Gravel / Gravé / Gnarmac / Groad / ATB

Geniunely read that as Gene Hackman

There's logic to the madness, I am sure. My bet is thay they created them to deal with long corrugated gravel roads, like the stretch that leads up to far north Queensland and stretches of rocky desert like up the Birdsville track.

That or they just wanted to piss folk off for shits and giggles.

Awesome Ed. Good to hear. I will of course be outsourcing all the tubeless prep to the wonderful folks at Velolife.

I've got a pair with clip on aero bars fitted.
To be honest, I don;t think they're worth it.
They feel stiffer than the FSA Omega Compact that I replaced. Stiffer as in less vertically compliant, so a bit less comfortable.
They're also much wider than advertised. I wanted to try narrower bars, so order 42cm width and they are an identical width at the controls as the 46cm FSA bars.
The flat section is also tricky to get the control cables settled into (Campagnolo), so overall, not really impressed. The "flair" is only very slightly noticeable as well.
I'm more tempted to try something like the Alpkit Spitfire next time around.

Hmm interesting I own two sets of the pro bars in 40cm and they measure up ‘true to size’. @cjr I would recommend them, the flats are angled so they’re pretty comfortable but one thing to pay attention to is that they do have really short reach compared to a lot of bars.

I put down a deposit on a Fairlight Secan. Is this interesting? No, but I haven't told anyone else - so here you go, strangers on the internet.

Wtf?

I guess David Droga had a Condor in the noughties so this is a good equivalent.

Has nobody posted CyclingTips Gravel scale yet? Seems perfect to start pointless debate we all love.

https://cyclingtips.com/2019/08/grading-gravel-how-do-you-define-off-road-surfaces/

we all love.

I don't love to argue about gravel on the internet, but it is my vocation.

Grading seems low no mention of a need for 2+ inch tyres.

I’m not really sure what grading the UK bridleways would be for this half of the year?

Ah, that'll be Tier 4.

They saw us coming (or are avid readers of this thread).

https://cyclingtips.com/2020/05/gravel-bike-vs-mountain-bike-are-you-better-off-with-a-hardtail-mtb/

All dry surfaces in their scale... UK mud is a "Grade 6"?

Everything in that article I've ridden on 25mm tyres.

Doesn't mean it was sensible or I wouldn't have been much better off on 50mm tyres though.

I'll stick with OSM surface gradings and my hobby of squeezing inappropriate sized things into small gaps...

Recent studies have shown that narrower tyres slice through mud better and so are faster in the real world.

Recent studies have shown that narrower tyres slice through mud better and so are faster in the real world.

No need to give away the solution to all the problems, the forum isn't ready for it!

Recent studies...

...from decades and decades of cyclocross?

You’re forgetting that we’re talking about gravel. It’s a whole new field of study.

So was cyclocross, they used to be road bicycle that have knobby 28mm tyres on.

Look at that picture, he's clearly dreaming on 32c tyres, clipless pedals and disc brakes.

I'm faster because I ride "around" the mud. I know, it's an amazing concept, but unless you're actually in a 'cross race you don't have to worry about the tape...

creates Mud Bike thread

they used to be road bicycle that have knobby 28mm tyres on.

And after many years of progress they've gone to 33mm, true pioneers.

Is my assumption that 35mm max tyre size limits in cyclocross is to keep it being hard wrong?

Narrower tyres really are better in the mud?