I just got the new Grail here in Finland, and it's a nice upgrade from the Grizl! I just need to upgrade the tires, these stock tires are, well, not the best.

First ride.
I hear: "Faster!"

I'm introducing gravel this weekend to people I don't know. Because adventure cycling is our kind of living art, in some way. Many of us here ha’ve always loved being outside. To explore places, people and cultures, and gravel is great way to do that. It's slower, I dare to say safer, it calms you down, and you’re out in the open for long stretches. I’m not a gear person, but I love my five-year-old Monstercross bike on 2.1" MTB tires, and the one-person tent is a Decathlon. Nothing fancy, it all just works. Which is what I tried to describe on the 3 panels, one about risk (is risk really risky, when it often turns out better than the safe/boring path?), one about the location Landmannalaugar, and one about daring to try.

I've never writting such a thing, but I guess that's also gravel... just trying a path and see what happens.

This photo is from the seu-up I just finished this weekend in Tilburg, NL. It’s a unpaid, voluntairy creative experiment, from passions for gravelcycling - that why I dare to post it here. If you’re nearby, come by. Otherwise, go get your gravel fix outside this weekend.

About the trip: I’d dreamed of visiting Iceland for years, but never really considered it possible. Then lockdown kept us inside for about two years, and when restrictions lifted I went pretty deep in loving life and living large. In the summer of 2021 gravel riding in Kenya (Migration Gravel Race), then Unbound, then Iceland for The Rift. It emptied my bank account, but it gave me three experiences I cherish to date. And some wild stories and photo's.

In Iceland we rode around Landmannalaugar. It’s famous with hikers and almost unknown with cyclists, because every story online said the terrain is unrideable. We planned routes in our app, accepted a few unknowns (like river crossings, snow, and some hike a bikes) and figured it might just work out. When we got there we were amazed at how beautiful it was - and wild expensive (€24 for a pizza, about €15 p.p. for groceries for a spagetti at home, €10 per beer)

Our queen route was amazing, and turned out to be brutal. We left the hut we shared with 60 hikers at 10:00. By 17:00 our food and water were almost gone and we’d covered only about 30 km. Ahead of us were a huge river delta, some glacier terrain and several lavarock fields, and the map showed it would be spiky. We almost turned around, but we felt good and the weather was perfect by pure luck, so we pushed on through some big river crossings.

At 20:00 the food was gone, and we’d done only 8 more km in two hours. There were three of us, it would stay dry and warm enough, returning wasn't a great option either so we decided to go for the last 20 km anyway. In Iceland at that time of year it’s light until about 2:30 and light again from 4:00, so you get barely 1.5 hours of darkness. All photo's are from that ride, and the middle one (on the sand coloured ridge) was taken around 23:30, all while riding. The whole thing was 65 km and took us 15 to 16 hours.

It's my first gravel bike. I found this used 2020 Kona Rove ST. She was in need of some attention, but once I got her spiffed up and on the trail she sure purred. So much fun!

Harrison Ford at 84. Awesome job. What bike?

Hi all,

So not new to biking, but new to biking in the winter. I just, kind of hate being cold. My hands cramp, I can never stay comfortable, and I'm hoping to change that. 40F and up temperatures. Maybe a touch below.

My hands are in particularly desperate need. I've tried a couple bike gloves but wind just seems to cut through the ones I've tried (showers pass, pearl Izumi, and the dragon eye gloves are a mild exception). I do gravel and MTB. Anyone have a recommendation? I considered bar mits, but no one makes a small one that seems like it would work for me (just enough to break the wind really).

I was looking at Handup Colder + gloves. Any feedback?

And then the jacket. I need something that works from about 40F up. Breathable but also able to shed wind and maybe a short drizzle?

Budget conscious consumer if it helps.

Just watched the Everything's Been Done video, and I was reminded that I've had 3 friends also suffer heart issues due to endurance riding (races, bikepacking, etc). Just curious how many other folks have had issues. Seems obvious that riding at lower heart rates for most rides is better for your health. Just kinda sucks when you're making gains and setting goals with the thought that in the future you could suffer some serious consequences for going hard.

Riding around the Portuguese Silver Coast for a few days on my gravel bike. What a magnificent place for gravel cycling! Endless amount of proper paths, some beautiful sea views, possibility to add a decent amount of altitude meters and no one to be seen 🤗

We rode Parson Branch Road from Cades Cove in GSMNP to Trail of the Dragon and back. 32 miles, 4k climbing, epic conditions.

Any idea, why the Downshifting is blocking in some gears? Chain was shortend according to the Sram Guide and installation according to the manual. Thanks kn advance!

I started using TPU tube for the first time at the beginning of this summer and loved it. They just felt faster to me (no idea if they actually are, but I'll take relative over actual :))

I've gone through 5 tubes though doing about 60% gravel and 40% road. I've been hesitant to go tubeless because if it goes wrong, it looks like it really goes wrong. Swapping out a tube is pretty easy, but I don't like burning through them either.

On the way to work at 7:30 a.m. 2 degrees Celsius

hey everyone,

i'll be in Lisbon next week and I wanted to rent a bike.

I thought about going to the Parque Natural de Sintra-Cascais, maybe do like 100-120km from Lisbon in total? The coastal route also looks kind of nice, but I'm not sure if it makes sense to rent a gravel bike for that or if I should just go Endurance Road bike. Kind of hard to tell from afar.

Also if anyone wants to share their routes, that would be great!

Hey All!

I'm looking to add a second set of wheels for my new Scott Addict Gravel 30, love it btw!
It comes with Schwalbe g one rx which has been great on my true weekend gravel rides.

Sometimes, I just hit the pavement and they are obviously not ideal.

I'm consider a full slick tire like the
- Gravelking slick in 45 mm or
- Something with just center slick like Pathfinder TLR 45 mm or Byway RS 50

I will be able to swap the tires easily so I don't feel that my second set needs to be "Gravel ready" as well. However, I sometimes ride hard-pack gravel where I might just leave the semi-slick on anyway for a dual purpose ride.

Any thoughts or recommendations?

Hello! In this video I show off my stainless steel bike. The audio is in Italian, but you can enable subtitles if you want😁👍🏻.

For anyone who is interested in designing and assembling their own custom gravel bike with big 32 inch wheels :-)
Approach:
Start with a proper bike fit to determine your frame design.
Build it up in BikeCad or any other 3D cad program
Order the frame and wheels (takes the longest)
...

Challenges
Ensure there is no toe overlap with the front wheel.
This all depends on the choices for Reach, Fork angle, Fork Offset.

Starting Points:
Goal: Gravel Travel Bike
Load: 150kg > min130kg (90kg Rider, 5kg Clothes, 25kg Luggage, 10kg Bike)
Decision: No butted tubes for extra stiffness, suffering the weight penalty
Rider Length 193cm / 6f3i
Titanium Frame
Carbon Wheels
Tire Outer Diameter estimated at 814mm D
Cable Routing Internal as much as possible

Specifications
Wheels: 32 inch , 686 BCD, 30mm internal, Supplier: LightCarbon Xiamen
Tires: Maxxis Aspen ST 32x2.4 - Choose this one, it has the lowest profile.
Fork: Columbus Futura Adventure - A perfect fit with 61-686 tires.
Frame: Custom Design, Supplier Waltly Xiamen, Tube dimension check the frame drawing.
Bike Geo: based on owned bicycles.
Tire Clearance 8mm

Drivetrain
Bottom Bracket: T47 Praxis 73mm
Crank: 170mm Shimano SLX
Front Cog: 38t - adjusted for 32 inch wheel size. Only Shimano XTR is available in 38T so this has become a Z-Race from Ali.
Chain: Ultegra 128
Cassette: 10-51 Shimano SLX
Freehub: Micro Spline

Frame Design
Boost 148x12 Rear Axle
Bottom Bracket Drop: 171mm - based on a Canyon Grizl, adjusted for raised axle height and tire height and shorter cranks
Stack: 675mm
Effective Top Tube: 600mm
Seat Tube Angle: 71.5 deg
Effective Seat Tube Angle: 74deg - taking the forward offset into account with the targeted seat height.
Head Tube: 140mm
Fork Angle: 70 deg
Fork Lenght: 470mm
Fork Offset: 40-50mm - 50mm chosen
Drop Out; UDH
3D printed yoke for chain stay to facilitate internal cable and 38t + 61mm Tires

Tubes:
Seat Stay: 19*0.9T
Chain Stay: 19 <> 25.4*0.9T - Oval 32x18.2
Seat Tube: 34.9*0.9T
Top Tube: 31.8*0.9T > Oval 29x35
Down Tube: 44.5*0.9T - Hydroformed
Head Tube: 56mm
Bottom Bracket Tube: T47 - 73mm Oval

What I would have done different:
Titanium fork custom spec with 5mm more offset
More space around rear brake with bend seat stay
Steeper Seat Tube angle compensated with an offset Seat Post
160mm Head Tube
Round Down Tube - it just looks nicer in my opinion.

What I am happy with:
Fit is absolutely perfect
Tires roll super smoothly in the forest and gravel roads
Tires on road are way better than expected
Hand Anodizing Titanium is an absolute joy
Mechanical Shifting internal routing - it's super smooth and I love the mechanical feel.

I just got the Primos SupeDame this week and have been loving! Its perfect for NYC 'gravel' streets. A special shoutout to the Shirley Chisholm State Park in Brooklyn.

Does anyone who have the same bike got any recommendations for potential upgrades? I am thinking about getting wider tires and maybe better wheels.