Dickyboy
…and is it still okay to ride it if I don’t know what to call it?

Easy.

Call it Louise, 🙂

Missed this earlier, but my 2p:

Hybrid was originally a halfway house between MTB and road back when MTBs were just invented. But they became popular for commuting and easy going riding so they became cheap, and ‘serious’ riders wanted what the fast people ride so didn’t buy them.

Then someone in America realised the concept was still a good one so brought them back but with better spec and drops, but they cannot be called hybrids because people will think they are commuter bikes.

They are a great idea, and the marketing push means there are now loads of options to choose from. So it’s a good thing overall.  The name is rubbish but then most bike category names are if you think about it. Who cares?

I put drop bars on my actual cheap hybrid commuter bike, and surprisingly the same frame that felt fast and good with a 120mm stem, 580mm flats and bar ends also feels good with a 70mm stem and drops. I love riding it on rough roads because it is so stiff, but the 32mm tyres take any roughness out. Only issue with the conversion was having to fit mini V brakes, and that was only an issue because they foul the mudguards.

Oh, and cable adjusters. No threads on the downtube bosses so I needed inline adjusters; there are also no adjusters on the road brake levers so I got some noodles with adjusters on.

My prediction is that gravel bikes will evolve to take pretty wide tyres within the next couple of years.

Possibly.  Wouldn’t that be a monstercross? Something like my prettyugly frankenbike here?

These 2.1s feel pretty much spot on.  Could prob squeeze 2.35-4 in there but these hit a sweet spot IMO.  It’s not so much the geometry that makes me refer to it as just that in so many ways it reminds me of my first ATB – no nonsense, indexed shifters (were thumbies, now bar-end), rigid cromo f&f, 2″ hybrid tyres, Deore kit, no aggro, comfy all day on mixed surfaced/unsurfaced routes.  Carries stuff with a shrug.  Definitely the bike that I pick for going a long way on roads/backroads/tracks with some offroad exploring in mind.

Wouldn’t that be a monstercross? Something like my prettyugly frankenbike here?

I was going to post something similar about my Vagabond as well. 😀 What tyres are you using on yours? (I’m still using the OEM Small Block 8s but they aren’t going to last much longer.)

They don’t need t evolve to take wider tyres, there will just be another option.  Tyre size makes a big difference and not always positive.  I was running 45c tyres which made my bike feel closer to an MTB.  Changed to 38c tyres and it felt a bit less MTB a bit more road (starring/handling).  I preferred the 38c tyres.

I’m struggling to not buy this today

https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/EBPXFMSLA1/planet-x-full-monty-sl-apex-1-bike

Only thing holding me back really is Yodel and the fact i’m at work and they can only deliver to PP address. Need to work out if that’s only my Primary one, or any..

was going to post something similar about my Vagabond as well. 😀 What tyres are you using on yours?

Just two:

–  WTB Nano Race, 60TPI, 29×2.1 (folding) as pictured for summer.  ie from gravel road to ‘no road’, or just dicking about wherever.

– Schwalbe Landcruiser 35c for winter road-touring/wet-weather towpaths etc with full guards.  ie from tarmac to gravel

The 35c Schwalbes are so heavy-duty they weigh about the same as the Nanos.

Have yet to try the Nanos set up tubeless. Can’t be naffed TBH as I change tyres frequently and the Nanos are easy to seat on these rims.

Malvern Rider

…Wouldn’t that be a monstercross? Something like my prettyugly frankenbike here?…

Yes, but optimised for gravel rather than technical riding. Monstercross is the hairy knuckled evolutionary link. It’s what we have to do at the moment because the perfect gravel bike doesn’t yet exist.

Luckily for us there are all those obsolete old school geometry 29er hardtails out there just begging for a gravel conversion.

Now just imagine your bike’s geometry with all your contact points the same, but with a longer headtube so you don’t need a stack of spacers, and a more horizontal toptube to enable in-frame luggage or easy shouldering and you have the future gravel bike.

BTW a bike that feels right can never be ugly. 🙂

kerley

They don’t need t evolve to take wider tyres, there will just be another option…

I’ll disagree on that one. You don’t need to fit wider tyres if you don’t want them, but the ability to do so is useful. We’ve been through a similar process with fatbikes. It’s now hard to sell a 4″ only fatbike because there’s times 5″+ is better, even though most of the time 4″ is enough.

Similarly on the rough gravel we have in the highlands, a narrow tyre means you’re continually scanning the track ahead for stuff that could damage your rims or tyres and small ruts become dangerous, whereas 2.35″ rolls over them easily.

And there is also the greater security when descending on steep loose stuff where there’s consequences – on a recent ride with 40mm I walked some descents because the lack of grip meant there was a likelihood of spearing off into the void, a problem I don’t have with the wider tyres.

yes but if you try hard enough you can get to ride some interesting gravel roads and some singletrack to join them up maybe some road to get to/from home rather than drive

a hybrid rusts in the garage before being put on a rack to go ride a flat railtrail because that’s what you do when you are on holiday

monstercross is cos’ you’ve got all the bits somewhere and like building up bikes

simples next question

@scruff

Could you let me know which bike you fitted 2.1’s on please? Looking at doing something similar

Wider tyres are where it’s at especially in this dry weather, fitted 2.3″ geax boozelites to our tandem (rigid dawes) – going off road? Drop the pressure, on road? pump em up dont really notice any extra drag and so darn comfortable on road.

In light of the above I picked up some Vittoria tattoo 2.3″ tyres for my vagabond and got them to go up tubeless first time, probably rain before I try them out now 🤔

I think Gravel and Adventure are starting to split as sub-genres.

Gravel is more non-tarmac roads where as Adventure is off road.

^ Today (for the first and hopefully penultimate time) I read the word: ‘gravelventure’

The more official term is ‘road plus’.  Will we all be saved in the niche of times?

PS epicyclo, is this more the ‘future gravel bike’ you’re predicting?

https://bikerumor.com/2018/03/26/bfs2018-genesis-fugio-1x-rolls-on-a-gravelventure-as-brands-first-sram-build/

I’m inclined to agree- there’s always going to be a spectrum, but I think you might see more clustering around the 700x40ish/650x50ish tyre size combined with a fairly roadie looking setup, built for ‘going fast’ on and off road, then the epicyclo style ‘more or less a drop bar MTB’ that is set up/marketed for all terrain exploring/bimbling.

The first type makes for exactly the sort of ‘road’ bike I wish I’d had when I lived in Loughborough 10 years ago- lots of field edges, little bits of woodland, all joined up by a bit too much road to make it fun on the MTB- and is probably pretty similar to how a lot of people, including me, were/are using cross bikes.

The second I’d say is more of an overlap with short travel MTB- which you choose is based on how you plan to use it. Sort of like the difference between a road bike and an audax bike?

I’m struggling to not buy this today

https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/EBPXFMSLA1/planet-x-full-monty-sl-apex-1-bike

Only thing holding me back really is Yodel and the fact i’m at work and they can only deliver to PP address. Need to work out if that’s only my Primary one, or any..

That & you’ll probably not see it this side of xmas – I’m still waiting for a dispatch email from them for a tyre I ordered over a week ago. Was promised yesterday that it would be sent out yesterday…

Now just imagine your bike’s geometry with all your contact points the same, but with a longer headtube so you don’t need a stack of spacers, and a more horizontal toptube to enable in-frame luggage or easy shouldering and you have the future gravel bike.

Like a Salsa Cutthroat?

I’ll disagree on that one. You don’t need to fit wider tyres if you don’t want them, but the ability to do so is useful.

Yes clearly, unless you don’t want to fit wider tyres and don’t like massive gaps in the frame and longer wheelbases than required etc,.  I was riding a bike with 43c, then 38c and have now changed frames and gone back to 24c (all fixed gear) as for gravel I didn’t really find a lot of difference other than comfort and I don’t care about comfort as I only ride for 2 hours max.

I wasn’t any faster overall on the 43 or 38 compared to the 24

I prefer the feel of the 24c on the road (the pickup, the steering etc,.) even though that goes against current thinking and preferences.

Epicyclo : Now just imagine your bike’s geometry with all your contact points the same, but with a longer headtube so you don’t need a stack of spacers,

Then I wouldn’t be happy on mine without a change of stem. My spacers are mostly all above the stem – I like a low front end.

Just looked at the Genesis and the Salsa – looks like I’m behind the times. The wide tyre gravel bike is already here. 🙂

I fancy a go on the Genesis – if it handles as well as the io did, I’m sold 🙂

kerley

… as for gravel I didn’t really find a lot of difference other than comfort and I don’t care about comfort as I only ride for 2 hours max….

Horses for courses – unless I’m mistaken, I think your gravel is a bit better groomed than ours. I lived in Southampton for a year when I was a lad and poked around various New Forest tracks on a lugged steel lightweight with 1⅜” (35mm) tyres. I thought they were wonderful compared to the tracks I was used to riding on in the Highlands.

A CX bike would have been perfectly adequate for that sort of stuff.

I fancy a go on the Genesis – if it handles as well as the io did, I’m sold

It really is fun. On my first ride I popped it off a speed bump and got far more air than I was expecting (or would normally get on my MTB.) I rode it around Swinley last week and it coped admirably. My first visit there and I was comfortably quick, comparing myself to other riders on the trail and later on Strava. At Gritfest a few weeks ago it was a little slower on the roads and easier gravel tracks but shone on the really broken mountain access tracks. And that is relevant – where  I live is surrounded by these wide tracks over the hills, which are rather difficult on a cross bike with 32mm tyres.

<span style=”-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);”>Edit…</span>

My hybrid is a rigid Salsa El Mariachi with flat high sweep 660mm bars, 2.3″ tyres and a front mech. Chosen and built to be the equivalent of my 98 P7, which was good enough for anything off road by the standards of the day but I could also ride all day on road on it.  IIt<span style=”font-size: 0.8rem;”>had bar ends, but I tried them on the Salsa and the 580mm bar was just too narrow for wagon wheels. </span>

It gets used for 15-20 miles of road followed by general off road in the Valleys which is anything from fire road to rocky tracks to as technical off-road as you like. And it’s brilliant on road too. Drops would make it a bit better on road, for me, and a bit worse off it.

Being a 29er though it can take a 29+ front wheel, possibly a 27.5+ rear wheel and a suspension fork if I feel like it.