Gravel Grinder - Road Bike search.

Dairyman

Active Member
I have a diverge and love it Suspension might seem like a gimmick but it really helps. Make sure you get something with “gravel” not cyclocross geo

Check out the following:
Diverge
Ibis Hakka mx (prob won’t find used)
Lauf true grit
Niner rlt or rlt rdo
Giant’s gravel bike
 

jShort

2018 Fantasy Football Toilet Bowl Lead Technician
Team MTBNJ Halter's
I rode my carbon hard tail rigid (niner fork) with tall gearing (36t and 11/46) and felt like I was wasn’t really missing out. I also threw on some 40’s.
 

stb222

Love Drunk
Jerk Squad
You might want to a dig little farther into the blog... dudes responsible for a little event called trans-Iowa and had been immersed in gravel for decades. BTW, he also agrees that while 650b 47+ have their place, 700c’s around 40 are best for most gravel. :)
Yeah, I just skimmed the bikes list. I am glad someones has the sense to recommend 40. Remember when riding bikes with skinny tires on gravel was part of the appeal?
 

Pearl

THIS CHANGES EVERYTHING
it really depends on your definition of "gravel" and how much road you will ride on it. i think i found the perfect blend with 30/32 roubaix pro tires on the mr pink and it can really tackle anything and not be a total slug on the road. if its a bike that will specifically be on chunky gravel then yes, 32+ tires will be fine. if you want to explore anything with any sort of road miles inbetween, 30/32mm road tires seem to do it all.

any excuse to share my pink:
img_6857.jpg


i agree with kevy though, part of the draw (for me) about riding gravel was riding it on skinny tire bikes.
 

Mare

Well-Known Member
it really depends on your definition of "gravel" and how much road you will ride on it. i think i found the perfect blend with 30/32 roubaix pro tires on the mr pink and it can really tackle anything and not be a total slug on the road. if its a bike that will specifically be on chunky gravel then yes, 32+ tires will be fine. if you want to explore anything with any sort of road miles inbetween, 30/32mm road tires seem to do it all.

any excuse to share my pink:
img_6857.jpg


i agree with kevy though, part of the draw (for me) about riding gravel was riding it on skinny tire bikes.
That's pretty. I like it!
 

rick81721

Lothar
it really depends on your definition of "gravel" and how much road you will ride on it. i think i found the perfect blend with 30/32 roubaix pro tires on the mr pink and it can really tackle anything and not be a total slug on the road. if its a bike that will specifically be on chunky gravel then yes, 32+ tires will be fine. if you want to explore anything with any sort of road miles inbetween, 30/32mm road tires seem to do it all.

any excuse to share my pink:
img_6857.jpg


i agree with kevy though, part of the draw (for me) about riding gravel was riding it on skinny tire bikes.

So what is the primary purpose for a 28mm tire? I was packing a bike bin to take to FL yesterday and found a pair of Hutchinson 28s I won at HoH a few years ago. What should I do with them?
 

stb222

Love Drunk
Jerk Squad
Yes, crazy, swing all the way to one side until you realize, wait, this isn't what i wanted.

So what is the primary purpose for a 28mm tire? I was packing a bike bin to take to FL yesterday and found a pair of Hutchinson 28s I won at HoH a few years ago. What should I do with them?
28's are good for all around riding, that being said, I run 25's on the EVO.
I believe you have the sectors. Cannondale was gradually up'ing the tire size on the EVO and you may have the model that was built for 28's, so run theses until you wear them out, or save them for when you up here. My EVO can fit a 27 Vittoria Pave CGiii, but man is it close in the rear. The front has plenty of clearance.
 

Magic

Formerly 1sh0t1b33r
Team MTBNJ Halter's
it really depends on your definition of "gravel" and how much road you will ride on it. i think i found the perfect blend with 30/32 roubaix pro tires on the mr pink and it can really tackle anything and not be a total slug on the road. if its a bike that will specifically be on chunky gravel then yes, 32+ tires will be fine. if you want to explore anything with any sort of road miles inbetween, 30/32mm road tires seem to do it all.

any excuse to share my pink:
img_6857.jpg


i agree with kevy though, part of the draw (for me) about riding gravel was riding it on skinny tire bikes.
Buys wrong size bike, makes up for it with a 200mm stem.

Still hot AF.
 

Pearl

THIS CHANGES EVERYTHING
That's pretty. I like it!
:thumbsup:
So what is the primary purpose for a 28mm tire? I was packing a bike bin to take to FL yesterday and found a pair of Hutchinson 28s I won at HoH a few years ago. What should I do with them?
i run 28 gravel kings on this bike when im JRAing. since they are tubeless i would have done HoH on them for reference.

Buys wrong size bike, makes up for it with a 200mm stem.

Still hot AF.
bro are you even flexible? here's my caad10 for when i wanna go fast, 56cm with 130mm -10 stem. the pink is 130mm -17 and is still has a higher handle bar height than the caad :p
img_7158.jpg

and i even rode this bike on gravel last weekend setup just like this, no problemo
 

ChrisG

Unapologetic Lifer for Rock and Roll
I've got no bike suggestions to add for the OP, but in the interest of conversation, I'll add that this whole "gravel bike" thing has been a non-issue for me until recently. My gravel bike has been my road bike with 25's, as per @Commissioner of Nostradamus Rankings .

However, I finally broke down and purchased a 21st century cross bike at the start of last season, only to have real life get in the way of consistent training, and I only did one race on it.

In the interest of trying new things, and not feeling like my newly-spent money is just gonna sit there until August, I threw a set of 35's on, along with a couple of bottle cages. I'm figuring to ride this thing on the road for the next few months, and maybe do a few gravel/mixed surface events in the spring. Having tooled around the local roads and some mild singletrack on it, it for sure offers a different experience from the pure road bike. But it's certainly way more aggressive than a true gravel bike, or anything that's got bag/rack bottle bosses all over it. It will accommodate 38's, though, which I assume I'll want when it's time for more gravel/less pavement.

IMG_1294 (1).jpg
 

Pearl

THIS CHANGES EVERYTHING
How about that! I always remembered you said CX bikes were for racing only, glad to see you riding some trails with one!
 

Johnny Utah

Well-Known Member
it really depends on your definition of "gravel" and how much road you will ride on it. i think i found the perfect blend with 30/32 roubaix pro tires on the mr pink and it can really tackle anything and not be a total slug on the road. if its a bike that will specifically be on chunky gravel then yes, 32+ tires will be fine. if you want to explore anything with any sort of road miles inbetween, 30/32mm road tires seem to do it all.

any excuse to share my pink:
img_6857.jpg


i agree with kevy though, part of the draw (for me) about riding gravel was riding it on skinny tire bikes.
Mostly the D&R and D&L would be the gravel option.
 
Top Bottom