pakeboi

From todays's online Bicycling Magazine .

Diamondback Haanjenn Review
THIS VERSATILE WOMEN'S COMMUTER BIKE HAS THE GEARS AND TIRES TO HANDLE LONGER GRAVEL RIDES ON THE WEEKEND.

The Liv Amiti-E+ 2 Is a Women's E-Bike That Wants to Cruise
It has a combination of features and components that make it as capable on smooth, hilly commutes as it is on gravel bike paths and rail trails.

shelbyfv

I'm missing the point, apparently. Is this going to morph into yet another circular "what bike" thread?

RJM

It's the newest marketing buzzword.

Hybrid bikes like the Trek fx series make pretty great gravel bikes and they have been making those for what seems like forever.

redlude97

Yea wtf, that is the very definition of hybrid.

Hiro11

I don't understand why people seem so uniquely offended by the gravel marketing BS these days. This is how bike companies create differentiation while marketing what is certainly a very simple machine: define meaningless niches and make extremely minor differences seem monumental.

For years, companies have tried to draw sharp lines between essentially indistinguishable endurance/climbing/aero models in the road space. Similarly, in mountain bikes the definitions of enduro vs. trail vs. all mountain vs. etc has become complete nonsense. You could drown in the snake oil of the supposed magical qualities of various commoditized frame materials. Other companies differentiate by proliferating absurd "standards". Etc. "Gravel" is simply example no. 2,398 of this BS.

Marcus_Ti

I agree, we need more groading.

redlude97

I mean MTB people complain about it too, everything "new" in bikes is marketing speak for differentiation, but some of it is straight up lame.

Cyclist0108

It is what should have been the definition of "hybrid." The standard definition is a flat-bar bike with inferior front suspension that superficially resembles a hard-tailed mountain bike, ridden by people in Geritol advertisements.

The "gravel grinder" is (typically) a drop-bar road-bike that accommodates wide (ca. 35-45mm) 700c tires, has good brakes (often disc), and often has more forgiving gearing than a classic on-road road bike, but is a hybrid in the sense that its tires, brakes, geometry and gearing are inspired by mountain bikes and cyclocross bikes. IMO this is what the term "hybrid" really ought to invoke, but generally doesn't.

General Geoff

"Hybrid" bikes are only called that because the segment was created at a time when gasoline-electric hybrid cars were becoming very popular with consumers, so the bike industry borrowed the name to help with marketing.

mstateglfr 

Hybrid bikes were popular in the early 90s.
Miyata, Trek, Univega, Bianchi, Schwinn, etc all had multiple models.
Try again.

General Geoff

No thanks!

https://www.vintage-trek.com/Trek-Fis...d/1994trek.pdf

Find me an instance of the term "hybrid" in that catalog from 1994.

Or this one: https://www.miyatacatalogs.com/2007/1...alog-1994.html

Or these: https://waterfordbikes.com/SchwinnCat...00/index2.html

Gconan

I love my adventure/ gravel bike. I can leave the pavement and go on an adventure. I can leave the pavement and ride on dirt &/or gravel.

volvostephen

Bicycling Magazine is trying to sell more bikes. Appeal to the N+1. Gravel is likely the slot that most people have open so sell those. Easy fix is to stop reading Bicycling - I did.

wheelsmcgee

P. 12 of the PDF, under the description of the Multitrack 750. What do I win?!

I bought my first MTB heading into college around this time...the term “hybrid” was definitely out there. I should have bought a hybrid for what I ended up using that bike for.

General Geoff

You won an eye exam!

OK, you guys win. I retract my previous statement.

Darth_Firebolt

The Rock Combo was called a hybrid in the 1989 Specialized Catalog, and it even had drop bars!
89 Specialized Rock Combo #? of 500- Mtbr.com

Gresp15C

I don't normally visit this forum, but the thread title caught my eye.

A couple years ago, I bought my first new bike since before the Internet era. I quickly learned: Don't read the marketing copy for a bike that you're trying to take seriously.

My bike was marketed as an "urban" bike. Elsewhere, it was a "flat bar road bike." A friend of mine recently said: "That's a gravel bike." I wonder what my bike will be next year?

It's basically a hybrid with sporty styling. With that said, it fits me like glove and I've been quite happy with it.

Metieval

I have no love for Rodale, Inc Marketing!! none!

Kapusta

I don’t see any problem with expanding the vocabulary to describe different types of bikes, even it some of the differences are subtle.

In both the road and mtb markets, the number of maketing descriptors increased when the actually variety of offerings did as well.

Just because the definitions are a little loose and not all bikes fit neatly into them does not mean they are not useful.

mstateglfr 

I disagreed with the comment that they were created when gas/electric cars were becoming very popular
Those catalog scans dont support your comment.
Hybrids were popular in the early 90s before hybrid cars.

dgodave

Bring on the gravel grinding. More gravel grinding please!

Kapusta

I know you are not advocating this definition of “hybrid”, but It is spot on and I love it.

I think hybrid is a good term for these bikes, because they are a compromise that kind of suck at everything.

Gravel bikes, on the other hand, are kind of GOOD at everything.

fietsbob

Saw an old French movie yesterday , in this film they just rode regular bicycles even though the road was gravel.

dgodave

yeah but... what tires????

dim

Gravel Bike = a road bike with wider tyres and mounts for fenders and racks .... slacker geometry for comfort, but a lot slower (and heavier) (especially on hills)

great bike for commuting though