and forth to work. But that's not the lifestyle being sold with the "gravel movement". What they're selling is the idea of grinding away the miles into triple digits across unimproved back roads and trails, seeing the forgotten and hidden gems along the way. Except for most people, what's on the far end of a 100 miles of gravel is the same nothing as is on the near end of that 100 miles (and every mile in between), and they'll never see it because by mile 20 they're exhausted, sore and sick of the slog. They're not thinking about pitching a tent and building a campfire, they're just wishing they had a warm shower and a cozy couch to sink into.
I'm lucky enough that I live within easy riding distance of some pretty high quality gravel adventure, but I think the vast majority of people aren't necessarily so lucky. Living in the middle of suburbia surrounded by endless, boring farmland, isn't exactly prime gravel territory unless the only reason you're riding is to beat yourself up (not that there's anything wrong with that).
I live in rural area that is all pretty much farmland. I enjoy riding out here a lot more than biking in the city. I have a choice between riding gravel farm roads, or the wide shoulders of the highway. It's not always going to be non-stop farmland. There are patches of forests, marshes, creeks and rivers. It's all a matter of perspective. I find that it's very quiet out here, and even the highways don't have much traffic at the height of summer.
That's really it. 'Gravel biking' is more of a lifestyle of sports recreation than it is something a person is going to simply do for exercise or even fun. It's for someone who likely has easy access to versatile trails suitable for those bikes and can do it as much as they want, morning or evening.. so like... don't expect to do this if you have kids, a busy job, etc... not unless you're fine with only doing it once every month, and just road riding the rest of the time.
I have to agree with the sentiment at 8:10 it's a rebranding of just a configuration of road bikes with wider tires and a relaxed geometry, and marketed as a 'new form of mountainbiking' when it's just as prohibitive in terms of availability...
Gravel/offroad trail riding is everywhere, you just have to know where to look, and sometimes it really does take some effort. For 20 years of my life I had no idea that the towpath of a nearby canal still existed beyond the paved section...and armed with that knowledge my gravel bike took me further than I had gone before.
My Wolverine isn't a gravel bike.
It's MONSTERCROSS!
Im a believer, and love the new changes in geometry, frame design, and bigger tire clearances for better off road riding, I love the direction things are going in the industry for these bikes. They're FUN!
Old guy here. Not quite a boomer, but up there. Just replaced my hybrid with a Poseidon Redwood and couldn't be happier. I really missed the drop bars from my younger days and the 650b sure smoothes out the ride. Gravel bikes are great for trails where road bikes don't have enough suspension and MTBs are overkill.
“Because Cars!” Absolutely right Russ.
I agreed with most of this except that cantis dont stop well. Good pads and set up correctly and they stop just fine. Well just fine when dry and they do ok when wet
Shimano gave cantis a bad rep in the mid 90`s with that stupid one sided link wire design that relied on friction and a plastic tube to keep the pads centred, all the cheap brands that came on lower end bikes copied it an they were hell to set up.
@@chris1275cc very true
Thanks for the explanation Russ! I don’t have a gravel bike. I do have a touring bike and an early 90’s mountain bike that I replaced with street tires years ago.
Things evolve for a reason(I think you explained it well Russ), including bikes. I wonder if people just resist change?
If there is a market for a gravel bike, why not!
About 5 years ago, I put 1.5" tires w smoother tread on my 2002 Topanga SE (mtn bike), VERY cushy seat, and bullhorn handlebars, and have been riding that around as my 'city bike' ever since. Haven't ridden my road bike since. Here in WI, the roads/potholes are so bad most of the year, it's just too frustrating to get on the road bike. And the Topanga's geometry is absolutely Perfect for me.
BUT. -it's showing it's age, and I started thinking about getting an upgrade, especially w the Stimulus $$ burning a hole in my pocket. And I kid you NOT: I had no idea 'Gravels' existed, but I set out looking for all the versatile features that 'gravels' inherently ARE! You can't imagine my surprise and joy to find that the 'industry' came around to make something we'd been needing so long, but WE delayed so long to call out for! The only thing I don't agree with : drop bars. Lo and Behold : Specialized Diverge EVO wisely corrects with a riser bar!
And that is why today I have a fresh Diverge E5 Comp EVO in my apartment. Hopefully this bike will make me as happy as the Topanga had for 18 years. BUT, I'll be putting my beloved bullhorn bars on this graveller, because that's my Thang. The allure? Of course, it is ALL about versatility, a comfortable machine that can take you just about anywhere, and you won't feel that it is inappropriate, anywhere. Good time to re-enjoy bicycling!
Glad you've found a bike you can love.
I'm an old roadie, I like all the different hand positions that hooked bars offer. Riding offroad in the hooks offers a very stable and secure position in very rough terrain. Lots of riders are missing out on this. The key to making it all work is a very high and dorky looking stem. Gravel bars are designed to be ridden primarily in the hooks. They work best when tops of the bars are about level with the saddle. Lots of stock gravel bikes were set up quite poorly from the factory!
These days there are all sorts of different bar shapes and sizes to find the perfect bar for anyone. It just takes a bit of patience and experimentation. Dialing in your bike to fit personally makes all the difference. It will make you want to spend more and more time rolling around on two wheels.
Love my SOMA double cross!
Just put my DX together in the last month. Absolutely love it!
Love my Salsa Journeyman!
Same! Thankfully got mine 6 mo pre covid, and it's been great. Pretty tough, and it gets me exploring.
@@tpaul793 got mine in March of last year....put 800 miles on it last year. Got a new wheel set this year. Now just waiting for some shimano parts...but that is looking like june/July of this year...it at all.
@@stuff4meutube my bike was my main source of outdoor entertainment last year, put on ~1500 mi. I did break a spoke on my back wheel 2 different times, but those were the stock wheels, and I'm larger rider (6'5", 230lbs), so I think better wheels need to be my next move. I'm running Claris, and it's only an 8 speed, but so far it seems to be a beast.
If I had to get 9th bike 👍
I live in the Flint Hills of Kansas, very near Unbound’s Emporia. Having a fast road-style bike that can handle wider tires, and therefore tackle tougher terrain, opens up SO MANY more possibilities for a long ride. We’re quite limited in what routes we can do if stuck to only pavement. My bike shop hardly sells any pure road bikes anymore, it just doesn’t make sense to limit yourself.
That said, I ride a cyclocross bike because I also race cyclocross. It handles all the gravel roads quite well with 38mm tires, but it gets a bit ~sketchy~ on fast and loose descents
Really great breakdown of the general differences here. I've been riding mountain bikes in mountains and as tour bikes and commuters since 1991. My favorite bike is my 1993 Gary Fisher Hoo Koo E Koo with a Surley fork and handlebars and I literally can ride it anywhere. Like you say, it's heavy and stiff for riding the trails. I've also got an All-City fixed gear and a contemporary Trek mountain bike. I guess from this perspective: commuter/tourer, fixed/street, and mountain, I really don't get the gravel bike thing. Maybe it's got a lot to do with where you come from as a cyclist?
Gravel Bikes: jack of all surfaces, master of none.
With the exception of gravel, on which they rule
I hate gravel bikes because it's basically just a horse, but with wheels and a chain on it.
I started mountain biking way back in the 1980s and like most kids I did all kinds of crazy things. As I got older I developed a heightened sense of my own vulnerability and found myself doing easier and easier trails until even an XC MTB was overkill. At the same time I fell out of love with the straight handlebar. Put those two things together and you've got a Lynskey gravel bike that I'm riding the wheels off of and a mountain bike that's gathering dust in the garage.
I find it ironic. My road bikes are gathering dust in my garage, they're also dirty from dirt roads. Ive come to the realization that roads are a necessary evil to simply get somewhere or to link up more trail. I have zero faith in idiot motorists driving 2 ton death machines. Ive seen too many accidents and messed up friends. Ive been riding for numerous decades.
My 'cross and gravel bikes are super dirty, beat as hell and constantly in need of maintenance. Little by little my old 26" MTBs are all being converted to dirt drops. My rigid 29er (just built it) never had a flat bar. I'll ride that bike anywhere and everywhere, 24 hrs a day if possible. Dynamo hubs offer all sorts of new riding opportunities!
My favorite most used everyday bike is an old, heavy, steel, fixed gear Miyata 'cross bike. Ive never had so much fun since I was a kid doing a 50 miler to the beach and back on a Schwinn Stingray. Underbiking rules!
Just did my first century on my gravel bike. Tempe to Tucson. Took a few scenic dirt paths I couldn't have done very well with road tires. For me, it's been a great bike to keep mostly on the road but not have to shy away from all off-roading.
"That thing looks like a road bike, I don't like it" -Mountain biker
Part of my joy of riding a gravel bike is the puzzled look of fat bike and mountain bike riders (especially in the snow).
"That thing looks like a mountain bike, I don't like it" -Roadie
I just have one word for any purist who hate gravel: Keirin
One bottle of Kirin per lap is about right!
looking forward to your review of bridgestone mb-1 -better yet you should review bridgestone xo-1 with nitto mustache bar setup. i think that's where this whole gravel thing started. good luck trying to find one!
I love it! I'm riding a Lynskey Backroad (38 mm tires) everywhere. My next bike will have all these mounts, and more tire clearance. Then will it be a gravel bike?
I like “the people’s road bike”. 🙂
Volksbike lol
Bridgestone MB1 was my first MTB back in 1990 I think!!! I sold an old Trek road bike, bought a Rock Shox Judy and put it on the MB1 to make a hard tail :-) I definitely prefer riding off-road than on-road!
Seems like a difficult contribution for you. :-) There´s a lot of cutting in this video, choosing the right words. I like your content and the new Garagelook is cool. Keep going. Greetings from Germany.
My 2016 Fuji Cross 1.3 is a road bike with 28c slicks, a cross race bike with 33c knobbies and a gravel bike with 42c front/38c rear gravel tires.
RI has a fantastic network of gravel roads and this bike is just about perfect for them.
I remember when the first Salsa Fargo came out, my jaw hit the floor and I immediately called the shop to see if I could get one. It was a drop bar bike, but comfortable more like a mountain bike, with big tires for riding dirt. Prior to this, I had sworn off drop bar bikes because they were so uncomfortable to me. Now there are all these options and specialties, it's great.
Randonneurs are a good thing.
The 80s/90s were a time of huge experimentation for hardtail MTBs, so of course it matters which one you pick to turn into gravel/monstercross. However, the key is that the steering tube angles and top tube lengths are often ideal, so you have a lot of great options for frames that are strong and often handmade in the USA.
I love my gravel bike. It is one tool that seems to handle the most situations (in my area) well. I have endless gravel roads nearby, and the paved roads have loads of potholes and often end at a gravel road or singletrack. For me, the option to explore really sparks my imagination. It's the most fun bike I have ever owned. And I have ridden my road bike, mountain bike, and even fixed gear track bike on gravel roads but none are as well suited (but that depends on the type of roads we're talking about).
Love my 2018 Specialized Diverge. In retrospect, I could have spent less money, but after a few modifications, I've got a machine I'll stick with a while longer
The brake difference is key! I don’t mind canti’s with flat bar levers, but for some reason paired with drop bar levers they just don’t get enough stopping power to feel safe
I like the versatility of the gravel bike thanks you all the information
Living in Cambodia all of my bikes end up on gravel. I really do not have a bike right now that is road specific but when I rebuild my Fuji it will be the closest to a road bike but I put the widest tires on it I can which allows me to ride just about anywhere. Yesterday I was riding my flat barred Pure Fix Cleveland with 35mm tires down some sandy/gravel roads, did it work, sure and it was fun.
The fact that I can do a local 50-60 mile loop and hit all the singletrack in the area while still feeling comfortable and efficient on the road is why I love my gravel bike. I’ve ridden snowy trails, icy roads and commuted winters long with confidence that my bike has the best of all world’s conditions. Go anywhere, do anything-that’s why they’re great⚡️
Anything that makes things closer to an all rounder is good news. Hey I hope you get to do a review of the decathlon new touring range, they do some very achievable models. I myself am getting the cheaper 520 touring and changing everything about it, can't afford my dream frame but it's gonna be a nice monstercross for sure
I bought my first bike in 2008 and just got lucky. I asked in a forum about what bike to get to ride a mix of roads and easy paths and a gang of cyclocross lovers persuaded me that the answer was a cyclocross bike. In 2008 that meant a sturdy aluminum frame, regular Ultegra group and Tektro Mini-V breaks paired with sturdy wheels and about 35 mm tires.
It was the right choice and I have loved riding ever since. There was no dedicated "cross bike" hype back then and I had to drive 6 hours to the shop to pick up my custom ordered and build bike.
With the arrival of disk breaks in the road bike world, the door was open for cross and gravel to really take off and take full advantage of the additional freedom those breaks provided regarding breaking performance and tire clearance. To me these are super versatile sportive utility bikes. You can go light mountainbiking, you can ride a mountain pass on the road, tour or commute. Beautiful freedom.
Of course any dedicated one purpose bike will do specific things better. And there is a place for them. If you are really into mountainbiking, a gravel bike won't do. If you are in love with road racing, you want a specific super lightweight road set-up. But my love to cross and gravel bikes is real. :-D
I agree with your the right tool for the job" analysis. I am a pretty serious roadie, but I also own a gravel bike which I ride in the summer when I switch from road to gravel exclusively for about six weeks (a nice change and lots of fun). In my opinion, my gravel bike is pretty much a beefed up version of a road bike (bigger tires, different geometry, gearing, etc.) which makes all the difference on gravel. However, I have also recently ridden one of my road bikes in a fairly long, (not too difficult), gravel event (700x25 tires) with no problem other than being a bit worried that I was overtaxing the bike (not quite the right tool). Beat regards to you and Laura.
You shared my comment! Thanks Russ. 😊
I have an "all road" bike with gravel tires on it and a drop bar 90s mtb. They are quite different, even with smoother tires I don't think the mtb will start to feel like a road bike but I do enjoy experimenting.
Gone from five bikes to just two. Gravel and MTB. And of those my steel frame gravel bike sees the absolute majority of the use. I got 2 wheelsets for it, which makes switching from a more road oriented set up (mostly 28mm Gatorskins) to gravel (mainly Schwalbe G-one's in the 35 to 45 mm range, depending) is a breeze. I also ride it as a bike packing bike on Marathon Greenguards which are remarkable tires, only lacking on lose gravel as they tend to lose grip.
I am a Roadie at heart,although during the 1980’s involved in the evolving MTB scene in the UK... Two years ago built my first ‘Gravel Bike’. Love It. Bikes are bikes and the latest Gravel Bike tech. Simply expands the potential of bikes. Most ‘new’ bike tech. Is Old Tech with New Technology and Materials... Gravel Bikes are brilliant,can be Cross Country MTB with fat tyres..Can be Road Bike with skinny tyres..Can be Touring Bike with bags...Can be tailored to ones needs and wants. BRILLIANT.. of course the ‘Industry’ try to exploit Any form of bike...IT IS WHAT IT DOES!
Gravel bikes are exactly the bike I wanted in the 90’s. Disc brakes were not on my radar, but otherwise they’re exactly what I imagined. It’s exciting to have such a range of bikes designed for the type of riding I loved growing up.
My "gravel" bike is a 26" disc mtb Ti frame designed for 100mm suspension fork, with a full Ultegra 6700 groupset. I've corrected for about half of the fork travel with a 425mm axel to crown rigid fork. I'm currently riding it with 27.5 wheels with Gravel King 50mm tires. It's versatile enough to run 29, 700c, 27.5 or 26 up front and 700c, 27.5 or 26 in the back. I can run it with 1x, 2x or 3x drivetrain. Pro vs gravel frame: no toe overlap and lots of clearance with the suspension corrected fork so handlebar bag won't touch front tire. Con: frame is a bit heavy at 3.3 lbs compared to a carbon gravel frame that would weight about 1 lbs less.
Originality built on the cheap as an experimental dropbar mtb with mostly extra parts laying around, but now I don't see the need for a full on gravel bike because this build is so versatile and fun to ride on singletrack, gravel or road, with a simple swap of wheels. It's good to have parts sitting around for various builds. Total weight is 19.5 lbs.
I love the idea of gravel bikes. I worked for Italian bike expert Dominic Malvestuto and he told me of 150 to 200 mile training rides with multiple miles of gravel on his race training bike. I like riding on gravel with 700 x 32 to 42 cm tires and that can be done with many bikes. I have ridden 100,000 miles in my career of armature racing and commuting. In Phoenix, Mesa AZ I rode a lot of canal banks and they can be rough but most are more fun than pavement with uncontrolled traffic.
Love my Niner gravel bike....most comfortable bike I own. The most versatile bike. Had the been around in 2000 I would have purchased one.
Gave a Like before watching. Lot of sad frail egos in the bike community, but a much much larger group of great people in it.
I have been road and mountain biking for close to 40 years. I built my first mountain bike from the frame up 25 years ago (a Cannondale frame) of which my 13 year old daughter rides today. Since then, I have built up a few bikes including a flat bar road bike and a carbon road bike but it wasn't until the lockdown last year that gave me time to build a gravel bike from the frame up. To tell you the truth, out of the 8 bikes that I own, I am riding that bike most of the time now. All I know is that it is the most versatile bike that I currently own and I love it. I can put 700c wheels with 28c tires and hang with my local cycling peloton at 20 mph or slip on 650b wheels with 47mm tires and hit the single track around the lake near my house. It is awesome! I will mention that I am currently building another mountain bike from the frame up because I understand the place a gravel bike fits in the grand scheme of the biking world and believe me, it cannot and will never take the place of a full fledged mountain bike or road bike for that matter. (BTW, even though my wife just rolls her eyes at my excuses, I need another mtb because my daughters have taken over both my hardtail and full suspension.) Bottom line, no matter what the haters on this video say, gravel bikes are so much fun because they can do a little bit of everything. Oh yeah, if I want to do some bike packing, it has enough mounts for me do carry my gear too. What is NOT to like???
Gravel bikes are the ultimate all round bikepacking beast. You will be doing a little hike and bike but most trail is good to go. Check out the handmade Colombian steel bicycle shop, Scarab. Their Paramo gravel bike is a dream ride. Currently bikepacking Ticino, Switzerland. Incredible!
Thanks fort this. Great attitude! 😊
I'm 78 and am lookin' forward to my first gravel bike -- a Diverge!
what tires and what surface do you plan to ride mostly?
@@captainLoknar I live in Auburn, CA. There are so many combination paved and gravel roads here I can't count 'em all. // There are times I can't do gravel on my road bike & times I wish I had a road bike when on my mountain bike. // To be honest, I'm fed up with a pure road-bike because I no longer enjoy my 'ol roadie focus on skin-tight Lycra and bein' fast anymore. (Nobody, and I mean no-body 78 years old should be seen in skin-tight Lycra 😁.)
I have a Trek Checkpoint I use for camping. I love it.
I keep thinking about getting a gravel bike. I live in the mountains and have a trail bike right now, but during the week when I can’t get out to a trail, it would be nice to have something lighter to ride on our gravel roads.
live & let live! I prefer a quick and twitchy handling and an open frame triangle - so I chose a cyclocross bike. The diverge was too sluggish and its BB to low.
My beloved "gravel bike" was built up by a friend (it ended up a tad too small for him) specifically for MN gravel rides like the Almanzo: a 2013 Kona Jake the Snake, which *IS* a CX bike! I've done more CX races on it than gravel, but it can handle both nicely, as well as overnight camping or commuting or making groceries or just riding around cities that have shitty, potholed streets, when I pop on the rear rack!
Where I live it’s either pavement, rockchip or gravel. On
My specialized Tarmac, I have 25mm front 28mm rear. Credit spacing on my rear tire. Went big for comfort and I ride at 80psi front 85psi rear.
My take: road bikes became asphalt specific, leaving room for another type of bike that was optimized for unpaved roads. (Personally, I use my cx bike for gravel events and it works great.)
I got back into biking 2 years ago after getting my 25-year-old dad bike (a hybrid?) fixed up. I then bought a Cannondale Topstone 105 gravel bike. Perfect choice for me. A bit more relaxed fit than a road bike, wider tires for gravel and easier trails. Lower gearing that has been near perfect given a can't do a ride without a minimum of 4 miles of at least a 4% grade to climb. Usually much more and steeper given I live on the edge of a mountain range. I'm tall and good sized and weigh in at 200+ lbs. So, the disc brakes are nice to have given the descents I make from all the climbing.
Sure, some other bike type could perhaps be modified. But why does that negate the specific qualities of a gravel bike. It's a niche, just like all those other bike types. I chose a gravel bike becasue I figured out what gearing would work best for me. I figured what type of terrain I wanted to ride, I wanted drop bars, and so on. And then I found these things I'd never heard of called gravel bikes, that fit my requirements perfectly.
As for marketing hype, just about everything we buy is marketed in some way. It's been that way since the dawn of time. Why is it so bad that a specific setup has been given a name and marketed that way. Is there any doubt what is meant by a gravel bike? Go to a bike shop and try to buy something that has everything a gravel bike does but is sold as something other than a gravel bike. I think you'll find, it doesn't exist.
Even if a gravel bike were nothing more than a road bike with fat tires (it's not of course). The option would be to buy a road bike, then buy another set of wheels that take wide tires. Why would I do that if I could buy the road bike with the wide tires to begin with and it happens to be called a gravel bike. Same could be said about buying an MTB and then fitting on drop bars, and new shifters and possible new derailleurs to match the shifters. Again, why, when I can get what I want sold a as "gravel" bike.
I just bought a Trek Checkpoint ALR5 and love it... would never take my BH Ultralight RC on a gravel ride... and I still ride a cyclocross bike and a track bike, love them all
Here in southwestern Pennsylvania, we have a bunch of bike trails, mostly made from reclaimed railroad rights of way. The majority of them are paved with crushed limestone. It's not really gravel, but close enough. Being recycled railroads, the trails don't have lots of big hills. People ride lots of different bikes on them, but one can imagine optimum bikes. For someone that only does day rides, not multi-day rides, a gravel bike like thing would be pretty good. For multiday rides, or for mixed trail-road touring use a gravel-touring hybrid would be good. For someone that wants to also ride some more challenging trails, a mountain-gravel hybrid would be good. In any case, the ideal rail-trail bike will look a lot like some version of a gravel bike.
Or even a fixie-fatty (which I just invented in my mind).