Apologies for disappearing, guys... got caught up in some real life stuff and forgot to follow up on this thread.
Hmmm yeah, a cross bike could be an option: in fact, i did the bulk of my training on a Ridley XFire, as i was living in a place with really crappy, potholed roads. But the idea of a more relaxed, stable geometry of a gravel bike does appeal. I wont be racing it or doing fast group rides on it - have other bikes for that. So dont need something super agile.
jimincalif I checked out the Niner steel but i am getting to the point where i like clean builds and so want internal cabling. Also, my perception is that the Niner is more weighted towards gravel/off-road whereas what i am looking for is something more weighted towards road. Is that correct?
jfranci3 no, i dont need gearing to go faster than 30mph, let alone 36. This wont be used in a paceline - at most, riding with friends while on vacation. A typical use case for this bike would be my upcoming trip to Uzbekistan next month (if Corona doesnt play spoilsport) - a week of relaxed group rides with some riding buddies on good tarmac and lots of hill, and then a week of cycle exploring where we dont know what we may encounter as far as roads go (roads may become gravel or double track). I'd still like to be able to climb well (at 180lb, that's always a bit of a struggle compared to my riding buddies who are all 140-160lb - i dont want to shoot myself in the foot further)..
jpescatore thanks for that info. I dont really need the ability to carry gear, so lack of mounts in the Domane isnt an issue. And i can always swap wheels if i have to - any thought on how the bike handle when you go off-road? It can fit a max 35c tire, if i recall correctly.
Fuji, Felt, Addict Gravel and Orbea - thanks for those suggestions, guys. I will go check them out. I have a soft spot for Orbea back from the Euskadi days, so if i can swing one and get it customized, that would be pretty nice.
From what i can gather, there are plenty of off-road capable road bikes like Domane, Roubaix, etc which can fit in 35c tires. There are also plenty of more off-road oriented bikes like the various Salsas, Niner, etc which appear to be overbuilt for my needs. But if i hear you guys correctly, 40c would be nice to have (which makes sense) - and as far as i can tell, to get that clearance, i will have to make some allowances in terms of tarmac performance.
Am gonna go check out some of the bikes mentioned here and come back if i have more questions. Thanks everyone!