Robbie Stewart Posted October 18, 2018 Posted October 18, 2018 That might be an old-school mountain bike, but one thing remains. I will not in any decade take such a bike down the Cobra at Hoogekraal. Up perhaps, but down? Never!
Mongoose! Posted October 18, 2018 Posted October 18, 2018 Hydraulic road shifters are still very expensive...
Butterbean Posted October 18, 2018 Posted October 18, 2018 This is my problem with gravel specific bikes... I wanted one.. Really badly.. But then I rode one and realised quite quickly that its a terrible offroader, considering how rocky many of our dirt roads are, and is also a slow on roader having none of the zip or speed of a road bike... The answer for me is the above... Just a hardtail rigid mtb... So you can still run whatever tyres you want, the cockpit doesn't cost a fortune, but it will handle gravel really well without being too soft... I still think fat bikes are a more versatile fad than the gravel bike...
arendoog Posted October 18, 2018 Posted October 18, 2018 What Ross said above is very true .Ride a proper Gravel event like Swartberg Gran fondo and then you realize having a fork and a wider tyre makes for safer ,faster and overall better experience .Dirt roads have corrugations ,sand ,mud,rocks and the odd hole that you did not expect .A modern hardtail is the most versatile and fun bike and everyone should have one .
Farrnus Posted October 18, 2018 Author Posted October 18, 2018 Even a conundrum for Sram : https://www.sram.com/stories/what-makes-grinduro-bike
Grease_Monkey Posted October 18, 2018 Posted October 18, 2018 Steel hardtail, short travel front end, and some 29x2.1 tyres. Ride quality excellent and you can cover miles easily. That's the best "all rounder" for me. That said, I wouldn't mind adding a gravel bike (drop bar) to the line-up. n+1 and all...
Dirt Tracker Posted October 18, 2018 Posted October 18, 2018 My chop answer: Is it the bike for SA? Only if you don't like riding road bike on roads or mountain bikes on mountains and need something for the 'meh' in between. My (slightly) more considered answer: Mountain bikes as is are great for that, being on mountains and are developed enough niches that long distance machines with very efficient geo that are pretty darn already good exist. Most road bikes are so good at making on road distances zip past comfortably and with no waste of energy, precise handling and are all about the joy of speed n flow. Then gravel bikes sit some where in between, not good at either but good at district roads as long as it's not too rough. TBH the cannondale with the lefty makes the most sense as even gravel roads can be *** rough... but then I get back to riding long distances on dirt just seems a bit '?'. I know it's not the point but 30kms all focused on the downs is the reason people invented dirt riding. 110kms? Roadie.
lechatnoir Posted October 18, 2018 Posted October 18, 2018 ps. it's a 1990 Mountain Bike is not a reason to hate it! ( why, simple, they never had tubeless wheels, disc brakes or through-axles ) Of course it's not a 90's mtb... they had chains and derailleurs... seriously though, that's a spiffy steed... nice one!!
ChrisF Posted October 18, 2018 Posted October 18, 2018 Never realised just how farr ahead of its time my hard tail commuter was ....
Shebeen Posted October 18, 2018 Posted October 18, 2018 The more things change, the more they stay the same
V18 Posted October 18, 2018 Posted October 18, 2018 I really like the idea of this. That being said I have a massive crush on the idea of a rigid mtb ss. Ticks all the "simplicity" boxes at once. My commuter/gravel bike has drops and the gearing to make it necessary. Cruising at 40k/h+ frequently it just feels amazing switching to the drops and feeling that resistance lift off. Drop bars also give me the ability to "stretch out" on long rides and the weight in the hooks stabilises the front nicely from deflections.
MORNE Posted October 19, 2018 Posted October 19, 2018 The more things change, the more they stay the same my first mtb as a kid in 1992 had this exact paint job to much 'corporate colouring' in everything these days of you ask me...when did monotonous shades of boardroom grey become indicative of anything 'extreme' or fun the world is already boring AF.As time past, LED screens gave as more colours just so that reality around us can become more black and white...colour does seem to be making a slight comeback though. I'm 100% committing to purple bling on my new orange bicycle too haha
RocknRolla Posted October 19, 2018 Posted October 19, 2018 I don get it. But then again, I can think of nothing worse than riding kms upon kms of dirt roads on a bicycle. Luckily taste differs.
Monark Posted October 19, 2018 Posted October 19, 2018 Really nothing new or unique... been around for decades
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