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I use an old 29er as a do it all bike, though it's mostly setup for lanes, gravel paths and fireroads.
It's a 2006 fisher 29er, so same design they'd been using since 2002. I think its a 71 HA, 73SA, 70mm BB drop, short stays etc. it’ll only take 2.1" tyres comfortably so I have some lightweight dry weather XC tyres, 11-36 10 speed with 36T oval ring and flit between a rigid fork and an old 100mm reba, flat bars and bar ends and a low rise riser, but I always keep my USE suspension post, so I can manage decent pressures in the rear tyre (somewhere between 35-45 psi) so roady and hardpack sections are quick.
I guess this is the essence of gravel, something quicker than a MTB, geared up for fast tracks but with the ability not to shit it too much when you decide to turn to the singletrack.
Now that most 'MTB's' are focussed on what would once be the remit of the hardcore hardtails and enduro, on normal trails that don't point down much, they are quite slow.
I think it's only a matter of time before a lot of gravelliers realise that most of their regular trails suit a rapid XC hardtail better than a gravel bike. Of course, if you live somewhere like Aberfoyle for example, then a gavel bike will certainly tick the box.
however, if you do swap out for an xc bike, you've either got to go full skinsuit, or baggies. no roady threads allowed 😉
I do wonder if it's like a gravel superhero suit, when you don the rapha you become the hero-who-cant-smile..
what are those btw? Never mind your forensic investigation, I really want to know that first, sounds great
Ever noticed how brightly coloured baggy MTB clothing looks like brightly coloured kids pyjamas? We all like to think we somehow look cool whilst wearing it, but we don't. Thus was coined the phrase DH / enduro pyjamas.
This was brought to a head back in the early days of the internet (well, around the millennium anyway) when some some poor idiot thought it would be cool to post a photo of himself wearing his new full matching 661 kit, in his bedroom. The internet being the cruel and unforgiving place that it is turned this into a meme. This was probably on somewhere long gone like southerndownhill, which would explain why despite my best googling it turns out that maybe the internet does forget*.
So now whenever someone criticizes roadies in roadie kit, that is the image that immediately springs into my head of the poster.
*RIP the gloriously un-woke DMCA'd Moots seat post picture, probably a bigger factor in why I like Ti bikes than any perceptible ride quality 😂
I had a previous model of that Saracen above.. was great fun.. really was... only really used it for commuting.. then decided it would have been better 2x... bought a 2x bike and hated it (Vitus Mach 3), for that price its very good value.
I still rate my cheap road bike and Nukeproof Digger over both the above flat bar bikes for their chosen usage however..
one of my favourite 'gravel bikes' of yore, was my specialized corssroads (I think it was a crossroads) steel frame, steel fork canti brakes, full mudguards, 700x35c michelin worldtour tyres. 600mm flat bars and barends wrapped in bar tape.
it was very comfortable, weighed a bit, was stable, steady and way more capable than I thought it would be. great for fireroad tracks, walking trails and most of the west highland way.
I stuck the 29er wheels on my pact and took it for a spin on some tracks that I'd been avoiding on the gravel bike as they are bit too rocky for that.
I guess it's fair to say that there's a smalll niche for it between my gravel bike and my trail FS, though I mainly use it (often with B+ wheels and tyres) for my now occasional bikepacking trips. A dropper post might extend its use a little but I'd be after one with an under-seat lever for ease of removal and replacement.
😂 very droll
Swapped the GRX for deore and flat bars instead. See how it feels, might not need a new bike!
Get some bar plugs fitted before you go anywhere 😉
I was sad selling my gravel bike to fund a holiday.
Have been doing all of my gravel riding on this. Miles of smiles.
Selling regrets all gone, no plan to replace the Gravel bike now.
How's it going on the hybrid OP?
Is it doing what you needed?
Had one ride
Shoulders and neck loads better
Seems ok
It's a bike that's about it..obvs nowhere near as much fun as the am 9
Had one ride
Shoulders and neck loads better
Seems ok
It's a bike that's about it..obvs nowhere near as much fun as the am 9
Nice one.
It'll be interesting to see whether you start pushing its limits and thinking about a hardtail again, or not.
I won't I didn't think. If I'm on an mtb I want comfort so can't see where a hardtail fits in. I'd only use a hardtail for gravel and with the kids so maybe well keep the cash
I can keep up with my cycling club's gravel rides on my mountain bike, apart from a recent one where we finished by riding on the road into a strong crosswind, where I got dropped. It's faster thany cx/gravel on any rougher or more technical off-road sections.
And is perfect for rougher gravel routes around Scotland, like my recent ride from Killen, on the shore of Loch Lyon and sections of the West Highland Way.
It carries bike packing backs rather well too.
I can keep up with my cycling club's gravel rides on my mountain bike,
Of course you can. The fitness levels of the riders, and the amount of stop/starting will have more of an impact on whether people can keep up than the bikes they are riding. My riding group has regularly set off on gravel rides or bikepacking trips with every type of bike represented, from 160mm FS to touring bikes, via retro xc and gravel bikes. When we have people dropping off to take the short way home they are likely to be on MTBs of some description, but more relevant, don't ride as often as the rest of us.
It's faster thany cx/gravel on any rougher or more technical off-road sections.
Obviously. and slower on smooth tarmac, as you say. Most bikes are compromised somewhere on a ride - the question is which part do you want to sacrifice and which part do you keep.
Only place my Spur is slower than my old Trig is on the road.
Decided to try bikepacking for the first time this year (yes I know late to the party) and stuck with the mantra of “use what you have” (SC Hightower). Did Marcher Castles with Alex up there thinking I’d maybe get a gravel bike if I enjoyed it. I really enjoyed it.. so ran the same setup for KAW at the end of June. Absolute zero plans for a gravel bike now.
Yeah and I was regretting my bike choice as much as Nige was loving his! The only issue with my new adventure bike is it does spin out a bit on the road. Think I fitted a 30T oval as that's what I had, see if I can get a 34 or ever 36T to fit.