ALTHOUGH MOST OF US HAVE been riding bikes offroad since we were knee-high to a grasshopper, there’s no doubting that things have become a lot more sophisticated since those knee scathing days of bodged scrapheap bikes and planked ramps.
Gravel riding, as it has come to be known, may well have been seen by some as a way for the bike industry to simply sell you a new bike, and to an extent that is true. However, those who do dip their rubber into the dirty world of curly bars and skinny rubber riding offroad will soon tell you that gravel is so much more than a marketing ploy – arguably, it is the future for many of us, not only in a practical and fun way, but also from a safety point.
For those new to gravel, or those still sitting on that jaded fence of decision, here are a few basics to help keep you grinning and rubber side up when the going gets fast and loose, ohh, and with a few dirty secrets thrown into the mix from non-other than Mr Wout van Aert.
DO YOU REALLY NEED A GRAVEL BIKE?
There’s a big difference between want and
