bretton007

I am looking at the Caledonia 105 model , going to use this bike for 70% road , 30 % gravel trails , can anyone tell me what its like on gravel . Is this a suitable bike for this type of riding or do you have any other recommendations for any other bike that I can be more adventurous on . Other people have recommended the Aspero as it is a true gravel bike however I am riding right now mostly on road but. would like to get into gravel a bit more

thanks for your help

Beach Bob

I haven't ridding a Calendonia, but I can tell you that an Aspero with road tires makes for a very decent road bike. The only con is that with GRX, you'll lose a couple of top end gears; the pro is that you gain a couple of good climbing gears. I'm getting a second wheel set so I can easily dual-purpose my Aspero.

vinuneuro

Depends really on how chunky the gravel around you is. Around here you don't need anything more than 35c but other parts of the country is a different story.

The Aspero is pretty capable with road tires but if I was really looking for a dual-purpose quiver killer bike with big clearance, the Open UP/UPPER would be unequivocally at top of the list. The Factor LS should there alongside the Aspero in second spot.

dwmckee

I strongly second that. I ride and Open, mostly on road and it is absolutely excellent at both. It is far better than most road bikes on the road and one of the best gravel bikes at any price. The Aspero has geometry that is very agressive, which appeals to only a fairly small group of gravel riders. The Open is a bit less agressive and has incredible handling on both road and gravel. The Open was designed by G Vroomen who founded Cervelo but has since left Cervelo to form Open.

weekend30rider

OP, what did you end up getting? I'm contemplating the same question. Seems like the Aspero is actually more aggressive than the Caledonia. I'm looking for a bike that's primarily for the road (90%), but can do the occasional fire trail in Southern California. However, my spine prefers more comfortable geometry, and easier gears on the steep pitches would be really nice. I keep going back and forth between the two, and think it may come down to what's actually available and which is the better price.