Why The Road Bike Is The Only Bike You'll Ever Need
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- Äas pĆidĂĄn 30. 05. 2024
- Let's be honest. We'd all love an extra bike. But if you can only have one, what bike do you go for? A Gravel bike? A Mountain bike? Maybe a Commuter? We're here to tell you why the humble Road Bike is the only bike you need.
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Any bike u can afford to own n maintain is all u need. Anything else is juz for hobby, health, racing or luxury.
Correct answer. My personal preference is for the old school humble touring bike. You can use it for grocery runs. You can run bigger tires for off road (I find 32's to be a great middle of the road, and do everything I need). It can fit fenders if you live in a rainy area. And you can just ride it unloaded as a less-fast road bike (because they are road bikes, afterall, just not racing bikes). And older school tech is low maintenance and cheap.
spit the fax
Excellent answer I ride a Chinese 12 kg road bike
tbh I think this channel is squarely aimed at the hobbyist. I don't think they are thinking too much about a person who wants a bike to go to the shops on.
I disagree, gravel bike is the only bike you'll ever need. It can handle the rough stuffs, mud and dirt in regular commute. Road bike is not practical for commuting due lack of mounts for luggages.
isnt gravel bike just road bike with wider wheels?
I agree. Give me my 45mm Pirelli M tires any day and I'll show you places you didn't have any idea existed.
CX bike is a road bike for off road đ
@@Star14trek Question: I have no experience with XC bikes at all. How are they different than a Gravel or Road bike? Are they just shorter for more maneuverability or is there something else?
@@paddlingfan1 GCN have more than one video answering that very question. CX generally more aggressive geometry, off road racing bike, no mounts etc
I agree as long as it can accommodate 32mm and even 35mm tyres.
The issue with having just one _good_ bike is *security* when it's parked in public spaces.
Which is why I have 1 daily + 1 roady.
That's why my +1 is a Brompton - no need to park in public places, just take it with you!
I think the cafe stop is more common in European rides. Riding mostly in the U.S. we stop just long enough to refill bottles and keep rolling so security isnât much of an issue.
A cafe stop sounds good but not a fan letting my knees cool down only to have to get them going again.
Yes, but use one bike is enough when we never park it to any public place or it's not appealing to thieves.
@@kevin._.farren if you want to use your bike as transport too is the point.
23mm is for real men
1 beater bike, the one you're not going to cry when stolen for daily commute, and 1 road bike for weekends.This is the best setup IMO
That exactly, is my current setup
Hard tail steel mtb with various tires. Can cope with most of bike park wales, commuting potholes, bike packing and is surprising fast with slicks on.
Yep
Itâs fast if you live somewhere flat, but on big hills youâll wish you had an aluminum frame at least
@@phyllo8958 I don't climb that much slower in my 16 Kg mtb than people on their road bikes. I think the difference is mostly in road descent.
I was a total roadie until the last 2yrs where I've swayed to gravel as my, now first choice of a weekend ride out. Took myself a little too seriously on the road chasing FTPs and AVG speeds and dodging Ford Rangers that wipe you out on a roundabout. Gravel is much more fun and improves bike handling, sense of adventure and brings new challenges
Gravel sorry
only apply to american with your humongous gravel road
Gravel bikes are a lot of fun! Gravel roads (groads) are much safer than roads around Idaho. More groads than roads too.
@@apm9507 I have a 12 year old Cyclocross bike with 33mm knobly tires. That bike can do a decent speed on road, and is pretty capable off. I do have a carbon fibre road bike and an old mountain bike. As for speed, I have turned to the dark side, and had a front wheel pedal assist, added to the cyclocross and it is even faster going up hills and does everything I want. I even have a cycle trailer that hooks to the seatpost when I go shopping. I don't regret paying ÂŁ1100 for the convertion.
100% agree with our, @SAF1981. Plus you can throw some road wheels and tyres on your gravel bike and do a group ride. I just discovered Conti GP5000s in 32mm tubeless, and did a 180km ride with 7 mates on road bikes, all with 28mm tyres or less. No issues with performance and, as the Contis measured 34mm on the wheel (Zipp 303 Firecrest), I was also the most comfortable on crappy roads. I was held back a bit by having a 1x mullet on the gravel bike, which meant I was sometimes hunting for the right gear when on someone elseâs wheel, so next time I might switch for a 2x. Overall though, super happy. Also had a puncture that was solved with a mini hand pump and enough sealant pre-loaded to get me back the last 70km. Honestly not sure if Iâd take the road bike next time or just stay on the gravel bike. If the former, then Iâm throwing 32mm tubeless Contis on the road bike as well!
Moriah Wilson, an incredible gravel rider who tragically passed away recently, won her last race with a Specialized Aethos with 32c tires. I had the privilege of taking to her about the setup as she trained in the same area as me. She won the heavily competitive race with a field of predominantly gravel setups. Ever since that conversation I've been convinced that 32c tires, and improvement in your overall bike handling can get you through MOST situations that road and gravel cyclists encounter.
Rest in paradise Mo Wilson
Well, she probably was quite a bit lighter than most of us...
@@TimFrieke also a great deal stronger and more skilled than most of us
i ride on rocky/muddy/gravel MTB trails on 28c Continental Gatorskin tires(no tread pattern whatsoever). Bigger is better for more cushioning but you can realistically use any tire. Mud is hella fun with smooth tires though, it reminds me a lot of riding a motorcycle in mud.
@@TimFrieke ya, if you're heavy you should probably use wider tires just to not ruin the trails lol.
You must be suicidal to go down o mountain with road tires. I mean, you could if you're an expert, but will still be much harder than a proper mountain bike. I was once in a holiday with a vintage road bike and luggage and the asphalt ended at some point, getting out of there was a huge pain in my arms and legs, barely made it.
Try locking that Orbea outside a supermarket in London and see how many items you can add to your basket before it gets nicked.
Yep, Toronto same
After years and years of MTB riding I switched to road bikes and I never looked back. The rigidity of the frame, the efficiency of each pedal stroke... I enjoy cycling again.
I find this odd since I've gone the other way. yes on pavement a roadie is much more suitable, and if you only occasionally go off-road then it doesn't make any sense to ride MTB for those rare occasions. but for me only half my commute is on pavement, a quarter is on dirt/sand trails, and the rest is on crushed stone road, and on top of that half of the year is covered in snow. I started off with the road bike then switched to a gravel bike, but I skipped the MTB stage and jumped from gravel bike to Fat Cargo bike. the thing is because I have this bike I now explore places I wouldn't even have thought of riding before, and that's mostly because the other bikes just can't go there.
@@better.better Wont be able to ride my hybrid with those tiny barely knobbed 32mm tires during winter thats for sure. I do have a junker mtb thatll do just fine. Its a death trap though ill get a slightly better junker when winter is around the corner. Off season prices are usually like 20-30% lower then.
I like road bikes, really, but cars and drivers just push me more and more towards MTBs. Iâd rather get chased by the odd dog or have to deal (in a friendly way) with hikers than with cars and the assholes driving them :/
You might actually be the rare case of being someone who'd need a gravel bike!
Yup, the road is getting more dangerous...off road is much safer
I had a friend who's friend just got run over by a truck pulling a UHaul trailer. He lived but will be spending months in rehab if not years. For me a Gravel bike fits the bill. Almost no traffic. That combined with a Garmin Radar taillight gives me the piece of mind avoiding those bad driver encounters for the most part. The only downfall is I crashed last year 8 miles from nowhere. My fault. I left before the sun came up going down unfamiliar gravel. Now I wait an extra 30 minutes in the morning to get a little more light. My eyes at 64 aren't good in twilight anymore.
A gravel bike sounds right up your street, you can still get the miles in and keep away from drivers.
I commute on the road in the morning and commute back on the gravel shoulders on the same road in the evening because the drivers make the road dangerous in the evening. In the morning I see maybe one driver per mile, and they are universally nice. In the morning I sprint on the road until a vehicle's lights show up behind me. Then I pull over to drink water, rest and stargaze.
Next video: why an MTB is the only bike youâll need
Yeah, thank you. Anything a road bike can do, an MTB can do, & the inverse is _not_ true, even of gravel bikes. Plus, a well set up MTB can roll extremely well on pavement while being seconds away from great handling on loam & roots.
If you've got an XC MTB that's a pain to ride on the road, that's because it isn't set up well.
Modern low-pressure mountain bike tires roll _incredibly_ efficiently compared to their 60psi counterparts. No need to choose between tiny tires or tough pedaling anymore.
@@prophetzarquon1922gonna have to disagree with you on that. XC are definitely easier to ride on the road than any other MTB. They are made to go quickly. Almost all MTB are running 30 tooth up front these days, so youâre going to be pedaling. But climbing a hill on anything other than XC if youâre riding a full suspension is work. Hard tails maybe, but looking at a lot of hard tails these days, especially at the lower cost end are definitely blending MTB/Gravel/Hybrid stylings. You could get away with those, but youâre sacrificing on both sides, speed on the road, and how much off the road you can do.
@@Teacherinasubie We are saying the same thing: XC MTB is the best all-rounder & works great in town. As I said "If you've got an XC MTB that's a pain to ride on the road, that's because it isn't set up well."
@@prophetzarquon1922 yeah, my bad. My Vyvanse is clearly wearing off.
I think the person on the Dutch style bike who appears right of shot at 6â15â would disagree. I have a similar upright bike for doing the shopping, either double panniers on the rear rack or to pull a trailer. Been car free for 10 years and would never have been able to manage all my daily transport needs with a âroadâ bike.
In The Netherlands we have 'fietsers', or people who use the upright bicycles for every day use, and 'wielrenners', or people who use bikes for sport and dress up in lycra and use helmets.
A roadbike as presented in this video as 'the only bike you will ever need' would be totally unpractical for every day use, but it probably shows how most of the world sees biking.
Yeah, as a commuter bike a road bike is pretty useless but if you plan to cycle for fun and exercise an upright bike isnât the best
I live in Turkey and ı assure you a road bike would be a very poor choice for commuting here. I have a heavy but very robust hardtail with schwalbe marathon tires, a topeak rack and a bag compatible with it. This setup allow me to do much more with my bike. I can go shopping, can carry my stuff without a backpack or can carry friends on the rack without any problems. While my friends with road bikes constantly spend money to maintain their bikes (they constantly have punctures and bent rims because of poor road conditions), i never had any punctures, bent rims etc. for forever. Therefore ı spend a lot less time, money and effort maintaining my bike. Also where ı live there are very steep climbs. I have a 22t front -34t rear smallest gear that help me climb this hills (%6-10 climbs) while staying under 120 bpm. Most road bikes on the other hand dont have anything even close to that ratio so my friends are always tired and all sweaty after their commutes. Plus they always wear cleats and bike gear while i wear daily clothes, which doesn't cause me any problems. I'm considering buying a road bike for "cycling" but road bikes are a no go for me for bike commuting.
OH YES!!!!
"Not Just Bikes" has a very nice video on why Dutch style bikes are the best for commuting.
If you have time, watch it, it is great fun.
All the best.
@@TheRitzierComic
I relate SOOO much on this.
To me a bike is such an INCREDIBLE tool to enhance mobility.
But I also live in europe, in germany where there is pretty decent bike-infrastructure.
All the best.
These guys are so lucky to have good roads! In some countries there are like 90% bad roads with potholes. You can never trust a road to be perfect sometimes riding fast on a perfect road and suddenly there comes bad patchy potholes road.
Ours too
Our Indian roads have hump for every 1 kilo metre average...!! On this road , road bikes may be damage spokes rims etce tc
This depends entirely on the quality of the roads where you do your riding. For me, living in a country, so-called "developing", there just aren't very many good paved roads up to the standard of what folks in the "developed" world take for granted as a normal road. If there is a good road, it's a sure thing that it'll also be heavily trafficked by all kinds of vehicles, including trucks and busses whose drivers follow the rule that the bigger vehicle always has the right of way...good roads to play cycling "Russian roulette". The normal roads are full of potholes and may often be so broken up that it's questionable to call them "paved", and then of course there are the unpaved roads. So, a road bike is not an option and the gravel bike is perhaps OK, but the MTB or a bike like I have, a hybrid city + MTB bike with front shock-only, 11-speed cassette and single chainring, and 700 X 45 rolling stock is the optimal bike to have.
Does India count? Road bike tyres are underrated here xD
@@fr0xk Sorry, can't comment on India from any direct experience, never been there. My bet though is that its roads are not up to "developed" world standards, based on its GDP per capita. It's a pretty sure bet that road quality is directly proportional to that.
@@fr0xk I've in Delhi and Bangalore and I'm currently living in Berlin, and I can say that bikes in India are just not worth the effort. The weather's too hot. People in traffic are idiots. No bicycle lane (that's a big one), and then none/reduced traffic. In order to truly enjoy the ride, I have come to realise that there needs to be an entire ecosystem around cycles. But then that's just my two cents, could be different for everyone. I had a car in Bangalore and I used to hate it because of traffic, but I would have still never considered a cycle unless I was living in my hometown which is not crowded at all.
I live in a developing country and you could live with only a road bike even in the countryside, it's either asphalt or dirt roads, so nothing a road bike can't handle...
@@Gadottinho That's nice. Using a road bike on dirt roads is also nice, especially in the rainy season, right? And those asphalt roads, if they are the ones without potholes or intermittent gravel and other rough patches everywhere, are also full of traffic so that you can breathe in plenty of exhaust fumes from cars, diesel trucks and busses, and keep constantly vigilant about the traffic, all the different kinds of vehicles out there trying to kill you, right?
Hard tail mtb with 32 tires is definitely the best all around bicycle. Durable and comfortable and fast enough!
Yessir!
One thing road bike doesn't offer is grip when that gravel path becomes mud and wet grass road tyres won't grip where as 40mm semi slick gravel tyres will do the job and still roll well on road .
Descents on road is much more fun with 32-35-38 tyres than 23-25
My road bike for the road and XC mountain bike for trails/gravel. 2 bikes to do 99% of all riding. Eventually may add a lightweight gravel bike for long epic rally rides, but those two bikes pretty much satisfy most of my needs (and walllet)
I think the combo is gravel bike and dual sus xc bike. To be fair I live in Africa so roads arenât great and there is literally miles and miles of gravel roads.
Agree
@@wrightdavidoliver 1 year update: I got the gravel bike and dual sus xc bike. you are correct
I bought a gravel bike, replaced my tires with 38c gravel king slick tires, and it became the best commuter bike I've ever had.
mine is currently on 28c pulling road duty. 38c tires are on standby when things get boring! such a versatile frame its the future!
As ever, a road bike with big clearance (so, basically a 'gravel' bike) is going to work in most situations.
looking for my first road bike, what bike under 2000ÂŁ gravel bike you would go for? thinking of the Ribble GRC SL with tiagra but they are do only in November or later
@@bernardo9202 I don't have a lot of knowledge of bikes, but second handed can make a big difference in bike. For 2000 pounds you can probably get a very very good second handed gravel bike.
@@daanlinders7997 the 2nd hand market in Portugal is very bad in gravel bikes, and shipping it from outside of the country, is more beneficial buying one new
@@bernardo9202 a okay than it indeed make sense to buy a new one. Good luck with finding one
@@bernardo9202 Ribble CGR and the Camino are great. New Camino just had an update recently, longer wheelbase and slacker geo so more off road bias.
As much as I love my road bikes ('88 Schwinn Prologue updated with Campy 9 speed. '00 Bianchi Veloce, and '89 Yakota Enterprise), if I had to take my fleet down to one bike, it would probably be my Surly Straggler gravel bike. One thing you cannot do on a road bike is mounting a rack and panniers for touring, heavier commuting, or grocery-getting. But I've never been a racer either so those other aspects are more important to me.
GCN does have a bias towards road bikes.
I'd say gravel with a road setup for rides and adventure and I love my Brompton for being able to commute from work and take on public transit. Also, shopping cart mode is a wonderful bonus.
Yes! Having to lock the bike outside is the major obstacle to using the road bike as the commuter, pub, shopping bike. An expensive bike with expensive quick release wheels and an expensive saddle and expensive power meter pedals locked by the supermarket? Sounds sketchy. A Brompton is a bike you don't need to get a bike lock for, you just carry or cart it wherever you go!
They ignore the fact that most people can't afford a road bike.
@@kalijasin I look at it that GCN and its brothers and sisters are channels for performance nuts. There may ought to be channels devoted to GL(eisure)CN or GC(ommuter)CN. But good luck getting the cheap econo brands to pony up for sponsorship. LOL
I have only recently got a road bike and Iâve been hugely surprised how capable they are on rough terrain. I assumed they would just break or at least buckle the wheels but actually they work quite well. Not as comfy as a gravel or MTB but can handle itself if I take a wrong turning down a dirt track, which I will inevitably do .
It's really the biggest riders, hitting deep mud, sand, large rocks, kerbs, & potholes, who absolutely can't get by on low volume tires without extremely good skills.
The bigger you are, the more volume needed to offer the same impact absorption. Bigger people exert a _lot_ more force all around, hence the builds with 36" wheels that carry such loading without â„3" widths. đ€·
When I first started biking seriously (I did bike when I was young for 1 year about 9) I was unfit, allergic and often got sick due to working in an office environment at the age of 48, 22 years ago. I started with a MTB, weighing 14 kg (full sus). It was good on the trail but so-so on the paved road. After two years, I changed tyres to slick 1.25 inch as I no longer frequented trails. After 2 years when I was 50, I could follow road bike at the speed of 35-40 km/hr easily using a hardtail mtb (13 kg). So I didn't think I need a road bike until when I was 55 and decided to do my first triathlon at Olympic distance. I bought a road bike, weighing 8.5 kg. What a game changer! I now could follow younger riders upto 50 km/hr. Since then road bike is my favorite bike though I have several bikes along the years, steel vintage, titanium hardtail, folding bike etc. Now I am 70 and could not follow younger riders at 50 km/hr anymore but still could follow at the speed of 35-40 km/hr because of the carbon road bike!
Road bikes only best if you live in the middle of nowhere where you can ride, shoot videos, talk about road bikes, all without having to worry about getting hit by another car driver texting while driving.
đŻ
I've always been a one bike guy, due to lack of storage space and or was always road bikes for me. Until my bike was stolen a couple of years ago and I replaced with a gravel bike and I love it. I generally run 40mm tyres and look for off road sections on every ride. But of I'm planning a road only ride with friends I swap out for 28s, takes 10 minutes extra planning but it works great for me.
And, if you're able to get a 2nd set of wheels, it becomes no hassle to switch back and forth.
@@dvs620 so far not felt the need for the extra expense but always an option. Especially if I find I start changing frequently
Iâd love to see an experiment âhow gravel can you go on a road bike?â. My road bike can fit up to 32mm but it came with 25mm and inner tubes. What I would be interested is the stock setup vs. 30mm road tires tubeless vs. 32mm knobbly tires. Is it worth to get a second wheelset and knobbly tires or is the gain over the 30mm road tires minimal?
I went from 25 to 32mm and it makes a world of difference, my new continentals are meant to be ridden at around 85psi which is the sweetspot for speed/comfort on my local roads. Riding my old 25mm at lower pressures felt weird.
@@ItsYourBoiUhh Did you get wheels with wider rims or are you running them on the same?
I would like to see this video but I ride a few MTB trail where my 42mm Tubless tyres arenât enoughâŠ
The "Vegan Cyclist" uses a Canyon road bike for all his gravel. Check out his channel for some crazy bike adventures.
You ever watched Strade Bianche or Paris-Roubaix?
The best bike to ride is the one you already have. You already know how it feels and it's quirks. If you're fortunate to have more than tone you'll use whatever matches your journeys.
I'm still fairly new to cycling, but I'm looking to get a new beast next year when I clear 10,000 miles on my current one. I have to say, this video really did give me something to think about. I love my hybrid, no question of it, but there were some really good points made here. Time for me to do some research into which one I want to save up for! Thanks to all at GCN involved in this production, I haven't been watching too many GCN videos yet but that's now changing!
Had a road bike many years ago and the benefit of riding a very light weight supremely fast bicycle is just a joy and supremely satisfying.
Really wouldn't mind owning one again for sure.
But a gravel bike I do would prefer more simply for it's versatility.
I've used road bike as daily commuter. I've had also full suspension MTB. I've done commuting, gravel rides and road ones also. They were all great, but gravel does everything that i need. It's not as fast as road bike, not as comfortable as full suspension bike -it's a bit of compromise everywhere. But I have child seat mounted even. No tire punctures when going off the beaten path also. đ
I fully agree. I come from riding MTB only (cross country tours around the Black Forest) and thought about switching for a long time.
I got a roadbike early 2020 and i don't need anything else right now. Rode 900 km to the North Sea with bikepacking gear - 28mm tires are sturdy enough to take some gravel paths, too.
I didn't want a mix between MTB and moving fast, i wanted the FAST counterpart to the MTB and I am really happy with the roadbike!
Love the video! Yes, I personally agree that the road bike is all you need. There is a good debate between it and the gravel bike when it comes down to the quality of roads (or gravel roads) that you have immediate access to ride.
When I was a teenager I had a Raleigh 5 speed bike on which Iâd put alloy rims and I went absolutely everywhere on that bike, on and off road; curiously the previous owner must have had a serious head on as the forks were bent back reducing the wheelbase significantly, making the bike more agile. I am in my late 60s and have an e bike to do the same stuff, and it is now easier to get up those hills.
Content with 3 because a bit of variety keeps it fun. XC mtb, a commuter/winter bike and a road bike. It's great getting on the road bike and feeling how fast it is, then the winter bike and appreciating it's comfort and the capability of the XC bike offroad. My winter bike is actually a gravel bike, but I prefer the XC bike since I've got it.
Each bike is fast in it's category, you won't go with your road bike down a hill full speed, i'd say you go with the slowest speed if you want to get down in one piece.
Love the video. With my riding habits sticking mainly to Rail-trails and gravel roads, my go-to bike is the Gravel bike. Living in the crazy city I currently ride, there are too many crazies on the road so I tend to stay away from this as much as possible. Saying that, I have in the past used a road bike for my main ride but that was in a different city and different conditions.
A couple of weeks ago, I rode my son's mountain bike on mountain bike tracks and had a lot of fun. They are different from road or gravel riding.
I think this video is correct if the one bike you're talking about is purely for sport and you know you'll only want to to road biking.
If I could only have one bike for everything I think I might ever want to do on a bike I'd definitely stick with my Fully MTB and sell my road and gravel bikes.
For any other situation like one bike for everything, as in daily use and sport? A Hardtail would be a better choice. Inexpensive and very robust, modern suspension forks don't require any more maintenance than any other part of your bike, and just those large tyres open up so much more of the world to you.
I think it's a bit of a stretch to say that road and gravel bikes are capable off-road... Sure I like my gravel bike and it's fun. But as soon as it gets muddy, slippery or just generally unpleasant. I wish I was on my MTB.
My MTB has also proven to be more useful in my daily commute. It's more forgiving for getting up and down curbs and I don't even pay attention to cracks in the street. I don't worry about getting stuck in tram tracks and I don't hesitate to take detours through rougher terrain if the streets are too busy.
But in the end it depends on how you use your bike I suppose... As long as you have one bike you can still ride and that's what matters :)
I completely agree with this.
I also agree with this because I cracked my road rims whilst trying to ride on a road that has a lot of cracks and bumps in
Not all cities have good roads. I'll stick to my MTB when riding in the Philippines. đ€Ł
Gravel bike will be more versatile any way you slice it. Get some road wheels for it and it will be just as capable on the road, but much better on terrain with proper wide tires. I don't really care though, I have four bikes
Ill break protocol here by saying that, at 74 years, my single choice would be a modern carbon E-road bike on decent wheels and tubeless tyres. The newer versions are getting lighter and with a weight of around 12 Kg I can maintain a decent pace on the flat and slight inclines with assistance switched off. But the assistance on hills, the 100 Km range and the knowledge that I can always get home if I am tired or hit headwinds gives me the confidence to do much more challenging rides with cyclists who are stronger than me.
I agree totally, apart from the tubeless but because I have zero issues with changing a tube or two if needed.
The Creo I have with two wheelsets - one road, one for off road is the do it all bike. On first glance - Expensive, but cycle to work brought down the cost to a *lot* less than the headline figure gives my marginal tax rate (and I donât earn *that* much - if youâre in the band where your child benefit is getting tapered away, itâs a no brainer).
@@ArtistSoftwareEngineer That makes sense. My comment about tyres was based on local experience - our roads (northern New South Wales) have dreadful surfaces, made worse by recent flooding and I keep puncturing the standard tyres. Running tubeless on lowish pressures (around 60 psi) has improved ride and no punctures after around 1000 Km.
I'm 40s. I don't feel as confident I'm my trust road bike as I did 20 years ago. I kept raising handle stem so I can see better.
I'm in my middle 60s now and bike mixed roads on a gravel bike every day. I'm doing 20 to 40 miles a day 25 days a month. I have a raised and shorter stem because I don't have the dexterity in my neck I once had. I use a Garmin Radar Taillight and Mirror. These things all together give me back the comfort age has taken away.
I believe that, as capable as a road bike may be, it is not the only bike for all occasions.
"you can't take a time trial bike down the shops" they say, riding bikes with no mounts for a rack so highly limiting themselves to what they can buy down the shops. If you want one bike to do it all it is the 90s Mountain Bike (aka the Gravel Bike) with mounting points... you can have gearing for speed, you have carrying options for shopping/bikepacking/touring, designed for taking some rough stuff if you want to leave the tarmac, great for commuting... it'll do everything a road bike will do AND MORE!
But 90a mountain bikes have flat bars and "hand positions".
A good hardtail is the correct answer. Get a good suspension fork (doesn't have to be expensive) and lock out on the road while being able to offroad. The 90s mountain bike would work as it's definitely a modified road bike that's more robust.
There's no need for any mounts if your're just using a backpack, i don't really need more than 40-60l capacity for shopping anyway...
@@yoramclade4824 I've had this conversation before. I've taken a backpack shopping for a few items. But no way a backpack, or myself, can handle grocery shopping for my family. If I'm buying cleaning supplies, food for the week and dog food, I NEED my car. Even if it's only a 5 minute drive. It's about cargo space.
A bike couldn't replace my car, no matter how much I want to save in gas. I think that's what the comment was about. And that doesn't even touch the fact that I have 2 teens to transport around.
@@yoramclade4824 I don't know if a 40-60lt backpack is more areo than panniers, I'm fairly certain that panniers will be more stable (mass lower down) and a lot less sweaty. I know I preferred them when I was commuting or shopping at uni.
@Historical Slings Seems way more work than having a front and rear rack. Also, why had a carbon fiber bike parked out front that's worth literally thousands of dollars when you can use an old 90s mountain bike that is great for a beater bike, have racks AND those bags for under $750?
Thanks for this video! I'll be taking my road bike out on the next gravel ride with confidence.
As someone that lives in a very mountainous area, a gravel bike with two sets of wheels (gravel + road) checks all the boxes :)
To me, gravel bike or XC bike are both perfect if you want to commute and go out and explore in your free time. Depending on how fast you want to go on the road and how rough of a terrain you want to be able to explore, get one or the other.
XC hardtail 29" is a sweetspot (and different kind of tyres for any ocassion) Still You can fit most of gravel narrow (compatible with rim width) tyres to 622 (29") XC rims! Or keep 2 sets of wheels: One lighweight, narrow, aero for light terrain. Second set, wider, heavier, stronger - if You wanna play offroad.
...
Gravelbike is little bit faster, and lighter (usually) but because frame/tyre clearance - XC make more sense when ridding off-road at wide tyre (beyond gravel).
Gravel bike best all-around.
I got a Dutch style Omafiets for commuting and a vintage road bike for sport.
The irony of dissing the mountain bike for needing maintenance on the suspension but ignoring the ultimate sturdiness of the Omafiets.
Iâve ompafieted my commuting bike. Itâs blooming marvellous.
My wife has one of those from Gazelle. Itâs a wonderful all-arounder. I find the upright position odd, but she loves it!
@Historical Slings upright is best for traffic. you have a higher profile and thus a higher vantage point. Plus it's a very relaxed position
@Historical Slings if you judge a fish by it's ability to climb a tree... or a city commuter by it's ability to ride a century
@Historical Slings ah yes, because cities are famous for be ideal location for riding fast.
you really grasping at straws
Lightweight carbon fibre bike is perhaps not the best to do your weekâs shopping on. A tourer, with rack mounts, now thatâs all the bike you need!
For me n=3 is the perfect ratio. 1 beater fixed gear bike for locking up and getting around the city, 1 cargo bike as a car replacement for when you really gotta haul some stuff and 1 all-road bike with 2 wheel sets, 1 for the road, 1 for gravel. I'd bump it up to n=4 if I lived anywhere close to where a MTB would make sense.
Shaking my head (No) to all that was said in this video. A HYBRID is all one needs - that's why they were invented in the first place! There was a need for both bikes (Mountain & road) in one. Have you no idea how uncomfortable it is to ride a road bike OFF road - on gravel? Body position & comfort is another important factor. Road bike has you leaning forward all the time with little upper body adjustment. A Hybrid can allow you to have a low, medium or high upper body position. Less weight on the arms, hands, shoulders.
Hybrid bikes are for dummies, it's not an option for those looking at performance bike.
Hybrid bike are for those who dont have money to buy a road bike.
But you need two road bikes. One to ride, and one to go to the pub.
...and the pub bike has stabilisers. đ
I was glad to move onto my Giant Revolt Advanced 0 full carbon gravel bike, I'm able to keep up with most road bikes around here and it has a smoother ride.
My Friends and me did a Journey from ZĂŒrich to Italy, San Remo with the Bikes, two Gravel and two Roadbikes. Both worked, but the two with the Road bikes said also that at some Passages a Gravelbike with wider Tires would have done the Job way mucht better ... It worked with all Bikes, no doubt about it, we had no Technical, no Puncture or something in arround 550 KM, but for comfort a wider Tyre is key in my oppinion. Also do i just switch Tires if needed, for comuting i use a 28 wide tire, and for Traveling i switch to a 38 wide Tire.
A gravel bike with road tyres is a much more accomplished, all-round proposition that a road bike with gravel tyres.
Endurance geometry, with wider slightly deeper rims. And maybe even a little rear suspension for comfort
I have a Lynskey GR300 gravel bike with 2x GRX, fitted with a Continental Grandsport Race 700 x 32c.
@@patrickjosephmarayag826 Nice đ
"On the eighth day, God said, âLet there be gravelâ; and there was gravel. And God saw the gravel, and that it was good; and God divided the gravel from the road.â (Genesis 1:45c)
I like road bikes but I was confused between road & gravel. Thanks to you both to help me for solving my problem. The best is a road bike
Thanks
A road bike got me into cycling about 30 years ago, but i sold my last road bike 5 years ago and DO NOT MISS IT. Where I live, in Southern Ontario Canada, I find it has become far too dangerous on narrow roads and the ridiculous drivers. Gravel (including the gravel shoulders on those roads I used to ride) and MTB for me. Gravel shoulders are slower and require more attention, but they buy you at least 3 ft of safety margin from motorized vehicles.
One thing I don't see you doing 'with finesse' is riding trough historical but busy cities like Ghent, Bruges or Antwerp.
I do so on commute every day and I REALLY would like that flat bar or wider drop handlebar MTB and Gravelbikes use for weaving trough traffic, crowds, stalls etc.
Especially in (shopping) areas where one is prohibited to use the car: other cyclists and pedestrians WILL dictate your speeds and manoeuvrability.
N + 1.
Horses for courses.
32mm wide tyres. Sounds a lot like 26 x 1 1/4". 32-597.
Only two manufacturers of this size now, Schwalbe and Kenda.
Once upon a time, it was either this or tubs on wooden rims, both by Constrictor Conloy.
Agreed, EVERYONE needs a vintage bike.
I have a hybrid with Jones Bars that I use for everything with pavement. I have a hardtail for going off the pavement. I like the Jones bars so much that I put them on the hardtail too. I occasionally think about getting a road bike, but I'm really not sure that I'd choose it over the hybrid often enough to justify the purchase. I love the wide bars but still have plenty of hand positions.
My vintage Merckx Corsa Extra with 28 mm tires is the only bike I need, it gets me to the shops, does surf checks, laps around town while all the carbon fibre bikers give admiring nods of appreciation and does bunny hops over speed bumps.
Honestly, I enjoy my touring bike. Full steel. 24kg in weight. Absolutely no issues, sure, it's not too fast, but I can manage to hold 35-36 kmph for quite a time on flat, which is more than decent, my average speed on long runs is 26-27 kmph, 18-22 average against the wind, top speed being only 42 kmph at the moment of writing (all of that on flat road), so yeah, as we see, sure, it's not that fast, but it's enough for me. And it was cheap, 320 euros, it's super cheap considering how well it rolls. Once I want to go somewhere, just pack it up, and go. I would love an aero road bike, but in all honesty, someone would steal it. Plenty of people lose their bikes over here, no matter with what you lock it, chain it, they just come, cut, take and go, and police ain't doing shit about it. I can park my bike without any worries, go grab a coffee, eat something, whatever, and just relax, where with road or gravel, I'd have to constantly keep an eye on it.
Sounds like you made an excellent choice.
@@rangersmith4652 for me, this is a really weird and useless video. Authors do not consider road conditions and availability in different countries, issues with trucks and cars, stealing etc
All this makes MTB or gravel much more fun for me. Road bikes are nice for the ideal surface and crimeless countries, otherwise they are a burden
For me is 29-er with front suspension and gravel oriented gearing( 38T chainring, and 10-42 cassette). It covers all my needs on the streets of NYC.
You guys do a great job! I appreciate the info!!
The bike for me, if I could have only one, is the Koga Miyata world traveler. Easy to do 100km+ trips with, easy to commute. Donât have to dress for it. Much more comfortable position, easy grocery shopping. Virtually bullet proof, easy to maintain.
Love your videos. đMost bike riders don't need to ride @ 40+ miles or km an hour. They commute or go off road where speed is not the main issue...comfort & versatility is more important. So...I have to go with gravel babies. Sorry roadies. Actually, just do you. Pick the bike that best suits your riding style.
If you can afford it, 2 different bike styles may be the best option.
Just keep riding! đ€
Road bike for speed , hybrid or gravel for everything but not speed. MTB for riding with family and friends. Hmmm.
I agreed but i like the geometry of gravel bike too because i have neck stiffness .. and i like the fact that they can use larger tires too ..
As an Urban Arrow owner, the cargo bike is the only bike you need. They are just so much fun to ride!
R&M Load 75 is absolutely insane and you can take it on rough trails as well as smooth roads
I love my road bike, but there's no way I'd use it for commuting or popping out to the shops. It'd get lifted in less than five minutes, even with a great lock. That's where my vintage 90s mountain bike shines, the dings and surface rust make it a less ideal target.
I think it's biased , if you are not racing just want to have fun and have an adventurous ride.
Also if you want a bike that is overall riding style pick a mtb you can make a set up like roadbike . That's all peace
Sensible video, and a breath of fresh air. We all love the crabon shinies but unless you're pushing north of 4w/kg, a single road frame, with a 46/30 and enough spacing to accommodate wider tires. Buy two wheelsets eventually, one for pure tarmac and one for mixed, and I'm pretty happy.
Many years ago, when I was shopping for my bike, I tried both mountain bikes and road bikes (at that moment, I thought the gravel bike is a kind of road bike). Finally, I chose the road bike (actually it's a gravel bike) because of the speed and fun to ride. I mainly ride between the suburb and urban. It can meet all my needs and is surprisingly fast. Mountain bikes are easy and comfortable to ride, but they are boring and slow compared to road bikes.
Given the state of the roads in the UK you're basically gravel riding anywhere now, couldn't picture going back to a straight up road bike.
I love how in the "Cost" segment they couldn't really offer any pro's for the road bike compared to other bikes so they just went with the general advantages of having "a bike"
I know lol, I was thinking the same. You wouldn't want to lock up an expensive carbon bike just anywhere while you're at work all day either!
The funny thing is if you follow their advice for âweightâ then youâre probably going to spend a lot of money on a road bike. The problem with that, though, is if you get a ding while youâre riding all terrain then you have seriously damaged your investment. I have cheap bikes that I can use for knockabout riding and if they get dings, I donât care too badly about it, and I can probably fix them. But if I had a very expensive road bike, Iâm pretty sure I would not use it for any sort of gravel. I wonder if these presenters actually pay for their bikes.
@@hippyvanmug Gravel bikes are in general overpriced just because it's the trend. For the same price, you will get a much better road bike. And if you compare it with mountain bikes... a basic dual suspension mountain bike is as expensive as a carbon road bike with Shimano 105... So if someone wants one good bike that can be the most versatile, I would actually go for the road bike (but personally, I have both a road bike and a mtb hahah)
I just bought my first road bike.the speed and handling do much different from a mountain bike I previously own.this is better and more dinamic cool..â€â€â€â€
I still prefer the gravel bike over the road bike because it's more versatile. Hence I have all 3 :) Gravel, Mountain, and Road bikes. Cheers!
The best bike is the one you take down off the rack most often. I have 3: road, road fixed, and gravel/anyroad. The road fixed gets taken out most often, even though it is less versatile, and often ends up on farm tracks, bridle paths, and field boundaries as well as on the road. The road bike gets taken out when I want to do a long ride with many hills and need to conserve energy. The gravel bike gets used only occasionally, when neither of the other bikes will do, but I've had some epic rides on it. If all 3 were stolen tomorrow and I could only afford to replace one? Head says road bike, heart says road fixed.
Iâve moved to a gravel bike as it can handle the pot holed streets better with its fatter tyres.
Diamondback Century 5. Bought it years ago and haven't bought another since. Works well with my indoor trainer and Zwift, too. About $100 a year to maintain.
I've got my vintage road Raleigh milk race special for less than 40 dollars and since then it became my main mean of commuting transport for daily 42 km that is also discrete for thieves. Also it is my permanent upgrade project, and my weekend adventure choice for time to time.
I must aggree with you guys!
Drops are not comfy for every one, flat bars with bar ends also give plenty of options, qaulity hybrids are as well speced and light as roadies these days.
Agree. The industry plays down road bike versatility...so that youâll buy multiple bikes!
After watching this, I am now convinced, a road bike is all I need...thank you GCN!!
Sadly, I live in Hawaii where mountain bikes are mainly preferred due to the majority of the streets here having no bike lanes or sidewalks, so people are mostly forced to ride on the road and risk slowing down traffic for others, or ride on whatever dirt paths there are on the side of the road. Not to mention, the climbs here are short and steep, making the extra tire grip helpful. The commute here is usually fairly small, maybe a few miles, give or take.
I live on Maui too, which is mainly suburban mountainsides so the climbs here are even more common. There also happen to be a lot of gravel bikes here too, but just having gotten my mountain bike, I can say it does its job well for what I need. Just learned to ride a few weeks ago, and have been using it to get to work. Bike shop workers helped me learn AT THE SHOP and gave me a recommendation for this bike. Very fun so far, and hope to one day get to a point where I can afford a road bike for riding around downtown.
MTB 4 ever
Is this supposed to be satirical? Because I'm having a difficult time in believing that anyone would consider the most expensive, most uncomfortable and, ironically, least resilient and least reliable bike out there to be the most suited all-purpose machine for any sensible person.
P.S. the famed road bike efficiency and speed are heavily reliant on the use of lycra and even SPD shoes. Personally, I wouldn't want to suit up every time I make a run to the shop or my mate's house.
P.P.S. not to be a prick about it but those of us who actually pay the thousands of pounds that a road bike costs might be slightly apprehensive about taking it off road.
Don't really agree with your points - have done thousands of miles on road bikes without any mechanical issues, don't see how it's any less reliable than other bikes. Speed isn't that reliant on lycra - am several mph faster on average on my road bike than I am my other bikes for similar effort, and it's never wearing lycra. Wear mountain bike shoes, is no more effort than any other, and the most effort I make to "suit up" is putting a helmet on. That said, it'd be a shit only bike, mine at least is still on 23mm tyres, no mud guards, no panniers, wouldn't want to leave it outside a shop etc.
Not really. Road bikes are super tough machines, their speed comes from being the lightest type of bicycle and super stiff efficient frames. You dont need to ride the expensive models either. I have raced and crashed mine several times, and their "delicate" sti shifters though scuffed, were still perfectly shifting after 20 years.
@@philthewriter I've had the same experience with reliability, I won't deny it. That said, the reason mine lasts is because I'm always instinctively protective of it, avoiding rough or unpaved roads, curbs and even rain. Someone who dailies a bike might not have that luxury. Therefore it's a great bike, but as we both seem to agree, it's not a good single bike.
As for riding gear, I don't know about you but I've always found my baby slightly too uncomfortable without padded shorts.
@@garyking508 you're quite right. They are light and stiff. But that, coupled with road geometry, no suspension and thin 23-28 mm tires means they're also more uncomfortable than other bikes on anything short of smooth tarmac.
Also, aluminum and steel bend but carbon breaks. I recon that if you fall one too many times with a newer generation carbon bike you might crack something that's not as easy to replace as shifters.
In short, tough they are, fast they are but everyday workhorses? I don't see it.
@@nagylevi3827 Roadies are the hardest users of bikes, because they go maximum pace all the time. They race them, train on them, thrash them on potholed roads. Lots who race use the same bike for commuting too - there's your workhorse. Also, carbon material has come a long way the past few decades. Comfort is the only point going against them. (its why I'm getting rid of mine, i'm too old for discomfort nowdays)
And endurance frame road bike with a vibration dampening system is the all in one bike ! Great video
Yep.after a lot of debate with a friend over gravel or a road bike I have decided a comfortable orbea with a group set designed for climbing mountains as living in the Basque Country there is no way of avoiding them and robust enough to every now and then go bike packing is gonna be my treat for this year .
Congratulations and many thanks for this fabulous ,enjoyable and educational CZcams Chanel one of my faborite
Thanks
Totally disagree. A road bike is just about the worst option for commuting (especially a fancy one with a carbon frame). If you can afford a fancy road bike, there is no logical reason why you couldn't lower your budget just a bit and also get a dedicated commuter, with pannier mounts and flat bars more suited for city riding.
What do you mean? Why couldn't you use a fancy carbon frame road bike for commuting? I use my road bike for everything with no problems at all!
@@mrtim3698 Maybe it works for you but my commuter takes a lot of abuse, it gets scratches from leaning on bike racks where I park, is subjected to rain/sand/mud and sometimes even some snow, etc. I certainly wouldn't use my most expensive bike for all this. Then there's also the risk of theft.
I've had tons of back pain and neck pain for years. I decided to purchase a road bike and within 1 week my back feels way better! I bought a 390 allaluminum road bike and its so good
I basically agree, I have a couple of road bikes, a gravel bike and a mountain bike and I end up trying to make the others more like road bikes. The gravel bike will be down to 32mm Contis and upgraded from
1x to 2x11 soon and the road bikes run 25 or 28mm Conti GP5000s and are brilliant. The mountain bike comes down to 29x2" tyres in summer, with blocky 2.75s in winter
I have a road bike for 50 mile day trips but when I do a few days away a touring bike is essential. I own 8 bikes for different types of cycling occassions but if I could only have one it would be my Kona Sutra touring. Built for comfort not speed it does gravel and tarmac fully loaded or stripped down just fine.
A steel frame MTB with steel rigid forks, discs, and Marathon plus Tour tyres at 1.75"/45mm....an old "gravel" bike let's call it. Just done a loop from home- Glen Tromie, Gaick Pass, Kinloch Rannoch, over to Corrour and Loch Laggan then home to Kincraig. Road, singletrack, fireroad...bike took it in it's stride (shock horror it has 26" wheels and 22/36 by 11-32!!!)...90Km yesterday, 90Km today. It seriously is a do it all bike but ticks none of the latest fashion boxes so probably wouldn't get nicked!!
Absolutely...unless you want to go through crazy off road trips... Where you can use a mountain bike. Most roadbikes can also have up to 32mm tires, (at least most mid range ones) so you can mount gravel tires without spending a crazy amount of money in an slow and heavy gravel bike. Not sure if you guys have any video about this possibility of mounting gravel tires in a road bike.
32mm is barely a gravel tire. Might be alright on miles of champagne gravel but that's not going to cut in in the UK, neither is the road bike handling.
I agree a nice endurance Bike like my Giant Deny 2 is a good all rounder, upgraded my PR2 Wheels for nice set of DB4 Fulcrum Wheels and a comfortable saddle helped make it a good long distance tourer.
I live in the Philippines where the road conditions are at times suspiciously like a firetrail. I've ridden my 25mm road bike everywhere since 2015, and on some basic trails in the mud no less. Not ideal, but survivable especially if you have your trail skills and instincts to help.
Might get a gravel bike, but not rushing to.
The most common frame is aluminum imo not carbon. Carbons just the most desired by those that spent less than $2000 USD and wish to show off. I spent less and ride aluminum and Love It!
I kept hearing 'Road bike', but the points kept going back to the Elephant.
Only benefit of road bike mentioned was 1. Speed (on asphalt, I'll even give it hardpack).
I enjoyed the transitions from topic to topic thanks to a well written script beforehand
Got my modern retro style road bike with titanium frame for the commute and winter. Mountain bike for the dirty weekends