See wallop i put 32mm on my stoater and turned it into a road bike 😉
tourergravelaudaxcommutercanalpotteringhybrid
[url= https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1713/24479917835_0a6ab2058c_b.jpg [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/DicYGT ]cidImage_FOTBDCA.JPG" target="_blank">https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1713/24479917835_0a6ab2058c_b.jpg [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/DicYGT ]cidImage_FOTBDCA.JPG"/> [/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/91703444@N06/ ]20ston[/url], on Flickr
ton wins...
Nobeerinthefridge - Member
'Having seen epicyclo's posts before, whatever he says on the matter I agree with....'
In the extreme cold, he rides in a string vest and sandals.I'm out.
It gets worse. I didn't always wear sandals. I'm in my warmest flipflops there. 🙂
Pic from my hill running days long time ago when I had hair to keep me warm.
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Has anyone mentioned that a gravel bike with flat bars would be very similar to early mountain bikes?
No worries if they have, I'm sure noone will mind the point being repeated every other post 😀
I consider my Wazoo as a flat bar gravel bike, or at least it could be, if I regularly did much else off-road besides the track between Northam Bridge and the boardwalks by Horseshoe Bridge! 😆
In this part of the world there are a lot of unsealed roads.
They are often pretty smooth but not always. Head not too far out of Melbourne and you can notch up 100's of Kilometers on them quite easily.
Tires around 35-38 seem to make plenty of sense here.
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Sometimes there can be rough patches where bigger tires might be blessing but they are normally over pretty quickly.
There are quite a lot of mixed terrain Audax run on them, a bit of quiet tarmac and gravel sections. You see all sorts of bikes from road bikes with 25mm tires, Hybrids, tourers and lots of CX/adventure/gravel bikes and the occational hard tail.
Consensus seems to be, just from numbers seen that 35mm is optimum for the job.
May be different elsewhere.
Youtube of such riding. Not mine BTW.
How do you swap the brakes and gears?
I don't have any but that is not the point. The point is that if I swap my bars it doesn't change the purpose and use of the bike or change any name/style applied to the bike.
Consensus seems to be, just from numbers seen that 35mm is optimum for the job.
Where I live (New Forest) there are miles of fire roads which are compacted gravel with a few looser areas of gravel. I also ride singletrack stuff too.
I also find that around 35c is optimum. When using larger it feels more sluggish/mountain bikish and when using narrow it feels skittish and less comfortable.
kenneththecurtain - Member
Has anyone mentioned that a gravel bike with flat bars would be very similar to early mountain bikes?...
And every bike was a gravel bike up until the 1920s and 1930s because most roads were not surfaced.
And sometime around 1920 or thereafter the category of Path Racer.*
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*I don't know for sure, but the earliest I have seen that term mentioned in the cycling press was around then.
Next year's TdF takes in a bit of gravel... I expect they'll manage just fine on their usual bikes.
If you're happy with a shallow drop akin to the old North Road bar, then the Satori Minotaur bar may interest you. It takes mtb sized levers.
Hmm. Yeah could be good, but for me a huge advantage of drops is the multiple hand positions.
Next year's TdF takes in a bit of gravel... I expect they'll manage just fine on their usual bikes.
It is only a couple of K's though, and pretty benign, so yes they will manage just fine.
Gravel riding, as we know it in this country, requires something a bit meatier.
And I still prefer the term "Rough Stuff" in reference to that crazy lot from the '50's
Gravel riding, as we know it in this country, requires something a bit meatier.
I don't think we really have much gravel riding here!
ransos - Member
Next year's TdF takes in a bit of gravel... I expect they'll manage just fine on their usual bikes.
Aye, but those riders could do that backwards one legged on a unicycle.
jobro - Member
... I still prefer the term "Rough Stuff" in reference to that crazy lot from the '50's
Hey, we're still at it.
But these days if you say you're a member of the Rough Stuff Fellowship you may attract the wrong sort of interest and be offered a Tory seat.
'Gravel' riding sounds more socially acceptable. 🙂
Well I dunno, there's lots of fire road around the place. Tends to zig-zag annoyingly through woods though instead of going somewhere...
Well I dunno, there's lots of fire road around the place. Tends to zig-zag annoyingly through woods though instead of going somewhere...
That was my point really - they seem to combine the least enjoyable aspects of road and mountain biking. Gravel roads in the US or Aus actually go somewhere, so there is a point to them.
molgrips - Member
Well I dunno, there's lots of fire road around the place. Tends to zig-zag annoyingly through woods though instead of going somewhere...
You need to move up here. (Highlands)
It's dead easy to stitch together 50 miles+ of gravel, and you do end up somewhere - often Wtfami. 🙂
I'm well aware of that.
Although last time I tried I ended up in a gigantic bog and had to back-track.
[url= https://www.wired.com/2016/07/cash-strapped-towns-un-paving-roads-cant-afford-fix/ ]New gravel roads are fairly likely to be arriving in the UK in the next couple of years[/url]
molgrips - Member
...Although last time I tried I ended up in a gigantic bog and had to back-track.
Ah, you found Wtfami 🙂
The gravel bikes drops are a better position for out of the saddle sprinting/climbing, so if your primary purpose of the bike is for fitness training it is preferrable to have the two effective positions to switch between.
I don't have any but that is not the point. The point is that if I swap my bars it doesn't change the purpose and use of the bike or change any name/style applied to the bike
No gears I understand but I'm guessing you have brakes?
Gravel roads in the US or Aus actually go somewhere, so there is a point to them.
They do down south. Taken on yesterdays ride; near hants/ wilts border.
[url= https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4509/37848237682_4d4288a51b_z.jp g" target="_blank">https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4509/37848237682_4d4288a51b_z.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/ZEw7s7 ]IMG_4750[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/24645633@N08/ ]thom1984[/url], on Flickr
It's just a choice, isn't it? A comfier cross bike, and an alternative to an XC bike with fast tyres on, to do much the same job in a way that'll suit some people and not others- just like a road bike vs a hybrid. Always good to have choice, it's just weird that it's been made such a fuss of lately as if it's a whole different sort of riding rather than just rediscovering simple pleasures
ibnchris - MemberGravelax
What?
GRAVELAX is evolving!
Congratulations! Your GRAVELAX evolved into GRAVELPOON!
it's just weird that it's been made such a fuss of lately
It has? Most of the fuss seems to be people on here whinging about the fact it's nothing new.
Personally, I'm happy to see a wider range of bikes in shops. More better choice than previously.
molgrips - MemberIt has? Most of the fuss seems to be people on here whinging about the fact it's nothing new.
Maybe it's just that when grit.cx leaks over here it annoys me 😆 But it definitely does get talked about as some new exciting thing when it's almost exactly what I used to do in the 90s, back when we had no idea how to mountain bike so we just pelted up and down dirt roads.
That Shand Daunder looks tasty-- and quite similar (barring drivetrain) to the flat bar Stoater we built up for the Mrs last autumn. Works really well with 35mm semi-slicks on Highland estate/forestry roads and out on the back roads, yet happily completed a road Tour de Mont Blanc in the summer with light packing gear and 28mm road slicks.
I suppose I have two bikes that sort of fit this niche- an old flat bar On-one 29er, rigid, with strong wheels, decent brakes and a 3x9 triple; shod with 2.2 summer tyres, it is happy on those long tracks and smoother trails as well as roads. It's recently done a 120+ mile day from Oban to Angus, taking in various bits of off-road on the WHW and accessing Glen Lyon.
A fair bit lighter and livelier is the CdF, which with 35mm semi-slicks does an annual run from Angus to Lossiemouth on road, then a day on duty at the Speyside Way Race before coming home the next day over the ski roads. Again, flat bars, decent brakes, in this case a 105 triple. It's all good and by simply changing tyres, I can use these two for any long rides; on 32mm slicks, the CdF completed a 202 mile day on roads and grit cyclepaths last weekend.
I much prefer the control of a flat bar bike when travelling or training, road or otherwise. With stubby bar ends in nearly the same hand position as hoods, I get plenty of leverage and better control than any drop-bar bike can offer. That's pretty important when you're tired after 10 or 15 hours in the saddle. Everything around bikes is a compromise and my two both represent a good and adaptable balance for me. But I'm in no hurry to get a drop bar bike, I just think if you're not actually racing on it, the whole position is wasted for normal riding, commuting or training. I'm not saying that they're entirely wrong. But watching folk ride these nervous handling drops off road can be quite fun...
But it definitely does get talked about as some new exciting thing when it's almost exactly what I used to do in the 90s, back when we had no idea how to mountain bike so we just pelted up and down dirt roads.
So what though?
It's different to what a lot of MTBers or roadies have been doing recently, so to most of them it IS new. And the bikes are different. You can call them drop bar hybrids but such things were pretty uncommon until recently.
But that's what magazines have to do - sound enthhusiastic. What kind of mag articles would you like?:
"Passing fads: Gravel bikes, we've seen it all before"
"How to look down on youngesters and neophytes"
"Top ten ways to set up a bike to ride light off-road without buying a 'gravel' bike cos you hate marketing"
😆
But it definitely does get talked about as some new exciting thing when it's almost exactly what I used to do in the 90s, back when we had no idea how to mountain bike so we just pelted up and down dirt roads.
That's it really - and we used to ride 7-15 miles to a place to ride our MTBs, do a loop then ride home. But now MTBs are so off-road biased that 15 miles of tarmac is a drag. What we had then were ATBs, they felt fine on road. I had Scott AT4s to help make it a better all-rounder .. er, hybrid 😀
What we've got now on a gravel bike is a 650B x 1.9 or 700x40-45 semi-tread so we're back to a similar terrain mix, just the drop bars for covering road more easily and 'cos of hipster stuff (Fixed>CX>bike camping and gravel etc)
and we used to ride 7-15 miles to a place to ride our MTBs, do a loop then ride home
I still do. That's why I built my Salsa. It's not a gravel bike though 🙂
You can get more or less a continuous spectrum of bike applications now - this is a good thing.
jameso - MemberThat's it really - and we used to ride 7-15 miles to a place to ride our MTBs, do a loop then ride home. But now MTBs are so off-road biased that 15 miles of tarmac is a drag. What we had then were ATBs, they felt fine on road.
My own mountain bikes are like you say but it's not like you can't buy an XC bike any more and pretty much any hardtail today would be better at the job than older bikes...
it's not like you can't buy an XC bike any more and pretty much any hardtail today would be better at the job than older bikes...
The bars it'll come with will be a bit too wide, IMO. 660mm on my Salsa.
Who could forget the Specialised Rockcombo
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Or the incredible GT Tachyon, now this had a "flip Flop" stem that you could demount and flip quickly, and sliding front fork dropouts to change your trail offset:
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That ones 650b(!)
Has anyone mentioned that a gravel bike with flat bars would be very similar to early mountain bikes?
Yes, but not in this thread. I call mine an 'ATB' because it's very reminscent of my first ATB. Steel frame. Rigid forks. Burly (but not hellaheavy), reliable, simple Deore groupset. Fixing points for racks and guards. Only now it has drops and bigger wheels.
And I still do miles of backroads, firetrails and farm tracks. Except faster and with more comfort/versatility. Which is why I chose it. Mileages vary in the flat VS drops choice - but lots of miles for me are better on drop bars.
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No gears I understand but I'm guessing you have brakes?
Nope, don't need them as ride fixed gear. That is why I can swap bars as quickly as it takes to undo 4 allen bolts and do them back up again - a couple of minutes.
Quite nice to just change bars on a whim and currently favouring some 680mm risers as just makes the riding more fun than drops but does make my bike pretty close to the early MTBs I rode in the late 80s as others have pointed out.
Nope, don't need them as ride fixed gear.
OMG think of the pedestrians
Gravel bike = bike
I've recently found that I much prefer quick-ish rolling 32mm road tyres @75psi on my road bike and cross bike than either 23mm or 25mm road tyres at their higher pressures for metalled (and un-metalled) roads, even/especially on long rides.
Current rigid bike is along the same lines but about a million times better than my 94 rigid P7.
Big wheels
Wide rims
2.35 tubeless tyres with 20psi
Discs
Better geometry
Just took it out for a 2hr 'gravel' ride which was about 1/4 farm tracks and 3/4 road, and whilst the farm tracks were a mess I enjoyed the road immensely. Racing Ralphs really are astonishingly quick for such big knobblies.
Gravel bike = bike
Well, it's a sub-set of bikes, isn't it? Like an Enduro bike is also a bike, or a time trial bike. Clue is in the name, 'bike' preceded by an adjective.
I traded in my 29er hardtail for a NS Rag+ nothing to do with fashion or fads. It just suits my riding more. I’ve not run in to anything I can’t ride yet. Yes, it’s a compromise in some areas, but better all round. I actually quite like the drops for off road too.
nothing to do with fashion or fads. It just suits my riding more.
Exactly. The gravel bike suits a need for a lot of people. I could ride a mountain bike around where I live (and used to) but a gravel type bike is actually faster and better suited as my riding is pretty much all fire rods and roads with 2% singletrack.
I reckon a lot people get gravel bikes for the same reason as me - getting old and my body is knackered so MTB doesn't hold the same appeal any more. I still enjoy a short blast on it but couldn't cope with over 3hrs.
The gravel bike lets you get out for longer rides, get across the road sections much faster and when you get onto loose and rocky , albeit easy, trails it feels like a right laugh and disproportionately scary, even though your average HT would fly across any minor difficulties. It's also easier to just go for a ride without having to think about the route.
I bought a Camino AL to replace a Spesh Tricross. Feel like very different bikes due to flared drops, wider tyres, hydro brakes, burlier frame etc. I can see the difference in two "similar" drop bar hybrids.
Recognition of the gravel bike niche has freed up Cross/CX to once again be about skinnier tyred racing designs. I'd warrant that most folk asking about and buying CX bikes for the past 10 years or so were after a gravel bike all along.
Now, where does Adventure Bike sit in the continuum?
Out of interest how many people with drop bars spend most of their time on the drops rather than on the hoods?
I tend to spend all my pedalling time on the drops only moving to the hoods for descending since I feel the upright position gives me a bit more control.
I'm struggling to understand how flat bars for gravel type riding can be more comfortable.
