Gravel bikes = 1970’s tourers?

😉

Hostel-hopping: A solo gravel bikepacking adventure on a ‘70s singlespeed

Love it. That’s the essence of touring for me. Its not about the bike, any mechanically sound bike will do.

Please don’t post stuff like that I’d just convinced myself that I need a carbon wheel upgrade for my gravel bike to really make the Hertfordshire bridleways and byways come alive.

Indeed it shows that getting out there is more important than the latest gizmo.
(That and the fact the Markus is nails).

I notice he didn’t ride it on 70’s tyres 😉 . The single biggest advance in cycling is not the bike.

I notice he didn’t ride it on 70’s tyres 😉

+1

Just bought a ’78 Nishiki tourer. It’s really nice has 32c tyres with room for more.

Gravel bikes are 1950 tourers.

Schoolboy Hostellers – 1951

https://movingimage.nls.uk/film/1886

(I’ve posted this before but it’s brilliant!)

I notice he didn’t ride it on 70’s tyres 😉 . The single biggest advance in cycling is not the bike.

I think more the rims that the tyres – the biggest advance bikes made in braking wasnt the brakes or the blocks – its was the change from slippery chrome plated rims to aluminium.

Bill Houston from these parts had a nice Hostelling philosophy

urgh. this all just reinforces my painful reality.

matt_outandabout is spot on, it’s not about the bike it’s about getting out for rides in lovely places with whatever bike you have. Anything will do the job if you’re prepared for some compromise.

Sadly I don’t get to do much riding of any sort, so instead I fill the void with bike tinkering, filling the garage with more bikes that seldom get used!

My gravel bike is 42:18 as well, which I’ve specced for the flat lands. So maybe not so different, but he’s got some legs riding across the highlands on it.

Yes. I remember steel rims on my 1970s Raleigh Wayfarer. Deathtrap in the wet. Otherwise a nice handling bike not to far way from a present day flat bar hybrid. Apart from the 3 speed hub.

Took everything I threw at it until I bent the forks landing after jumping off a ramp.

I’ve often thought that Gravel bikes are getting close to 1980s MTBs (or ATBs really!)

Apart from the drop bars, they had chunky tyres, like, ooh, at least 1.75″, fully rigid, 10 speed, nice sleek steel frames, no expectation of seriously hitting a rock garden or berm, usually ridden with an OS map and some sandwiches for company…

Blimey I’ll have to get my old Claude Butler out of the garage. Of course I’ll to borrow Stitz’s legs too.

My 80s MTB was pretty slack and long wheelbase, but the 90s stuff certainly felt a lot like my gravel bike today.

In fact, I threw some slicks on my Kona (1997) and a slightly wider flat bar and it rides really well and *may* just have set a few PBs over my gravel bike!

I blame the lack of braking power 🤔😉

My Claude lives on the wall up the stairs slowoldman, in its life since my grandad built it up from a mail order frame in the 50s it has been a tourer and work transport, uni transport for my dad, my round the streets bike when i got big enough and we couldn’t afford a BMX. All of that was on the mostly original parts.

More recently i’ve done a minor rebuild (80s shimano) and it has sufficed as a gravel bike before it was regular parlance, done 100 mile plus charity rides through Wales as well as a blue route (possibly can’t recommend).

So fully agree with the sentiments above, steel frame, dependable low maintenance parts and bit of tyre squish must be hundreds of bikes in sheds that could live with gravel and beyond.

led me to get a first gen cotic escapade on the basis that its a very similar multi purpose bike and i don’t want to ruin the claude before my daughter gets to ride it

Ah now my Claude was hanging on the wall in Harry Hall’s Manchester shop. It was being sold by a staff member. We were actually buying a bike for Ms Slow but at £100 I figured it was a good by for a commuter/pub/knockabout bike. It took me off-road for the first time and was responsible for me getting a mountain bike, since when it hasn’t had much to do as I normally ride a Diverge or Piglet.

It’s good though. 3x Shimano Altus so super low gears, cantilever brakes. It’s the only bike I’ve ever fully stripped down and rebuilt too, which was fun. I really should start using it again.

Seeing all the Stooge Ramblers on my facebook feed isn’t helping at all. Seriously tempted to build one as a nicer replacement for my Plug SSCX, but that does everything so well I just cant justify it.

Yes my gravel bike is my 1990s MTB. With a wheel swap it’s my old road bike which had space for 35mm tyres.

What’s not to like