From super speedy to really gnarly, the gravel bike genre is expanding. We take four of the latest premium bikes out for some bumpy rides
Words Warren Rossiter Photography Russell Burton
The Bike Test
Need to know
It’s hard to keep up with the rapidly evolving gravel bike genre, so read on to keep abreast of the innovations to look out for
GRAVEL BIKES HAVEN’T BEEN around for that long in the grand scheme of road-bike things, but in the decade or so since they arrived, they’ve become a lot more diverse. There’s now everything from superlight and aero race bikes to those you could happily travel around the world on.
01 Gravel specifics
What’s different on a gravel bike compared to a road bike? Well, potentially quite a lot: wheel-size options (650b or 700c?), generous tyre width (preferably tubeless), flared handlebars, gravel-specific groupsets with a good spread of gears (usually on 1x chainrings), possible dropper seatposts and suspension, scope for mounts and racks, down-tube protectors… Then there’s different geometry and other frame details and accessories to suit to the purpose.
02 Hangin’ tough
Some bikes are made for the real rough stuff plus load carrying. Focus, for example, which originally got into the gravel/all-road space early with 2016’s Paralane, an endurance bike that was built to take shortcuts on paths less travelled, has a much sturdier new offering. The Atlas Carbon in this test is a full-on, off-road-ready ride, coming with a wider Boost rear hub to take a stronger mountain bike wheelset so it can carry heavy loads and take on tough terrain.
03 Off-road speed
More and more super-speedy rigs are popping up to service the demand for gravel racing. This type of bike is very streamlined, but with bigger tyre clearances and more stability than its on-road counterparts. Specialized’s Crux fit
