[t2091]

Has anyone ditched their gravel bike and got a hardtail? I ride my FS XC bike 95% of the time especially for longer rides either on trails or mixed gravel roads due to the overall comfort but I do love the simplicity of the gravel bike and was thinking of selling the gravel bike for a hardtail for the times I don't need the FS. I've had a Trek Checkpoint SL6 for two years now with a RedShift suspension stem and 45c tires on it but I still feel like I'm getting beat up on the gravel bike, anything past 15-20 miles and my body is hurting. Thanks.

 

[westin]

Life's too short to suffer in a bad way for the 5% you're not on the FS.
What psi you running?
How old are you? Does the frame/bar/saddle fit perfectly?
Your Trek is not known as a brutal torture chamber.

 

[Ogre]

I bought a "Gravel" bike about 7 years ago, rode it on and off for a long time but mostly it's turned into a commuter bike.

Actual gravel roads are much more comfortable to me on my old Nine One 9. Only real change needed (aside from going 1x12) was getting some nice ~1.9" semi slicks. I don't really care for drop bars so that was a double bonus.

If I ever crave that bone rattling feeling I got on my gravel bike, I can always increase tire pressure up to 60psi.

Just did a gravel ride last night on the One 9 and it was a ton of fun.

 

[VegasSingleSpeed]

I rode a Norco Search for 2 months, and only one big ride (400 miler). That was enough to throw drop-bars on my hardtail and sell the gravel bike.

 

[ljsmith]

Get a hardtail, or a gravel bike that fits bigger tires. I have a Moots Routt YBB with 29x2.1 Thunderburts, and it does not beat me up.

 

[Lovespicyfood]

This is an interesting thread...I'm a recent gravel bike owner and I'm finding that unless it's pretty smooth gravel...it's not much fun. I used to lambast my hard tail but now when I ride it on the same trails as the gravel bike, it suddenly feels plush and way more fun.

I avoided buying a more "off road" gravel bike because I figured that's what the hard tail is for. Now it seems the gravel bike I got (Canyon AL7) is most at home on road than gravel.

Wondering if I really need a gravel bike now tbh...

 

[t2091]

Life's too short to suffer in a bad way for the 5% you're not on the FS.
What psi you running?
How old are you? Does the frame/bar/saddle fit perfectly?
Your Trek is not known as a brutal torture chamber.

Just turned 34 but have had some back/nerve issues and the gravel bike by far flares this up way more than the XC bike and I'm typically riding that at least 80-100 miles per week with 5-6k of climbing. I feel like the fit is pretty good, never had a true bike fit but I'm riding the correct size frame per Trek. PSI is usually around 28ish on 45c Ramblers but to be honest I've never been really hardcore about checking this, usually just what feels right to the touch.

 

[Catmandoo]

Keep the gravel, buy a hardtail. You can only have too many bikes when you run out of storage room.

 

[sa12]

Have you tried running a liner in the rear tire? I've been happy with CushCore in my 45mm Rambler rear. The liner allows me to run lower pressures without as much fear of bottoming out. Generally, my only comfort-related complaint with my gravel bike is the handle bar, and it's not a big complaint.

I have a gravel bike and a hardtail. I ride the hardtail way more often because it's only 2lbs heavier than the gravel bike, but it's way more capable (and fun). Another consideration is the tire size (1.7" vs 2.35"). In my area you get underbiked pretty quickly on a gravel bike, so there's also that.

Are you able to demo a hardtail in your area? That would be my first move, I think.

 

[eatdrinkride]

Horses for courses... and other nuances.

I bought my drop bar gravel bike last year specifically because I wanted something very different than a mountain bike setup. I am enjoying it tremendously on canals, roads and just exploring in the dirt. And just getting out of the driveway for some quick exercise without the extra effort of going to actual trails.

I still ride my mountain bike a lot, just on totally different terrain. If you feel you need something different for what you're riding, then by all means do it.

Ride what makes you enjoy riding.

Sent from my DE2117 using Tapatalk

 

[Funoutside]

I eventually supplemented my gravel/atb, which has 29x2.1 xc tires with short-ish travel HT. They both have their purpose & both are real fun in their own way. As other have said keep the gravel bike & supplement it with a ht. Or alternatively you could go with something like an Analog Cycle Hardtack. Rigid bike that can fit like 29x2.2 tires, geo close to a mid-00s XC bike(69° hta) & looks real fun when the gravel &/or fire-road gets a bit steep & rough.

 

[beanbag]

I turned my gravel bike into a road bike, my old FS XC bike into a gravel / bumpy road bike, and also have a regular MTB for off-roading and trails.
I just find the use cases of trying to put knobbies on a fully rigid bike with drop bars to be too small.

 

[93EXCivic]

Have you done a fit with the gravel bike? It may be worth considering a fit to see if it causes your issues to go away or not.

 

[TCSglTrk]

I built a gravel bike and put on a flat bar as I don't like drops.

I love the gravel geometry and the ability to use a 40t chainring. 2.1 Thunderburts at 20 psi roll great on almost every surface I ride.

So for me geometry and chainring size influenced my decision for a gravel bike. I do own a mtb full rigid too but wanted to go faster.

I'm used to no suspension and actually prefer it. Haven't had any sort of suspension since my Cannondale F600. I'm perplexed that full rigid bikes "beat up" riders...and I'm 50 years old, go figure. FS definitely have their place and I'm not knocking them but you'd be surprised how many trails you can comfortably ride HT or full rigid.

 

[snow snakes]

I quite like having a gravel bike and a hardtail, fwiw. The trick with the gravel bike is that it's optimally more of a road bike plus than a mtb lite. I have the most fun on my gravel bike when I'm combining a variety of roads with prefixes (unmaintained, gravel, dirt) etc. with any stints on rougher terrain being just to link the other stuff together. Just my 2 cents.

 

[t2091]

Thanks for all the tips! I think part of the problem is that I’m riding the gravel bike like a MTB here in AZ. Most of my rides are fire roads mixed with single track and to be honest the fire roads are not smooth and just beat the heck out of me on the gravel. I think I’ll start looking for a HT, unfortunately can’t keep both.

 

[eatdrinkride]

Thanks for all the tips! I think part of the problem is that I’m riding the gravel bike like a MTB here in AZ. Most of my rides are fire roads mixed with single track and to be honest the fire roads are not smooth and just beat the heck out of me on the gravel. I think I’ll start looking for a HT, unfortunately can’t keep both.

What part of AZ are you in? I'm in Mesa. I thoroughly enjoy my drop bar bike on the canals and roads and mountain bike light as someone put it. I don't think I would enjoy it on actual fire roads out here either. Especially up north. I think I'd like a flat bar bike to better handle that bumpy and rutted terrain.

Sent from my DE2117 using Tapatalk

 

[t2091]

I'm close to Browns Ranch which is very fun on the gravel bike for sure but the majority of my riding is done in Prescott and Flag.

 

[sa12]

Oh, I absolutely prefer my hardtail on janky ass fireroads. More comfort and more fun. On my gravel bike I find myself constantly needing to pick a line, which...meh. If most of your riding is on chunky fireroads and singletrack then I'd vote for a hardtail.

 

[Crankout]

It's a personal choice for sure. I'm super comfortable on my gravel bike, but it's built for various levels of gravel. Some races include ST sections, which is not ideal but is manageable in doses.

For me, having the drop bars and gravel geometry, along with the Future Shock and carbon seatpost, is the fastest and most fun way to ride.