Plz help me choose a bike for road, gravel, muddy tracks and canal tow path.

I’ve been away from cycling for about 10 years due to injury and the bike I have now isn’t really adequate.

It’s an old on-one steel frame with drop bars, horizontal drop outs and a single speed and 35 mm tyres.

It would be ok but I need mudguards due to a riding on part of the Trans Pennine Trail all the time which is hardly ever free of mud or puddles. Fitting mudguards, 35 mm tyres, having the centre pull rear brake line up, getting good chain tension is almost impossible. So I’ve been running with no rear brake and I crashed hard a few weeks ago was lucky not to break my collar bone, my back is still hurting, lol. I know better braking would have saved me.

Need drop bars, room for 35 mm tyres and must have mudguard mounts of some sort. Would like hydraulic brakes. Don’t mind having single chain ring, but don’t want single speed. Budget around £1500.

I don’t want some slack angle old man touring bike :), but neither do I want road bike with fat tyres. I mostly do an hour commute but occasionally do 60 mile road rides, that sort of thing.

Not too keen on cheap carbon frame. Owned a carbon TCR many moons ago and it rode very dead.

What I’m looking at now are things like https://www.evanscycles.com/norco-search-xr-stl-apex-2019-adventure-road-bike-EV337770 . I can live with the slightly heavy frame but wish it had hydraulic brakes. This is prob my fav option on paper.

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/vitus-energie-vr-cyclocross-bike-rival-1×11-2019/rp-prod168783 < Looks maybe even better on paper then the Norco. Better group set and better brakes (hydraulic) and cheaper. What’s the catch?

https://www.evanscycles.com/cannondale-caadx-105-se-2019-cyclocross-bike-EV338207 < Seems a solid option but rims look heavy.

https://www.evanscycles.com/specialized-diverge-sport-2018-adventure-road-bike-EV306372 < Seems kind of expensive for the spec but I guess you pay for the shock in the headset?

Any or all of those would be ideal for the TPT which is also on my doorstep. I’d avoid the cannondale but only because of my own experience of bb30 bottom brackets. Pick the one you like the look of.

Personally I have a Pinnacle Arkose 3 which is well within budget and perfect for what you describe

Sounds like you need an escapade :)

The Arkose fits the OP’s requirements perfectly.

Arkose is the stock answer in this situation.

The Diverge is good value at that reduced price, has a brilliant frame, decent brakes, wheelset and the tiagra groupset works just fine and is durable.

Budget another £100 for a threaded BB conversion as the press fit BB is the weak point of that bike, i cant think of any other negatives.

The Diverge rides really well and that bike has bags of upgrade potential for the future. It wouldnt be difficult to get that bike well below 9kg.

Genesis Datum currently on sale reduced by £900 bang on yr budget  (might want to double check on mudguard options for 35c)

https://www.rutlandcycling.com/bikes/road-bikes/genesis-2018-datum-20-adventure-bike-carbon-orange_382383?currency=GBP&gclid=Cj0KCQjw6fvdBRCbARIsABGZ-vTXqy-a-Qp7Q0L9i67YvBfea6Dos-M3KlT6VwKJEW-6JzZP3Cr7kakaAgenEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

Are press fit BB’s really that bad?

NS Bikes RAG+…? Or another one from this lot…?

Sonder Camino Al?

Been lusting after one for a bit, think I might cave soon.

Are Pinnacle ok because they are Evans cycles own brand right?

https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/CBOOPICKRIV1/on-one-pickenflick-sram-rival-1-cyclocross-bike

https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/CBOOPICKRIV22HRD/on-one-pickenflick-sram-rival-22-hrd-cyclocross-bike

https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/CBPXFMSLRIV1/planet-x-full-monty-sl-sram-rival-1-hydraulic-disc-gravel-road-bike

All these would fit the bill perfectly. Full Monty sly is only £999 with hydraulic brakes

Have a look at the Trek Checkpoint review on Road.cc at the moment.

Out of budget ;) but jit the TPT from Liverpool to the tunnels on the Woodhead on this

https://www.canyon.com/en-gb/road/grail/

Good fun, super capable, spot on for the road and not scared of the rougher stuff, 40mm G-One Bites are supurb and keep suprising me for their all roundness

Are press fit BB’s really that bad?

Yes. Well, maybe. Some people are lucky and never have any issues. Others have constant problems and end up fitting some sort of aftermarket BB like a Wheels Manufacturing one. Which is what I had to do on my Specialized Crux. Some manufacturers are ditching them altogether now and reverting to threaded BB shells.

It’s worth bearing in mind for future costs but it’s a reasonably cheap thing to fix.

I’d go Specialized for an off-the-peg choice and the Cotic Escapade as a (semi) custom option. Although the new Kinesis G2 is coming out very soon – they were at the Cycle Show – and that’s £1500 for a super versatile do-everything bike.

https://www.kinesisbikes.co.uk/Catalogue/Models/Adventure/G2-BIKE

Out of budget  but jit the TPT from Liverpool to the tunnels on the Woodhead on this

Yeah 2k is a bit much for me to justify. I normally do the TPT from Altrincham to Liverpool and back. It’s not a bad ride until you get to Hale, then you have to mostly go on roads until you get to the sea front, and the winds can be murder going in that direction.

Not partially demanding on a bike but too much for a standard road bike, and muddy as an 80’s playing field in winter.

As per Richwak ^^^, the Pickenflick is a great bike. But doesn’t have rack mounts, so that might rule it out. PX had the Tempest V1 (more marketed as a gravel bike than the Pickenflick, which is a CX bike, although in reality very little difference) which I think comes with mounts, for £1400/1500 recently.

Sonder’s Camino is also meant to be a great bike.

Or … The forthcoming Sonder Santiago. Steel tourer type thing. Pre-order November for December launch is what they’re saying on their FB page.

Well I opted for this in the end: http://www.chainreactioncycles.com//wilier-jaroon-rival-adventure-road-bike-2018/rp-prod165503?utm_source=CRM&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=OrderConfirmation&utm_content=GB

It is kind of heavy I know but I like steel and supposed to be a very stiff frame which I like to. The bike will very rarely see technical stuff so that’s fine for me.

Will change the tyres for 33’s or 35’s.