Road bike - occasional gravel use?
Discussion
Hi all
Looking at getting a new bike. It'll be my only one so I want it to be versatile. Most of my riding will be road, so, naturally thinking road bike... But my question is, will a road bike stand up to gravel paths and rougher tracks than just tarmac? If I want to take it on a fairly tame off road path, is it going to be nasty or will it take it in its stride?
Got my eyes on a Whyte Dorset
https://whyte.bike/products/dorset
Would it need any mods (wider tyres etc... Would wider tyres fit...)?
Or am I simply better off going for a hybrid, e.g. https://whyte.bike/products/portobello, or just opting for a gravel bike - these seem to be in shorter supply and potentially sacrifice some pure road bike benefits?
Interested to hear your thoughts/experiences. Thanks!
Looking at getting a new bike. It'll be my only one so I want it to be versatile. Most of my riding will be road, so, naturally thinking road bike... But my question is, will a road bike stand up to gravel paths and rougher tracks than just tarmac? If I want to take it on a fairly tame off road path, is it going to be nasty or will it take it in its stride?
Got my eyes on a Whyte Dorset
https://whyte.bike/products/dorset
Would it need any mods (wider tyres etc... Would wider tyres fit...)?
Or am I simply better off going for a hybrid, e.g. https://whyte.bike/products/portobello, or just opting for a gravel bike - these seem to be in shorter supply and potentially sacrifice some pure road bike benefits?
Interested to hear your thoughts/experiences. Thanks!
I've got a Focus Paralane, 28 mm slick tyres. It's an Endurance bike.
I've raced on this bike, and I took her down 20 kms of gravel path on the pictured ride. I've even done several K's of the Thames Path (dirt) before.
The Dorset has 30mm tyres, I don't think you'd have any problems whatsoever (durable Frame too).
I've raced on this bike, and I took her down 20 kms of gravel path on the pictured ride. I've even done several K's of the Thames Path (dirt) before.
The Dorset has 30mm tyres, I don't think you'd have any problems whatsoever (durable Frame too).
Edited by Solocle on Friday 19th July 12:57
Whilst I think a conventional road bike will take a bit of off-road abuse, I think wheels and frame will get a hammering over longer term use.....
This time last year I bought a s/h GT Grade from a friend, primarily as a proper winter bike with full mudguards - it needed a new free hub (which I knew about) and BB (which I didn’t).
I moved some parts from my “old” road bike (stem, seatpost and saddle) and fitted some HyRds in place of the Spyres.
It stands me £325.
Last week our club did an inaugural gravel ride which I did on the Grade but with slicks fitted.
It coped but it’s encouraged me to put some GravelKings on to enable me to lower the pressures and gain some grip.
BTW, the group ride was great, never have we laughed so much...
This time last year I bought a s/h GT Grade from a friend, primarily as a proper winter bike with full mudguards - it needed a new free hub (which I knew about) and BB (which I didn’t).
I moved some parts from my “old” road bike (stem, seatpost and saddle) and fitted some HyRds in place of the Spyres.
It stands me £325.
Last week our club did an inaugural gravel ride which I did on the Grade but with slicks fitted.
It coped but it’s encouraged me to put some GravelKings on to enable me to lower the pressures and gain some grip.
BTW, the group ride was great, never have we laughed so much...
Edited by wobert on Friday 19th July 09:43
I’d get a gravel bike and use it on the road. If you take road tyres off road, apart from
traction issues I think you’ll puncture.
I find my gravel bike on road great fun. Sure it’s not as fast as my road bike, but it’s confidence inspiring and can tackle any road surface. I can also spontaneously dive down a forest rack if I want to.
If treaded tyres are too much on the road, you could get a spare set of wheels?
traction issues I think you’ll puncture.
I find my gravel bike on road great fun. Sure it’s not as fast as my road bike, but it’s confidence inspiring and can tackle any road surface. I can also spontaneously dive down a forest rack if I want to.
If treaded tyres are too much on the road, you could get a spare set of wheels?
Used GT Grade. Something like this --> https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/GT-700-M-Grade-CArbon-E...
I've got a Whyte Charing Cross and use it both off and on-road. My 'swap' consists of a spare set of wheels with CX/offroad tyres and cassette with lower ratios for off-road and I'll usually swap the pedals for some Crank Bros egg-beaters and wear MTB shoes when on trails. Other than that, nothing changes.
Thanks all, as per all debates we've got a split... Gravel vs road. Seems like either option will be good for me.
Test rode a whyte Friston today and loved it but a little out of price range so I think I'm going to up my budget slightly and go for a whyte glencoe, can get one at a decent price from my lbs. Gravel seems to fit what I'm after and gotta admit I love the glencoe aesthetic.
Will keep you posted!
Test rode a whyte Friston today and loved it but a little out of price range so I think I'm going to up my budget slightly and go for a whyte glencoe, can get one at a decent price from my lbs. Gravel seems to fit what I'm after and gotta admit I love the glencoe aesthetic.
Will keep you posted!
Edited by J90ack on Friday 19th July 18:59
I've given my carbon roadie some abuse over the past four years, hoping pothole and speedbumps regularly...I even once took it down the local downhill trails for a laugh (hellish scary).This came to an abrupt end when i discovered the rear drop out had snapped and the only thing holding it together was the mech hangar! Ironically it was the aluminium part of the dropout that actually failed.
So yeah, road bikes will take some abuse, but be aware they are not designed for it. That said i'd imagine newer designs with bolt through rear axles are MUCH stronger.
So yeah, road bikes will take some abuse, but be aware they are not designed for it. That said i'd imagine newer designs with bolt through rear axles are MUCH stronger.
pablo said:
This!Almost any road bike will cope with a bit of gravel. I've done full XC MTB laps on my Trek Emonda, and plenty of rough bridleways and Byways. OK, 25c section tyres aren't much fun off road, so look for something more "gravel bike" in terms of accommodating wider tyres, but in essence, there's no reason except "lack of grip" why you can't take a road bike most places you can go on any bicycle.
If the Trek UK warranty team are reading this, though? None of the above is true, it's all bravado and internet willy-waving. The Emonda has never seen so much as dust or wet roads, just dry weather, and perfect asphalt surfaces only...
Although this...
griffter said:
I’d get a gravel bike and use it on the road. If you take road tyres off road, apart from
traction issues I think you’ll puncture.
I find my gravel bike on road great fun. Sure it’s not as fast as my road bike, but it’s confidence inspiring and can tackle any road surface. I can also spontaneously dive down a forest rack if I want to.
If treaded tyres are too much on the road, you could get a spare set of wheels?
...is probably sound advice. While I'm happy to nip down a short gravel section on a road bike, I'm often wary of pushing on down a forest track, lest it stops being fun and it's true that you risk tyre damage riding slicks on gravel. Not so much the puncturing, more the little cuts that mean you get a lot less miles from them than if you'd stuck to roads.traction issues I think you’ll puncture.
I find my gravel bike on road great fun. Sure it’s not as fast as my road bike, but it’s confidence inspiring and can tackle any road surface. I can also spontaneously dive down a forest rack if I want to.
If treaded tyres are too much on the road, you could get a spare set of wheels?
Edited by yellowjack on Tuesday 23 July 12:40
I'd say the whyte was perfect.
I don't take my shiny carbon road bike down gravel.. but largely down to keeping it shiny, and having fragile 'race' tyres on it. My 'cross' (do it all/workhorse) bike runs cheap/durable 30mm slicks, similar to the whyte, and gets thrown at whatever I feel like.. it does fine, and hasn't punctured despite riding a lot of 'gravel'. The last week was touring loaded with panniers (deeply unfashionable), 50/50 road and gravel, zero issue. Occasionally the lack of tread makes going hard, but then having meaningful tread makes for poor rolling on road, whatever the hype merchants like to sell. I'd trade a bit less capability in rare situations for more capability in the common situation.
IMHO gravel seems to be steadily re-inventing the hardtail MTB at the moment as it's going more and more towards the 'hardcore' end of things, for paths and fairly smooth offroad, you really don't need anything that special.
I don't take my shiny carbon road bike down gravel.. but largely down to keeping it shiny, and having fragile 'race' tyres on it. My 'cross' (do it all/workhorse) bike runs cheap/durable 30mm slicks, similar to the whyte, and gets thrown at whatever I feel like.. it does fine, and hasn't punctured despite riding a lot of 'gravel'. The last week was touring loaded with panniers (deeply unfashionable), 50/50 road and gravel, zero issue. Occasionally the lack of tread makes going hard, but then having meaningful tread makes for poor rolling on road, whatever the hype merchants like to sell. I'd trade a bit less capability in rare situations for more capability in the common situation.
IMHO gravel seems to be steadily re-inventing the hardtail MTB at the moment as it's going more and more towards the 'hardcore' end of things, for paths and fairly smooth offroad, you really don't need anything that special.
Another voice for the chorus of gravel here.
I run a 3T Exploro bought primarily because we have such rubbish roads here (NZ). The bike is set up with 700c Fulcrum 4 wheels, so quite road-oriented.
Initially it was on 30mm Schwalbe Ones (measure up closer to 32mm) which were okay on gravel but a bit slow on road. Now I'm on 28mm GP5000s which are pretty much as fast on road as my old bike, but a bit sketchy on gravel. Just a bit mind.
There's a guy locally who runs an Exploro on 650b wheels with something that looks like a full-on mountain bike tyre, and he keeps up with the bunch in the local club racing.
Have also tried the Paralane, mentioned above, and it's a bloody brilliant bike. Only my brand vanity and the inability to try out the right size stopped me from buying one.
k
I have a Genesis Croix De Fer 20 gravel bike - commute on mix of road and riverside tracks, and have done 70k + road cycles at the weekend in comfort. It's a bit slower on road, uphill but feels like the perfect compromise to me. If I were doing a long road cycle in summer again I might put slicker tires on it.
Gassing Station | Pedal Powered | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff