Can I ride with a Roadbike on rougher terrain or is a Gravelbike the better option?
02-16-20, 10:46 PM
#26
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I can use 23 on gravel and I can ride 2.8 knobbies on the road. Don't let anyone here tell you what they do and expect it to be "the answer". Gravel is not a singular thing meaning not asphalt and the time spent in that gravel thick or thin makes a huge difference. I've done centuries on tires and some random person tries to educate me and tell me I have the wrong tires. Get a bike that will fit the tires you think you will need. Like someone said in the thread, you can always put smaller ones on.
02-16-20, 11:07 PM
#27
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There can be no doubt that a bike with really big tires and lots of clearance will handle gravel better, but it makes me a bit sad whenever I see a thread saying "I'd like to try X, but I'm worried I don't have the right bike for it. What should I get?"
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02-16-20, 11:29 PM
#28
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A Free Spirit had 32mm tires on it. That's a little small for a lot of gravel, but I think it's probably okay for the midwest gravel I have ridden on. When I lived in Southwest Virginia, a lot of the gravel roads had a really nice surface, we would ride them on our racing bikes quite a bit. I think the Strada Bianca is about the same, a little dusty but smooth. Here in Central Pennsylvania, the forest service roads are well maintained, but there are some big rocks embedded that they didn't bother to remove when they made the roads. Those things will kill a small tire if you hit them at speed
02-18-20, 10:51 PM
#30
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Which gravel bike did you go with (and is it carbon or aluminum)?
As others have mentioned, a road bike that can take close to 40mm or more but maintains a mostly 'road' - but more upright - geometry may be your best bet, along with 2 sets of wheels (one slimmer, another wider) to choose from depending on where you'll dedicate the larger percentage of your ride on a given day...
02-19-20, 06:00 AM
#31
Gravel Rocks
You wouldn't suffer much of a penalty using a gravel bike as a road bike, many of them would be great at both. A road bike will probably limit what you can do on gravel, but the question is will the limits of that road bike matter to you in the real world off road choices you might make in the future.
That said, as a young teen, we used to ride our Schwinn Varsity's on dirt paths with ruts and jumps, and banked turns all the time and had a blast.
That said, as a young teen, we used to ride our Schwinn Varsity's on dirt paths with ruts and jumps, and banked turns all the time and had a blast.
Last edited by srode1; 02-19-20 at 06:03 AM.
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02-23-20, 06:19 PM
#32
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What do you consider gravel. My 25mm road tires are fine for dry crushed limestone or dirt. If it's damp/wet there isn't enough space on the forks and I can hear it grind. That's when I used the CX with 38 mm tires. This is a pretty good vid on when to use different widths.
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