In the United Kingdom, trig points are typically concrete pillars and were erected by the Ordnance Survey. The process of placing trig points on top of prominent hills and mountains began in 1935 to assist in accurate mapping of Great Britain 🇬🇧 (before GPS obviously 🙄)
Rad thanks! I’m from the states and have a Geomatics degree. I was about to answer what a trig point is but you knew more Brit history than me to answer it more properly.
It’s those really narrow paths that always get me. If you oversteer just a little you’re off the path. If you take your eyes off the path for a second, you’re off the path. Probably easier to get back on the path if you’re on a mountain bike. Kudos for you staying on such extremely narrow paths. And yes, I used the word “path” a lot in this post.
Hopefully for viewers in Scotland, we'll be able to drive to ride soon! I've been exploring some local "gravel" trails on my old 2008 Dawes Horizon touring bike! Much fun, even if it just has 37mm touring tyres (continental Tour Ride). Nothing too technical, but makes a change from my MTB :-) Nice bar bag Juliet!
I can’t see the point of a “gravel bike” - if you’re going off road use an MTB. A “gravel bike” seems to be just marketing hype for a hybrid bike, which is neither great on nor off road. Also for navigation suggest using OS Maps on your phone, attached to your handlebar with a suitable mount - then you’d you’d never get lost! A trig point is “ a fixed surveying station used in geodetic surveying and other surveying projects in its vicinity”. So now you know!
Hi, Chris W/the stroke again,loved this ride,finding watching the bike rides induces movement in my currently paralyzed right hand. Had my heart set Ona cannondale “ lefty” now re-thinking...
Great vlog Juliet - I think part of the issue I have with gravel bikes is the terrain we have in the UK which by large is more single track & towpaths than true gravel roads as shown in today's vlog. I dont look at these types of surfaces & think a gravel bike is a better or more enjoyable weapon than my XC bike for this.. it also seems that many gravel riders are going for lauf, suspension stems & posts in an attempt to compensate for the environments we have in the UK at some point it must make more sense to drop handlebar a XC hardtail imho
Fine if you are then able to buy a separate road bike but I'd argue that using a MTB on a road is worse than riding a gravel bike on a single track. You can adapt a gravel bike to those conditions (most have enough clearance for 650b tyres) but it's harder to adjust a MTB to ride fast on roads. If you can only have 1 bike for multi terrain it's got to be a gravel bike?
I do think it is time for a mountain bike video. Regarding gravel vs. mountain, it is the age-old conundrum, where in reality there is no perfect bike for all occasions. When you are on a mixed-surface ride, there is always going to be something of a trade off. When you are on the gnarly single track, you wish you were on a MTB. Then the trail flattens out and you are glad you're on a gravel bike. You bring up a great point about the bottom bracket. Changing wheels could create issues there. The other thing that struck me was what you called "hike-a-bike". First, I love that expression, hadn't heard it. But it reminds that there will be times when you need to march the bike uphill, so your choice of cycling shoes better be on point.
Firstly I always enjoy your videos and perhaps I'm totally wrong on this observation? In parts it seemed as if you didn't slow down for walkers when you were going down hill? It's a great bug bear of mine when I'm out and see riders zoom past walkers at pace yet when a car passes them close they always complain. I think its a matter of respect and I always say hello and thank them for usually stepping to one side. Hope I'm wrong because you're a nice person. Tough ride though respect for that.
I think this is the flaw in Komoot's approach at the moment. They seem to be getting people who aren't that familiar with areas to blindly plot routes. I remember seeing the route you did when it was published and thinking it was a horror show. There is some great gravel riding on the Quantocks (miles and miles of it in Great Wood for example), happy to ping you a gps if you come this way again. :)
yes , route selection is key , can get some info by using OS mapping but need to accept some trial and error . The NE forestry sector and main ridge would best suit gravel biking but some descents into the coombes are best on a bike with suspension ie MTB .Consider using roads for ascent .
In the old days we used to ride mountain bikes without any suspension and as a consequence we used to be careful where we placed the wheels when the going got rough. Suspension made us a bit lazy about all that. However, I do think there is a technical limit for what a gravel bike can do. On the ride you demonstrated, if you did it on a MTB it would probably have taken a lot longer!
Can’t believe you actually said it out loud! I suspected there was a gravel bike conspiracy about them always, always being better than and MTB. That’s such an awesome bike most of the route looked like it would be nicer on some springs and with some big bars.
Looks a great ride 😀 The problem is we still don’t have a reliable mapping solution, whether you use OS maps or Komoot, it’s a real lottery doing a route for the 1st time. A bridleway can be anything from barely being a footpath with big rocks and bogs right through to a fast, wide gravel track and that would greatly influence your choice of bike if you had good info before you set off.
You've done a great job here showcasing a beautiful part of the UK. I mountain biked for 30 years before getting into gravel biking and I have to agree with you - there are just some paths that are more fun on an MTB. Maybe the secret is to look at the route you want to take in the round and choose the bike (if you're lucky enough to have more than one) that would be better in the majority of the ride and just hang on for the rest.
yeah, I think you are right. I love my gravel bike so much that I often choose it without actually considering whether a MTB would be a better idea. Both are fun tho
In England you can drive to somewhere to exercise, not the same here in wales or Scotland, as still in lockdown, but another great video and so want Force AXS on my gravel bike
Hi Juliet ! I´m Walter...i was looking many of your videos about gravel´s bikes... I´m gonna buy one becouse i live in Buenos Aires (flatlander...)Argentina and i was jumping many years on my MTB´s...and now at my 51 years old, wanna begin to try this style to start to make some short or mid travels around B.A., in littles country towns. Thanks a lot to share your experiences...and i´m sorry about my poor english. Keep pedaling and good views!!!!
Some accurate assessments. The downside of GPS navigation (in real-time and with regard to utilizing certain parts of your brain) / Bouncy seatposts and stems never quite seem to work as well as we hope / Gravel bikes are good if you're familiar with the degree of technicality on a planned route, but it's easy to get in over your head otherwise. I just purchased a 1990 Specialized Rockhopper for $50. It's a reminder of how far we *haven't* gone in some respects. Plenty efficient, reliable, capable and affordable. In a way, the gravel trend has us looking for a certain kind of terrain. They'e fun and faster to trail-heads for sure, but limited compared to an old school rigid mountain bike fitted with modern tires.
Always enjoy your videos Juliet. Irrespective of how your day went they are always entertaining & presented by you with a smile on your face. What’s not to like!
I guess that the gravel bike is an extension of the road bike and not the mountain bike. I took mine once on a ride in the Jura Mountains on not too rough trails. The climbs were brilliant and the descents were absolutely horrible. The GRB is definitively not a mountain bike, it is a fast bike on the road and super fun on not to rough gravel. This opens tons of new tours for me compared to the road bike, but it is not a substitute for the mountain bike.
Today we are so saturated by choices, if things aren`t perfect it leaves us searching for why, instead of simply enjoying the ride. You have such beautiful places to ride, wow! I`m in Australia, the bloody place is too dam big.
I would say the UK is not 100% perfect for gravel biking unlike the states.. Apart from Foresty Commision Roads and disused railway lines its mostly more sketchy.. Still Bikes a bike . Get out and enjoy it ..
I did an Alpkit gravel ride from Hathersage last Feb and the terrain was techie rocky in places and I usually do a similar route on a full suss MTB. I felt the same as you at the end - good ride but beyond a gravel bike.
Great channel! I'm injured and appreciate seeing some cycling adventures. I've enjoyed learning your perspective on suspension seat posts & stems. Have you tried a drop bar mountain bike? Hipster 1x gearing limitations aside, bikes like Salsa's Fargo and Surly's Ghost Grapplers are truly mutants.
Great route Juliet 👌.. I use to be a technical mountain bike leader 2007 ... .. great vid 👌 Definitely some mountain bike terrain... I've got my road bike, plus Vitus Substance VRS-2 Adventure Road Bike with 650b wheels and GRX 600 2x11... I've ordered a Trek Roscoe 7 27.5 plus mountain bike for the trails ...
I’m pleased I’m not the only one that gets further and further into ‘I should be on a mountain bike’ territory on my gravel bike. But then I am on the road getting home and pleased I’m not dragging MTB tyres along!
I do not change for anything the ride of a mtb, maybe a rigid fork would be good. but the 29 "tires together with the geometry of the MTB seem better than the gravel.-
Could the too rough route be due to Komoot not having a proper Gravelcycling mode? Cos that's my biggest gripe with it. Their "Gravel riding" is basically 90% paved cyclepaths so you have use the MTB mode and meticulously search the route for bits that look too rough because it prefers them over gravel-ish byways. Can be a lot of work and sometimes you fail and end up on murder trails...
Love your video's , have just stumbled across them, cant believe what lovely empty roads you've got. Have to say though I think I'm ahead of the curve than you when it comes to gravel bike /swim, if you're the real deal , its wild wild swimming, you know what I'm saying, its the full monty , its bonkers, they'll try and shut me up, help me, they are coming for me, I'm not allowed to say it...
I completely get the attraction of a gravel bike. Being able to drift on and off gravel is great. But a MTB is made for off road and there is always going to be that situation when you are better off on the MTB. But gravel bikes are awesome and there is certainly a place for them. Great vlog FYI. 👍
Hey. Trying to understand the point of gravel bikes? Even on pave i love my full suspension mtb and so great on every other surface, just curious. The fatter knobby tires make it slower I guess but that's good for exercise. Yes please, take me on a mtb ride. Love the video. Thx
The only way is to own 9 bikes like me I reckon. I keep telling my wife this to no avail. It's like the Thunderbird 2 launch, selecting the right pod for that particular mission. If you'd like to agree with me, i can supply my wife's address.
Yes would love to see you out doing a mtb ride ! That route looked great ! I've only used a mtb(roadbike handlebars scare me 🤣) so cant really comment on gravel, but I think my hunch is there are more gravel tracks in usa , and a mtb hardtail with thinner tyres may be better for uk gravel / offroad , but what do I know 🤣👍
That's my thought too. I was close to buying a gravel bike but I think a Scale or Alma would be a better choice. We don't really have the long gravel roads here.
I'm in Scotland n do gravel, single-track on my cross bike with 38mm G ones, and I'd rather be on that than a Mtb. There's not a lot that's too gnarly for it unless it's legit Mtb trail. I guess sum up what you normally ride in your and have long think of what's best. Your awesome n sponsored so just get a Mtb too and ride everything 👍c'mon nice bike brand people send Juliet a new toy 🚲
I live at the other end of the county and your ride has got me thinking. I go walking as well but the Quantocks has too many paths and is just too easy to make a walk with any sense of challenge. I have changed my car and the bike rack which fitted nicely on the van-shaped back of a Roomster will not suit the larger and more streamlined Octavia. I have roof bars and am just waiting for a new Thule bike carrier to go on them. I have never used tech to do the navigation and have a complete bookcase full of paper maps at home. Will an OS map fit in your bar bag? I have already managed to lose one by stuffing it in the back pocket of a cycling shirt. Usually when I lose a map it is something quite exceptional, like when a pig snatched it out of my hand and ate it, but just losing it out of the back pocket is plain daft. Look forward to more cycling videos as I generally find them much more interesting than all the technical stuff about bikes and kit to buy for them which daily fills up my RUclips watch list. So much enthusiasm and I will definitely be hopping on my bike after work this evening!
id say no, i think that it doesn't really matter what tyre you run from road to xc to full 2.3 knobs its the handlebar width that makes the difference those short bars just whip out from under you if you hit a rut
Gravel bikes are only great because the roadie set have used them to discovered dirt. Those of us who MTB should only use gravel bikes as roadbike replacements - on gravel roads & bitumen. The MTB is still king off road, even with the slower commute to the trailhead from home.
Yeah; that looked a bit gnarly for a gravel bike. Some of those rocks were but and rolly. I would have taken my hardtail. Congratulations on having outdoor restrictions lifted. We never had any specific limits where I live, so I logged a BUNCH of miles. What else was there to do? 1000 miles in April.
I think you are missing the point of a gravel bike. It isn't supposed to replace a MTB. MTB's will always be better on tougher off road sections. Gravels bikes should in fact be called all road bikes, an MTB sucks on the road just as road bike sucks off road but a gravel bike can do it all in one ride. A gravel bike can handle most trails that a MTB can do, obviously at a slower pace but they also make trails that are super easy on a full Sus a challenge. Let's be honest, few of us in the UK live close to challenging MTB terrain. Gravel bikes make simple off road fun.
Why do I get the feeling that all these guys, GCN as well , are getting serious money off sponsors to try to get us to buy another bike that don’t we really need. Basically if i want to go off road i use my mtb. If i want to do as ride on road i use a road bike. Juliet is a great presenter though and she’s a bit honest about some of the limitations of gravel bikes on more gnarley ground . My thinking is that if you choose bigger tires that’ll be great off road but slow you down on the road. So whatever set up you chose you will be left with an unsatisfactory compromise. Tbh gravel bikes are kind of revisiting the idea of hybrid bikes about 20 years ago with tweaks from cyclocross.
Nice think about a gravel bike is the tires setup is better for road than a mtb, at least with my mtb tire setup vs gravel. Though my gravel bike can also fit 29x2.1 tires but is setup with 29x1.85 gravel tires as the stock tires were not tubeless ready boo.
Been looking at gravel bikes for my commute with some single track, but they're three times the price of an equivalent Mtb that has much the same components.
Juliet, buy a powerbank ... I had this issue on run out battery ... I know you are or were sponsored by strava ... but when get time ... check wikiloc ... seems like strava but it is focused on cycling tourists ... You can make your trail offline and follow and beep when you get out of planned route ... you can route back home without internet ... I do many tutorial regarding wikiloc ... sorry in portuguese as in brazilian ... but you can use subtitles by youtube :-)
Awesome, as always! You know what would be fun? If you updated your gravel setup and tackled this route again, and then tried it on MTB and compare the three rides and setup! Then you could really answer the question Is a gravel bike a bad mountain bike :)
This is my problem with the name/marketing of the bike, They should be referred to as all road bikes, Gravel in each part of the world means many different things. But if you think of worn out B roads then they're great.
Hey I'm enjoying your vids great job. Just wondered about that stem does it top out if you pull on the bars ie when you need to bunny hop a obstical? Thanks
In the United Kingdom, trig points are typically concrete pillars and were erected by the Ordnance Survey.
The process of placing trig points on top of prominent hills and mountains began in 1935 to assist in accurate mapping of Great Britain 🇬🇧 (before GPS obviously 🙄)
There's a cool episode of 99% invisible about trig points :) 99percentinvisible.org/episode/map-quests-political-physical-and-digital/2/
Awesome
Rad thanks! I’m from the states and have a Geomatics degree. I was about to answer what a trig point is but you knew more Brit history than me to answer it more properly.
they certainly have their place. here in the flat parts of germany they´re ideal for howling through woods and fields.
Panzers are better !
@@plusbonus1165 amazing comment 😂
It’s those really narrow paths that always get me. If you oversteer just a little you’re off the path. If you take your eyes off the path for a second, you’re off the path. Probably easier to get back on the path if you’re on a mountain bike. Kudos for you staying on such extremely narrow paths. And yes, I used the word “path” a lot in this post.
Hopefully for viewers in Scotland, we'll be able to drive to ride soon!
I've been exploring some local "gravel" trails on my old 2008 Dawes Horizon touring bike! Much fun, even if it just has 37mm touring tyres (continental Tour Ride). Nothing too technical, but makes a change from my MTB :-)
Nice bar bag Juliet!
I can’t see the point of a “gravel bike” - if you’re going off road use an MTB. A “gravel bike” seems to be just marketing hype for a hybrid bike, which is neither great on nor off road. Also for navigation suggest using OS Maps on your phone, attached to your handlebar with a suitable mount - then you’d you’d never get lost! A trig point is “ a fixed surveying station used in geodetic surveying and other surveying projects in its vicinity”. So now you know!
Hi, Chris W/the stroke again,loved this ride,finding watching the bike rides induces movement in my currently paralyzed right hand. Had my heart set Ona cannondale “ lefty” now re-thinking...
Great vlog Juliet - I think part of the issue I have with gravel bikes is the terrain we have in the UK which by large is more single track & towpaths than true gravel roads as shown in today's vlog. I dont look at these types of surfaces & think a gravel bike is a better or more enjoyable weapon than my XC bike for this.. it also seems that many gravel riders are going for lauf, suspension stems & posts in an attempt to compensate for the environments we have in the UK at some point it must make more sense to drop handlebar a XC hardtail imho
Kid Karbon I consider myself one of the lucky ones as the New Forest is only 10 miles away and it’s perfect for a Gravel Bike
Fine if you are then able to buy a separate road bike but I'd argue that using a MTB on a road is worse than riding a gravel bike on a single track. You can adapt a gravel bike to those conditions (most have enough clearance for 650b tyres) but it's harder to adjust a MTB to ride fast on roads. If you can only have 1 bike for multi terrain it's got to be a gravel bike?
@@Tracdooor that's what suspension lockout is for! An XC race hardtail can easy be fast on the road even without lockout
That's the best ride video of yours I've seen......Honest about the limitations of a gravel bike.....Nice one.
Cheers Steve
@@JulietElliottsChannel what size are your bikes cm
I do think it is time for a mountain bike video. Regarding gravel vs. mountain, it is the age-old conundrum, where in reality there is no perfect bike for all occasions. When you are on a mixed-surface ride, there is always going to be something of a trade off. When you are on the gnarly single track, you wish you were on a MTB. Then the trail flattens out and you are glad you're on a gravel bike.
You bring up a great point about the bottom bracket. Changing wheels could create issues there. The other thing that struck me was what you called "hike-a-bike". First, I love that expression, hadn't heard it. But it reminds that there will be times when you need to march the bike uphill, so your choice of cycling shoes better be on point.
Firstly I always enjoy your videos and perhaps I'm totally wrong on this observation? In parts it seemed as if you didn't slow down for walkers when you were going down hill? It's a great bug bear of mine when I'm out and see riders zoom past walkers at pace yet when a car passes them close they always complain. I think its a matter of respect and I always say hello and thank them for usually stepping to one side. Hope I'm wrong because you're a nice person. Tough ride though respect for that.
I think this is the flaw in Komoot's approach at the moment. They seem to be getting people who aren't that familiar with areas to blindly plot routes. I remember seeing the route you did when it was published and thinking it was a horror show. There is some great gravel riding on the Quantocks (miles and miles of it in Great Wood for example), happy to ping you a gps if you come this way again. :)
yes , route selection is key , can get some info by using OS mapping but need to accept some trial and error . The NE forestry sector and main ridge would best suit gravel biking but some descents into the coombes are best on a bike with suspension ie MTB .Consider using roads for ascent .
In the old days we used to ride mountain bikes without any suspension and as a consequence we used to be careful where we placed the wheels when the going got rough. Suspension made us a bit lazy about all that. However, I do think there is a technical limit for what a gravel bike can do. On the ride you demonstrated, if you did it on a MTB it would probably have taken a lot longer!
Maybe go back and do the same route the opposite direction with your Mtn bike. It will feel and look different, possibly be a bit more enjoyable
Can’t believe you actually said it out loud! I suspected there was a gravel bike conspiracy about them always, always being better than and MTB. That’s such an awesome bike most of the route looked like it would be nicer on some springs and with some big bars.
As always a great video Juliet, love the bristish landscape & old buildings, thank you for sharing it with us :)
Looks a great ride 😀 The problem is we still don’t have a reliable mapping solution, whether you use OS maps or Komoot, it’s a real lottery doing a route for the 1st time. A bridleway can be anything from barely being a footpath with big rocks and bogs right through to a fast, wide gravel track and that would greatly influence your choice of bike if you had good info before you set off.
Thanks as always for taking us along!
You've done a great job here showcasing a beautiful part of the UK. I mountain biked for 30 years before getting into gravel biking and I have to agree with you - there are just some paths that are more fun on an MTB. Maybe the secret is to look at the route you want to take in the round and choose the bike (if you're lucky enough to have more than one) that would be better in the majority of the ride and just hang on for the rest.
yeah, I think you are right. I love my gravel bike so much that I often choose it without actually considering whether a MTB would be a better idea. Both are fun tho
The banjo music was perfect. Assuming you made it up the hill? Love these videos!
Cheers! Yeah, I did. It really wasn’t that bad actually, which is why I forgot to even mention it
Cant wait for your mountain bike ride video! seeing some of the single tracks in England is cool would love to see more
In England you can drive to somewhere to exercise, not the same here in wales or Scotland, as still in lockdown, but another great video and so want Force AXS on my gravel bike
Hi Juliet ! I´m Walter...i was looking many of your videos about gravel´s bikes... I´m gonna buy one becouse i live in Buenos Aires (flatlander...)Argentina and i was jumping many years on my MTB´s...and now at my 51 years old, wanna begin to try this style to start to make some short or mid travels around B.A., in littles country towns. Thanks a lot to share your experiences...and i´m sorry about my poor english. Keep pedaling and good views!!!!
>"Is a gravel bike a bad mountain bike?"
>Test it on a route where MTB is not needed
seems pretty accurate
Some accurate assessments. The downside of GPS navigation (in real-time and with regard to utilizing certain parts of your brain) / Bouncy seatposts and stems never quite seem to work as well as we hope / Gravel bikes are good if you're familiar with the degree of technicality on a planned route, but it's easy to get in over your head otherwise.
I just purchased a 1990 Specialized Rockhopper for $50. It's a reminder of how far we *haven't* gone in some respects. Plenty efficient, reliable, capable and affordable. In a way, the gravel trend has us looking for a certain kind of terrain. They'e fun and faster to trail-heads for sure, but limited compared to an old school rigid mountain bike fitted with modern tires.
Always enjoy your videos Juliet. Irrespective of how your day went they are always entertaining & presented by you with a smile on your face. What’s not to like!
Thanks Mike
I guess that the gravel bike is an extension of the road bike and not the mountain bike. I took mine once on a ride in the Jura Mountains on not too rough trails. The climbs were brilliant and the descents were absolutely horrible. The GRB is definitively not a mountain bike, it is a fast bike on the road and super fun on not to rough gravel. This opens tons of new tours for me compared to the road bike, but it is not a substitute for the mountain bike.
Great content! Love all the stuff with you and Dave ... please don’t stop and continue the amazing work!
Today we are so saturated by choices, if things aren`t perfect it leaves us searching for why, instead of simply enjoying the ride.
You have such beautiful places to ride, wow! I`m in Australia, the bloody place is too dam big.
I certainly enjoyed myself but as I'm making a video rather than just going for a bike ride it's nice to share my thoughts
I would say the UK is not 100% perfect for gravel biking unlike the states.. Apart from Foresty Commision Roads and disused railway lines its mostly more sketchy.. Still Bikes a bike . Get out and enjoy it ..
I did an Alpkit gravel ride from Hathersage last Feb and the terrain was techie rocky in places and I usually do a similar route on a full suss MTB. I felt the same as you at the end - good ride but beyond a gravel bike.
I'm excited because your excited!! Let do this!
Great channel! I'm injured and appreciate seeing some cycling adventures. I've enjoyed learning your perspective on suspension seat posts & stems. Have you tried a drop bar mountain bike? Hipster 1x gearing limitations aside, bikes like Salsa's Fargo and Surly's Ghost Grapplers are truly mutants.
Lovely place to ride, rough with the smooth in gravel riding, new trails are a gamble and when all said and done it's part of the adventure 👍🚴♂️
Great route Juliet 👌.. I use to be a technical mountain bike leader 2007 ... .. great vid 👌
Definitely some mountain bike terrain... I've got my road bike, plus Vitus Substance VRS-2 Adventure Road Bike with 650b wheels and GRX 600 2x11... I've ordered a Trek Roscoe 7 27.5 plus mountain bike for the trails ...
I’m pleased I’m not the only one that gets further and further into ‘I should be on a mountain bike’ territory on my gravel bike. But then I am on the road getting home and pleased I’m not dragging MTB tyres along!
Another great vlog. Looked like a hard ride, would you consider doing exactly same route on mtb to compare?
I was just going to suggest the same thing! It’s a great idea!
That's a good idea. Complete with the 1 hour road section, wrong way round, everything the same.
Would love to see you out on your MTB. Great video again.
cool, look out for a video soon then
Komoot sends me on some well dodgey routes. Happens almost every weekend!
Mountain bike video would be awesome. This was a fun video with fun music. Thanks.
I do not change for anything the ride of a mtb, maybe a rigid fork would be good. but the 29 "tires together with the geometry of the MTB seem better than the gravel.-
Your are fantastic Juliet!
But the question is, did you get up the hill without walking??
Yes!! Forgot to say that!
@@JulietElliottsChannel awesome!
@@JulietElliottsChannel when you wake up is cycling the first thing on your mind
@@JulietElliottsChannel Good job!! Def shoulda bragged about it in the vid
I remember the track along the top of the Quantocks to be quite rutted in places (not been down there for a few years).
Could the too rough route be due to Komoot not having a proper Gravelcycling mode? Cos that's my biggest gripe with it. Their "Gravel riding" is basically 90% paved cyclepaths so you have use the MTB mode and meticulously search the route for bits that look too rough because it prefers them over gravel-ish byways. Can be a lot of work and sometimes you fail and end up on murder trails...
Love your video's , have just stumbled across them, cant believe what lovely empty roads you've got. Have to say though I think I'm ahead of the curve than you when it comes to gravel bike /swim, if you're the real deal , its wild wild swimming, you know what I'm saying, its the full monty , its bonkers, they'll try and shut me up, help me, they are coming for me, I'm not allowed to say it...
I completely get the attraction of a gravel bike. Being able to drift on and off gravel is great. But a MTB is made for off road and there is always going to be that situation when you are better off on the MTB. But gravel bikes are awesome and there is certainly a place for them. Great vlog FYI. 👍
Hey. Trying to understand the point of gravel bikes? Even on pave i love my full suspension mtb and so great on every other surface, just curious. The fatter knobby tires make it slower I guess but that's good for exercise. Yes please, take me on a mtb ride. Love the video. Thx
i agree, its a mountain bike or nothing for me
Always love your videos!
The only way is to own 9 bikes like me I reckon. I keep telling my wife this to no avail. It's like the Thunderbird 2 launch, selecting the right pod for that particular mission. If you'd like to agree with me, i can supply my wife's address.
Yes would love to see you out doing a mtb ride ! That route looked great ! I've only used a mtb(roadbike handlebars scare me 🤣) so cant really comment on gravel, but I think my hunch is there are more gravel tracks in usa , and a mtb hardtail with thinner tyres may be better for uk gravel / offroad , but what do I know 🤣👍
That's my thought too. I was close to buying a gravel bike but I think a Scale or Alma would be a better choice. We don't really have the long gravel roads here.
I'm in Scotland n do gravel, single-track on my cross bike with 38mm G ones, and I'd rather be on that than a Mtb. There's not a lot that's too gnarly for it unless it's legit Mtb trail. I guess sum up what you normally ride in your and have long think of what's best. Your awesome n sponsored so just get a Mtb too and ride everything 👍c'mon nice bike brand people send Juliet a new toy 🚲
I live at the other end of the county and your ride has got me thinking. I go walking as well but the Quantocks has too many paths and is just too easy to make a walk with any sense of challenge. I have changed my car and the bike rack which fitted nicely on the van-shaped back of a Roomster will not suit the larger and more streamlined Octavia. I have roof bars and am just waiting for a new Thule bike carrier to go on them.
I have never used tech to do the navigation and have a complete bookcase full of paper maps at home. Will an OS map fit in your bar bag? I have already managed to lose one by stuffing it in the back pocket of a cycling shirt. Usually when I lose a map it is something quite exceptional, like when a pig snatched it out of my hand and ate it, but just losing it out of the back pocket is plain daft.
Look forward to more cycling videos as I generally find them much more interesting than all the technical stuff about bikes and kit to buy for them which daily fills up my RUclips watch list. So much enthusiasm and I will definitely be hopping on my bike after work this evening!
id say no, i think that it doesn't really matter what tyre you run from road to xc to full 2.3 knobs its the handlebar width that makes the difference those short bars just whip out from under you if you hit a rut
Thanks for the ride .
Fun video, I lol’d at the bit when you were having too much fun on the “overgravel” sections. Sorry about the knee.
Gravel bikes are only great because the roadie set have used them to discovered dirt. Those of us who MTB should only use gravel bikes as roadbike replacements - on gravel roads & bitumen. The MTB is still king off road, even with the slower commute to the trailhead from home.
Hate it when my phone battery dies on a long ride, usually in bandit country (SE London)
Yeah; that looked a bit gnarly for a gravel bike. Some of those rocks were but and rolly. I would have taken my hardtail.
Congratulations on having outdoor restrictions lifted. We never had any specific limits where I live, so I logged a BUNCH of miles. What else was there to do? 1000 miles in April.
Yes it is. Love your channel
I reckon you need to try a Cannondale Slate with the Lefty Oliver suspension fork. Locks out too for climbing.
I rode the quantock quake rMTB race there a few years back the day after my daughters wedding best hangover cure ever !
I think you are missing the point of a gravel bike. It isn't supposed to replace a MTB. MTB's will always be better on tougher off road sections. Gravels bikes should in fact be called all road bikes, an MTB sucks on the road just as road bike sucks off road but a gravel bike can do it all in one ride. A gravel bike can handle most trails that a MTB can do, obviously at a slower pace but they also make trails that are super easy on a full Sus a challenge. Let's be honest, few of us in the UK live close to challenging MTB terrain. Gravel bikes make simple off road fun.
Bring back the lauf fork for more comfort and 45c tires? The grit SL version looks better.
Depends - are you trying to do mountainbike stuff with a gravelbike? Looking forward to the continued mix-n-match suspension components experiments.
Why do I get the feeling that all these guys, GCN as well , are getting serious money off sponsors to try to get us to buy another bike that don’t we really need. Basically if i want to go off road i use my mtb. If i want to do as ride on road i use a road bike. Juliet is a great presenter though and she’s a bit honest about some of the limitations of gravel bikes on more gnarley ground . My thinking is that if you choose bigger tires that’ll be great off road but slow you down on the road. So whatever set up you chose you will be left with an unsatisfactory compromise. Tbh gravel bikes are kind of revisiting the idea of hybrid bikes about 20 years ago with tweaks from cyclocross.
100% agree for riding in quantocks. Wish I had a MTB!
I rode in the Quantocks in the early 90s on my fully rigid Ridgeback 'mountain bike'. Wish I had kept it...
I feel the appeal of Gravel biking is the challenge of riding a rig that isn’t as capable as a Mountain bike.
The way i see it gravel bikes are more suited for fast, long and straight off road sections
Another great video
Nice bike Juliet to nice to ride should be kept inside and just look at it and that way it does not get dirty
Nice think about a gravel bike is the tires setup is better for road than a mtb, at least with my mtb tire setup vs gravel. Though my gravel bike can also fit 29x2.1 tires but is setup with 29x1.85 gravel tires as the stock tires were not tubeless ready boo.
yeah, I'm not so keen on a mountain bike on road
Well the new gravel bike is my old Cannondale M400 with larger wheels, thinner tires and beefier components. What´s not to like?
Been looking at gravel bikes for my commute with some single track, but they're three times the price of an equivalent Mtb that has much the same components.
But, the hour of lost road riding at the start would have sucked on a mountain bike (depending on which tyres, mainly) :)
You're brave. Some of that terrain was definitely mtb territory. One type of bike can only do so much.
Juliet, buy a powerbank ... I had this issue on run out battery ... I know you are or were sponsored by strava ... but when get time ... check wikiloc ... seems like strava but it is focused on cycling tourists ... You can make your trail offline and follow and beep when you get out of planned route ... you can route back home without internet ... I do many tutorial regarding wikiloc ... sorry in portuguese as in brazilian ... but you can use subtitles by youtube :-)
I just sold all my bikes :-(. However seeing this route I think I’ll have to get a Gravel bike now. Good job I have some spare change to spend...
Great content 👍 quantocks is great for mtb , need to make a trip back
Cheers Jeremy. Yeah, it's great
Gravel as in : Benoit Gravel or François Gravel? They would make good candidats to play Jackass with.
best look out for the Quantock howler if you venture back after dark...
I think you should do a recap on this see if you still feel the same now
It wasn’t that long ago....
Mtb ride plz. Thanks for uploading. I love gravel riding but think you should do some mtb for a change
hi Juliet, I'm loving your gravel bike & was wondering if you could let me know what size chainring you currently have on it please ? thanks
Awesome, as always! You know what would be fun? If you updated your gravel setup and tackled this route again, and then tried it on MTB and compare the three rides and setup! Then you could really answer the question Is a gravel bike a bad mountain bike :)
definitely! I will try and go back there
That route looks amazing.
This is my problem with the name/marketing of the bike, They should be referred to as all road bikes, Gravel in each part of the world means many different things. But if you think of worn out B roads then they're great.
weren't there any horses in crowcombe car park or down in the woods after the triscombe car park ?
I’ve just discovered you and Dave great videos this ride looked like a complete car crash though best of luck with the next 1
hehehehe!
It's so easy to rely on tech these days for navigation, but when it goes wrong, it can be knackering 😂
Yeah, but it looked like a nice adventure all the same. That feeling you get when you set out on a long ride... :)
Hey I'm enjoying your vids great job. Just wondered about that stem does it top out if you pull on the bars ie when you need to bunny hop a obstical? Thanks
Great Vid Jules, gear up for a full day MTB?
Probably a bit late now as we can go out again but have you ever reviewed your skoda from a biker / outdoorze perspective ?
Yes it is .
Gravel bikes ROCK !!
Yes.
Argh....what’s the saddle bag called Live to ride? Can’t find it!
Anyway, just subbed and since joining its 49.7k...almost there!!
lifeisaride(.de)
Great video, I cant find a web site for your seat bag? Can you publish a link? Cheers
(what a wonderful helmet) !!! 🤗
👍👍👍👍👍
eish, rotor burn hurts!!! Thanks for helping make up my mind. No to gravel bike, yes to another mountain bike :D