A POOR (SMART) MAN'S GRAVEL BIKE
THERE WAS A TIME I GOT SO INTO MTB RACING that I sold my road bike. It was back in the days of massive NORBA races and all I wanted to do was "train the position". I rode that MTB everywhere. I put skinny tires on it to hit the big group rides and was mercilessly heckled on Coffee Crew.
I was reminded of that today because Paul took my bait to do a dirt version of The TMWC and showed up on his MTB... with skinny tires. Not road, but "gravel" tires. He had a 50 with tiny knobbies on the front and a slick 38 on the back.
It looked so wrong, but it worked great.
(that's Craig's hardtail with drop bars and pretty skinny tires above)
We started with the crew then connected a bunch of dirt trails, criss-crossing the B group and popping back on the road at the bottom of the corkscrew just as the A's caught us.
How great is Paul's set up?
Well, I couldn't shake him on the dirt and when the A's caught us he left me for dead and sprinted up the final climb with the big boys.
Wanna test the gravel waters... you can buy an entry level bike like I did or just get some skinny tires on your hardtail. Either way will open up your mind to a new way to look at riding and help you decide whether or not to pull the trigger on a real gravel racer.
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HUNKR – LA is just around the corner. I’ve arranged for VIP parking for you and your team… It’s a $20 value and it will get you a primo spot… while everybody else will be paying $11 to park further away.
This will be a “gravel” event: the first 20ish miles are on abandoned Highway 99, the next 30ish are on a rarely traveled country roads, and the final 12ish are dirt.
Personally, I didn’t get the mixed-surface craze until I threw down a few bucks on a modest rig. I get it now, it’s super fun to ride in the drops and have all kinds of options. If you’ve got a nice mountain bike, just pop on some skinny tires and you’ll be set.
Use Coupon Code : "PedalParkVIP" when you register.
*Code expires October 10, 2018 - or the first 100 people to use it*
HUNKR-LA is being hosted by Revolution Bike Fest out at Castaic. There are going to be a ton of vendors and demo fleets out there – think mini Sea Otter, close to home.
A sample of what we'll be riding.
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