redlude97

The BWR also had sections where the majority if not all the riders dismounted and ran

Doge

Photo by (implied) Cameron Wurf, before Cameron Wurf rides.

Former World Tour rider for Cannondale training for a Tri thingy.
Yes, every one has gone nuts. Return to pavement.
CameronWurf TT.jpg

Seattle Forrest

To be honest, I don't remember what I actually did. I remember stopping for that pic on the way up because I didn't expect to come back down that way. But road I was supposed to take just wasn't there. It was on the map, and in the route planning software, but I get up on the mountain and there's nothing there. Anyway, probably A or C. I have fun pushing it a little, but only a little, more on pavement to be honest.

It'd be D or B on a mountain bike, but then I'd be on a trail.

Fun question!

Seattle Forrest

As always, thanks for the recommendation! I bought a Fabric saddle based on the same, and was very pleased with it. Do they make G-Ones in 28 mm? Well, I'll do my own research instead of pushing that off on you.

Seattle Forrest

I agree. That point is when you'd stop recognizing them as roads.

mstateglfr 

I can say with certainty that I would ride a 35mm tire faster on gravel roads(driven by cars) around me compared to a 28mm tire.
I would prefer my 40mm tires, actually, and ride them faster than 28s.


See, Ive ridden both on gravel. I would(and have) go faster on 35s(and 40s) because I would feel more confident and stable on them.

My front wheel would deflect less, comfort would be higher, and I would dig into the surface less. All that = faster speed.

mstateglfr 

labels and categories. Boy do we love em!

Road cycling is done on pavement...so are paved paths road cycling even though no road is used?

If a road bike is no longer a road bike when used on gravel roads, then it stands to reason it isnt a road bike when on paved paths.

Or perhaps the surface shouldnt exclusively dictate the bike's categorization.

Gravel roads are just that- roads. Cars, trucks, etc use them.

Doge

Yes.
It is pavement. It is pavement where races could be held on a bike that is both optimized for paved road races and legal to ride in a road race.

mstateglfr 

If riding MUPs which arent roads is road cycling, then gravel roads is road cycling.
Brilliant.

Semantics in the end.

TimothyH

They make a 30c clincher. That's as narrow as they go.

https://www.schwalbetires.com/bike_t...es/G-ONE_Speed

The one's I have are the "Evolution TL-Easy" but note the little bar graphs and the low value for Service Life. They are not kidding. They wear fast.


-Tim-

Kapusta

There seems to be some confusion and inconsistency in how the term "gravel" is being used in this thread. It seems to switch between meaning unpaved roads (which is what term actually means), paved roads in poor condition (which is not what it means), and a ride consisting of paved and unpaved surfaces.

The OP re-defined it as rough paved roads, which may be the root of some of the confusion here.

Doge: I am still a little unclear what you mean by gravel. Sometimes you seem to mean gravel/unpaved (which is what I am referring to) other times you seem to be referring to a gravel/paved mix.

At one point you seemed (to me) to be stating that 28s were the fastest on gravel. But all of the examples you are giving to back this up (at least the ones I know details of) are events with a mix of gravel and paved roads (and in one case a bunch of cobblestone). Well, of course if the route is a mix of paved and unpaved, then the tires are going to be a compromise between the two. That does not mean 28s are faster on gravel, it means they are the best compromise between gravel and paved. Someone already pointed out an event that focuses almost entirely on unpaved roads, and if you look at that, people are running much bigger tires.

Doge

I pointed to the OP at least once, and I think more. I also pointed out that when "roads" get real bad, my 28 did not apply.

I realize my definition of needing to be paved is not accepted here. There is a sport called road racing and those racers do it on road bikes. I think Road Cycling is the non-sport end of riders riding similar bikes on similar roads.

A valid way to determine what is faster is to look at folks that focus on being faster. All the rides (not races) and races we linked to are mixed surfaces. I'm not aware of gravel only races - on roads. When you get to that a MTB may be the best.

So far - I have not seen gravel rides or races where the majority in the top 10% are on anything but 28s and below. So I'm open to the road being other than paved, but really I'm just looking at the bikes that go the fastest (winning) and seeing what they ride.

RJM

Race Reports Archives - Gravel Cyclist: The Gravel Cycling Experience

There are a bunch of posted race reports for gravel events on this page. It's actually quite a good website for those interested in gravel riding.

bbattle

Same here; Giles, Franklin, and Lincoln counties.

I encountered so many interesting looking gravel roads that I put Gatorskins(700c x 28) on my Domane. Road quality runs from fresh blacktop to road? what road?


People will ride where they want to ride. It could be an excuse to put heavier duty tires on a road bike or an excuse to buy yet another bike altogether. The N + 1 rule is always in play.

HTupolev

MTB only makes sense if the course spends a lot of time being fairly technical. Gravel that's rough or loose often isn't very technical, you just need something that'll roll smoothly or float over it; then it's still best to have road-ish postures available, to stay relatively aero and comfy when cruising along.

Kapusta

Dirty Kanza.

Doge

200-mile event ?
I'd take my sofa bike too.

Next I'm going to hear RAAM is a Road Race.

I gave a little on this paved road stuff. The OP of this thread said paved road.
80% of what I'm seeing is not Road Cycling. It is fun, thinking of signing my kid up for some, but it is an off-season activity.

Seattle Forrest

You seem to have a lot of personal/private/unique/individual definitions for common words, doge.

RJM

Dirty Kanza was on June 2nd this year. Crusher in the Tushar was on July 8th.

An event that I wouldn't mind trying one year is the Pisgah Monstercross Challenge, which is held on Sept 9th. It's a mixed surface event combining gravel roads with paved roads. Pisgah Productions | Pisgah National Forest | Pisgah Monster-Cross Challenge

These are not off-season races.

Seattle Forrest

^ On that note:

Gran Fondo Winthrop

Sept 23, 2017

The Barn

Winthrop, WA

Gran Fondo Winthrop will take you deep into the North Cascades and dish out a whopping 10.000+’ of climbing. There’s a reason we save this one for the end!

Length: 90 miles total (35 paved – 55 gravel)

Gear: With so many variable course conditions it is hard to say what’s right or wrong. Road, cross, or mtb, any one will work, but all will have a disadvantage at some point. I’m running my Raleigh Roker with BIG tires, as in 40+. There will be LOTS of climbing so plan accordingly. There will be a few sag wagons and an aid station, but it’s a good idea to be somewhat self sufficient. Weather is always something to consider with this type of ride. It may be 70 and sunny, but high in the mountains anything can happen. Bring on the adventure baby!

Gran Fondo Winthrop ? Vicious Cycle



God, I love burn scars.

bunkerman

And the past of Road as well. Look at Pics of the Pre 1950 Pro Peloton in Europe. They were racing on gravel quite often. Want to to know what the tour was like in 1913? Go to kanza 200 it seems to me.

Doge

Outside of this forum when mentioning to people I see (mostly SoCal and CO) road bikes, or road racing, is assumed to be on pavement. When non-paved riding is to be done, it is generally called trail, gravel, dirt or something making clear it is not pavement. My kid is riding 70% off pavement now, I just finished an hour in the dust. But nobody calls it road riding.

sbxx1985 

I raced Boulder Roubaix on 23mm Pro3s. Maybe 25s would have been better, but the 23s were fine.

sbxx1985 

Out here, there's a lot of road riding and racing that isn't on pavement. It's the same roads we've always ridden, before gravel bikes and wider tires on road bikes. The road cyclists call it road riding with some dirt.