KneesUp
Guru
I took two bike on holiday recently - a mountain bike and a road bike. I have 2 inch knobblies on the MTB and 23mm slicks on the road one. I used both for various trails, and for going to the 'local' shop which was about 2 miles away if you went the obvious way, but was accessible via various routes of various lengths - I got there along a boggy path by a river (MTB), over a very steep tarmac road (road), through a farm and alongside the river (because I missed the bike path sign) (road) and down a bike path that turned out to be just a narrow gap in abundant vegetation down the side of a hill (also road) and on an NCN route which had a surface not much different than alongside the river. I did all the 'trail' rides on the MTB but as these were family friendly and so although not roads, they weren't exactly Black runs.
I actually quite enjoyed doing the off road stuff on the road bike - it took me back to being a kid, when I only had a road bike and so I did everything on it. It wouldn't have been much fun if I needed more traction, though. Fortunately it was dry.
All of which got me to thinking that maybe I should just get one of these here 'gravel' bikes. It's kind of how I've built up the MTB (it has drops and usually wears slicks for commuting) but ultimately it's a rigid MTB and it always feels a bit plodding - the road bike felt much more lively on the trails.
I have no interest in 'proper' mountain biking as such - I like to explore places, but can't imagine going anywhere that a 'gravel' bike couldn't get, albeit if it's rocky or especially rough, an MTB might be quicker, but I'm not racing anyone, so I think a gravel bike would be ideal.
I especially like the idea that it's a bit of a jack of all trades. I accept that they are master of none, that's fine, because I'm not either, And I do have the MTB and road bike should I need anything more specialist. I would then be able to take one bike on holiday (perhaps with a spare set of wheels) and do everything I wanted without looking like I've got half of Halfords stuck to the back of the car.
Those that have one - how much of a compromise are they? My MTB isn't cutting edge (it's 27 years old, and fully rigid) and my 'road' bike isn't a race bike (Ribble Audax) but I don't want to buy a new bike and then find that, actually, I use the MTB still when I go on trails and through the woods, and the Ribble when I know I'm sticking to roads. It needs to be decent at both, but as my other bikes aren't top of the range specialists, I am hoping that it would be good enough off road for me and lighter than the MTB, and not much heavier than the Ribble ... Oh, and finally I'd like to use it to tour sometime, so ideally it'd have rack mounts front and rear.
This is la long rambling post isn't it?
I think I'd like to buy a frameset and build it up - partly because I like a triple and I can't find any that come with one, partly because I have lots of parts anyway and partly because I like building bikes. So far I've found:
Dolan RDX - ticks all the boxes, but 35mm max tyre maybe a bit slim. No idea of weight.
Ribble CGR - 35mm max, quite bright
Mango Point AR - up to 42mm tyres, cheaper than the others (by £30) 300g or so heavier than the Ribble
I'm only at the 'this might be a good idea' window-shopping stage, but any input from those who own any of the above, or have alternatives to suggest, or think the whole idea is stupid and I'd never ride it because I have the other two bikes much appreciated
I actually quite enjoyed doing the off road stuff on the road bike - it took me back to being a kid, when I only had a road bike and so I did everything on it. It wouldn't have been much fun if I needed more traction, though. Fortunately it was dry.
All of which got me to thinking that maybe I should just get one of these here 'gravel' bikes. It's kind of how I've built up the MTB (it has drops and usually wears slicks for commuting) but ultimately it's a rigid MTB and it always feels a bit plodding - the road bike felt much more lively on the trails.
I have no interest in 'proper' mountain biking as such - I like to explore places, but can't imagine going anywhere that a 'gravel' bike couldn't get, albeit if it's rocky or especially rough, an MTB might be quicker, but I'm not racing anyone, so I think a gravel bike would be ideal.
I especially like the idea that it's a bit of a jack of all trades. I accept that they are master of none, that's fine, because I'm not either, And I do have the MTB and road bike should I need anything more specialist. I would then be able to take one bike on holiday (perhaps with a spare set of wheels) and do everything I wanted without looking like I've got half of Halfords stuck to the back of the car.
Those that have one - how much of a compromise are they? My MTB isn't cutting edge (it's 27 years old, and fully rigid) and my 'road' bike isn't a race bike (Ribble Audax) but I don't want to buy a new bike and then find that, actually, I use the MTB still when I go on trails and through the woods, and the Ribble when I know I'm sticking to roads. It needs to be decent at both, but as my other bikes aren't top of the range specialists, I am hoping that it would be good enough off road for me and lighter than the MTB, and not much heavier than the Ribble ... Oh, and finally I'd like to use it to tour sometime, so ideally it'd have rack mounts front and rear.
This is la long rambling post isn't it?
I think I'd like to buy a frameset and build it up - partly because I like a triple and I can't find any that come with one, partly because I have lots of parts anyway and partly because I like building bikes. So far I've found:
Dolan RDX - ticks all the boxes, but 35mm max tyre maybe a bit slim. No idea of weight.
Ribble CGR - 35mm max, quite bright
Mango Point AR - up to 42mm tyres, cheaper than the others (by £30) 300g or so heavier than the Ribble
I'm only at the 'this might be a good idea' window-shopping stage, but any input from those who own any of the above, or have alternatives to suggest, or think the whole idea is stupid and I'd never ride it because I have the other two bikes much appreciated
