UCI gravel worlds

[Tom K.]

Y'all need to go back to cantis. Skinny tires, a rigid fork and crappy brakes on a~40 mph dirt road downhill is more fun than should be legal.

To each their own, for sure, but I'm all about carving -- or the equivalent -- corners in every sport I love.

So far, gravel just seems to include mostly skittering around bumpy corners. Not much joy or gliss.

Kinda like full rockered fat skis, which I've owned and abhored.

EDIT: But certainly access some gorgeous country!

It's funny, when I was 14 I'd ride down to Bloor Cycle and ogle the Cinelli masterpieces, with my $8/hr job.

Equivalent to $24.07/hour today according to the Cost of Living Calculator!!!

You must have been at a pro shop. I worked for part of a summer at a combination hardware/bike shop in/around 1974 and I know I was paid less than $4/hour.

 

[scott43]

Equivalent to $24.07/hour today according to the Cost of Living Calculator!!!

You must have been at a pro shop. I worked for part of a summer at a combination hardware/bike shop in/around 1974 and I know I was paid less than $4/hour.

Yeah this would have been 1981-82. We did have a good shop.

 

[cantunamunch]

Yeah this would have been 1981-82. We did have a good shop.

LOL, I wore a Geoffrey vest. Wanna talk tasselled grips?

 

[crosscountry]

Gravel shouldn't be like slightly different Paris-Roubaix. Gravel should be doing what XC hardtails did 10-15 years ago.

Even 25 years ago, I was hitting hiking paths in my HT mountain bike. You're suggesting that's what "gravel should be"?

For me, mountain biking is also xc, something what most of people don't consider as PROPER mtb anymore, as for proper mtb you need 160+mm suspension, 65 degree fork on bike with which you are not capable to pedal at all

I haven't been following the mountain biking scene for a while. So what's a typical "cross country" course is like these days?

 

[Primoz]

@crosscountry if talking about XCO, then in my mind, something what most of recreational enduro/downhill riders would never make down on their DH bikes. XCM on the other side obviously depends on side of Atlantic ocean. Over here in (central) Europe, it's whole bunch of fireroads and nice flowly singletrails. On other (your?) side of ocean, they should be much more technical from this what I understood, but I haven't been riding mtb over there, so no idea how they really are.

 

[scott43]

Sarah Sturm: The dirt on the UCI gravel world champs

Thoughts from an experienced, inexperienced gravel connoisseur

www.velonews.com

 

[cantunamunch]

Again, meh. Imagine if gravel worlds looked like this - except with maybe a few XCO climbing ramps.




Then they might have something.

 

[scott43]

Yeah I think she just reinforced your point tuna. Kinda unimpressed with the course especially coming from the more tech background..

 

[scott43]

Again, meh. Imagine if gravel worlds looked like this - except with maybe a few XCO climbing ramps.




Then they might have something.

I'd probably be riding an Xc mtb on that..

 

[cantunamunch]

Yeah I think she just reinforced your point tuna.

Maybe she did; I admit I didn't really read it that way. I also thought I sensed her being very careful with her words, or she wouldn't get more invites.

Kinda unimpressed with the course especially coming from the more tech background..

I'd probably be riding an Xc mtb on that..

And I'm saying that, since we know rules-limited CX bikes can finish that route in ~3 hours, gravel bikes should have courses at least that hard...and after they do, we can talk about merging the technical specs for gravel bikes and XC hardtails. I mean imagine if Sea Otter ran a hybrid gravel/long XC route as a single event.


Until then, 'gravel' is just a marketing term for 'more road'.

 

[crosscountry]

Until then, 'gravel' is just a marketing term for 'more road'.

That's what I thought "gravel" means? Short for gravel road.

Road, not mountain.

 

[cantunamunch]

I confess that I didn't originally think of this angle - but now I know I totally should have

UCI gravel worlds as a marketing failure


(apologies in advance: the presenter needs to really up their style, voicing and tone game. -30 points for blah blah blah monotone)

 

[scott43]

I mean, they'll pick the best bikes for the course. Not tuff enuff...

 

[cantunamunch]

. Not tuff enuff...

*is now imagining a gravel event on a volcano*

 

[Primoz]

I just saw part of this World Champs last time on Eurosport... ok this wasn't even slightly different Paris-Roubaix, but in best case Strade Bianche. Paris-Roubaix is way more demanding then this gravel World champs were. I'm it was so damn boring I couldn't watch for more then 5min (thanks god for fast forward). I take back that what I said about xcm or anything regarding similarities with mtb. This was pure (boring) road racing on perfectly flat terrain. Those 200m of track over grass field really doesn't change much.

 

[cantunamunch]

I just saw part of this World Champs last time on Eurosport... ok this wasn't even slightly different Paris-Roubaix, but in best case Strade Bianche. Paris-Roubaix is way more demanding then this gravel World champs were. I'm it was so damn boring I couldn't watch for more then 5min (thanks god for fast forward). I take back that what I said about xcm or anything regarding similarities with mtb. This was pure (boring) road racing on perfectly flat terrain. Those 200m of track over grass field really doesn't change much.

Now imagine gravel worlds on this course

If at some point everyone feels they are on the wrong bike -> course is perfect!

 

[Primoz]

This is something completely different and on quite few parts feels like "damn this would be fun to ride even as part of my mtb ride"

 

[cantunamunch]

This is something completely different and on quite few parts feels like "damn this would be fun to ride even as part of my mtb ride"

Stuff the Veneto, talk to your namesake and find a fun 'gravel' route like that in SLO?

Zlati Krog 2023! (I bet you could get @Tom K. to go)

 

[slowrider]

Y'all need to go back to cantis. Skinny tires, a rigid fork and crappy brakes on a~40 mph dirt road downhill is more fun than should be legal.

Growing up at the bottom of a hill on a gravel road.

 

[cantunamunch]

Growing up at the bottom of a hill on a gravel road.

Seee, that's already steeper and rougher than UCI worlds.