Every single bike brand will tell you that more women on bikes is an important goal. Then many of those same brands will offer smaller bikes with build kits, specifically handlebars, that aren鈥檛 appropriate for smaller riders. The practice is even more common in the world of gravel cycling.

The details that set the stage

That鈥檚 the gist of the article but before we get rolling, I need to go a little deeper. That first paragraph rests on a number of assumptions and needs some explanation.

The first thing I want to address is how this intersects with women and cycling. I鈥檓 obviously not a woman and it鈥檚 not my place to say what women need. How this issue affects women is only half the point though.

The truth is I entered this conversation with my own needs centered听 because the things that affect us personally tend to catch our attention. I ride a size 54, or medium, and over the years I鈥檝e covered a number of gravel bikes with handlebars that aren鈥檛 right for me.

In the past I might have requested the correct size or simply dealt with it. It鈥檚 no big deal when a bar costs under $50 and takes maybe 30 minutes to swap including new tape. Now bikes are getting more integrated and things are getting more complicated.

When I reviewed the and the recently, I made a point to call out the sizing issues. As a refresher, Pivot makes things extra confusing by using odd names for the frame sizes. Despite that bike being a small, I tested both of those bikes in essentially the same size and what would typically be called either a medium or a 54. In that size, Pivot uses a 42cm bar while Mondraker specs a size 44cm. There鈥檚 also the Revel Rover that uses a 44, the Trek Checkpoint with a 42, the Salsa Warbird with a 42鈥� I鈥檓 sure I could go on.

As I wrote up those reviews, I asked the brands about the chosen sizes. The answer was, and is almost always, that it鈥檚 an adventure bike and the wide bar is there for stability.

Personally, the whole thing didn鈥檛 feel right to me. I know my shoulders measure 38 cm and if I ride wider bars my shoulders ache as the hours start to drag on. It never seemed to make sense that something was supposed to change on an adventure focused bike.

Let鈥檚 swing that back to women though. At 5鈥� 9鈥� I happen to be exactly average height for US men. Average height for US women is only 5鈥� 3.5鈥� and the situation for bar size vs frame size doesn鈥檛 get better as you go to smaller sizes. That means women are going to feel this inappropriate match up more often than men.

Maybe I鈥檓 totally wrong though? There鈥檚 certain reviewers that spend time calling for larger bars on every bike. I wonder though, are they mostly men riding larger bikes? With all this swirling in my head, I went searching for an expert.

Missy Schwab is an elite cyclist and fit expert

I knew that I didn鈥檛 want to sit and discuss what women need with another man. I also knew I wanted someone who was an experienced bike fitter and an elite level cyclist. The woman I found was Missy Schwab.

Schwab is a 鈥�6x national champion in track cycling, holds 2 US track records, and won a bronze medal at the 2015 UCI Track World Cup in Cali Colombia.鈥� In 2016 when she wrote her bio she was 鈥渞anked #1 in the United States in the sprint disciplines鈥� though she narrowly missed actually competing in the 2016 Olympics due to a training crash.

At this point, most people would call Schwab retired. She runs and she鈥檚 got ten years experience as a bike fitter for athletes of all levels. Still,听 in case you thought retirement made her slow,she recently grabbed a second place in the 2024 USA Cycling Elite National Championship for Women鈥檚 elite team sprint.

I did also reach out to Trek, Mondraker, Pivot, and Enve to get a sense of the strategy involved in picking the stock bars for each size. Specifically I wanted to know if any of the brands in question used the kind of data that Colnago used in sizing the new . Only Enve responded and I鈥檝e got that info down below.

Now I understand that this was a lot of setup but it鈥檚 important to place the problem and explain how it affects me as well as other small riders.

Yes, different bikes call for different bar widths

As I said, the basic premise of the response I typically get from brands is that the bars chosen for a size have to do with the use of a bike. When it鈥檚 an adventure bike, you will see wider bars for added stability. This was also the gist of how Enve responded.

To be fair to Enve, as the only brand that responded, it鈥檚 important to note that the brand sidesteps the issue by allowing riders to choose the bar width at time of purchase. If you are looking at a size 49 Enve MOG, you can select the stem length, handlebar width, and handlebar model 鈥渄epending on your riding style and preferences.鈥� However, the G-series bar only goes down to 42 cm so I wanted to know why.

Enve responded with a short bit of info pointing to the focus of the G-series bar. Saying, 鈥渢he Gravel Bar prioritizes handling and control, rather than chasing any aerodynamic benefits.鈥� While pointing riders to other flared options in smaller sizes saying 鈥渇or those seeking a fit and feel more in line with a road bike, that鈥檚 where our SES AR and SES Aero handlebar options come into play.鈥�

Schwab agreed with this premise. Although she competed in track, she also told me she regularly rides a mountain bike and was clear 鈥測ou鈥檙e not going to have the same width handlebar on a track bike that you have on a road bike and that will also come across to gravel.鈥� She explained that she rides a size 54 frame also and runs 36 cm on the road but 30 cm on the track. Just as many brands have stated, different disciplines have different requirements.

The starting point is too wide

According to Schwab the problem is more about the starting point. Even bikes that offer a bar on the smaller side of the trend line are calling for a 42 cm bar on a 54. She鈥檚 quite clear that individual athletes will have different needs but is it likely that someone on a 54 needs to move up 4 cm for riding gravel? Schwab seemed skeptical of that idea. Instead she mentioned considering 鈥渕aybe a 38-40 bar to have a little bit more width鈥� in case there鈥檚 a need to 鈥渟tand up or really pull through.鈥�

Although Schwab was emphatic that different riders will have different needs, I pushed her on that point. For one thing I happen to ride the same frame size as her and seem to have the same shoulder width. More importantly though, a brand has to make a decision for everyone buying a bike in a particular size. I asked Schwab about this and she told me 鈥渁s a general rule of thumb every gravel position that I have set up as a fitter I 100% can say that I have recommended a narrower handlebar for every athlete who comes in with a gravel bike. They鈥檙e too wide.鈥�

The need for wide bars might point to other issues

Although our conversation was about bike fit and handlebar size, Schwab pointed out how interconnected bike fit and ride performance can be. Specifically she mentioned briefly how the need, or desire, to use wider bars might be a sign of other issues.

The first time this came up was as Schwab referenced her own experience with the precise nature of track cycling. Within that context she pointed out 鈥渋n the Velodrome, when we have athletes that aren鈥檛 able to handle a narrow handlebar, there鈥檚 an imbalance in the shift of power driven through the leg. So if you need a wider handlebar to keep yourself going forward in a straight direction, that to me resembles some sort of instability.鈥�

Then, later in the conversation, this concept came up again. This time I had asked Schwab why some cyclists might choose wider bars despite recommendations. In response, she told me her own experience as she explained 鈥渂efore I knew any better, I preferred the feel of wide handlebars鈥� and 鈥淚 thought I looked so cool sprinting because I could throw my bike side to side.鈥� Then, almost as an aside, she told me that at that time 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 understand how to generate power without yanking on my bars.鈥�

How can individual riders solve this problem?

Although my hypothesis is that gravel brands are failing women and small riders, I also asked Schwab how she deals with the fallout of that.

She told me the path to finding the right bar size isn鈥檛 generally an exact science. At the highest levels of competition you鈥檇 want to treat it as a scientific problem and 鈥測ou鈥檇 have to do testing on an athlete, power testing, speed testing, whatever data point you want to pull from鈥� until you found the right solution. Unfortunately not many will have that path available. Ideally bike brands would do that for us but I wasn鈥檛 able to find a brand claiming to do that in the gravel space.

That leaves most riders to find a bike fitter and solve it for themselves. Schwab explained that in her studio, she has 鈥渆very size of handlebar鈥� and that 鈥渨e install different size handlebars.鈥� If that sounds simple, it is. She told me 鈥渁 lot of times it comes down to feel for the athlete but it also comes down to visually how the bar centers under them. The relaxation of the angles of their wrist, the ability of them to open their chest and the distance between their scapulas, also like a lot of athletes come in complaining of upper back pain, neck pain, wrist pain, things like that, pressure on their hands. You can root a lot of it back to handlebar size.鈥�

In other words, it comes down to the experience of a bike fitter and Schwab says 鈥渕y general rule of thumb when I fit two handlebars is when you鈥檙e on the bike looking at an athlete from head on, what is their natural wrist position? Is the wrist straight up and down? Are they rotated out? Is the pressure on their hands distributed evenly? Are their shoulders relaxed? Do I see an equal distribution of the spread between their shoulder blades across their chest?鈥�

That experience then combines with the feedback of the athlete. 鈥淗ow does the athlete feel and how does the athlete look and are they able to actually sustain that position? Obviously on the track we look for something that is just strictly performance-based. Other athletes you want to look for overall comfort and some athletes just have personal preferences.鈥�

Personally I was also interested to see if shoulder width measurement was a factor. When asked about that, Schwab said 鈥渋t can be鈥� but mostly cautioned that it鈥檚 important to consider it on the bike, not standing. She told me that 鈥淚 have people who are like when I stand up straight and hold my shoulders back, this is how wide my shoulders are.鈥� then went on to remind riders to consider 鈥渨hen you get on the bike how is your position different?鈥�

Conclusion

Although I asked for a number of brands to add a voice, only one did. In the end I spoke to one bike fitter who has one perspective. Missy Scwhab has ten years of experience making athletes faster and more comfortable and she鈥檚 also competed at the highest level. She is still only one person. She is also very clear that every person is different and that at least part of bike fit is feel vs science.

That all means you may disagree. Schwab has 鈥渘ever put a pair of 44s on a single bike in 10 years鈥� but you and your bike fitter might find that a 44 cm bar works for you and your needs.

Beyond that, all I can tell is my own point of view. I鈥檓 5鈥�9鈥� and I need a 40 cm, or smaller, bar no matter the use case of a bike. I believe gravel brands are failing women and small riders by not offering bars in reasonable sizes for the frames they pair with. A new rider who gets a bike that doesn鈥檛 fit is a clear barrier to entry and should be an easy fix. This is low hanging fruit for inclusion.

Thanks to Missy Schwab who helped make this article听happen. You can benefit from her expertise at .

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The U.S. was built for cars. I鈥檓 talking about our infrastructure: the interstate system, traffic laws, speed limits, and streets. They鈥檙e all designed with vehicles in mind. And yet, some communities have embraced and are moving toward the bicycle over the car.

These towns have done so much: created bike-lane infrastructure and robust greenway systems, leveraged their natural attributes by building singletrack, and put in signage and lower speed limits to make country roads safer. Bike towns vary wildly, some filled with people who pedal to work and shuttle toddlers around via cargo bikes, others good for those who exist solely to shred dirt trails or ascend mountain roads.

To create this list of the Best Small Bike Towns in America, I studied data collected each year by , a non-profit that ranks the 鈥淏est Places to Bike鈥� based on factors like local speed limits and cycling infrastructure, giving each community a score from 0 to 100. The average city in the U.S. scores in the mid-20s, while the most bike-friendly places rate in the 70s to low 90s.

I doubled down on data by bringing in info from the , a non-profit that promotes cycling through education and advocacy, and rates communities with Platinum, Gold, Silver, and Bronze status dependent on a town鈥檚 numbers of bike lanes and lane connectivity.

Safe streets and being able to commute to school and work are important, but other factors determine a great bike town, like the number of dirt trails and mountains nearby to ascend. So I also sought data from 听which catalogs the number of mountain-bike trails within feasible reach of each community, and looked for towns that also have access both to world-class road-cycling routes and lonely gravel roads to explore. (Trailforks is owned by 国产吃瓜黑料 Inc., the same company that owns 国产吃瓜黑料.)

I wanted to focus on small towns across the U.S., so I capped populations at 100,000, which left out some big hitters like Boulder, Colorado, and Minneapolis, Minnesota, both outstanding places to live if you want to bike. My compliments to those communities鈥攑lease keep up the good work.

While I used as many data points as I could find, this list also contains some subjectivity based on my own experience. For example, Park City, Utah, is in here even though it receives a middling score from People for Bikes. Why? The mountain biking is amazing and there鈥檚 so much of it. I also included towns that go above and beyond for commuters, others that have vibrant social cycling scenes (like group rides and events), and others with epic road routes.

Of course, some cities do it all, and I put them at the top of the list. Here are the 10 Best Small Bike Towns in America, ranked.

1. Crested Butte, Colorado

Population: 1,654

People for Bikes Score: 87

League of American Bicyclists: Gold

Why I Chose It: This small Colorado ski town could have earned a spot on this list solely based on its assessments in People for Bikes and the League of American Bicyclists for its bike infrastructure and safe streets. But Crested Butte rose to the top of the pack because it鈥檚 also a fantastic mountain-bike mecca, with a lift-served downhill park on the edge of town and access to more than 750 miles of trails within the greater Gunnison Valley.

Oh, and it鈥檚 an underrated road-cycling destination, with mixed gravel and paved rides beginning in town and climbing to scenic lookouts like Ohio Pass and Kebler Pass, where the Elk Mountains rise ahead in a mix of craggy peaks and aspen-clad slopes.

Number of Bike Trails: 247

Most Popular Bike Trail on Trailforks: tops the lists. This eight-mile, mostly downhill high-alpine trail begins at Schofield Pass and drops more than 1,000 feet, passing through wildflower meadows with views of the Gothic Valley and Mount Crested Butte.

2. Davis, California

Population: 68,000

People for Bikes Score: 77, highest ranked medium-sized city in its report

League of American Bicyclists Status: Platinum

Why I Chose It: Davis, a college town on the outskirts of Sacramento, is a bike commuter鈥檚 dream. It was the first city in the U.S. to implement dedicated bike lanes, back in 1967, and has only improved its bike infrastructure since. Currently, more than have bike lanes, giving locals 102 miles of those and 63 miles of off-street paths to pedal. Many intersections have bike-specific signals, and there are even bike boulevards, meaning streets shut down to motorized vehicles. Davis has been repeatedly touted as the most bike-friendly city in the U.S. by organizations like People for Bikes, and the League of American Bicyclists estimates that 22 percent of residents commute regularly by bike.

Number of Bike Trails: 7. Davis proper isn鈥檛 much of a mountain-bike community鈥搈ost of the in-town trails are short paths cutting through neighborhoods and parks. But there are good trail systems within the greater Sacramento Valley, known for its patchwork of vegetable and fruit farms, including the 20 miles of trail at Rockville Hills Regional Park 30 minutes south.

Most Popular Bike Trail on Trailforks: , in Rockville Hills, connects you from the trailhead parking lot to the gems within the stacked-loop system, including Lake Front, which has a fun, easy downhill before skirting Grey Goose Lake.

听3. Jackson, Wyoming

Population: 10,698

People for Bikes Score: 79

League of American Bicyclists Status: Gold

Why I Chose It: Jackson Hole made this list for its bike-lane connectivity. More than 100 miles of paved trails run through and beyond town, with 115 miles of singletrack surrounding it鈥攁nd that鈥檚 just within the valley known as Jackson Hole. Not only can you bike to the grocery store on a designated route, you can pedal into the National Wildlife Refuge and Grand Teton National Park on a paved trail (it鈥檚 20 miles from Jackson to Jenny Lake inside the park), with views of the jagged Teton Range and herds of elk.

Trailheads for popular singletrack begin right on the edge of neighborhood streets, and Jackson Hole Mountain Resort鈥檚 extensive lift-served routes are 15 minutes from the town center. Biking is woven into the fabric of the community, through the extensive infrastructure and events like bike swaps, youth programs, and In June, a landslide closed a 10-mile stretch of the Teton Pass mountain road for three weeks, impeding the commute between Jackson and less expensive communities in Idaho. The silver lining? Cyclists enjoyed a car-free pedal to the top of the pass. Teton Pass is open now, and classic rides like Parallel Trail, a 1.5-mile downhill with lots of jumps, are once again easy to access.

Number of Bike Trails: 105

Most Popular Bike Trail on Trailforks: takes top honors. This beginner-friendly three-mile cross-country trail begins at the Cache Creek Trailhead and has a number of connectors that allow you to form fast, rolling loops with other trails in the same system, like , for nearby post-work romps.

4. Aspen, Colorado

Population: 6,741

People for Bikes Score: 75

League of American Bicyclists Status: Gold

Why I Chose It: Aspen checks all the boxes, scoring high marks from People for Bikes and the League of American Bicyclists thanks to its infrastructure and low-speed streets. The city of manages more than 22 miles of paved bike trails connecting parks within the town鈥檚 limits, and the Rio Grande Trail offers 42 miles of no-traffic asphalt from Aspen to Glenwood Springs.

Aspen also has a bike-share program in the form of , which has stations throughout the Roaring Fork Valley and offers 30-minute free rides in town.

Aspen-Snowmass and the Roaring Fork Valley was the first destination in Colorado to earn Gold Level Ride Center status from the International Mountain Bike Association (IMBA). The Roaring Fork Valley has more than 300 miles of trails, from lift-served descents at Snowmass Mountain Resort to hut-to-hut bikepacking through some of the cabin system. And then you have the road routes, like the bucket-list-worthy 16-mile roundtrip from downtown to Maroon Bells, where the twin 14,000-foot Maroon Peak and North Maroon Peak rise above the placid Maroon Lake.

Number of Bike Trails: 191

Most Popular Bike Trail: The crown goes to , a 4.4-mile downhill romp in Snowmass鈥� Bike Park that is full of berms and rollers from top to bottom. Both beginners and pros love it as being fun regardless of how fast you tackle it.

5. Ashland, Oregon

Population: 21,285

People for Bikes Score: 70

League of American Bicyclists Status: Gold

Why I Chose It: Ashland is celebrated for its annual Shakespeare Festival, but this southern Oregon town deserves to be just as famous for its biking. The only question is which riders have it better here, the roadies or the mountain bikers? Road cyclists have the 55-mile Cascade Siskiyou Scenic Bikeway, which begins and ends downtown and climbs 5,000 feet out of Bear Valley, with views of iconic landmarks like the volcanic Pilot Rock and the 9,000-foot tall Mount McLoughlin.

Hundreds of miles of rural paved roads extend into the surrounding Siskiyou Range. Mountain bikers enjoy the 100-mile trail system in the 15,000-acre , where singletrack ascends to the top of 7,532-foot Mount Ashland and runs all the way back into town, more than 5,000 feet below. runs shuttles ($30 per person), so you can skip the climb up Mount Ashland and focus on the descent during your 13- to 25-mile (depending on the route) ride.

All cyclists get to pedal the 20-mile Bear Creek Greenway that runs north from the edge of town, connecting Ashland with surrounding communities. Fun fact: Ashland is home to the United Bicycle Institute, a school for bike mechanics and builders, that has offered one- and two-week programs since 1981.

Number of Bike Trails: 86 trails

Most Popular Bike Trail on Trailforks: Locals love the two-mile , which drops almost 1,000 feet of elevation in a series of machine-built berms and tabletops. (Hand-built trails are narrower and often more technical.)

6. Park City, Utah

Population: 8,374

People for Bikes Score: 48

League of American Bicyclists Status: Gold

Why I Chose It: Park City鈥檚 People for Bikes score isn鈥檛 stellar. While at 48 it鈥檚 well above the U.S. average, it still doesn鈥檛 crack their list of the top 10 small cities due to the city鈥檚 lack of bike-safety projects and like grocery stores and hospitals. But its ranking is climbing鈥攗p 15 points, from 33, in the last three years鈥攁nd the town is interlaced by an impressive of non-motorized bike paths. Park City also has a share fleet of electric bikes, and the city introduced a that actually pays people to commute during winter.

All of that is great, but I chose Park City for this list because of its mountain biking. It is an IMBA Gold-Level Ride Center, with more than of singletrack extending directly from town into the Wasatch Mountains. I live in a good city for mountain bikers (Asheville) but am jealous: the you can pedal in Park City is absolutely bonkers: this might be the best town in America to live in if you鈥檙e a mountain biker. The only downside is the trails鈥� seasonality; you鈥檙e not riding dirt in the winter, but that鈥檚 why they make skis.

Number of Bike Trails: 629

Most Popular Bike Trail on Trailforks: The Wasatch Crest Trail is a classic mountain-bike ride in Park City, running for 13 miles west of the city with plenty of high-alpine ridgeline singletrack and accompanying big-mountain views. Almost all of the trails are amazing, but locals love , a short A-line section of the Wasatch Crest Trail, with crazy exposure on a knife-edge ridge.

7. Harbor Springs, Michigan

Population: 1,271

People for Bikes Score: 92

League of American Bicyclists Status: Not Ranked (communities must apply for consideration)

Why I Chose It: Harbor Springs, a small waterfront village on Lake Michigan, earned an outstanding score in People for Bikes鈥� latest rankings for connectivity: cyclists can pedal everywhere safely, from grocery stores to schools to parks, thanks to low-traffic, low-speed streets (that are pretty flat, too), and the Little Traverse Wheelway, a 26-mile greenway that connects Harbor Springs with several communities and parks along Little Traverse Bay.

Pedaling isn鈥檛 just relegated to in-town cruising, though. The place has a vibrant mountain-biking scene thanks largely to , a lift-served bike park with 22 miles of mountain-bike trails. There鈥檚 a mix of trails for all levels, while cyclists just looking to cruise will find several miles of wide paths at the and the .

Number of Bike Trails: 54

Most Popular Bike Trail on Trailforks: The short , a double-black downhill trail at the Highlands Bike Park, gets top honors for its bevy of wooden features like jumps, drops, and berms.

8. Provincetown, Massachusetts

Population: 3,664

People for Bikes Score: 96

League of American Bicyclists Status: Silver

Why I Chose It: Provincetown had the second-highest score of any town in the U.S. thanks to its suite of low speed limits, multiple bike paths, a dedication to the commuting cause, and the lack of hills. The secluded island community of Mackinac Island, Michigan, had the only higher score, and while I love the idea of a town that bans cars, I ultimately left the place off this list because of its seclusion and the inherent difficulty of living and working there. (Mackinac only has 500 year-round residents.)

Provincetown has a Bicycle Committee that plans projects and prints an annual . A beach town on the tip of Cape Cod, it was essentially built for single-speed cruising鈥攖hink pedaling to the ocean and then to get ice cream鈥攁nd that sort of low-speed, casual cruising remains a fixture of the lifestyle. The year-round population is just over 3,000, and yet Provincetown has five bike shops. A five-mile loop trail traverses the forests and dunes outside of town, with spurs to beaches facing the Atlantic.

Number of Bike Trails: 21

Most Popular Trail on Trailforks: Province Lands Bike Trail is the main attraction with a hilly, paved 5.25 mile loop through sand dunes and beech forest. Check out the 3.5-mile , which connects two popular beaches on opposite ends of the Cape.

9. Sewanee, Tennessee

Population: 2,922

People for Bikes Score: 83

League of American Bicyclists Status: None, but the University of the South in town has a Bronze ranking

Why I Chose It: Sewanee is a small college town on the top of the Cumberland Plateau in Middle Tennessee with beautiful Collegiate Gothic architecture and stunning fall foliage. Life revolves around the University of the South, and the community in general has the languid pace of a tiny southern mountain town, which, frankly, is ideal for someone riding around. Sewanee is the number-one-ranked Bike Friendly Community in the South, according to People for Bikes, based on the low-traffic streets and bike access to essential destinations like schools, jobs, and grocery stores.

Cyclists could probably live a car-free (or car-light) life, but there鈥檚 more here than just going from A to B. The 22-mile Perimeter Loop is a mix of singletrack, double track, and pavement that encircles the university鈥檚 campus and provides access to other trails in the area, while the 12-mile Mountain Goat Trail is a paved off-street option that traces an old railway from Sewanee northeast to the town of Monteagle. Road cyclists can create 25-mile-plus loops using the country roads that descend and ascend the 1,000-foot-tall Cumberland Plateau.

Number of Trails: 34

Most Popular Trail on Trailforks: The 14-mile singletrack portion of the is the locals鈥� favorite option thanks to its cross-country flow and mild technical difficulty.

10. Fayetteville, Arkansas

Population: 99,285

People for Bikes Score: 50

League of American Bicyclists Status: Gold

Fayetteville barely made it under our population cap of 100,000, but this southern mountain town is a great sleeper destination for cyclists. It may not get quite the attention of hot towns like Bentonville, but Fayetteville is surrounded by the Ozark Mountains, with 50 miles of singletrack in town and the nearby ridges, not to mention hundreds of miles of gravel roads.

Within the city, cruisers have 50 miles of paved bike trails, and the future is only looking brighter. Fayetteville鈥檚 council a community where every resident is within a two-minute pedal of an established trail, and the town is building an average of two to three miles of paved trail every year. Fayetteville is also the beginning of the , a 40-mile regional bike path that connects communities throughout Northwestern Arkansas.

Number of Trails: 154

Most Popular Trail on Trailforks: Mountain bikers love , an intermediate flow trail that connects with two downhill trails, Red Rum and Chunky.

Graham Averill is 国产吃瓜黑料 magazine鈥檚 national-parks columnist. He rides his bike everywhere around his hometown of Asheville, North Carolina, even though it has a poor People for Bikes score because of a lack of .

For more by this author, see:

8 Surf Towns Where You Can Learn the Sport and the Culture

The Best Ways to Get 国产吃瓜黑料 in West Virginia

The 10 Best National Parks in Canada

The 5 Best National Park Road Trips in the U.S.

The post The 10 Best Bike Towns in America, Ranked appeared first on 国产吃瓜黑料 Online.

Gravel bikes have changed considerably over the past couple decades. While some modern gravel bikes are essentially road bikes with more tire clearance, others are optimized for bikepacking with lots of gear. Because there are so many options, finding the right gravel bike can be a challenge. So we put in hundreds of miles of testing to bring you the top tier of gravel bikes available right now. Our list below is the result of testing bikes from the most popular bike brands down to the small builders.

At a Glance

• Editor鈥檚 Choice:
• Smoothest Ride:
• Best Technical Climber:
• Best Handling at Speed:
• Best Quiver Killer:
• Best Dirt-Focused Ride:
• Best Custom Bike:
• Best Budget Bike for its Quality:
• How We Test
• Meet Our Lead Tester
• How to Choose a Gravel Bike

All the bikes in this guide were tested by multiple reviewers. When you buy through our links, we may earn an affiliate commission. This supports our mission to get more people active and outside. Learn more.

Editor鈥檚 Choice

Enve Mog

Build: The Mog includes the Chassis (which consists of a frame, fork, seatpost, handlebar, and stem)
Frame Weight: 950 grams (Minus the hardware in a painted size 56)

Pros and Cons
鈯� Extremely well-balanced handling
鈯� Very premium price

Enve Composites is no stranger to what makes a good bike, having shown its expertise in making lust-worthy carbon wheels, handlebars, and accessories since 2007. For its first entry in cycling鈥檚 hottest category, the Ogden, Utah-based company knew it had to make a bike with its own unique vision. It had to be different in an increasingly crowded market, and that鈥檚 exactly what the Enve Mog gravel bike is.

The Mog feels like the complete package. It can handle a maximum of 700c x 50-millimeter tires, whereas 45-47 millimeters is the maximum for most other brands, and often much less than that. There are mounts all over the place: three on the fork for cargo, three sets of bottle mounts on the frame, and another at the top tube, too. Further, two roll bags fit in the downtube, plenty for a repair kit, some snacks, or even an emergency wind jacket.

Enve has done the hard work of ensuring every size receives similar handling characteristics, which is uncommon on most gravel bikes. Somewhere in the middle of road-centric handling and more laid back, the result is a bike that makes you far more confident and comfortable than you should be on washed-out descents. At the same time, testers were still able to keep up with the fast group at a local gravel race.

Of course, all of this comes at a price, one that is unabashedly premium. But for how well-rounded the bike feels everywhere, as well as the polish shown in its build specs, Enve is partly justified.

Smoothest Ride

Revel Rover

Build: GRX
Weight: 18 lbs (S)

Pros and Cons
鈯� Great tire clearance
鈯� Eager handling on dirt
鈯� 1x-only drivetrain compatibility can be limiting

Remember all those folks saying that gravel bikes are just mountain bikes from the 1990鈥檚? They鈥檙e probably talking about the Revel Rover gravel bike. Not only does the Carbondale, Colorado-based company find most of its notoriety from its mountain bikes, but its behavior鈥� particularly on single track and double track鈥攔eveals that this is far from just your standard sporty gravel bike.

The Rover won鈥檛 feel the fastest on pavement, but add a bit of dirt and the Rover starts to come alive. It鈥檚 a fantastic climber, particularly on more technical terrain. Acceleration is on the snappy side, and its geometry lets you point and shoot through rock patches rather than having to find a tight line. Above else however, the Rover rides much smoother than the average carbon gravel bike, a testament to its smart frame design.

l considered the details when testing here, too. The guided internal cable and hose routing is a breath of fresh air against complicated fully-internal setups. The threaded bottom bracket is also a nice touch. Space for 700c x 50 millimeter tires abounds despite stubby 420 millimeter chain stays. The bike may lack a bolt-on top tube bag mount, but it makes up for it with up to four frame bottle cage mounts and a SRAM Universal Derailleur Hanger (UDH) that standardizes derailleur hanger replacements.

There is one small caveat with the Rover: until recently, every bike came with a 44-centimeter handlebar, regardless of size. Wider bars mean improved control and leverage according to Revel, but smaller-size riders likely will want to consider swapping for a different-width handlebar. The bars themselves are easy to swap, fortunately, but it is the one caveat to an otherwise phenomenal gravel bike.

Best Technical Climber

Chapter2 Kaha Frameset

Weight: 2.4 lbs (frame), 0.9 lb (fork)

Pros and Cons
鈯� Customizable
鈯� Chapter2 only offers framesets

Chapter2 might not be the first name that comes to mind when you think of high-performance cycling, but the Pryde family鈥攂etter known for their NeilPryde kite sailing and windsurfing business鈥攌nows their way around high-performance carbon components, and the Kaha is an excellent example of that.

This bike loves technical, steep climbing. The short rear end allows riders to keep much of their weight over the rear wheel, ensuring the rear tire has grip even when things get loose on the trail. And when the road or trail points downhill, the Kaha feels manageable, agile, and plenty responsive.

The word Kaha, which means 鈥榩ower and strength鈥� in Maori, covers every base you鈥檇 expect for a gravel bike. 700c x 47-millimeter tire clearance, loads of mounts for gear on the frame and fork, useful downtube internal gear storage, and space for 1x and 2x drivetrains means you can build and ride the bike exactly as you want to.

On that note, Chapter2 only offers frame sets鈥攖here are no complete bikes are here. According to Chapter2, selling only frame sets and a few select components allows the company to stay hyper-focused on the core of the cycling experience, while allowing the customer to choose the build that best fits their needs.

Best Handling at Speed

Liv Devote

Build: Advanced Pro
Weight: 17.5 lbs (XS)

Pros and Cons
鈯� Progressive geometry
鈯� Finicky seat post cluster

The Liv Devote gravel bike range includes the all-new, lightweight Devote Advanced Pro, as well as upgrades to both the Devote Advanced and Devote series, with redesigned geometry across all models. In the three years since the Devote series was launched, gravel riding and racing have evolved, and Liv says this latest generation features updates to reflect the times.

Handling upgrades errs toward additional stability for the Devote series. This was managed with a redesigned geometry that puts the rider in a more aggressive position, increases traction and stability, and allows more control at speeds and on descents.

One important upgrade to the Devote Advanced series is the new integrated down-tube storage. It consists of a latch found just under the downtube water bottle revealing a weather-resistant bag, with space for essentials like an inner tube, a CO2 canister, tire levers, or a multitool. Frame-bag happy riders will be pleased to see a range of frame mounts, including bottle cage mounts, a top tube bag mount, fork mounts, and fender mounts, as well.

From the progressive geometry to the great fit to the excellent proprietary components like the saddle and tires, this is a great bike for a gravel rider who likes to go fast. Testers also found that the Devote offers room to grow for someone who is newer to gravel riding but plans on sticking with it.

Best Quiver Killer

Ventum GS1

Build: Custom Build with SRAM Red
Weight: 18 lbs (XS)

Pros and Cons
鈯� Extremely stable handling
鈯� Arrives in a ride-ready box
鈯� Very premium price

The Ventum GS1 is an update of the GS1 gravel bike that launched in 2021. When it launched, it was too early for us to test ride in the Rockies, so testing happened on a March trip to Patagonia, Arizona, and later to the Flint Hills gravel roads of Unbound Gravel. On all of those surfaces, the GS1 came pretty darn close to 鈥渜uiver killer鈥� status: it has the stiffness and snappiness of a performance road bike but also the necessary stability when conditions became sketchy on loose dirt.

This latest iteration of the GS1 adheres to the performance orientation that ties all Ventum bikes together, even on gravel. Like many performance-oriented gravel bikes, it has 420-millimeter chainstays for a nice, snappy feel when accelerating and moving fast, but the extended reach and wheelbase keep those characteristics in check when conditions are unruly. The result is a whole lot of stability when going fast, regardless of whether you鈥檙e on the tarmac or something much rougher.

The value of Ventum鈥檚 bikes and their direct-to-consumer depends on how you customize it. Everything from the drivetrain, wheels, tires, and even touch points can be customized to ensure you have the right bike from the start. And when the bike arrives to your house, the GS1 is designed to show up in a ride-ready box; you put on the seat post and wheels and the bike is ready to go.

Ventum GS1 framesets start at $2,599, but $2,999 nets you a complete bike with SRAM Apex AXS electronic shifting. There鈥檚 no limit to how nice the GS1 can be equipped, however, and the build options go all the way up to $9,900.

Best Dirt-Focused Ride

Giant Revolt

Build: Advanced Pro 0
Weight: 21.16 lbs (XS)

Pros and Cons
鈯� Suspension makes handling technical dirt a breeze
鈯� Very premium price

Giant really went for it with their Revolt Advanced Pro 0 gravel bike. Their Revolt gravel bike was already quite good for riding gravel roads and being a general all-around drop bar bike. But what if you want a bike that鈥檚 far more dirt-focused? One that feels settled on washboard descents and single track that a gravel bike has no business being on? That鈥檚 the Revolt Advanced Pro 0, which offers a 40-millimeter suspension fork and a suspension seat post out back.

The idea of adding suspension to a gravel bike isn鈥檛 entirely a new one, but Giant has one of the best versions of it. Geometry is adapted to match the added capability that comes with suspension, with high-quality components that match that added capability. Even the tires are wider and knobbier in this version to take advantage of all of that bump-taming suspension. The added suspension here makes those chunky, rutted, and rocky roads that rattle your fillings out considerably smoother. In these situations, the Advanced Pro 0 still feels plenty responsive when you get up and pedal.

The Giant Revolt Advanced Pro 0 is different than the Revolt, which comes in an array of models with aluminum or carbon frames. But regardless of which Revolt you choose, you鈥檒l receive a bike with suspension up front and a dropper post out back, a wide-range 1x drivetrain, and more mounts than you could need.

Best Custom Bike

Scarab Paramo

Build: Paramo frameset (T1 paint scheme)
Weight: 19.9 pounds (~52 cm custom)

Pros and Cons
鈯� Hand-built, custom steel bike
鈯� Very premium price

Velo Tech Editor Alvin Holbrook鈥檚 . Scarab isn鈥檛 a household name, which is no bad thing. You wouldn鈥檛 expect hand-built, custom steel bikes made in the Andes Mountains of Colombia to grow from a tree, would you?

Scarab makes a range of road, gravel, and even mountain bikes. They offer different models, though these are more suggestions for starting points. If you explain your riding style, your preferred riding characteristics, and where you hope to go, Scarab鈥檚 reps will take it from there. You can even choose from a wide array of paint themes. Riders can adjust the geometry ot be tailored to your riding preferences, providing that perfect balance of comfort, stiffness, smoothness, and compliance in all the right places. The result is a bike uniquely suited to your needs.

The Paramo we tested is set up for fast gravel rides, with just a three-pack fork mount for when you want to load up your bike for a long trip. I found that it felt plenty quick in the local road group rides. Holbrook went with a design based around their Campesinas scheme and built it with the latest Shimano GRX 12-speed groupset. While they have several themes to base your custom paint upon, Holbrook wanted one that best embraced the fact that the bike hails from Colombia.

Best Budget Bike for its Quality

Decathlon Triban GRVL

Build: 900 Ti
Weight: 20.8 lbs (M)

Pros and Cons
鈯� Lower price point than most brands
鈯� A few spec sacrifices on the build to keep the price down

French sporting goods company Decathlon isn鈥檛 all that well-known in North America. They鈥檙e a veritable giant in Europe, however, with all the resources to make bikes that compete with the big brands in the industry. Further, they鈥檙e able to do it at a price point lower than most other brands.

The GRVL 900 Ti frame is made in conjunction with legendary Italian bike frame and tubing manufacturer Dedacciai. Titanium frames, though expensive, tend to ride smoother, are more comfortable, and don鈥檛 rust like their steel counterparts with the same tubing profiles.

The GRVL 900 Ti isn鈥檛 just about the titanium frame however. It鈥檚 titanium frame and carbon fork impart a sense of smoothness over chip seal roads and gravel paths, but the handling and feature set is inherently good, too. Plus, the addition of bottle cage mounts on the fork make the bike ready for some light-duty bike packing or all-day gravel rides.

How often do you find a titanium gravel bike under $5,000? Rarely, but we鈥檝e found one here. Decathlon has had to make some spec sacrifices to keep the price point down, but the key bits鈥攖he Shimano GRX drivetrain, and the aluminum Fulcrum wheels鈥攅nsure the bike still feels good.

There鈥檚 just one version of the Triban GRVL 900 Ti, with the aforementioned Shimano drivetrain and Fulcrum wheels. Even still, the in-house branded crankset, handlebars, and seat post are easy to use and seem reliable.

How We Test

• Number of Testers: 5
• Number of Products Tested: 33
• Longest Testing Bike Ride: 280 miles (450 km)

These gravel bikes鈥攔anging from entry-level to top-spec bikes with weights matching high-end road bikes鈥攚ere chosen to be a well-rounded preview of the best bikes on the market today. Sure, we tested gravel bikes from all of the major bike brands, but we also made sure to test the small brands as well.

Our reviews were performed all over the world by five dedicated testers, with a vast majority of those miles on roads and trails we know best, from Dallas to Patagonia to Arizona. Riding across such varied terrain by riders of different skill levels and needs means we鈥檙e well-suited to understanding what parts of a gravel bike can frustrate, what makes a bike good, and what makes a bike truly stand above the competition.

Testing includes riding local loops, big days out, group rides, and everything in between. It means living with them day-to-day, maintaining them, and building them to learn more about their ins and outs.

Meet Our Lead Tester

Alvin Holbrook is a tech editor for Velo. He covers road, gravel, and e-bikes after nearly a decade in the bike industry. In addition, he uses his background in urban planning to cover stories about active transportation, policy, tech, and infrastructure through the series. He currently lives in San Antonio, Texas with his wife and an ever-growing stable of bikes and kitchen utensils.

How to Choose a Gravel Bike

What Is a Gravel Bike?

A gravel bike is designed first and foremost to be at its best when riding on a variety of surfaces. That doesn鈥檛 just mean gravel, but dirt roads and pavement as well. A large percentage of gravel bike riders will take their bikes on singletrack which might be better suited to a mountain bike as well. In short, a gravel bike needs to be a lot of things to a lot of people.

Sure, a gravel bike might look a whole lot like a road bike, as they both have drop bars and relatively compact frames. But a gravel bike will have a gravel tire, typically ranging from 38 millimeters all the way up to 50, with some gravel bikes going even wider than that. Gravel tires vary in tread, though most gravel bikes will have some sort of tread on them in an effort to balance rolling resistance and grip in loose conditions. An increasing number of gravel bikes come with damping or suspension. Most of the time, that comes from an extra flexy seat post or handlebar, but some gravel bikes feature a suspension fork to add traction, grip, and comfort too.

Finding the right gravel bike for you can be a challenge with so many varieties. Here are our tips to ensure you find the right bike.

What Should I Look For on a Gravel Bike?

A gravel bike isn鈥檛 just a road bike with wider tires. The geometry is quite a bit different, favoring straight-line stability through the bumpy surfaces of dirt and gravel roads. Rider positioning is going to be more upright as well. The result is a bike that can roll through just about anything you may encounter on a road.

Gravel bikes typically have a number of mounts. Two water bottle cage mounts are certain, with a third at the bottom of the bike nearly guaranteed. Most gravel bikes will have a pair of mounts for a top tube bag to carry snacks on rides. Many will have fender mounts, while other will have rack mounts to carry gear.

Most gravel bikes will feature a shorter stem and wider drop handlebars that flare out. Further, most gravel bikes will come with a 1x drivetrain. A 1x drivetrain has a single chainring up front and a wide-range cassette out back. This ensures riders are quickly able to find the right gear simply by hitting the upshift or downshift levers.

The latest gravel bikes have started to split into two categories: performance gravel bikes and adventure gravel bikes. Performance gravel bikes ditch most of the rack and pack mounts, shed weight, and tend to have quick er handling. 国产吃瓜黑料 gravel bikes double down on bike packing, with more mounts, wider tires, a more stable ride, and a focus on durability.

What Exactly Do I Need to Budget For?

Most of the bikes we鈥檝e tested qualify as high-end bikes, costing as much as a decent used car. However, the trickle-down effect is very real, and so there are some fantastic gravel bike values at a more affordable price point. Knowing what you can spend will give you a great idea of what鈥檚 available to you on the market today.

Buying a gravel bike isn鈥檛 just buying a bike鈥攜ou also need the right accessories. At a minimum, you鈥檒l need a quality set of bike lights and a well-fitting helmet in the name of safety. Further, you鈥檒l need to budget for a decent set of pedals, and matching shoes if you want to use clip-in style pedals rather than a more accessible flat pedal.

The clothes themselves also make a difference. and a jersey can make your ride that much more comfortable if you decide to wear them. And that鈥檚 just the tip of the iceberg: repair kits, maintenance items, and more are worth budgeting for.

How Do I Choose The Right Size of Gravel Bike?

Your typical gravel bike will come in a range of sizes to fit riders of all heights. Most new gravel bikes will come with a size range to help you figure out what size of bike you need. This size range is usually expressed in centimeters, though some brands use a XS to XL.

Once you figure out what size of gravel bike you need (we recommend going to your local bike shop鈥攎ore on that below), you鈥檒l want to give the bike a test ride. That means standing over the top tube of the bike (sometimes referred to as a crossbar) comfortably with both feet flat on the ground. The top tube can touch you, but it鈥檚 better if it doesn鈥檛.

The right size of gravel bike will place your torso and arms at roughly a 90-degree angle from your torso without feeling uncomfortable. Your knees will have a slight bend to them at the bottom of your pedal stroke. Most importantly, the bike will feel comfortable to maneuver around.

Of course, all of this advice is only amplified by going to a trusted bike shop. Having another set of eyes to help you find the correct size bike will ensure your money is well-spent. They鈥檒l help you determine the right bike for you based on your riding experience, flexibility, and needs, and they鈥檒l help you determine proper sizing for things like handlebars, saddles, and even your frame.

The post The Very Best Gravel Bikes Available Today appeared first on 国产吃瓜黑料 Online.

What makes for a great road and gravel e-bike? The formula is simple: familiar handling, comfortable positioning, and the right amount of assistance to make the rider feel connected to the bike. How a bike approaches that formula is very different, however.

These bikes have come a long way over the past few years. The best e-bikes are hard to distinguish from a non-assisted road or gravel bike at first glance, with motors tucked away in the hub of the rear wheel and slim batteries housed in the down tube. Not only do they help you ride farther, but they also look phenomenal, too.

Our list of the best road and gravel e-bikes of 2024 comes from a wide array of bike testing over the last year, including bikes from top bike brands down to the small builders. How else are you going to find the right bike for you if not for us to obsess over it?

Be sure to check out our guides to the best enduro bikes and our many other bike guides.

At a Glance

• Editor鈥檚 Choice:
• Best for Both Road and Gravel:
• Most Customizable E-Bike:
• How to Choose a Road and Gravel E-Bike
• How We Test
• Meet Our Lead Tester

All gear in this guide was tested by multiple reviewers. When you buy through our links, we may earn an affiliate commission. This supports our mission to get more people active and outside. Learn more.

Editor鈥檚 Choice

Cerv茅lo Rouvida

Build: Rival XPLR AXS 1 Road
Weight: 33.7 lbs (small)

Pros and Cons
鈯� Premium features and very fast
鈯� The app is extremely intuitive
鈯� The Fazua Ride 60 motor isn鈥檛 as powerful as a Bosch or Shimano motor

Believe it or not, Cerv茅lo now has an e-bike. It turns out that having some electric assist in your bike ride is fun. Who knew? Thankfully, Cerv茅lo is here with the Rouvida, an e-bike that can be set up both as a road bike and a gravel bike based on your needs. And better still, the brand sweat the details to ensure it feels like a Cerv茅lo every step of the way.

The Rouvida has a Fazua Ride 60 motor that offers 60 Nm in torque, which we found to be exceptionally smooth and fast. Its Class 3 classification (with assist up to 28 miles per hour) means assist doesn鈥檛 cut out during typical group ride speeds, though that 60 Nm torque isn鈥檛 quite as powerful as what you鈥檇 find from Bosch or Shimano. Assist is controlled by a top tube-mounted controller that shows the different assist levels. Its USB port doubles up to charge accessories or lights if you prefer.

Even though this is an e-road or e-gravel bike, Cerv茅lo鈥檚 high-end features are still here. The pair of flip chips to optimize the bike for road tires or gravel tires, and the 430 Wh battery resulted and quick handling that had us thoroughly enjoying the ride. In our testing, we got roughly 35 miles of range out of the bike, though that was solely when riding the Rouvida at its highest assist setting. Be a bit more cautious with your assist and you can expect closer to 50 miles.

The Rouvida鈥檚 drive system largely succeeds in feeling like a regular bike, just with a friendly bit of help. Some of these lightweight e-bike systems make you feel like you have a tailwind; the Fazua system feels as if you鈥檙e riding with a tailwind while hitting the highest power numbers you鈥檝e seen in 15 years.

Like most of these lightweight e-bike systems, power here from the torque and cadence sensors comes from a combination of speed and pedaling cadence. Loafing about results in minimal power, while pedaling at a high RPM results in the motor being more eager to give up all of its assist.

Of course, all of this is adjustable through Fazua鈥檚 own app. It鈥檚 cleaner than just about any other system I鈥檝e used in recent memory, with graphical charts showing how assist builds as the rider changes their pedaling input. Want the bike to use less energy in the lowest of its three settings? Simply slide the graph left and right to adjust how quickly the power comes on, and down to change its max power input.

The Cerv茅lo Rouvida has four models: two built for gravel, and two built for road. All feature the same carbon frame and fork, with a choice of drivetrains from Shimano and SRAM.

Best for both Road and Gravel Riding

Specialized S-Works Turbo Creo 2

Build: Turbo Creo 2

Pros and Cons
鈯� Extremely seamless assist transition
鈯� Versatile for both road and gravel riding
鈯� Very pricey

Most e-road and e-gravel bikes have a bit of a delay after you start pedaling to when you feel the assist kick in. However, we didn鈥檛 need to pedal far on the Specialized Creo 2 to recognize that it almost perfectly blends e-bike assistance with drop bar cycling. That is until you hit the next hill, at which the assistance helps maintain a power output few can dream of.

The second generation Creo 2 features a fully redesigned frame with updated geometry, and uses Specialized鈥檚 new SL 1.2 motor system. While the original Creo came in a road and gravel build, the new Creo 2 leans heavily toward gravel. However, on the road, the large tires and gearing combined with the assistance is very good. Overall, the specs might make this bike look more gravel, but the new 29 x 2.20-inch tire clearance ad the Future Shock 3.0 make it perfect for road imperfections, abrupt transitions between different surfaces, and anything we encountered on a paved or unpaved road.

All Specialized Creo 2 models use 1x drivetrains only, but that鈥檚 no bad thing. With three different drivetrain options鈥攁ll using SRAM鈥檚 AXS wireless electronic shifting鈥攊t鈥檚 rare you鈥檒l run out of gears. There鈥檚 more than enough power too, at 50 Nm, that can pair with the bike鈥檚 320 Wh battery and 160 Wh range extender.

Most Customizeable E-Bike

Orbea Gain

Build: M10i

Pros and Cons
鈯� Smooth assistance
鈯� Customizable
鈯� Motor isn鈥檛 very light at 1,399 grams

Orbea launched the first generation of its Gain e-road bike back in 2019, and now, just four years later, the Basque brand is launching its third generation of the platform. Things are obviously evolving quickly in the e-bike world, but they also seem to be settling down a bit, and what Orbea has arrived at this time around may be a surprise.

Contrary to the other bikes on the list, the Gain is based around a lightweight hub-driven motor from Mahle. The Mahle X20 offers exceptionally smooth assistance to its 20 mph assistance cutoff. And even there, the bike is so smooth that you almost don鈥檛 notice that cutoff after you exceeds those speeds. At that point, we were o focused on the bike鈥檚 confident handling, the surprisingly good comfort, and its sleek looks. But when we looked down at the top tube, noticed the small e-assist display just behind the stem, and we were reminded that we had some extra electric assist on tap.

Orbea鈥檚 ace in the hole isn鈥檛 just that the Gain is a plain good bike, the customization options are the cherry on top. Their MyO custom ordering program allows you to choose your gearing, handlebars, and saddles. And certain models get the full experience, with custom paint options available at no extra cost. Component customization start at just $3,199 for an alloy Gain, though you鈥檒l need to spend $5,599 for a carbon frame Orbea Gain with custom paint access.

It can be hard to make your bike truly unique in a sea of same, but the Gain lets you do just that. Few brands if any can compete with that proposition.

How to Choose a Road and Gravel E-Bike

What Is the Difference Between a Road and a Gravel E-Bike?

There a number of differences between a standard, non-assist road bike and a gravel bike. Road bikes are lighter but less comfortable, while gravel bikes are more versatile but not quite as fast on the road. Road and gravel e-bikes though? There are a number of similarities, at least as of now.

The vast majority of e-bikes with drop bars from one company will use the same frame, fork, and motor. In the case of the Cervelo Rouvida above, the difference between the road and gravel bike is how it is built. Road bike builds will receive a 2x drivetrain (with a front derailleur), while gravel bike builds will receive a 1x drivetrain (without a front derailleur). Road e-bikes will have narrower tires and standard road bike handlebars, while gravel e-bikes will have gravel-centric tires and flared drop handlebars.

That said, some road e-bikes and gravel-ebikes are designed specifically for one discipline. Those will follow the same build guidelines as mentioned above, but their handling will be tuned specifically for riding on one specific terrain.

Even still, finding the right road e-bike or gravel e-bike can be a challenge. Here are our tips to ensure you find the right ride.

How Much Do I Need to Spend on a Road or Gravel E-Bike?

Most of the bikes we鈥檝e tested qualify as high-end bikes, costing as much as a decent used car. However, the trickle-down effect is real, and so there are some fantastic gravel bike values at a more affordable price point. Knowing what you can spend will give you a great idea of what鈥檚 available to you on the market today.

Budgeting to buy a a road e-bike or a gravel e-bike isn鈥檛 just buying a bike of course. Getting the most out of your road bike requires having the right accessories. At a minimum, you鈥檒l need a quality set of bike lights and a well-fitting helmet in the name of safety. Further, you鈥檒l need to budget for a decent set of pedals, and matching shoes if you want to use clip-in style pedals rather than a more accessible flat pedal.

The clothes themselves also make a difference. and a jersey can make your ride that much more comfortable if you decide to wear them. And that鈥檚 just the tip of the iceberg: repair kits, maintenance items, and more are worth budgeting for.

How Do I Choose the Right Size of E-Bike?

Your typical e-bike will come in a range of sizes to fit riders of all heights. Most new e-bikes will come with a size range to help you figure out what size of bike you need. This size range is usually expressed with an XS to XL size range, but some bikes will be measured in centimeters.

Once you figure out what size of e-bike you need, you鈥檒l want to go and give the bike a test ride. That means standing over the top tube of the bike (sometimes referred to as a crossbar) comfortably with both feet flat on the ground. The top tube can touch you, but it鈥檚 better if it doesn鈥檛.

The right size of bike will place your torso and arms at roughly a 90-degree angle from your torso without feeling uncomfortable. Your knees will have a slight bend to them at the bottom of your pedal stroke. Most importantly, the bike will feel comfortable to maneuver around.

Of course, all of this advice is only amplified by going to a trusted bike shop. Having another set of eyes to help you find the correct size bike will ensure your money is well-spent. They鈥檒l help you determine the right bike for you based on your riding experience, flexibility, and needs, and they鈥檒l help you determine proper sizing for things like handlebars, saddles, and even your frame.

What Is the Difference Between Electric-Bike Systems?

All road and gravel e-bikes consist of the frame, its components, a motor, a battery, and a controller. However, not all electric components on an e-bike are made equally. Here are the differences between e-bike motors and batteries.

Electric road and gravel bike motors and batteries tend to be smaller, sleeker, and lighter than ever before. Batteries are typically tucked away in the downtube, with a range extender sitting where a water bottle might otherwise be placed. While the typical e-bike features a handlebar-mounted controller, most road and gravel e-bikes feature a singular button in the top tube to turn the bike on and off, and no accompanying display.

As a result of all of these systems being paired down, these smaller systems are typically less powerful than what might be found on a typical e-bike. They鈥檙e meant to accompany your efforts, rather than outright supplement them.

All road and gravel e-bikes adhere to the popular e-bike class system, which differentiates between the top assisted speeds of different bikes. Most of these bikes are rated as Class 1, offering pedal assist up to 20 miles per hour (32 kph). A growing number of these bikes, however, have motors powerful enough for Class 3 operation, providing pedal assistance up to 28 miles per hours (45 kph).

Many of these e-bikes use a hub-driven electric motor, offering a compact size and a look that is hard to distinguish from a non-electric bike. Mahle is the most common option here.

Other e-bikes will use a mid-drive electric motor, placing the motor where the crankset is. These systems tend to be a bit more powerful than a hub-driven electric motor at the expense of weight and sometimes, drag when the motor is off. Fazua is a popular motor option here, though Shimano, Bosch, TQ, and Yamaha are popular options too.

How We Test

• Number of Testers: 2
• Number of Products Tested: 18
• Longest Testing Bike Ride: 77 miles (123 km)

Bike reviews require a whole bunch of work. These road and gravel e-bikes鈥攔anging from entry-level to top-spec bikes with weights approaching that of a non-assisted bicycle 鈥撎齱ere chosen to understand which bikes are best on the market today. Sure, we鈥檝e tested bikes from all of the major bike brands, but we鈥檝e also made sure to test the small brands to ensure we find the best gravel bikes.

Our reviews were performed all over the world by five dedicated testers, with a vast majority of those miles on roads and trails we know best. Riding across such varied terrain by riders of different skill levels and needs means we鈥檙e well-suited to understanding what parts of a gravel bike can frustrate, what makes a bike good, and what makes a bike truly stand above the competition.

Testing includes riding local loops, big days out, group rides, and everything in between. It means living with them day-to-day, maintaining them, and building them to learn more about their ins and outs.

Meet Our Lead Tester

Alvin Holbrook is a tech editor for Velo. He covers road, gravel, and e-bikes after nearly a decade in the bike industry. In addition, he uses his background in urban planning to cover stories about active transportation, policy, tech, and infrastructure through the series. He currently lives in San Antonio, Texas with his wife and an ever-growing stable of bikes and kitchen utensils.

The post Go Faster and Farther with These Road and Gravel E-Bikes appeared first on 国产吃瓜黑料 Online.

Did you know that over 87% of online content consists of people reviewing stuff? Probably not, because I just made it up. Still, it might as well be true, because there are a lot of reviews out there: movie reviews, car reviews, people on Yelp whining about the service at their local Chipotle, the list goes on. Humans are consumers, and reviews are a fundamental part of the act of consumption, so it鈥檚 only natural that our discourse contains a whole lot of it.

Of course, in addition to being consumers, humans are also emotional creatures, and each one of us experiences things differently. That鈥檚 why many so may reviews are highly subjective and therefore of little to no value. Here鈥檚 why this is especially true of bicycle reviews.

One reason is that most companies marketing high-end bikes are making stellar products. As long as the designer hews reasonably close to the basic concept and doesn鈥檛 try anything to stupid or gimmicky they鈥檒l probably come up with a really good bicycle.

So, how do you choose from among all these great bicycles? Bikes come with different frame materials, different component groups, and different geometries. Don鈥檛 you need a reviewer to tell you if you should choose between Brand A or Brand B, or between the aluminum bike or the carbon one? Well, assuming you鈥檙e starting with a good quality bike and not one with a Lightning McQueen theme you found next to the lawn fertilizer, there are two factors that matter way, way more than any others鈥攜es, even frame material鈥攁nd they are:

• Does the bike fit?
• Is the bike designed for what you鈥檙e gonna do with it?

If the answer to either of those is 鈥淣o,鈥� the bike鈥檚 gonna suck. If the answer to both of those questions is yes鈥攁nd you can afford it鈥攖hen you鈥檙e probably looking at a winner. Sure, you can absolutely read a roundup of 鈥�44 of the best gravel bikes you can buy in 2023鈥� (an actual tweet from an actual publication), but it鈥檚 a complete waste of time, like plunging your hand wrist-deep into a bowl of M&Ms and trying to pick out the very best one.

That鈥檚 not to say all these bikes are exactly the same, but if you鈥檙e looking at specific bikes for specific applications they鈥檙e usually way more similar than they are different. Moreover, when you ride two similar bicycles back-to-back, you鈥檙e usually not feeling what鈥檚 better or worse about them, you鈥檙e mostly just feeling those minor differences, and after awhile you get used to whatever those differences are and they quickly disappear.

A reviewer comparing the GravelBlaster SL and the PebbleShredder Pro is going back and forth between two different bikes with different tires and different saddles and different bars and different bar tapes and different shifters and all kinds of other minor differences that nevertheless go a long way towards informing your first impression of a ride and then making a recommendation based on all these minor subjective differences that mostly just amount to a bunch of noise.

But the differences between bikes that actually matter are the objective ones. Like maybe it鈥檚 really rainy where you live, the GravelBlaster SL has eyelets for fenders, but the PebbleShredder doesn鈥檛鈥攖his is information you can actually use. Certainly a good reviewer will point this out, but then again so will the spec sheet, and all too often important details like this get lost or ignored amid rhapsodic descriptions about the bike鈥檚 鈥渞ide quality,鈥� which is the cycling equivalent of 鈥渕outh feel.鈥�

Then there鈥檚 the fact that when someone鈥檚 reviewing a bike they鈥檙e reviewing it now; even a 鈥渓ong-term鈥� review usually only amounts to several months of riding. However, the truth is it takes years to get to know a bike, just as it takes years to get to know a person. Sure, you may think you could marry the person you鈥檙e dating, but you don鈥檛 know if you love them until you鈥檝e experienced something truly horrible together, like a layoff, or a death in the family, or a lengthy poetry reading. Similarly, you don鈥檛 really even begin to know a bike until you鈥檝e been through at least several sets of tires and brake pads and maybe a chain or two. Really, you probably shouldn鈥檛 even bother reading a bike review unless the reviewer has pulled the crank and overhauled the bottom bracket. Unfortunately nobody abides by this principle, which is how we ended up with BB30 in the first place.

Perhaps most frustratingly, you should only read reviews from people who love bikes, but if you truly love bikes it鈥檚 almost impossible to review them. For people who love bikes, whichever bike you鈥檙e riding at the moment is your favorite, and then you get on another one and that one becomes your favorite. You might as well ask dating advice from a compulsive womanizer.

Okay, so if bike reviews are useless, then what are you supposed to do? Well, the media is like a bag of Kirkland trail mix, and the bike media is no exception, so all you can do is pick through it and try to extract the healthy stuff. You can also seek out people who do the sort of riding you do, or at least are interested in doing, and learn from them. This too comes with its share of risks鈥攔eading about bikes on Reddit and other forums can be like learning about sex in the schoolyard鈥攂ut hands-on experience from people outside of the industry who live and breathe cycling can be incredibly valuable. Through these channels you鈥檒l also learn about bike companies that are actually doing something different, and you might ultimately find that something different is for you.

But of course the most valuable knowledge of all is the knowledge you acquire yourself, and when it comes to that there鈥檚 no substitute for experience. So take some chances, buy used stuff, be safe, don鈥檛 be afraid to experiment, and most importantly, get out there and ride.

The post Most Bike Reviews Are Useless. Here鈥檚 How to Parse the Noise. appeared first on 国产吃瓜黑料 Online.

Bikes get most of the love, but the truth is, the kit that surrounds and attaches you to your two-wheeled steed is often just as important. Luckily there鈥檚 a whole pantheon of products out there that can make your riding life easier, safer, and more enjoyable. What follows are our favorites from this year.

The Winners at a Glance

Garmin Edge 840 Solar

Trek Voda 34oz Water Bottle

Lead Out! Saddle Bag

Bontrager Dual Charger Floor Pump

Zwift Hub Smart Trainer

WTB Vulpine Gravel Tires

How We Test

Our staff at Velo is constantly testing road and gravel bike accessories, as is 国产吃瓜黑料鈥檚 lead bike writer, Josh Patterson. This includes our , as well as the rolling testing that we perform in Colorado, as we review bikes, helmets, shoes, other accoutrement throughout the year.

Meet Our Lead Tester

Josh Patterson has been riding and wrenching on bikes for 20 years and, with a master鈥檚 degree in journalism, has been writing about the sport for over half of that time. He鈥檚 a cycling generalist who finds joy in riding road, gravel, and mountain bikes, which made him the ideal candidate to manage 国产吃瓜黑料鈥檚 Gear Guide bike coverage for the past four years. He grew up in the Flint Hills of Kansas and was an early adopter of gravel racing and participated in the first Unbound 200. He鈥檚 now based in Fort Collins, Colorado.

The Reviews: The Best Road and Gravel Bike Gear of 2023

Garmin Edge 840 Solar ($550)

A trusty cycling computer is a must-have for data-hungry (and directionally-challenged) cyclists. Garmin鈥檚 new Edge 840 is compact compared to the smart phone-sized 1040, but gains a lot of trickle-down tech from its big brother, including multi-band GNSS for more accurate positioning when using navigation and longer run times, thanks to to solar charging. Garmin claims its supplemental solar receptors add up to 25 minutes for every hour the device is in direct sunlight. Our testing has proven this claim is accurate. Our Edge 840 Solar had enough juice to power through 24 hours of continuous use even when connected to a power meter and heart rate monitor, which is more than enough run time enough for most weekend warriors.

Trek Voda 34oz Water Bottle ($15)

Trek鈥檚 Voda 34 water bottles are designed to go the distance. These high-volume, 34 ounce bottles kept us hydrated through endurance gravel events and century rides without having to resort to a hydration pack. Voda water bottles are dishwasher safe, recyclable, and free of BPA, BPS, and phthalates. The only downside we鈥檝e found during testing is that these bottles are too large to fit in some small and many extra small bike frames.

Lead Out! Saddle Bag ($32)

Don鈥檛 be the person on the group ride always asking to borrow a tube or multi-tool. Hit the the road prepared. This saddle bag from Lead Out! is our top pick for its durable, water-resistant construction and straightforward two-compartment design. This seat pack is large enough to carry an innertube, a couple of CO2 canisters, as well as your multi-tool and a few bucks for a mid-ride cafe pit stop without being obtrusive.

Sponsor Content
Shimano PRO Discover Alloy Handlebar ($64.99)

Yes, there鈥檚 a handlebar designed for optimal positioning on long gravel rides. With a compact shape and 12 degree flare, the PRO Discover from Shimano is designed to give you a better and more comfortable experience. The PRO Discove has a 31.8 mm clamping diameter and comes in 40, 42, and 44 cm widths.

Bontrager Dual Charger Floor Pump ($75)

This pump isn鈥檛 brand new, in fact, we鈥檝e been using the same Dual Charger floor pump for several seasons. We think Bontrager made the perfect pump for everyday cyclists. This pump features a switch that allows the user to switch between high volume, to quickly inflate stubborn tubeless mountain bike tires, and high pressure to air up skinny road tires without excess effort. We also appreciate the fact the Dual Charger has a handy compartment built into the handle that holds inflation adapters for pool toys and balls, making it the perfect one-pump solution for all your household needs.

Zwift Hub Smart Trainer ($500)

鈥淶wifting鈥� has become a verb for cyclists looking to maximize their limited workout time by investing in a smart trainer to pedal in the virtual world of Zwift. All smart trainers are compatible with Zwift鈥檚 online ecosystem, but the brand鈥檚 own Hub Smart Trainer bests the competition with user-friendly features that start with the purchasing process where buyers select the cassette type to be included鈥攏o need to swap cassettes between your bike and this wheel-off trainer. The Hub is quiet, stable even when sprinting, and the pedaling resistance feels very natural. Best of all, it costs a fraction of trainers with identical features from brands such as Wahoo and Saris.

WTB Vulpine Gravel Tires ($66 and up)

Tire choice can make or break your unpaved adventures鈥攅specially if you鈥檙e toeing the start line at gravel races this season. WTB鈥檚 new 700c x 40 millimeter Vulpine is our pick for the best quick-rolling gravel tire that doesn鈥檛 skimp on protection against sharp rocks and thorns. The tightly-packed centerline treads roll with haste and delivers enough grip to scramble up loose and sandy climbs. The edge knobs aren鈥檛 massive, but they鈥檙e strategically placed to ensure riders can corner with confidence.

How to Buy

Buying accessories for your bike can be a very slippery slope. Depending on your budget, start with the necessities: you need to drink water, carry a repair kit, protect yourself, and know where you鈥檙e going. Beyond that, you鈥檙e just having fun. Tires and saddles are easy upgrades that can make a huge difference to your riding experience. Other products, like trainers and bike computers are expensive but can also introduce a lot of fun into your routine if you can afford them.

When it’s time to upgrade your gear, don鈥檛 let the old stuff go to waste鈥揹onate it for a good cause and divert it from the landfill. our partner, Gear Fix, will repair and resell your stuff for free! Just box up your retired items, , and send them off. We鈥檒l donate 100 percent of the proceeds to .

The post The Best Road and Gravel Bike Gear of 2023 appeared first on 国产吃瓜黑料 Online.

鈥淔ucking alarm!鈥� Chelsea yelled.听I heard the heart rate monitor go off and turned around to see my wife bent over her bike鈥檚 handlebars for what felt like the thousandth time. Halfway up a mountainous dirt trail, she dismounted and decided to walk rather than ride again. We were 80 miles into the longest bikepacking trip we鈥檇 ever attempted, and we still had more than 2,600 miles left to go.

In October 2020, my wife, Chelsea, and I caught COVID-19. We were lucky: by the end of the week we were upright and functioning humans again. We were able to continue working from home and going about our lives in quarantine. But in week two, complications surfaced for Chelsea that she is still dealing with today.

Chelsea is part of the more than 20 percent of COVID patients called 鈥�,鈥� sufferers who experience a range of symptoms including chest pain, difficulty breathing, neurological issues, and a myriad of other complex ailments. She developed severe heart pain that initially kept her bed-bound, and over a six-month period gradually lessened to allow her to walk without pain. But whenever she exerted herself too much, she was right back where she started.

Now in 2023, we are just beginning to appreciate the scale and severity of long COVID. Experts estimate that it currently affects . The virus spared many athletes and active people from death or hospitalization, but some of them remain unable to attain their pre-disease fitness. The majority of long COVID patients are in their thirties to fifties.

My wife and I aren鈥檛 professional athletes by any stretch, but trail running and our time outdoors have always been core to our happiness and a big part of how we define ourselves. For a woman who used to run up mountains, long COVID听is a life-altering illness.

鈥淚t was the unknown that was terrifying for me,鈥� Chelsea told me recently. 鈥淭here were no warning signs that I had pushed my heart too hard until the next day when I would wake up with chest pain. Did I walk too fast for that bus? Did I carry the groceries too far? Wearing a heart rate monitor was the only way I could keep myself from triggering the pain. It鈥檚 frustrating to feel like you can do more but get punished for it later. 鈥�

Like many long-haulers, Chelsea struggled to get a clear diagnosis from physicians. A year of neurologist, cardiologist, and hospital visits provided no answers other than a vague suggestion of . She was left grasping for a solution to get outside and stay active in a way that her body could tolerate. Mostly she was searching for hope鈥攁n adventure and a goal that would prove some normalcy was possible in the face of an ill-defined disease with no cure in sight.

Somewhere in the gloom of 2021, Chelsea stumbled across a webpage for the , a 2,700-mile, mostly unpaved ride from the Canadian Rockies through the mountains of the U.S. to the Mexican border. It鈥檚 one of the longest endurance gravel bike routes in the world with nearly 150,000 feet of elevation gain. Sitting in her PJs, still barely able to walk up a flight of stairs, she decided this was a rational goal.

We spent 2021 slowly increasing our training, finding the precise heartbeats per minute (135 BPM) that would allow her to push her body but not send her back to bed-bound recovery. It was an agonizingly slow process. First, we tried little things like walking home from the grocery store, then doing so听while carrying bags. We鈥檇 add in small five- to ten-mile bike听rides, only to overdo training and send her right back to square one. But finally, in July of 2022, after several successful, slow 200-300 mile practice trips with fully loaded bikes, we packed our bags and set off on this wild journey.

The route starts in Banff, Alberta, and the first day brings riders past Kananaskis Country and the beautiful Mount Engadine Lodge, which is the place听where Chelsea and I were married. We began the ride on our five-year anniversary, and planned to meet her parents at the lodge for a late afternoon lunch to celebrate.

Chelsea started struggling less than an hour after we set off. She couldn鈥檛 keep pace like we had on previous training rides. Then the heart pain started. Stuck under the imposing views of Mount Rundle between Banff and the lodge, unable to pedal more than 15 minutes without stopping, we realized we weren鈥檛 going to reach the lodge. We hobbled our way off the route and back to gravel roads hours behind schedule. We didn鈥檛 call Chelsea鈥檚 father, but his听truck appeared in the distance. He parked, got out, and hugged her without saying a word, sensing the pain and fear and disappointment that she had been going through all day.

As we settled down in camp that night, we took a serious look at our contingency plans and discussed scrapping听the entire adventure for safety鈥檚 sake.

Chelsea was terrified she鈥檇 misjudged the whole trip. 鈥淚 was worried about making it to the American border, let alone the Mexican one,” she said. 鈥淕iving up on day one felt like surrendering to the idea that I would never get better.鈥�

I thought we should cancel. We had emergency provisions and GPS trackers, but what if she became听bed-bound in a tent? On the other hand, what if we canceled and her morale was crushed?

We decided that not trying was worse than risking failure.

The next morning was a somber one as we packed up and headed out into an unknown future. As we left camp and started walking听our bikes up Elk Pass into British Columbia, we met two cyclists at the top of the climb. They鈥檇 heard there was a mother grizzly with two cubs on the route, and we decided safety was better in numbers. With our merry band assembled, we careened down the trail singing and shouting at the top of our lungs like school children on sugar. It was rejuvenating to see Chelsea听happy and alive in the mountains in a way that two years of COVID had stolen. Her spark was back.

Days trickled by and we made progress. We eventually made it to听Montana, 430 miles down the trail, stumbling into Holland Lake after a 95-degree day in the sun. As we emerged vaguely cleaner, we met a pair of cyclists we鈥檇 spend the next few weeks hopscotching with on our way south. Drying around the fire that night, we learned that they were also battling the aftermath of COVID.

Gitty, from the Netherlands, was another long-hauler. She contracted COVID in April 2021, but instead of heart issues, she鈥檇 been suffering from shortness of breath, lung complications, and persistent tinnitus.

鈥淚 was full of energy and looking forward to riding the GDMBR, but that changed after I got long COVID,鈥� Gitty explained. 鈥淚t took me a long time to get my fitness back and I was afraid I couldn鈥檛 keep up, especially at the high altitudes along the route. It caused me a lot of stress. And while we took it easy and didn鈥檛 get as far as we planned, cycling the GDMBR after COVID has made me more positive about the future.鈥�

Gitty was cycling with her husband, Jan Jaap, a brawny guy who muscled his bike down the trail like a viking steering a ship. We rode with them for several days as he led our group up gravel ascents and down mountain passes. Jan听and I often got carried away and sped ahead of our partners, only to sheepishly remember that we were there for support and bring our pace back down.

It was hard to dial back the pace at times. I鈥檇 get frustrated and remind myself that my partner was having a hard听time. Then, I鈥檇 feel a rush of guilt for losing my patience. Chelsea felt it more acutely: like she was being held back by something she couldn鈥檛 control.

鈥淚n the beginning of the ride I worried constantly about slowing us down,鈥� she said. 鈥淏ut I realized even if I had to walk up every hill, or if we only made it halfway, it was being back on the bike and with my partner that really mattered.鈥�

We met cyclists overcoming obstacles of all kinds: rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes, persistent injuries, among other ailments. They persevered because they loved nature and pushing themselves in the outdoors regardless of physical restrictions.

Near the southern end of Wyoming, 1,400 miles in, we found our balance. Chelsea, while still limited, hit a groove听we could comfortably ride at all day. I鈥檇 follow behind and belt Queen鈥檚 Greatest Hits, likely scaring off more than just the bears. And we reminded ourselves of our expectations: we weren鈥檛 there to race, we were there to reconnect with the outdoors and to be in the wilderness.

We filled our long days learning about the birds of the Rocky Mountains and counting how many we could spot while riding. We bathed听in frigid streams and fell asleep to the sounds of Elk bugling. We huddled under cliffs and watched lighting wreak havoc on the desert around us. We felt听cold, hot, tired, hungry, awestruck, and the entire range of human emotions that reminded us we were alive. We embraced slow.

As we neared the finish line at the Mexican border, Chelsea still worried about her health issues, but her confidence had grown and these concerns weighed less on her.

鈥淒espite all the fears along the way, the end was bittersweet,鈥� she told me after our ride. 鈥淚 had finally found a piece of my old self and I didn鈥檛 want to stop.鈥�

As we drove the 2,700 miles back to our home in Canada, all she could talk about was what adventure came next.

The post What Bikepacking 2,700 Miles Taught My Partner About Limits and Living with Long COVID appeared first on 国产吃瓜黑料 Online.

This article was first published by .

鈥淚 was on proper gear but maybe my clothing wasn鈥檛 as appropriate as the other drivers,鈥� Bottas told me. 鈥淭here were some ex drivers and professional cyclists鈥攊t was a nice mix.鈥�

The route was not long or particularly demanding: a rolling 30-mile out-and-back jaunt up the coast to the Italian border. As the group zipped along the winding roads, Bottas became absorbed by the sights and sounds of the peloton. He felt the pavement whoosh beneath his wheels, and marveled as the stunning coastline unfolded before the group. He found himself loving the new experience.

鈥淚 saw how fast you can gain by being in the bunch; just chatting along and everybody having a laugh,鈥� Bottas says. 鈥淎t the same time, the sensations of the speed, of being so close to the other riders, and watching someone sprint away and then having the group catch them was new for me. It was so fun.鈥�

Bottas鈥� newfound cycling passion was, alas, stronger than his leg muscles. The group picked up the pace on the return to Monaco, and Bottas slipped back through the peloton. Eventually he found himself riding into town by himself, exhausted.

鈥淚 got dropped. I got so annoyed that I told myself the next time I joined them I would never be dropped again,鈥� Bottas says. 鈥淭hat was really the motivation to pick up cycling. It seemed like such an easy ride for the pro guys and I blew up. Now that ride is a walk in the park.鈥�

These days, that ride feels like it was ages ago. Bottas, 33, has become one of the most famous cyclists on the planet. The fame, of course,听 is largely due to his celebrity status within the world of Formula 1. In 2021 he won the Turkish Grand Prix for Team Mercedes ahead of Max Verstappen, and in 2022 he joined Italian racing outfit Alfa Romeo as the star driver. Bottas has also received ample attention from the which brought millions of new fans to auto racing and also raised his global profile. He has 3.6 million followers on Instagram alone.

And anyone who cares to click on Bottas鈥檚 sites will see that cycling plays a major role in his life. He rides almost every day, and regularly posts photos from his training spins on Instagram. His partner, Tiffany Cromwell, is a decorated pro cyclist and an Australian Olympian. In January, Bottas clocked 71 total hours of riding鈥攏early two hours a day鈥攚hich is pretty good for someone with a demanding day job. He鈥檚 also a sponsored cyclist鈥攊n October, he inked a deal with bicycle brand Canyon to become an official ambassador.

鈥淚t鈥檚 an addiction for me,鈥� he says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 good for me physically, and it does help with my racing. My endurance is on a good level thanks to cycling. But most importantly it鈥檚 good for my head. It鈥檚 a good escape from the noisy Formula 1 world.鈥�

Bottas no longer gets dropped on the easy 30-mile rides up the coast. His favorite rides these days include the Col de la Madone or the Col de Turini鈥攖wo hulking passes that climb thousands of vertical feet.

鈥淢y fitness is improving and I prefer mountains鈥擨鈥檓 not a climber, but I can still go up stuff and feel OK,鈥� he says. 鈥淵ou鈥檙e going uphill for two hours on some of these climbs and coming down is so cool.鈥�

Gravel cycling has become Bottas鈥� sport of choice, and he and Cromwell often navigate the dirt roads near their home in Monaco on long gravel rides. He also races gravel from time to time. In August, 2021, he , to participate in his first gravel race, the 64-mile version of SBT GRVL. Bottas finished fourth place overall in the event and says he had a blast. So fun was the race, in fact, that he and Cromwell returned in 2022 with an announcement鈥攈e would launch his own gravel race in Finland in 2023 with the organizers of the Colorado race.

Last week, Bottas was doing press calls for the new race, called which is called FNLD GRVL, and we connected over the phone. The race is slated to kick off on June 10 in the town of Lahti in southern Finland with three different distances: 110, 50, and 30 miles. Launching a gravel race is a way for Bottas to blend his cycling passion with his desire to promote his homeland. 鈥淭here are such cool gravel roads in Lahti. I grew up around there and have explored a lot of my mountain bike, and when gravel became a thing I wanted to show the riding here and showcase Finland,鈥� Bottas says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 something different, even within Europe. We鈥檙e exposed to nature because we鈥檙e so far north.鈥�

The lush forests and rolling terrain are Lahti鈥檚 real draw, Bottas says. So is the fresh air and the relatively uninhabited countryside. It doesn鈥檛 take long for a cyclist to leave the city of 100,000 and feel like they are in the wilderness, he says.

鈥淭here鈥檚 a lack of traffic out there, especially on the gravel roads鈥攜ou just don鈥檛 see anybody,鈥� he says. 鈥淭he gravel is pretty hard packed and fast, and there are also some trails. A lot of the route is cross-country ski routes from the winter. There are no mountains. Nothing that anyone can鈥檛 climb, anyway.鈥�

I asked Bottas about his long-term vision for the event, expecting to hear a response about revenue goals, participant numbers, or sponsorship sales. Business metrics appear to be low on his list of concerns, at this point anyway. He鈥檚 most interested in simply getting more people to ride. If he can harness the power of his global fame to bring first-time riders to an event, then that alone spells success.

鈥淚 would just like to see more people get into the sport, and I feel like for some people, it鈥檚 a big step to do an organized event,鈥� he said. 鈥淩oad events can be scary, being in the bunch at high speeds. What I like about gravel is it鈥檚 more accessible and less serious, and I feel like everybody is welcome, no matter what form you鈥檙e in, where you come from, or your gender. There is a right distance for everybody, whether you鈥檙e taking it on as a challenge or if you want to go full-gas.鈥�

New cyclists seem to be of ample interest for Bottas, and throughout our conversation he repeatedly mentioned his desire to open the sport up to the masses. Having seen the transformative power of Drive to Survive,听he鈥檚 seen firsthand what it鈥檚 like when millions of new people simultaneously develop a passion for your sport. Currently Netflix is developing a similar series about the Tour de France, which was filmed in 2022 but has yet to air. I asked Bottas what he hopes the series captures about pro cycling鈥攅lements that could turn new fans onto the sport.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a great way for people to see behind the scenes and actually get to know the personalities, whether its the athletes or the team personnel,,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 just hope they take you behind closed doors. I鈥檇 love to see a typical training day for the riders. The emotions they go through. The teamwork side of things. I hope they can show how teams work together on the technology side, too.鈥�

When the , you can bet that Bottas will be watching along, too. Of course there鈥檚 no guarantee that it will bring cycling mainstream attention. Right now the streaming service is airing similar docuseries about golf (Full Swing) and tennis (Break Point), and both shows have generated plenty of chatter on social media. Whether that conversation brings throngs of casual fans to either sport, however, is still a question. Bottas has confidence that the Netflix magic can, at the very least, show people a new side of the sport鈥攖hat鈥檚 what it did with Formula 1.

鈥淚t showed parts of our sport to people who had never watched a race before, and some of them started to follow along,鈥� Bottas says. 鈥淚 hope it does a similar thing for cycling, to encourage more people to watch or to go out and ride a bike.鈥�

There鈥檚 a part of me that wonders if Bottas wouldn鈥檛 be better off if his profile in cycling remained small. He told me that one of his favorite things about cycling is that he can attend major events and still feel like just another rider in the crowd. Sure, every now and then a fan recognizes him and asks for a selfie. But it鈥檚 nothing like the attention he receives from his day job.

鈥淔ormula 1 racing weekends are hectic when the fans get to town, and it can become tricky to even leave the hotel and go to dinner鈥攑eople will recognize you,鈥� he says. 鈥淪ometimes you just know you cannot go to a place because it will be a mess.鈥�

That鈥檚 not the case at a bike race, where Valtteri Bottas can still attain that feeling he had during the fateful ride back in 2013. He can feel like just another guy in the crowd.

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One: Weapons Handling

Colin Strickland believed that every woman should own a gun. It was a feminist conviction of a sort. He would argue that, as a dude鈥攁 tall, tan, strapping dude鈥攈e enjoyed a freedom that many women don鈥檛. He could go most places and do most things without feeling threatened. He rode his bike on desolate gravel roads, then parked his truck wherever he liked and slept inside a Spartan trailer he hauled behind him. As a professional bike racer, he lived a remarkably carefree life, close to the best he could have imagined for himself. But he was aware of his male privilege, too.

Strickland鈥檚 girlfriend, Kaitlin Armstrong, called him one night in the summer of 2020, sobbing and panicked. A belligerent man鈥攎aybe intoxicated, maybe suffering some kind of mental breakdown, maybe both鈥攌ept banging on the door of her Austin, Texas, apartment. The guy eventually went away, but the incident terrified her. Another time, she was accosted by an angry man in a grocery store parking lot. Now and then, creeps followed her while she rode on bike paths and made her feel unsafe. Strickland could only imagine how these incidents felt to Armstrong, a lithe yoga instructor with auburn hair that fell across her shoulders. He knew that men commit nearly 80 percent of violent crime in the U.S., and he wondered: Why should a woman spend her life living in fear? Maybe a gun would make Kaitlin feel empowered, more independent, free to live the way she chose.

It鈥檚 easy to buy a weapon in Texas. So one day around the beginning of 2022, Strickland and Armstrong rode their bikes to McBride鈥檚, a family-owned gun shop near the University of Texas. Armstrong picked out a 9mm SIG Sauer P365 pistol and held it up to get a feel for its weight. Strickland picked out a handgun, too. As a kid, he鈥檇 lived in the rural Hill Country west of Austin, an area with a lot of firearms. But his family didn鈥檛 own guns, and he鈥檇 fired a shotgun maybe once in his life. The motivation to buy one now came from his fascination with machines; he was drawn to the engineering and construction.

In their relationship, Armstrong, who鈥檇 once worked in finance, managed the money, while Strickland often paid for things. After providing the background information required by federal law for licensed gun dealers, he asked the salesperson if they needed to have Armstrong鈥檚 information, too. 鈥淣o,鈥� he was told. 鈥淚n the state of Texas, you can gift someone a gun.鈥�

Strickland paid for the pistols and gave one to Armstrong. They had also acquired two boxes of ammunition, one for practice and another marked 鈥�9mm JAG,鈥� a bullet designed to break apart on impact and cause additional harm inside the body鈥攊ncreasing the chances that it would kill its intended target.

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As I stood by my e-bike on the start line of Colorado鈥檚 gravel race in August, surrounded by hundreds of other cyclists, I asked myself if I should be feeling like an outsider. Although I knew there were other paracyclists participating in the race, at that moment, surrounded by other able-bodied racers, I felt like the only one. I wondered, too, if I should be feeling triumphant, or maybe nervous, as I waited to start my first big race since a hit-and-run in 2019 left me near death and permanently partially paralyzed.

Instead, I felt right at home. I鈥檝e done hundreds of bike races, and this was my third as a paracyclist. But my comfort caught me off-guard, given the newness of the experience I was about to have: new race, in the event鈥檚 new paracycling category, and riding with my still-new body. Looking for something to be comfortably nervous about, I started thinking about my new, untested tires, which were necessitated by an ill-timed sidewall tear days earlier.听

Did I have the right pressure? Would they be grippy enough?

I鈥檇 ridden a lot in the weeks leading up to Colorado鈥檚 largest gravel race, and had started to feel like the competent, confident rider I used to be, albeit, now accompanied by the whine of my bike鈥檚 electric motor when I pedaled. I鈥檇 been climbing thousands of feet on the weekends and keeping up with able-bodied riders on group rides.听

鈥淚t鈥檚 champagne gravel,鈥� I said to myself, a name that references Steamboat Springs鈥� pavement-smooth dirt roads, 鈥渋t鈥檚 fine. It鈥檒l be fine.鈥澨�

I told myself that things were fine a lot in the lead up to SBT, even when they were not: it was fine when I rode a borrowed bike at Pete Stetina鈥檚 Pay Dirt gravel race in May, and got a bad saddle sore; it was fine when my chain seemed to bounce off my bike after every bump at Colorado鈥檚 FoCo Fondo in July; it was fine when I couldn鈥檛 even sign up for two other races in Colorado because they didn鈥檛 allow e-bikes, no matter how paralyzed my leg was.听

As a result, I wanted to have a good experience at SBT GRVL; for it to actually be a fine day. The race organization welcomed paracyclists, as well as other marginalized groups, following the lead set by another gravel event, Rebecca鈥檚 Private Idaho. Not only was SBT GRVL one of several races to add a paracycling category in 2022, but it also welcomed non-binary athletes with their own categories, and reserved space for the BIPOC-focused group Ride For Racial Justice and the body-inclusive group All Bodies On Bikes, of which I was a member.听听听听

鈥淲e feel really strongly that bikes are a vehicle to build relationships, build community, and see new places,鈥� said Greer Van Dyck, SBT GRVL鈥檚 community relations director. 鈥淥ur efforts at being inclusive is the vehicle to help more people of all kinds access that experience.鈥澨�

The inclusion of paracyclists at more gravel races came at a good time for me, because after three years of healing, I finally felt ready to compete again. Competitive cycling used to be a major part of my life, and prior to the crash, I was used to training and racing 18 hours a week, nearly year-round. The last time I鈥檇 raced was in 2019, my sixth season competing in elite international races on the track, and my 11th season as an elite road racer. The Pay Dirt race was the first time I mustered the courage to line up since the bike racer version听of myself was replaced by a different primary descriptor: survivor of vehicular assault. The race went OK, but I forgot the basics of competitive cycling: eat food, drink, and, don鈥檛 ride an unfamiliar saddle when half your ass is atrophied and you鈥檙e going to be very far from the car.听Plus, racing with only one functional leg was听a whole new thing for me. FoCo Fondo went better, drivetrain issues notwithstanding, but I was the only para in the race and didn鈥檛 really feel any real pressure to compete.听听

SBT was different. Paracyclists could compete in any of the four distances: 37, 60, 100, or 142 miles, and there were more than 40 para-athletes in attendance. There were enough of us that finding accessible parking in town was a bit of an unusual and welcome challenge. We exchanged knowing nods with each other as we cruised the pre-race expo on Yampa Street.听

Meg Fisher, a physical therapist who lost a leg as a young woman and then went on to represent the U.S. in two Paralympic games, was largely responsible for the throng of para-athletes at SBT GRVL. Fisher has preached the importance of welcoming paracyclists to race promoters, highlighting the opportunity the new discipline of gravel has to set the standard for inclusion in cycling鈥攁 sport that doesn鈥檛 have the best track record of being welcoming.听She organized a reunion for the 2012 Paralympic cycling team at SBT, guaranteeing a critical mass of athletes. Ratcheting lace maker BOA has a medical division, called Click Medical, that鈥檚 based in Steamboat Springs and supplies parts for the orthotics and prosthetics that some para athletes, including me, use. They offered prizes for the para-categories, setting the scene for a showdown.听

Kind of.

In Paralympic cycling, athletes are separated into narrow categories based on ability and the equipment they use. At SBT GRVL, we all raced each other in one conglomeration; me and my single paralyzed leg, riding a standard, upright e-bike, could be racing someone with no normally working legs cranking a handcycle up a climb, with or without an electric assist. But the para-athletes I spoke with were excited to be at SBT GRVL, and not at all hung up on minutiae. For many of us, racing was more about participation than results.

Sydney Marshburn, a 24-year-old racer from Murfreesboro, Tennessee, may have been the most excited of all of us. Less than a year prior, she lost most of her left leg to the rare medical condition Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, a disorder that impacts connective tissues and blood vessels. She won an entry to SBT in a sweepstakes,听and SBT was her first time riding her recumbent trike on gravel.听

鈥淎dding a para category to a large event like SBT GRVL showed the world that cycling is for everyone, no matter a person鈥檚 physical impairment,鈥� she told me.听

Sydney鈥檚 goal was to finish; I dreamt of winning.听

In fact, I was determined to win at all reasonable costs. I was participating in the 60-mile race, and would share the course with nearly 1,000 other riders. So I decided to ride the front and stay ahead of other paracyclists by outriding every cyclist I could. I hoped my new tires had enough grip and that my chain would stay on.听

The race started with a horn and I weaved through riders until I was sitting at the front, my bike humming away in tour mode鈥攖he lowest boost settings. It was so exciting to be there, at the head of the race, slicing through the chilled morning air, chatting with other racers and taking selfies. It felt just like the gran fondos I鈥檇 ridden in the past鈥攁 calm moment before the race began. I stopped worrying about how I thought I was supposed to be feeling and settled into the moment.听

Soon, we hit that champagne gravel and the race was on. I latched onto the back of the lead group and we grunted up a climb. I closed small gaps between the abled-bodied riders ahead a couple times before they dropped me. I switched to turbo mode to catch back up. Were other paras using turbo? Were they sweating up a hill on a handcycle, already miles behind with their lesser mechanical advantage? I decided not to worry about it. Sixty miles is comfortably within the range of my bike鈥檚 batteries (and the strength in my legs) but I knew I had to be judicious with turbo mode or I wouldn鈥檛 make it home. The next time I got dropped, I chased on the flats alongside another rider.听

I lost the lead group at a rest stop when I paused to fill my bottles and the bunch continued on. I declined the proffered whiskey shot because I鈥檓 a Serious Bike Racer and it was 9:30 A.M., but I still wasn鈥檛 able to catch them. I flashed through wafts of manure scent emanating from sleepy ranches and took in the rolling, desert scenery dotted with clumps of cottonwoods and interlaced with streams that gushed after an unusually wet summer.听

I switched to turbo mode for the long, final climb, and started passing some blown 60-milers who had dropped me earlier. After cresting, I inelegantly clattered down the long, bumpy descent. Because of my left leg鈥檚 paralysis, I can鈥檛 stand evenly on the pedals. Instead, I descend rough terrain by standing on the right pedal. It鈥檚 not fast, nor a good way to control the bike, but it鈥檚 all I鈥檝e got. I did my best to avoid ruts and bulls.听

Closing on the finish, the bike batteries were dipping below ten percent and my leg鈥攖he one that pedals鈥攚as very fatigued. I stopped the clock at three hours and two minutes, first paracyclist and 18th overall in the 60-mile distance.听

I spent the rest of the day hanging at the finish with my fiancee and friends, cheering for other riders.听

Sydney was teary at the finish line. 鈥淚t was the first time in years I didn鈥檛 feel completely broken,鈥� she told me later.听

Meg Fisher, the paracycling advocate, was among the last to finish, having completed a back-to-back challenge called the LeadBoat. She had raced the 100-mile Leadville Trail 100 MTB on Saturday, and then done SBT鈥檚 140-mile race on Sunday, becoming the first paracyclist ever to do so.听

鈥淔inishing is representative of what we all can do,鈥� she said later听鈥淚 love that my limits haven鈥檛 been reached yet. I think that鈥檚 what we all find when we set these audacious goals and find that we can reach them.鈥�

When it was my turn on the podium, I was tempted by that top step, but it seemed too tall for my shaky, paraplegic balance, and there was no handrail or wall nearby for me to cling to as I climbed up. Instead, I stood in front of the podium and raised my arms, very grateful for the opportunity.

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