ganryu

Dear all,

I actually posted this originally in the Hybrid section but it might fit better in the Gravel/Recreational Cyclocross category. let me know if I need to close the other topic.

I own a Giant Escape, bought 4 years ago, decent bike to ride a little in Chicago and put a rack for grocery shopping.

But I'm looking for an upgrade, a good and comfortable bike to ride more, in urban environment with bad roads, potholes but also to be able to ride on regular roads for 20-30 miles.

I started looking and quickly got lost in the 1000 categories, the marketing coating on everything and finally has no idea what i should buy.

Gravel bikes seem to be the new thing, I have to say i find the all-in-one concept interesting since I do not want to have 4 different bikes but still a decent and strong one for road, city commute and some light trail.


Here's my feedback after some testing.

I tried the Cannondale CAADX Sora, the Diverge A1, the Diverge Elite, the Kone Rove AL and the Giant AnyRoad 1 2016. They're all in the $800-1000 range, except the Diverge Elite, in the 1400-1500 range. The idea was to try it to see if I could feel a real difference.

Note that I am a beginner in terms of components and this would be my first ''real'' bike.

I rode all those bikes for 20-30 minutes in Chicago and on the lakefront trail.

Diverge A1

Low entry gear set with Claris components. Bike felt okay, but quite stiff on the bumps so not as comfortable as the other ones. i do not know if it comes for tires, wheels, the fork or what, but definitively a huge difference with the Diverge Elite. It seems normal, since the last one is 50% more expensive!!!
It was the first I tried. Still okay but the comfort on poor roads, which are countless in Chicago, was sub-optimal to me.
Shifting was a little clunky, and did not feel really smooth.

Diverge Elite

God you can feel the difference. Lighter, much more comfortable and the upgrade from Claris to Tiagra is much felt. It is smoother. Someone on the forum said you can really see a gap when you upgrade to 2 steps further, meaning claris to tiagra, sora to 105...I found it true in my test experience. I can't say it really impact the performance but definitively better, faster to change speed. Better wheels, better frame you can feel it! Too expensive for me but I was actually happy to feel the difference riding the bike, given my little experience.

Kone Rove AL

Quite hard to find. Most of my local bike shop here don not carry this brand. Pretty much the same as the Diverge in terms of gear, but felt nicer and more comfortable. Pretty much the same price, I felt more stable, braking was similar. I would choose this one over the Diverge. Pedals are not included, it seems quite of strange to me but since it costs $30 for basic ones, it won't break the bank.

Cannondale CAADX Sora

Nice feeling, Sora gearset so slightly better than the Diverge A1 and Kona Rove on this point. The bike felt nice, quite light and shifting was fine. The bike was quite comfortable but the position seemed a little more aggressive.
It’s the 2016 edition and right now on sale it’s around $850, which makes a good deal compared to what I tried.

Giant AnyRoad 2016

I tried the AnyRoad 1, with Tiagra gearset. Most comfortable bike I tried, on par with the Diverge Elite. Shifting was nice, very comfortable and I REALLY liked having top-bar brake levers in addition to the ones on the curved. I tried the CAADX and then this one, could not really say Tiagra is better than Sora. It shifted a little faster maybe, but it’s a minor difference to me.
It really seemed a good plus for commuting or just taking a more upright position during long rides.
Right now the 2016 is pretty much sold out everywhere, but if I can find it in large I will probably go for it. The model I tried was in 56cm and at $1000 it seems worth it. I hope I’ll be able to find it.

To me, all those bikes brakes are the same, you can put fenders and 35mm, sometimes 40mm on some (but not with fenders!), and a rack.
I wanted to try the Fuji Disc 1.3 Sportif, which has some nice features (105), but impossible to find it in my area.

General thoughts of a newbie:

-Marketing overdose: too much models, zero coherence in the ranges. Anyroad 1 is around $1300, has better gear than the Anyroad 2. Yeah…
-Shifting looked slightly better on better bikes but from similar gear sets it’s hard to tell. Could not really say 105 (on the Trek crossrip 2) felt better than the Tiagra, and that the Tiagra was way better than the Sora. So do not get headaches comparing shifters like I did
-Very hard to get reliable information. First LBS told me that all those mid-range/low-entry gear sets have similar durability and lifetime. Second one told me it’s better to get Tiagra over Claris or Sora, because there’s less plastic and more metals in the parts, which leads to better durability…
-Comfort was surprisingly different from one bike to another. I usually can’t stand trying things and I buy everything on the internet, but I was really happy to test different bikes
-Last year’s edition are tricky to find sometimes but can be a good deal. Nothing really ground breaking here but worth mentioning if you are on a budget, like I am.


Any thoughts on this list? Do you recommend some brands for durability, compared to other ones?

Thank you,

mike.b

I got a first bike earlier this year. I also wanted a cx/gravel bike. Had my heart set on Jamis Renegade Expat but they were sold out. After oodles of test rides I ended up with Focus Mares AX.

If I were you, I would look at Giant's '17 bikes. They dropped the price in '17 for the Anyroad and the TCX SLR 2. You might also want to check out the '16 Felt V100 or the '17 Felt VR60.

mike

Mr IGH

I like the Specialized AWOL, a little heavy but good for the mean streets of Chicago.

09box

I really like the look of the Charge Plug 2:

Plug 2 - Charge Bikes

ganryu

Thank you for the feedback. I looked the Felt but it's the only LBS that carries that brand do not have my size in stock...Quite tricky to get anything excepte Specialized/Trek/Cannondale, it seems.

The new Giant Anyroad is slightly cheaper than the previous one, differences seem to be very minor, I do not really get how it really differs form the previous model.

Thank you for the Specialized AWOL idea. Interesting bike but quite low-entry gear set for $1200. i guess the main difference is the wheels and tires (45mm). I'll check if I can have a look at this one.

Thank you!

Mr IGH

I don't own an AWOL but they had one at the shop I worked at and I was impressed with the ride. Those 45mm tyres will soften up Chicago's mean streets nicely, plenty of room for studded tyres in the winter. If I didn't already have my Soma Saga Disc I would have bought one.

As for 32mm vs 45mm (Diverge vs AWOL), judging by Chicago's current tax crisis, the roads will not be getting better any time soon. I left three years ago, it's much nicer out here.

Pendergast

The new Sequoia is between the Diverge and the AWOL. It looks like a versatile bike.

https://www.specialized.com/us/en/bikes/adventure/sequoia/116171

09box

The tires on the Sequoia look really cool. I wonder if you will be able to purchase the tires only.

mstateglfr 

They plan to offer 650b and 47mm tires in this tread. So there will be other options.

Pendergast

The 700x42 is on Specialized's website.

https://www.specialized.com/us/en/components/tires/sawtooth-2bliss-ready/117719

ganryu

Hi there,

Finally I tried the 58 cm Anyroad 2016 and got a discount, since it was 900 I finally bought. Did a 25 miles test ride, very light, agile but still comfortable on the crappy roads inside Chicago.

I'll update my review once i did some more testing.