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Which bike to choose?
You don't actually have to persuade Lukas Koller to cycle. Rather, maybe not to: Lukas rides several thousand training kilometres a year, and if there's an exciting mountain bike marathon somewhere, he's happy to take part. Today, however, he's wandering around the fleet a little indecisively. There are three bikes in the Kollers' garage entrance, causing him to ponder. Which one to take? His father Andreas and his mate Florian are also still unfamiliar with the material.
And it really makes a difference. Gravel bikes are a type of bike that the three of them have had little to do with so far. And what we have here for a test ride is likely to tempt many cyclists: A classic gravel bike from the top-selling € 2000 class, unsprung, robust and fast. In addition, a feather-light hardtail mountain bike with a rigid carbon fork and fast tyres - certainly overkill for the city park, but already visually with reserves on easy terrain. Plus a gravel machine costing around 7000 euros with all the bells and whistles.
All made of carbon, equipped with radio-controlled gears, retractable seat post and filigree suspension fork. Two racing handlebars, one mountain bike handlebar. The range of what racing and leisure cyclists ride on natural roads.
Everyone should be able to assess every concept
The fact that none of the three have ever ridden a gravel bike makes the choice difficult. However, they couldn't really care less about the first bike of the day, as they will be swapping bikes along the way. In the end, everyone should be able to assess each concept. Lukas, who came up with the route, is the first to decide: the high-tech features of the carbon Salsa with suspension make him curious. Next, his father Andreas grabs the sensible version from Rose.
Some time ago, he bought a road bike in addition to his mountain bike and is now keen to check out the possibilities of the supposedly similar gravel racer. For Florian, who mainly rides a road bike, the surprisingly lightest test bike on the starting grid is the carbon MTB with no suspension. As a trained biathlete, the wide handlebars suit him well.
Varied round
Lukas has completed a pretty varied tour across the Swabian Alb. Around 80 kilometres long, a good 1000 metres of ascent. With gravel, tarmac, a few metres of singletrack and no cars at all, so that the test riders can get a feel for the equipment. To warm up, there is a long and steep climb out of the valley onto the Alb plateau on a bumpy tarmac and forest road.
The three of them know each other so well that there is no need for the usual male form tests. Shift through the gears, make the final adjustments to the saddle height, and the first classic gravel mile is reached.
What the Swabians have created at the top of the Hohenneuffen, however, is as finely smoothed as a castle park. The more straightforward a bike is here, the easier it rolls. A quick pedal in the cradle, a playful sprint, and Andreas grins contentedly over the handlebars of his mainstream gravel bike. Lukas' suspension fork hardly pumped at all, but somehow the bike didn't feel so great when pedalling out of the saddle due to the slacker steering angle. And Florian? He kept a low profile. He can't fully utilise the grip of the wide mountain bike tyres on the well-maintained gravel path anyway.
Mountain bike terrain
The three test riders are roughly the same size, so the bikes basically fit. Florian, the biathlete, takes the Salsa gravel bike with suspension, Andreas adapts the mountain bike to his measurements and Lukas sits on the no-frills gravel all-rounder from Rose. The surfaces alternate between concrete slabs on the "Astrolehrpfad", Swabian premium gravel and a fun meadow path. It's clear that the mountain bike's tubeless tyres, which are more than six centimetres wide, are the most fun on the path.
But the triumph does not last long. On the slightly sloping tarmac road of a former military training area, the competition between the systems is to be supplemented by a "roll-down test". To do this, the three roll next to each other without pedalling, each with their hand on the shoulder of the person next to them to ensure they start on the same level. They then separate and continue rolling in the tension of gravity, rolling resistance and air resistance. After 200 metres, Florian and Lukas have a clear lead with the racing handlebars. The 29-inch hardtail lags behind. Andreas has therefore discarded it for himself and the trails of the Alb: "Well, I don't see the niche there," he says. "You sit on it like a cross-country mountain bike. It doesn't roll any easier. But as soon as the ground gets rougher, I miss the suspension fork."
Fun is definitely different
Lukas, the route scout, rides ahead and finally leads the group to the edge of the Alb. One last bike swap - and then it's downhill. The descent from Beurener Fels is narrow but technically easy. Mountain bikers would perhaps rate the difficulty as the lower grade "S1" and relax as they brake down the 200 metres. But without a suspension fork and narrow tyres, the ground hammers into your wrists and the rear wheel keeps skidding. Fun is definitely different.
There is just enough sun at the bottom to lay the bikes on the grass and draw a line under the respective gravel bike experiences. Florian survived the descent without crashing, but felt the limits of the material: "There's a different kind of bike for that," he says. "It's called a mountain bike." Andreas, the senior member of the team, summarises his experience in an almost promotional way: "An acquaintance kept telling me about his gravel bike. I thought it was rather superfluous if you already have a cellar full of mountain bikes and racing bikes. But to be honest: it's fun. On the trails here, I'd be perfectly happy with a bike without suspension. It rolls amazingly well on all surfaces. I don't really care if it's made of carbon and has all kinds of features."
And so once again the formula for the appropriate size of the personal bike fleet comes to the fore. It is: X plus one.
Classic gravel bike - Rose Backroad AL GRX 600
Info: www.rosebikes.de
Weight frame/fork/steering bearing*: 1811/460/91 grammes
Frame sizes**: 46, 49, 51, 53, 55, 57, 59, 61, 64
Seat/top/head tube: 498/560/199 mm
Stack/Reach/STR***: 623/372 mm/1.67
Wheelbase/caster: 1040/ 71 mm
Equipment
Drive: Shimano GRX 600 (32-46, 11-42 t.)
Brakes: Shimano GRX 400 (160/160 mm)
Circuit: Shimano GRX 600 2x11
Wheels/tyres (weights)****: DT Swiss P 1850 Spline/ Schwalbe G-One Bite 40-622 (front/rear: 1661/2287 grams)
Fork: Rose Backroad Carbon with threaded eyelets
Saddle/brace: Selle Italia X3/ Rose Race Attack Alu
+ very versatile, fine gear gradation
- Limited riding comfort on rougher surfaces
Test summary of the Rose Backroad AL
With bikes like this one, Rose promoted the emerging gravel bike trend relatively early on. The double groupset and handlebar shape are close to the components of conventional road bikes. The aluminium frame saves a lot of money compared to carbon, which Rose has invested in well-balanced, very functional equipment. Thanks to its favourable price, the Backroad AL The new "Ride" is both an attractive second bike for dedicated mountain bikers and racing cyclists as well as an everyday or touring bike that can be easily upgraded with full equipment. The riding position is more on the comfortable side, but the steering behaviour remains lively.
Suspension gravel bike - Salsa Warbird XPLR
Info: www.cosmicsports.de
Weight frame/fork/steering bearing*: 1041/1250/60 grammes
Frame sizes**: 49, 52,5, 54,5, 56, 57.5 cm
Seat/top/top tube: 476/565/160 mm
Stack/Reach/STR***: 596/369 mm/1.62
Wheelbase/caster: 1040/81 mm
Equipment
Drive: SRAM Force XPLR (38, 10-44 t.)
Brakes: SRAM Force (160/ 160 mm)
Circuit: SRAM Force XPLR AXS
Wheels/tyres (weights)****: Zipp 101 XPLR/ Zipp G40 XPLR 40-622 (f./h.: 1493/2011 grams)
Fork: Rockshox Rudy, 30mm travel, air suspension
Support: Rockshox Reverb 50 AXS telescopic seatpost, 50mm stroke
+ Improved long-distance comfort, increased safety in technically difficult passages
- less agile steering behaviour, financial and technical effort, about one kilo extra weight
Test summary of the Salsa Warbird
The "suspension gravel bike" category still occupies a very narrow niche in Germany. The Salsa is a single structure with the SRAM XPLR groupset. While we find the dropper post, which can only be lowered by five centimetres, dispensable on the road, the 1.2 kilo suspension fork from the Rockshox brand can relieve the strain on hands and arms with its good response behaviour on long jogging routes. However, compared to a rigid fork, it makes the bike 500 to 800 grams heavier and the steering sluggish. According to the manufacturer, it was primarily developed for US long-distance races on natural roads.
Gravel mountain bike - VPace C3M Custom
Info: www.vpace.de
Weight frame/fork/steering bearing*: 1135/647/74 grammes
Frame sizes**: S, M, L, XL
Seat/top/head tube: 483/630/115 mm
Stack/Reach/STR***: 617/447 mm/1.38
Wheelbase/caster: 1112/83 mm
Equipment
Drive: SRAM GX Eagle (34, 10-52 t.)
Brakes: Magura MT8 Pro (180/160 mm)
Circuit: SRAM GX Eagle (38/ 10-52 t.)
Wheels/tyres (weights)****: VPace Duke/ Wolfpack TLR Race/Speed 29 x 2.4" (f./h.: 1651/2154 grams)
Fork: Rigid fork VPace C2FK Carbon
Saddle/brace: Selle Italia X-LR Air Cross Superflow/VPace XSL
+ superior handling, relatively high comfort, customisation possible
- Increased driving resistance, only one grip position
Test summary of the VPace C3M
Mountain bikes without suspension forks are just as rare as gravel bikes with suspension forks. When it comes to the very light individual construction of VPace, the gravel and mountain bike categories are relatively close: weight and wheel size are similar. However, the shorter gearing, the coarser tyres and the wide, straight handlebars clearly cost power on fast, smooth flat sections. On good forest roads, on the other hand, the VPace runs confidently, while reduced tyre pressure provides a little comfort and grip on easy bumpy sections. However, our testers, who are used to mountain bikes, missed the suspension fork ...
*Weighed weights.
**Manufacturer's specification, test size bold.
***Stack/reach projected vertical/horizontal measurement from the centre of the bottom bracket to the top of the head tube; STR (stack to reach): 1.36 means a very stretched, 1.60 a very upright riding position.
****Wheel weights including tyres, cassette, quick release/ thru axles and brake discs if applicable.
