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Show us your gravel/cross bike...

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Cyclocross and Gravelbiking (Recreational) This has to be the most physically intense sport ever invented. It's high speed bicycle racing on a short off road course or riding the off pavement rides on gravel like : "Unbound Gravel". We also have a dedicated Racing forum for the Cyclocross Hard Core Racers.

Show us your gravel/cross bike...

Old 12-23-13, 12:50 PM
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Originally Posted by Barrettscv
The Shimano BR-R650 brake is a long reach brake with a reach long enough for a 700x32 tire.
yup, just tried it. A 32mm knobby fits both front and rear. No room for fenders or mud though. 35mm slick maybe. I took it on a long test ride and that bike is smooth! I see now what people mean when they say that a slack Ha slows down steering." At speed going downhill, it's extremely stable, really holds its line. Not exactly "nimble" but it is confidence-inspiring.

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Old 12-23-13, 03:18 PM
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My new 29er will see double-duty as a gravel rig.

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Old 12-23-13, 03:53 PM
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2000 Litespeed Appalachian, Black Mountain Cycle Road, Surly CC SS, 89 Fisher ProCaliber, 95ish Dutch MTB made from Russian MIGs.









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Old 12-24-13, 02:17 PM
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In road trim, my new Ridley.

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Old 12-26-13, 07:00 PM
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My first season


This was my first cyclocross season and it was a blast, I am hooked. Rode my first race in January on my mountain bike then started searching ebay and craigslist and came across this nice Trek XO1 with many carbon upgrades. Got 6 more races in in the fall and can't wait till next year.
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Old 12-29-13, 09:37 PM
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A custom Rodriguez GG. This is a fun bike to ride.

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Old 12-31-13, 09:08 AM
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1990 Bianchi Axis. Pics to follow...

I would like to point out here that I believe "gravel grinding" will probably be the bike riding of the future due to more roads, particularly in rural areas, being abandoned due to lack of maintenance caused by budget cuts and lack of resources.
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Old 12-31-13, 05:31 PM
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Originally Posted by mack_turtle
question about gravel bikes:

I have a Pake C'mute steel cross/commuter that I built up as a mutt with random parts. it weighs a ton (at least it does to me, 150 pounds of skin and bones)! It has friction 2x9 shifting. I mostly use if for commuting to work but I also take it on long road rides and I would like to do some gravel grinders starting with the Texas Chainring Massacre in January. This bike can handle 40mm+ tires but I think it's overkill. I do not have the space or the budget for multiple bikes, so I need a true do-all bike that can handle the above duties. I have a mountain bike for true off-road riding.

I would like to get a more road-ish bike that can handle a rear rack for commuting, but will take some gravel-worthy tires for the occasional gravel race. I have been eyeing the Novara Verita and, as an REI employee, I can get a great deal on it. I can probably sell my C'Mute and get a Verita with that money. the Verita should be able to handle 28mm tires with the included fenders and I think I can get some 32mm knobbies in there without fenders. I am going to experiment with that today. the medium Verita has a 540mm ETT, 70.5° HA and a 73° SA. that's a slack HA! if 32mm knobbies fit in that frame and fork, would the geo of that bike be suitable for the occasional gravel race, or would the handling suck?
If the Verita deal doesn't work out, I'd suggest a Black Mountain road frame. Supposed to fit 33's. For brakes, Paul Racer brakes can be used for the fatter tires.
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Old 12-31-13, 05:46 PM
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Originally Posted by smurfy
I would like to point out here that I believe "gravel grinding" will probably be the bike riding of the future due to more roads, particularly in rural areas, being abandoned due to lack of maintenance caused by budget cuts and lack of resources.
Agreed. Cycling is returning to its roots, one way or the other.

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Old 12-31-13, 09:40 PM
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Fitting some fatter tires to the typical Randonneur / Touring bike and hitting gravel.
Dry gravel here in SoCal.



ridesgoneby.blogspot.com
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Old 12-31-13, 11:20 PM
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Originally Posted by palu
If the Verita deal doesn't work out, I'd suggest a Black Mountain road frame. Supposed to fit 33's. For brakes, Paul Racer brakes can be used for the fatter tires.
Here's a 28mm (actual width) tire on the front of my BMC:


Sector 28 front by GRAVELBIKEcom, on Flickr
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Old 01-01-14, 08:32 AM
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I've posted this picture before, but here's my Cross Check. Was intended for chip n' seal riding and not a true gravel grinder, though a swap to fatter tires would fix that. LBS and I worked out a build about about a year ago with 105 groupset. Other than normal seat adjustments, I've changed very little.

Once the weather turned nice and the crud was washed off the roads, I did drop to 25mm tires from the 32s that are shown. I did redo the decals so they pop a little more.

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Old 01-02-14, 11:58 AM
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As of yesterday I can now call this my gravel grinder:



I took it out yesterday on the Oregon's Perry Roubaix route. I didn't really get the whole gravel grinder scene before, but now that I've done it I do see. It was a blast.

My 700x35 Schwalbe Marathon Supremes worked great for this route, even when the gravel turned chunky with no bare strips in the road. I'm not sure they're the kind of tire I would recommend, but they worked.

My rear shift cable snapped 32 miles into the ride and I ended up limping back to the start with the chain on the 14T rear cog. I was really glad to have a triple at that point.
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Old 01-02-14, 01:40 PM
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How do you guys feel about unorthodox colors on cross bike? I know my buddy James loves his Stybar Crux.


Full details on the bike and more pictures here: https://blog.artscyclery.com/road/art...bike-check-12/
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Old 01-02-14, 03:34 PM
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Originally Posted by brucelee



How do you guys feel about unorthodox colors on cross bike? I know my buddy James loves his Stybar Crux.


Full details on the bike and more pictures here: https://blog.artscyclery.com/road/art...bike-check-12/
I'm @ a cross road right now, & have the chance to buy this frameset too.
I was going to get one of my Spesh painted to match Sybar's Crux. Not sure if I want to build up another CXer, or just go & paint 1 of my current bikes.
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Old 01-02-14, 05:14 PM
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Well building up a freshly painted frameset is going to be just as much work as building up a brand new one so you might as well just take the opportunity to buy that one you were looking at. I imagine it looks damn good and painting is going to cost a lot anyway.
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Old 01-02-14, 09:04 PM
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What bars are those? They look very compact.

I'm going to try and sell my redline conquest and get something steel for gravel/touring.
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Old 01-02-14, 10:43 PM
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Those are the stock bars from the Jake. I think it's a trick of the camera angle. They're not quite as compact as they look there.
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Old 01-03-14, 10:12 AM
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Originally Posted by thenomad
Fitting some fatter tires to the typical Randonneur / Touring bike and hitting gravel.
Dry gravel here in SoCal.

ridesgoneby.blogspot.com
Yes, old school rocks. Here is my almost-complete gravel bike. Just need a front brake and different handlebar. The Pasela TG 32's fit fine with 3-4mm clearance on each side (rear). Long reach front brake works, but I'd like to get my hands on some Paul Racer brakes.

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Old 01-03-14, 12:09 PM
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Originally Posted by brucelee



How do you guys feel about unorthodox colors on cross bike? I know my buddy James loves his Stybar Crux.


Full details on the bike and more pictures here: https://blog.artscyclery.com/road/art...bike-check-12/

pink is punk! i like james' style...
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Old 01-03-14, 01:30 PM
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Originally Posted by brucelee
Well building up a freshly painted frameset is going to be just as much work as building up a brand new one so you might as well just take the opportunity to buy that one you were looking at. I imagine it looks damn good and painting is going to cost a lot anyway.
I just got rid of one of CXers, didn't need 4.
I've built up most of my bikes, so I can handle it.
If the frameset is the E5 I may bite, the only thing that's keeping me fro snatching that Crux, is its darker pink where this one is white. Its leading me to believe it may not be a E5.
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Old 01-03-14, 01:43 PM
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Giro d Italia , Pink is their Yellow.
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Old 01-03-14, 02:15 PM
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Originally Posted by justin1138
pink is punk! i like james' style...
Originally Posted by fietsbob
Giro d Italia , Pink is their Yellow.
Its actually to pay homage to Specialized factory team Stumpjumper from back in the 80-90's.
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Old 01-04-14, 03:04 AM
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My all steel Bianchi Axis with mostly 105 components....






Last edited by vikz; 01-04-14 at 03:07 AM.
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Old 01-06-14, 06:53 AM
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[QUOTE=RFC;16354217]





/QUOTE]
How to you like the rack on this surly? Is having the weight so high up weird?
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