Gravel / Gravé / Gnarmac / Groad / ATB

Glad I didn't update the thread title now

I saw the edit.

@spotter shouldn't you be working?

What I do in my tea break is my own business

I stand corrected.

Lets now talk about how corduroy shorts and knee high woolen socks are a vital part of gravel riding.

What if you don’t want to get covered in shit while doing the above?

You’ve basically just described my daily commute.

Be the gravel umop, be the gravel.

Gravel in the US is basically roadbiking on hardpack dirt roads, hence 35mm tyres. We don't have that in the UK

Pretty sure that's not universally true! If it is I've had some fairly major hallucinations while cycling in the UK.

A tank top is just a woolen gilet without a zip.

That's got a zip, so it's a gilet. Albeit of the Chunky Knitwear Catalogue variety.

Pretty sure that's not universally true! If it is I've had some fairly major hallucinations while cycling in the UK.

Paved roads will reach Suffolk eventually

Road biking in Europe is basically riding on smooth perfect tarmac hence 25mm tyres. We don’t have that in the UK

The new forest totally feels like mars rather than England tho ya.

Loads of my biking in the UK and in France has been on loose untarred roads, so I don’t know what you’re all on about. Although I have to say untarred roads are better than the badly maintained tarred roads we get in a lot of the UK...

also not true for the us. maybe if you live in colorado

Meh. Why should I care? I live in Cambridgeshire. Plenty of paved roads. Really, really badly paved, admittedly.

Decent amount of hardpack dirt around cambridgeshire too IMO. I used to be of the "fnar there's no grav in the uk" but I've changed my mind lately. I think the main difference is that whilst there's plenty of bridleway, there's not huge amounts of linked up bridleway, so you end up on the road not just cycling to and from, but also during.

Also in winter the hardpack dirt turns into cloying, destructive mud which fills my mudguards instantly and in the summer it sets into rockhard washboard with 0 moisture for my mudguards to catch, but I still have mudguards on my bikes whenever possible. It's the principle of the thing.

Same if you live in Hackney. Gravel towpath and gravel fire tracks of Epping Forest. Or where my parents live in Scotland with lots of forestry roads.

Decent amount of hardpack dirt around Cambridgeshire

Examples, please?

but I still have mudguards on my bikes whenever possible. It's the principle of the thing.

Gets it

For me, personally, things like the Tour of the Cornfields (different routes different years, can be borrowed off strava) or the Bicycle Ambulance byway bash (only been done once to my knowledge but again, have a google and you should turn it up) routes are quite nice, also the bridleways around the roman road, the icknield way/peddars way.

Mostly I just open Komoot, switch to open cycle map and look for the green lines, try to stitch as many of them together as possible, route to a cake shop...done. It's often worth following the London Liverpool street train line and seeing if you can hitch a ride to the south and then ride back with the prevailing south westerly wind. If you're on komoot dm me and I'll send you my profile which isn't amazing or anything but might give you some ideas (or ideas of people to follow)

Not saying it's like, world class riding or something (I've not ridden much of the world) but I would say it certainly could justify having a gravel type bike (with or without mudguards).

Thanks

Tanks Tops- made or worn in the 70s. They had a scoop neck and were usually made of man-made fibres. The patterns were bright and garish. I should know, I wore them. They were rarely worn during CTC club runs.

Salsas only go up to 46 as well. only bar thats wider that i can buy here in germany is the curve walmer bar. maybe i just get 50cm version although its fckn expensive

Despite the many many crimes committed the last few pages (@PhilDAS bike posts - dude I was eating! 🤢) the biggest thing seems to be that people are overpaying for their handlebars

Does anyone know of flared drop bars for 25.4 or 26.0, asking for a friend.

How flared?

Nitto B135SSB and AA come to mind. Some other Nittos.

B135AA:

Soma Portola if you want to go extreme: