Does the increasing popularity of gravel riding have anything to do with a growing fear of riding on roads? And if so, does that mean we’re admitting defeat to motorists? After a gravel ride over the weekend, Dan Lloyd got to thinking.
Plus, we’re talking about the Belgian café giving away free éclairs, how Zwift are venturing outdoors, and a HUGE amount of hot new bike tech!
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⏱️ Timestamps: ⏱️
00:00 – Welcome To The GCN Show!
00:38 – This Week In The World Of Cycling
01:17 – The Rise Of Gravel & Is It Admitting Defeat To Motorists?
09:39 – Cycling Shorts
09:48 – Wout Van Aert’s Éclairs
10:44 – UK Cars Are Too Large To Fit In Typical Average Spaces
11:56 – Timothy Castagne Cycling Home
12:13 – Wahoo’s New Launches: Bolt & Roam Head Units And Trackr Radar Headlight
13:13 – Lotto-Dstny Riders’ Custom-Painted Bikes
13:59 – Zwift Companion App: Track Your Training Indoors And Outdoors Now!
15:08 – Core Competition Winner! 🎉 #AD In Association With Core
15:20 – Precision Fuel & Hydration Competition 💪 #AD In Partnership With PF&H
15:43 – Ollie’s Mid-Ride Stretching In Taiwan
16:19 – Hack/Bodge Of The Week
21:07 – Caption Competition
22:54 – Comment Of The Week
26:06 – This Week On GCN
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Do you think the rise of gravel has to do with the lack of traffic? And would you say it’s a form of admitting defeat to motorists? 🚵♂️
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37 Comments
🚴♂ Do you think the increasing popularity of gravel riding have anything to do with a growing fear of riding on roads? And if so, does more gravel riding somehow mean we’re admitting defeat to motorists? 👀
So I got into road cycling a few weeks ago and got my road bike last week. I always liked cycling but the first time sitting on a drop bar bike I just fell in love. Perhaps it was just the perfect bike, because I tested a few different ones later and I didn’t like them.
But watching GCN has vastly improved how I ride and how I approach it. I ride 3-4 times per week these past two weeks and find myself wanting to end work to go for a ride. 😀
These videos are just so much fun to watch. I can’t wait for my first ride over 30 km coming up on Saturday.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts and expertise in these really beautiful formats! I love it!
I think you need two additional categories in Hacks and Bodges. Backs = bodges that work well (had to make do but it worked out great); Hodges = Hacks that are pretty bad (something that is a great idea but poorly executed)
Defeat? Never heard of her! I’m a hit-and-run survivor, baby. Back in 2017, I was out riding my bike, minding my own business, when BAM, I got hit and left for dead, suffered a severe brain injury. Classic Arizona drivers, gotta love ’em (or at least dodge ’em). It took me three years to claw my way back, just to get smacked again, this time by a driver too busy texting to notice a whole human on two wheels under her vehicle.
So yeah, I moved to a quieter area, because apparently staying alive is a full-time job as an Arizona cyclist. It’s still nerve-wracking knowing that any ride could turn into a game of “Will They See Me?” But you know what? I’m still rolling. I still love road riding. And I’ve totally fallen for the gravel canal paths out here, safe, scenic, and phone-zombie-free.
Two wheels, one life, zero quit. 😂❤🚴🏻♀️🎉
I don’t typically ride gravel but I do seek out rail trails or any trails away from traffic. I enjoy such riding because it IS away from cars but also because it makes for, usually, a quieter more peaceful experience.
#caption competition SuperTadejgoesbalisticMaddsandMattareclosest!
The whole premise is combative. Continuing this “war” with motorists
I'll admit defeat. It's not worth my life. Now I just have to find more gravel routes.
My biased opinion to the Question of Increased Popularity of Gravel is admitting to defeat of motorist…. No, but at the same time. Yes. I'm not tiptoeing into my 60's, Started riding as a child, a tricycle, then bike with training wheels, and eventually to Ten Speeds and then on and on and on. From Road bikes, to Touring bikes, to Mountain bikes, cross bikes and gravel bikes, Including riding in some 11 countries, from Asia Japan, North American Canada and USA, plus some 7 countries in Europe, Not to mention 170km of Roubaix, completing the Roubaix Challenge in 2023…. Gravel Bikes are super popular in the USA, where I'm from, Some of this is the Marketing power, as are also Lightweight Motorcycles, commonly called ebikes, but the most popular side of all of these in our city, Portland Oregon, is the use of the separated bikeways that we have and I think cherish. I have grown fonder and fonder of the separated bikeways. Just being away for the cars is a simple joy in itself. Every ride I go on I have some traffic, but when I gain the access to a section of bikeway or to a gravel route, without cars is just a relaxing break of turning off the brain a little and feeling comfort in the fact that there isn't an automobile to think about being out of the way of… I don't think its a sign of defeat, but it is a pleasure to be away from it all…. there's a saying from the Clunckers in Marin Headlands and SF, "Away for the Cars, Concrete and Cops" This simple statement cues a smile in me every time I think of it.
The only criticism I can make about your recent active travel and cycle advocacy videos is like for example talking about cycling balanced against a road bike. Needs to be substituted with a utility bike whether that's a folding bike, cargo bike or a hybrid. These videos need to be appeal to the 'unconverted', a regular viewer not into road cycling would look at these dude talking to camera and immediate wonder why he is leaning up against a road bike; an object not designed for the daily commute.
I am not sure that there is a decrease in road riders. I think many folk ride both as I do. It may even be that mtb riders who also ride gravel have added to the number of road users.
I am on a few gravel focused FB pages and I think that many share my enjoyment of exploring and for some this takes them back to their childhood when they ride their bikes all around the woods etc.
In summary- it’s v complex why people ride. Some friends are definitely more attracted to it because it is off road. Car free is lovely😊
I've been riding steadily for 40 years now, about 50/50 road cycling and mountain biking. It's good to see more of us getting away from the cars and concrete to enjoy the natural scenery.
Ride where and how you like. Don't let others change your mind.
I think just as many are turning to indoor riding/zwifting etc instead of riding on the road. I now do most of my rides indoors and if I do go on the road it’s for the Saturday club ride.
The need for speed in roads I think it's also a defeat to motorists, as we're trying to achieve a similar speed to a vehicle to not bother motorists that think that own the road and want to go faster.
I ride solely for pleasure and have numerous options for gravel routes from my home. Those are my usual first choice since my bike will work quite well on the surface. I do ride ride routes when gravel routes are muddy or otherwise somewhat rugged.
Living in Vermont (USA) if you don't ride gravel, you have very limited options for routes. 54% of the roads in the state are not paved so we have to ride gravel. That said, it is more calm, less stressful, quieter and you get to some very interesting places. You do need to use the tarmac to get around so we have not given up tarmac completely. Cars are still present on our gravel rides but they tend to drive more slowly (but not always) due to the loose and unpredictable surface.
Is Gravel Riding Just Admitting That You Like Mountain Biking?
Why choose between tarred and gravel roads? A gravel bike allows you to ride virtually any road you choose. They’re generally a bit “softer” and more comfortable than a roadie with only a small drop in average speed. Just get out there!
I bought a gravel bike cause I'm fed up of cars..stay away from cars=stay safe
I do not know what is happening in your part of the world with traffic and similar issues. But in Croatia going on a bike is still as safe as it was 30+ years ago, if not more. We are all still on the road with no problems and no worry’s
I will admit I do gravel now over road out of fear of myself. when I started cycling it was my escape from a destructive life but then road became less of a stress release (as my fellow humans yell and swerve at me) so I went to mtb ( sorry for swearing 😃) and I love the environment and the community but I did miss drop bars so I do gravel as well. So i do not conceedt defeat to them I claim victory as I didnt let them get to me they are not worth the jail time.
Thank goodness I can get to Spain, where car drivers are so great with cyclists
#captioncompetition Some big names throwing a Lidl party after the race 🍾
Gravel is also / can be a season thing. When the weather and the surfaces are shitty anyway might as well take it to eleven and go off road.
Yeah since moving to the American South I haven't taken my bike on the road at all, it's too dangerous. I'm on gravel trails every day, and I strap my bike to my car to get there.
Caption comp…. 'how many world champions does it take to change a champagne cork ?'
Roads are made for transportation, as they should be. Recreational cycling on roads has always been fitting a square peg in a round hole, in that sense, and I think we can all feel the consequences of that. Whether it’s having to regularly stop at lights, avoiding dangerous drivers, or feeling the embarrassment of holding up a bunch of car traffic. Trails are tailor made for recreation and a lot of people are going to take that opportunity to be first class citizens in an environment designed for their activity rather than be second class citizens on roads. I don’t think roads will ever be ideal for recreational cycling, honestly, and I’m fine with doing a majority of my recreational cycling on trails, but I do think that bikes can+should be a viable and safe form of transportation on roads and I think we should keep fighting for that.
I don't think we're admitting defeat to the motorist, but we are admitting defeat to traffic! What's the difference? The reason I'm not cycling into the office at the moment is because of the condition of the road surfaces but also the dog-walkers on the canal towpath who wander along with dogs on 20ft leads and with earbuds in.
All cars have been getting wider due to the amount of safety equipment they have to contain (e.g. side airbags), if you have a problem with this you'd be better off complaining to the EU…….. probably just as big a waste of time.
Oli's mid-ride stretches in the jungle!?!? He's standing next to a road!
In the discussion of whether gravel is a reaction to increased motor vehicle traffic, it's important to remember the difference between correlation and causation. There may be more people riding gravel, but traffic is probably not the cause. I. The past we didn't have such suitable bikes (yes I know about "Rough Stuff" riding going back decades) but now we do an average rider can just buy a suitable bike and go off road without having to think excessively hard about equipment. Then there's the rise of sat nav taking away many of the navigational challenges. Plus it's perhaps perceived as a bit less nerdy and maybe, for some of us, has fewer of the negative connotations of being put down as a "MAMIL". My own MIL thinks MAMILs are absurd. I pointed out that her SIL was one and she went off muttering!😂
I’m spending far more time on my gravel bike. A big part of that is to get off the roads as much as possible.
I still ride my road bike but very early in the morning and still get frustrated with drivers.
As long as I do my part by riding safely and respectfully, I ride anywhere the road stretches out before me, paved or no or even stretches of sidewalks with nary a pedestrian upon them. And it has always been that way for me since I got a Schwinn Sting-Ray for my birthday in San Francisco during the Summer of Love when I turned eight and zig-zagged up those steep streets and rode dirt trails on the top of Twin Peaks and would even pause to enjoy the views, no wonder all those tourists ride buses up here to see them. Ride everywhere and make memories and share stories and take some pictures, otherwise people might think you're making it all up. So glad my Dad snapped a few of me doing my Evel Knievel thing in West Germany in '75. 😀
Move out of the south of England. Live on Glasgow and can get to quiet roads within 15mins.
#captionconpetition : Say hello to my Lidl friend
Am I the only viewer who struggles to understand Connors speech? No offence Connor 😁
#caption Here, have a lidl champagne.
Gravel riding means different things to different people. For muddy winter conditions use an MTB. For me, i can either use my roadbike, gravel or hardtail. Defeat to motorists is too negative a term. In North Herts there isnt any gravel, just bridleways, in winter almost impassable thick mud, summer brings bone dry pock marked surfaces. Ride wherever you feel comfortable