Pearl
THIS CHANGES EVERYTHING
I’d argue that HOH was way faster when it was in the 25mm days too, but that’s because of the competition, not the technology
Obviously I’m very removed from this local info and the course has changed…
Is a gravel bike slowly reverting back to a mountain bike?
- Thread starter Dave Taylor
- Start date
Obviously I’m very removed from this local info and the course has changed…
All factors, the geo differences for the tires north of 35mm are a discussion also. If the course has a lot of gravel climbing, big tires are less of an impact. Lots of gravel descending, obviously bigger tires have massive advantage. Also dirt conditions is a huge factor.
Riggedfmx
Well-Known Member
Like shoes theirs a purpose for each pair. Same for what you plan to do on a bike. You can pretty much ride all different surfaces with an Mtb. However, there’s a specific tool for every job. I can run in boots, but is the most appropriate and best tool? probably not. Same goes for cycling disaplines. Gravel bikes have now created an umbrella for diverse uses kinda like how mountain bikes do. whether you’re DH, XC, enduro etc no different than adventure, cyclocross, bike packing, and now aero race gravel bikes for this same reason. I think as the disaplines evolve so will the choice of bike and the alterations as needed. It’s cool to see the sport change in a way of innovation. Are there features from older models or prior generations and other disaplines we use today to make the fastest efficient machine…sure. IMO as the sport develops so will the equipment.
Steve Vai
Endurance Guy: Tolerates most of us.
HOH is faster on 25s because 80% of it is paved 😂
Pearl
THIS CHANGES EVERYTHING
Well yes I assume that kevy is talking about the gravel road segments
They did reverse hitting barry (the steepest dirt section on the course) as a dh to favor the gravel crowd. But you are correct about the amount of gravel.
Dave Taylor
Rex kwan Do
MVDP road cobbles for 5.5 hours at 29.7mph avg on 32 road tires. Gravel bike would for sure not be averaging 30mph with the watt loss.
Dave Taylor
Rex kwan Do
This is true. I’ve done it in a fat bike, mtb and road bike …Road bike was for sure the fastest but not as nuch of a gap as you think.
Pearl
THIS CHANGES EVERYTHING
He could ride a tricycle and do 30mph
That point is the same thing Jim is saying…I don’t follow pro road cycling but I imagine the cobbles make up 20-25% of the course at most.
what’s funny is everyone saying 32mm road tires are the norm now, am I an old enough head when people thought slamming 28s on a road bike was wild? Or you only put those vittoria tires with the green stripes on for HOH because they were fat 26mm tires?
Plenty of influencers have done the testing and yes, at some point you get diminishing returns.
Aren’t you an influencer?
Steve Vai
Endurance Guy: Tolerates most of us.
I’ve put 32c tires on like 2 bikes besides my Roubaix. 28s are still the go-to all-around road tire. Like for the actual road. Most of the Crit Team is still on 25 or 26s so it’s not as dead as people make it out to be. Just every bike is now 32 capable at the minimum.
Pearl
THIS CHANGES EVERYTHING
Dave Taylor
Rex kwan Do
I’ve been running conti gp5000 slr 30mm and they are nice. 63 psi and fast.
thegock
Well-Known Member
...as well as most of the flats.
Honestly, probably the best argument for bigger tires. That being said, some of the dirt sections last year looked like a warzone with the number of people on the sides of the raod
Ian F
Well-Known Member
I'd argue current gravel bikes are much better than early 90's mtn bikes - 29er tubeless tires, 1x wide range gears, much better brakes...
I generally agree that much of the need for gravel bikes for a lot of riders has been negated by the move to high volume tires on road bikes. Especially if you don't really have any plans to really ride on rough roads at speed.
I generally agree that much of the need for gravel bikes for a lot of riders has been negated by the move to high volume tires on road bikes. Especially if you don't really have any plans to really ride on rough roads at speed.
Pearl
THIS CHANGES EVERYTHING
I think this is the biggest point, you can make anything passable on a road tire, it just isn't the fastest option
Dave Taylor
Rex kwan Do
This is more tire construction than size. I raced the gonzo torcher race on 30mm Schwalbe G1s and while not the best for comfort they survived the most jagged shale and sharp gravel thrown at it for 65 miles. Speed is another thing but generally I notice a difference between 28mm and 30mm road tires. The 30s are for sure faster on rough and beat up roads but the 28s I feel have an aero advantage as well as being slightly lighter. I'm not so sure on fastest pressures but if you look at bicyclerollingresistance.com the higher pressures seem to require less watts which is the opposite of what people are preaching lately. On mtb tires I am mixed. Lower pressure seems much faster in the woods but when you do raves like Shen 100 and mohican 100 the lower pressure and 2.4s are clearly slower on the paved sections than a narrower tire at higher speed.
Dave Taylor
Rex kwan Do
Is 1x better? It's actually less efficient and the 10 tooth of a 12 speed is actually slower than running a larger chaining and running further up on the cassette. I have done a 1x on the road and if you have any hills I am not really a fan. You have way too large of gaps between gears to the point it always feels like you are in the wrong gear. MTBs do it a bit better but I would argue in the efficiency department a 2x still wins.
