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Took my 8 year old son out - on a borrowed cross bike - for a ride on some local gravel roads/paths yesterday. He said to me after about an hours riding, "when can we get off these boring trails and go home?" So I took him on some rooty trails instead to make it a bit more interesting and he was not happy with how much he got beat up on the cross bike compared to his mountain bike.
So there you go, according to an 8 year old boy, gravel riding is rubbish! (I'm still a fan though 😉).
I'm with him!
But each to their own.
I'm on his side. Endless pedalling along featureless bridleways is absolute purgatory. Can you even schralp a booter on a cross bike?
I can't schralp on my mountain bike 🤣
Two of mine refuse to even ride one of our gravelly / do everything bikes!
However, one enjoys it as steep tech isn't his thing.
Depends where you live and what you take it on too.
Endless pedalling along featureless bridleways is absolute purgatory.
Some shite bridleway near me last week.
I don't have a gravel bike per se, but took the commuter for a ride around the new forest last summer and it was rather pleasant.
If I'd had a 29er XC bike I'm sure it would have been just as nice.
isn’t his thing.
Depends where you live and what you take it on too.
That really. It's never going to be as much fun as a proper mountain bike but I rode mine over to see my girlfriend on friday. If I was on the road bike I would have had to go through Edinburgh city centre ,my 'gravel bike's (singlespeed Roadrat with huge tyres) meant I could go straight through the middle of the Pentlands, much nicer!
It's a tool for going somewhere, not a toy like the MTB, but it makes the journeys more fun
It's definitely an old man thing. I enjoy a gravel ride, but I'd never see of taking my 18 year old on one. We took him on a similar type ride before it was called gravel riding and he was bored stiff. Think he only enjoyed the ferry trip which came half way round. Keep it with the real ale and pipe & slippers 🙂
I'm getting increasingly tempted by the gravel bike option, getting older and heavier, while I swear the state of the tarmac on the western South Downs lanes feels noticeably worse this year on the few times I've ventured up there since January.
I find gravel riding is an ideal way to catch up on my favourite radio programmes.
Bikes and music . Double win.
Gravel is better than riding my fatty on a beach. That is properly boring.
Some shite bridleway near me last week.
Yeah, nice scenery doesn't make a trail fun. I'd rather walk it.
Bear in mind we're talking about entertaining an 8 year old. It's just that my inner 8 year old is still quite vocal. I'd rather do skids and hit jumps then pedal through a Bob Ross painting.
I like both.
The appeal isn't the scenery though it's the ground covered and where you can travel to during the ride.
My inner 8 year old likes adventure as well as tech as much as my outer 45 year old.
It depends where you ride.
Living in the Pennines we are blessed with twitchy, exposed and challenging XC riding.
My Camino is giving me the opportunity to mix up my ride with very big road climbs to spin the legs leading onto incredibly diverse trails.
This is my ride this morning and I have a smile wider than a Cheshire Cat, even though I’m in Lancashire.
You see, I look at Monty's first picture and think 'what a waste of height'.
@easily Ignore the philistine, that looks like a fantastic ride. Whereabouts were you?
Glenartney, looking West to the back of Beinn Eich and Stuc a' Chroin.
Try him on a gravel bike rather than one designed to go round in tight circles 😉
Try him on a fixed gear, makes gravel riding and tame off road less boring.
The trails around me are tame on a mtb so being on the gravel bike makes them more challenging. Took mine 20 miles down to the mtb trails of Kingley Vale yesterday and 20 miles back, via QECP and the Downs. More fun than my FS in a pick-your-line sort of way.
I've always had 3 bikes , A mixture of big bike , xc bike , hardtail ,road bike , fat bike and cx bike over the years . I now have a Trek Slash and a Trek checkpoint and they cover all bases to be honest . Round my way in east lothian the local trails dont really require a big enduro bike and can all be done quickly on a gravel bike . The local descents are a blast on 43mm tyres flat out clipped in and we have miles and miles of core paths to ride.
Cant see why anyone wouldn't want one but each to their own.
It turns out that different people like different things.
Endless pedalling along featureless bridleways
Forest access tracks in conifer plantations are about the only featureless riding I can think of even here in East Anglia. Getting the best out of a CX bike on the sand-filled ruts that are the norm around here is a whole new game. OR the fantastic (sarcasm at max) clay based ones that the horses have turned into bog or rippled hardpack with their hooves.
People like different things and we live in different places.
That’s the beauty of what we do, nothing is right and nothing is wrong......... hang on what have I said
He'll be right, he's back at mountains bike training next week.
Stanfree, I've ridden on some of the wooded trails around east Lothian and - as you say - are a blast on a cross bike (Trek Crockett here). Might give it another blast one evening soon as I work quite local.
Nice bike montylikesbeer. 🤙
I like doing gravel style riding on a horse, especially in a multi-day, staying at pubs manner. On a bike I’m not even much good at XC rides, I always get distracted by steep plummets or messing about doing jumps badly.
It's bikes innit. It's all good.
Had an amazing gravel ride today. SDW as far as clanfield, then pointed the bike north west and rode home using whatever bridleways i happened to stumble across. Still finding new ones after 10 years. 85km and 1200metres of smiling.
It’s all about the chosen terrain, the sort of stuff that ‘can’ be exciting on a gravel or cx bike will be dull as **** on an mtb.
Terrain that’s gnaarr enough to make an mtb exciting will be virtually impossible on a cx/gr bike.
Just like any bike then really.
sold my ebike and SB130 and now ride my gravel bike on my usual MTB trails in kent and surrey.personally i like a challenge and find the current trend of heading out over biked to be the dullest riding of all.
I went out today on my 11 year old cx bike with file tread tyres. Did 75km, mixture of road, river side tracks, singletrack, deep sand, gravel paths, double track, and grass.
It was a nice ride, with only 5 out of control dogs.
It suits me quite well.
If I was living up country then I might mix up more riding either my drop bar 29er, or my FS. But I don't so it works.
I concur ! I’ve had 2 gravel bikes and they are like mountain biking without the fun 🙁
I wouldn’t be seen dead on a gravel bike, or for that matter anything that didn’t have 800mm bars and at least 150mm of travel!
BUT as already said above each to their own, and if it works for others, fair enough.
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when you dont need suspension
I love nothing more than going for gravel rides with friends. They ride their new gravel bikes and get punctures and i ride along at the same speed on my mtb. They go up a steep hill a bit faster and wait for me at the top. Then we ride something a bit more challenging and i wait for them at the end.
It's just another attempt to sell more bikes to MAMILs.
It’s just another attempt to sell more bikes to MAMILs.
Not really. Some of us are able to objectively assess the best kind of bike for the riding we want to do. So it's good that alternatives are widely available. If however some numpties buy them and ride their usual MTB trails and expect some kind of revelation then they're fools.
If you rode with me on the kind of ride I think gravel bikes are good at, you would be left behind on all the road bits.
I go out with my friends on their mtb’s in our local woods and trail centres. On the uphills the ebikes are always first but on the along and downs I’m always waiting for them, unless of course I get stuck behind the next group of mtb’s who don’t like to move out of the way. Personally I’m having more fun being forced to choose lines and picking off riders on their long travel skills compensators. 😀
Gravel bikes are great at trail centres. Sure, you have to pick your routes down, but I’ve never felt the need to get a man in a minibus to give me a lift to the top.
Gravel bikes are great at trail centres. Sure, you have to pick your routes down, but I’ve never felt the need to get a man in a minibus to give me a lift to the top.
My rigid MTB is awful at trail centres. It climbs ok but the stony ground the put in to armour the trails is rough as hell on every descent. I can imagine a gravel bike would be even worse.
Plenty of actual MTBs can climb just fine - they even make a category of bike purely for this, called XC.
Why has everyone totally forgotten about XC bikes these days?
Personally I’m having more fun being forced to choose lines and picking off riders on their long travel skills compensators.
Suspension isn't there to make it easier, it's there to allow you to go faster. Much, much faster.
My gravel bike is more of an adventure road bike. Used to do a bit of road it always found it anoying' that 30miles from home I'd ride past a bridal way and had no way of going down it - too far out to MTB to and don't want to risk punctures on skinny tyres.
Completely with the ops son - going from MTB to gravel is dull..... but going from road to gravel opens up lots of possibilities and fun.
Gravel bikes are great at trail centres
Which trail centres?
I only ride Park.
Once again we've hit upon the fact that MTB isn't one sport it's a whole range of activities that all look superficially similar and that people do for very different reasons. Hence these arguments.
Why has everyone totally forgotten about XC bikes these days?
who knows, just as they've stumbled upon decent handling, full suspension, and droppers without ruining the climbing/pedaling performance, they have fallen from vogue.
going from MTB to gravel is dull….. but going from road to gravel opens up lots of possibilities and fun.
Exactly. They are for opening up options for a road based ride rather than limiting options for an MTB ride. Most people don't want to ride their road bike on gravel roads (or don't think they can) and a gravel bike does well on it.
So compared to road riding gravel riding is great as it is away from the cars but still fast riding.
Just what I enjoy in fact but those that don't like road as they find it boring are not really going to like gravel either.
The bridleways from my front door (outskirts of York) are bland and boring on a MTB, not rideable on a full on road bike, but great fun on a gravel bike.
Couple of hours’ blast after work? Gravel time.
Weekend riding? MTB, but I have to drive to the trails.
The rest of the time? Road, with a power meter.
As above (I also live in the flatlands now far from York).
Would I prefer to be doing a big fireroad climb, and some woodsy singletrack, on my MTB, outside of my door on a Wednesday night? Of course I would, but there are no hills, its pan-flat. There are loads of 'sections' that are great fun, but spread apart. A gravel bike allows me to ride those bits easily.
The fact that its 'rubbish' and nearly shakes me to pieces and 15mph on my gravel bike off-road feels like 50mph on my Hightower, is exactly the appeal!
My first MTB was a second-hand rigid Raleigh M-Trax with gripshift gears. Back then for me it was all about riding local bridleways and the odd small natural jump in the woods.
Fast forward over quarter of a century and I ride the trail centres on my 150mm travel bike. I do the odd enduro and even xc race if I'm feeling fit. But I still like to ride bridleways and do the odd small natural jump in the woods.
Which is what my gravel bike is for. It's like my old M-Trax but so much better! Doing local bridleways on my big bike would be really dull. A bit like trying to play Slayer on a Telecaster. (I have an Ibanez for days I want to play Slayer...).
Suspension isn’t there to make it easier, it’s there to allow you to go faster. Much, much faster.
hmmm, doesnt seem to be working for a large number of people...maybe i just have a fast gravel bike.
Would I prefer to be doing a big fireroad climb, and some woodsy singletrack, on my MTB, outside of my door on a Wednesday night?
Why on earth would you look for a fire road climb? That's your problem right there.
Gravel bikes are great at trail centres
Which trail centres?
Agreed. Would love to see some of these gravelistas at Laggan or Golspie. 😁
Why on earth would you look for a fire road climb?
Because sometimes it's good to just pedal up a big hill.
hmmm, doesnt seem to be working for a large number of people
It does work, I can't comment on the skills of other riders.
who knows, just as they’ve stumbled upon decent handling, full suspension, and droppers without ruining the climbing/pedaling performance, they have fallen from vogue.
No I mean they are comparing gravel bikes and trail bikes and are apparently under the impression that they are the only two options and there's nothing in between.
I guess marketing does work...
Why on earth would you look for a fire road climb?
Probably the most pleasant way of gaining elevation. (not energy wasting difficult, and no cars).
Why on earth would you look for a fire road climb? That’s your problem right there.
I love fire road climbs. So I have a "problem" I guess
No I mean they are comparing gravel bikes and trail bikes and are apparently under the impression that they are the only two options and there’s nothing in between.
I guess marketing does work…
I think we agree - they have been relegated mentally to a niche of competition only, whereas they would these days actually be a bloody good solution for many (but not all) use cases mentioned in this thread.
You can’t argue with an 8 year old. Well you can, but it does your head in 🙂
To be fair, when I was 8 I’d have found gravel riding boring too. I guess, 50 years later, I’m now boring enough myself to enjoy it.
Probably the most pleasant way of gaining elevation. (not energy wasting difficult, and no cars).
I couldn't disagree more: I much prefer a technical climb. Fire road climbs on the mtb just make me wish I was on my gravel or road bike.
I couldn’t disagree more: I much prefer a technical climb. Fire road climbs on the mtb just make me wish I was on my gravel or road bike.
I dont hate them. I have a few good ones in the peaks, and there are decent trailcentre ones, and a few sprinkled uphill moves, obstacles on pretty much any offroad ride are fun.
But I wouldn't want all of my climbing on a ride to be like that, because I'd be a physical wreck in under an hour, probably having gone about 4 miles.
I'm still waiting to hear which trail centre is good on a gravel bike...
If you rode with me on the kind of ride I think gravel bikes are good at, you would be left behind on all the road bits.
@molgrips I'm lucky enough to have enough dirt roads that I don't need to do a great deal of your kind of riding. And some of the climbs aren't much chop on a gravel bike either.
As a MTB’er of 30 years I’m riding more than ever since getting a gravel bike. Point and squirt, in any direction.
Funny, all the people i know who bought them barely use them. I guess it depends on your local terrain.
Rode some local (relatively easy) trails last night on the cross bike (fitted with 38mm gravel tyres) and it was truly joyous. Just love that feeling of acceleration as you full gas it out of the bends then braking as little as possible as you then dive into the next turn whilst your tyres are scrabbling for grip.
Fun, fun, fun!!!
After 60 minutes of my heart rate bouncing on the limiter I was knackered, a proper outdoors workout. Beats the winter routine of midweek intervals on the indoor trainer.
Happy days.
Are Mtb riders more likely to have a gravel bike than roadies or are roadies seeing the light?
My one ride on a carbon gravel bike had me surprised at how comfy it was but amazed that anyone could ride with bars that narrow. Are we going to see something that is a wider drop bar but with the drop bit removed?
After that ride I put cyclo cross 29 wheels on a 26 hard tail and plugged in some 100 mm forks. It felt quite spritely and comfy enough on the flat tracks.
Nearly rode it on Sunday but took my fatty instead. Glad of my choice as all the churned up horsey bits have dried rock hard and would have been unrideable on my hybrid. The thought of pushing a bike for a mile on the flat would have been annoying to say the least.
I think gravel bikes will utimately evolve into lightweight 29ers with a 100 mm fork.
Funny, all the people i know who bought them barely use them. I guess it depends on your local terrain.
Probably, for where I live a gravel bike is probably the perfect bike as even a rigid MTB is more than required (tried one again recently for 2 months and sold it).
I am not really sure why some people buy gravel bikes and then don't use them, guessing a mix of marketing and dreaming without really thinking about how and what they ride (also known as more money than sense)
I’m still waiting to hear which trail centre is good on a gravel bike…
Glentress blue is so much fun on a gravel bike
the photo's are not persuading me, still looks absolutely shit.
infinitely more fun than riding around on tarmac tho i suppose...
Mentioning gravel bikes on here does seem to elicit some strong opposition. I find it a bit weird tbh, when all we're talking about is riding bikes in the countryside. My take is that if you want to do longish rides linking back roads, towpaths and bridleways, then they're the perfect tool for the job.
Funny, all the people i know who bought them barely use them. I guess it depends on your local terrain.
Of course, it absolutely does. If you've only got rocky tech then a gravel bike is obviously useless. If you've only got gravel roads then a trail bike is obviously useless.
For longer range rides I have loads of jeep tracks over the mountains which are rough but not technical, linked with some technical bits but also lots of road, like 10 miles or more. Hence rigid MTB.
Off road riding (and the bike you use for it) is heavily dependent on what you have available, always surprised at how many people don't get this, then rush out and buy a gravel or trail bike because it's the thing, then complain about it.
Rode some local (relatively easy) trails last night on the cross bike (fitted with 38mm gravel tyres) and it was truly joyous. Just love that feeling of acceleration as you full gas it out of the bends then braking as little as possible as you then dive into the next turn whilst your tyres are scrabbling for grip.
Fun, fun, fun!!!
This times a million - on the right trails a gravel bike is BETTER than any MTB (as in, faster, funner). Typically twisty, possibly muddy, not steep. I'm already missing my winter CX rides linking random sections of muddy trail with road sections, these were some of the best rides I've had in years.
That said, my (new) local riding is more like what Molgrips describes, big hill-tracks. I would have thought the gravel bike would have been ideal but after a couple of rides getting the absolute crap beaten out of me I'm back on a lightweight 29er hardtail. I still miss the gravel bike on the climbs, all the stretched out bar end/aero bar stuff doesn't make up for the slightly more sedate feel of fatter, softer tyres (I've moved from 38mm Terreno Dry to 2.1" Terreno Dry, basically 15mm wider. Big difference).
Once I get my head round just being a bit slower on climbs it should be fine, although I'm still hesitant about the sort of 120/130km gravel days I was happily doing on the 'gravel' bike. They just seem a bit daunting on a slower more upright MTB, even if my lower back is happier in the long run...
All of the pictures linked in this thread, I immediately think the person is trying to justify that their gravel bike can do more than a flat boring gravel track, but the fact is in each of those pics an mtb would be more fun and quicker.
All bikes are compromise, and its just choosing where you want your compromise and sucked in to marketing you are.
To me its like going to Grizdale Forest. You could spend a the complete day riding your gravel weapon bike on the trails, but miss the nicest riding in the area. Alternatively you ride an mtb and do some slogging up the 4x4 tracks but then get fun singletrack, bumpy trails.
I’m still waiting to hear which trail centre is good on a gravel bike…
I meant to ride bedgebury on mine before I sold it, there's one rock on the entire 'red' route that might have caused an issue for a gravel bike.
This is what gravel bikes are about for me. Scenery, cranking out the miles away from traffic.
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Gravel riding both is and isn't rubbish, clearly. The waveform collapses to one state or the other when you try it.
I've had one brief go on an actual gravel bike (and hence am entirely qualified to discuss it), and it ranged from "OK" going uphill to mildly terrifying going downwards. The geometry felt all wrong, the bars were way too narrow, and I was riding SPD pedals in trainers. Thumbs down, would avoid 😀
A gravel bike from 2023.
man i could have done with a gravel bike yesterday.
did my longest ride of the year on my new road bike.
went devizes to bristol via k & a canal towpath then twin tunnels and cycleway to bristol.
then returned via the towpat from bath back to devizes.
man it was a lovely ride BUT the return on the towpath was bloody torture lol
i am not fit so was knackered as i got back on towpath.
23 miles of being buffetted about was not fun at all.
glad i did the ride but will use my mountain bike for sure when i ride the route again (don't have a gravel bike).