Moots is best known for expensive, awesome, titanium gravel bikes. So the “from $10,000” price tag on their newly announced “Moots Express eBike” gravel e-bike, or maybe e-gravel-bike, did not surprise me at all. But that it is carbon, and promises ~100 miles of range, did. Obviously, there’s some caveating around the whole “100 miles” thing. Judging range is really hard given elevation, wind, temperature, etc., but even if the real number…
Gravel Bike
Lynskey GR300 vs Giant Revolt vs Road Bike
I get asked frequently whether I like the Lynskey GR300 or the Giant Revolt better, this video discusses that and a little bit of “if I can only have one bike” question vs a road bike.…
I don’t understand convertible geometry
I’m not questioning that the Allied Echo is neat. Being able to change from road geometry to gravel geometry in under ten minutes is a slick idea, but why? It’s always going to be compromised, mostly here on the gravel side of things with a 40c tire limit and no fender mounts. The other massive hit is to your pocket book. Seems to me that for what they are charging, you could…
If you want MTB geometry, maybe get a MTB?
I generally like Jame Huang’s bike reviews, he’s very thorough, and has a no-BS style which is appreciated. But, I really don’t get the bias towards MTB geometry on gravel bikes that he’s been pushing. I suspect that this is an artifact of background, and where he tends to ride (IIRC, he’s based in Boulder, CO); if you ride MTB trails on a gravel bike, I can see where MTB geometry would…
Can you trust a gravel bike review from someone who wears baggies and drinks beer from a can?
Let’s get one thing out of the way. If the choice is between beer from a can and no beer, that’s not a real choice. We can do better than that. Seriously, your stomach, and taste buds will thank you. With that business out of the way, we can talk about bikes. In this case the Fuji Jari, as reviewed by Cycling Tips. While I can’t speak directly to the validity of…
Products I Do Not Understand: Aero Gravel Wheels
Accepting that I’m not an expert in aerodynamics, it’s quite possible that I’m wrong here (please be gentle, aerodynamic experts). That said, based on my lay understanding of wheel aerodynamics, I cannot see how (except in very limited circumstances) one would benefit aerodynamically from an “aero” gravel wheel. That’s not to say that there aren’t other benefits to a deeper wheel, CX racers will know that it’s quite common for so much…
Damn! That’s a lot of bike for $800
I’m a big fan of metal gravel, cough… all-road, bicycles because they are generally cheaper, and you have the assured durability of metal; should your style of play also include pushing the envelop a bit. That’s not to say of course, that there isn’t a place for carbon gravel bikes, there certainly is, just that there are trade-offs involved. So I was thrilled to see this new 4130 All-Road from State Bicycle.…
The first two bikes I bought myself were “mountain bikes”, but only the second was a real mountain bike. It was a no-suspension hard-tail, before they were called “hard-tails”, Bianchi Peregrine. I actually still have that bike, but now my son rides it. TBH, when I got it, I didn’t really use it for mountain, or trail riding, it was an urban (or maybe Urbana ;)) assault vehicle; mostly doing the business…
Feeling good about aluminum
If I’m totally honest, there have been a few times when I wished that I’d opted for a more expensive carbon frame for the gravel bike. Almost all of those times have involved a scale. Not that I’m dissatisfied with the weight, it’s actually great all things considered. As a bit of weight weenie the lack of potential still pains me a little. But, every time I crash the bike (riding in…
I’m starting to notice a trend here…
Maybe I have unreasonable expectations, but here again I’m somewhat surprised to find that this $4,000 Cervélo Áspero comes with an aluminum seatpost and a 1760g Easton EA70 AX wheelset. Seeing as you can get these wheels for $200 and an aluminum seatpost for $25 without even looking that hard, it just seems like a lot to pay for a mishmash of parts and a carbon frame. Now, I will admit that…