Let’s just say, like most mountain bikers, Rich isn’t the biggest fan of gravel riding. But you should never knock something until you’ve tried it! Blake Samson’s mission today is to convince Rich that gravel riding is an underappreciated discipline of mountain biking. It promises to bridge the gap between road and offroad riding, so why wouldn’t it be fun?
⏱ Timestamps ⏱
0:00 – Welcome back you beautiful people!
0:22 – The bikes
1:35 – Let’s go for a spin!
2:19 – Why not just ride an XC bike?
3:00 – Let’s hit some single track
6:58 – Cuppa Tea
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Have you ever tried gravel riding? Let us know what you think in the comments!
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28 Comments
Have you ever tried gravel riding? Let us know what you think in the comments!
Yes, do the tour divide! That would be awesome.
You can't call a gravel bike with tires under 40mm.
…and Global Gravel Bike Network was born!
Gravel bikes are the best…
At one time a cyclocross bike was the only bike I would never buy. A gravel bike has now been added to that list. I just don't see the need.
I have a road bike for road, & MTB's for off road stuff. More than satisfies my needs.
I can see the benefit of one if you only intend to own 1 bike & never really venture deep off road & also, the majority of your riding is tarmac. Other than that they're a waste of money IMO.
I can't agree…tried gravel bike for 2 seasons, as different ride to my trail/enduro bike. On hardpacked, smooth trails it's ok, but roots, rocks, loose surface, descents, not ideal paving stones etc. is pain… Ended up buying xc bike with carbon frame (10,5kg, rs reba, mavic wheels, GX) in price of aluminium gravel. Comfort is much better, handling in forest also, speed is similar, so gravel bike is pointless for me. As city commuter, bikepacking, for smooth trails, fire roads should be ok…but it's still a compromise…
A good xc bike can do everything a gravel bike can do as well plus a while lot more….. don’t get it
The key to grasp gravel is long distance + mixed terrains. Half road half dirt? You can't beat a gravel bike because they can do both fast and comfortably. Sure you can probbly ride some nice XC for 300km on rocks, roots and single tracks but add 50% tarmac to that and it will become tiresome and boring real fast. Another way to look at the problem from an economics standpoint is you can much more easily do long distance efficiently with a cheap gravel bile while you'd have to reach to super high end light XC bikes and add drop and/or aerobars to achieve the same (which people seems to be doing more and more tbh). At least that's in my own experience, and I love mountain biking.
I think the position of hands on the drop handle bars is not that natural for dealing with rugged trails and that can be dangerous for beginners where the flat bars should be the choice for safety and stability and that should be mentioned
I hate these bikes. No suspension. A compromise in every way. Gimmick!
@gmbn Could you provide a promo code for the Propane Terrel CF bike for Europe? Thanks in advance!
Do unbound 200!!
It just a bike company gimmick.. Load more fun on xc bike
hahaha look at those chainstays
440?
What is that, a train? 1040mm of s bike.
Is not the bike made for gravel, they jus made the course to justify the bike.
Touring, endurance, audax.
Enough.
Gravel bikes are scams.
Versatility? Nimble? just shutup
No, just no.
I have one I rode once on the trails, but I have not taken it to the trails since. Its basically a road bike with slightly knobby tires… I hated the ride. But I dont ride for miles I ride to send it.
Really not much point posting comments here. You ask us to engage, but it seems pointless.
I asked specific product questions on a few previous vids with less than 50 comments… I get it when content people make it big, but it seems your channel is dying.. Interaction is what keeps your old audience interested.
So many comments here of people telling on themselves. If you cant hit this stuff with drop bars or a rigid bike, its your skills that are lacking
Once I bought a Turbo Levo I realized I'll never want a gravel bike. I ride with my gravel buddies just fine. The Levo is way more versatile than a gravel bike.
The US Park service maintains more miles of gravel roads than the UK government does roads, all roads.
This is where gravel bikes come into their own, right on the other side of the Atlantic. Also, 90's mountain bikes.
Also, the UCI has no say here.
The jorts… classy 🤣
Tried riding gravel for 2 years, sold it. I'm keeping my down county full sus. MTBs can handle tarmac, just slower. But gravels cannot handle real trails with roots and rocks. And drop bars are not that comfortable at all.
The question isn't "can you ride rough trails full rigid with 38mm tires?" Yup, you can. The real question is: "is it fun? …or would it be more fun on 65mm tires?" After tons of dirt miles on both, I'll go for the lesser beating even if it's slower on the road climbs. Your terrain and mileage may vary, as always.
"My arse is killing me, Blake" –Rich
Well, i decided long ago that you either can afford road+mtb or you stick to the gravel bike. I have a gravel atm because i can only have 1 bike and need to ride a lot of road and can't ignore those great forest gravel roads which are plenty here. But for anything else other than smooth graavel roads XC would be better offroad
Tour Divide!!! Yes, please do. I’ll be here for all of it 😁
It’s pretty simple really. A days ride on gravel and tarmac is great on a gravel bike. Occasional short cuts on mtb trails is also fine. If you want to ride an XC bike for the same purpose, that’ll work too. Just the gravel bike will have a slight advantage at high speed smooth gravel and tarmac. Just take your pick. Personally even though I’ve mostly ridden MTBs my whole life, I would hate to ride in an upright position for +100km on an XC bike. The aero position on a gravel bike pays off in the long run for me.
Ive hit 70kmh on my fatbike i wonder how fast they are 🇨🇦🚴
any gravel under 1500/1700 euro is literally trash, I'm not talking about frames but about components…
Have a look to Cannondale topstone 3 for example… shimano Sora 2×9… a gear who has problem even as new lol, now they reduce the price to 950euro here in germany, but I remember it was costing 1200euro … a scam… Canyon forever!!!