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I have a "gravel" bike with drop bars [1] and I love it. I ride it on roads and a variety of trails. Doesn't have a suspension, but I don't miss it. Not doing s

by jpm_sd 5y ago

I have a "gravel" bike with drop bars [1] and I love it. I ride it on roads and a variety of trails. Doesn't have a suspension, but I don't miss it. Not doing super technical rocky stuff. Having drop bars is great though, I can vary my hand positions quite a bit and I seem to have plenty of steering control. [1] https://www.bikes.com/en/bikes/solo/2019 https://www.bikes.com/en/bikes/solo/2019

jeffbee 5y ago
I ride a Kona Sutra Ltd, also a drop-bar, fat-tire, 1x + disc rig and I love it. It's funny how old the idea is, though. There were CX events in the 1970s where guys were riding drops and fat (for the time) tires, and Gary Fisher was selling a mountain bike with drops before they sold the company, back around 1990. And of course Gary Fisher invented mountain biking on a Schwinn, wearing jeans and a denim jacket, basically giving zero fucks about the kit. The original "riser bar" mountain riders were the people putting BMX bars on Schwinns.
- cbsks 5y ago
  FYI, "fat tire" generally refers to tires that are at least 3.75in wide. Your bike doesn't quite qualify for that :) That bike looks nice! I am in the process of building a similar looking gravel bike, but with a titanium frame instead of steel. Interestingly, gravel bikes are now starting to have suspension, such as the Cannondale Topstone Lefty and Lauf True Grit. The line between gravel bikes and mountain bikes is getting more and more blurred.
  - jeffbee 5y ago
    Well, “fat” meaning “too big even for motorcycles” is a recent thing. Decades ago a 43-size tire like the Rock ‘n Road raised questions about clearances. Bikes with a fork and brake that could accommodate the size were desirable for off-road use.
aidenn0 5y ago
If a gravel or all-road bike was an option, it's what I might have purchased when I got my road bike so many years ago. I considered putting drops on a hybrid frame, but that was a lot more work and was living in an apartment with few tools at the time.
soared 5y ago
The article is actually talking about something different - the 90s style mountain bikes that were precursors to gravel/cyclocross bikes had what is comparable to bullhorn handlebars. Drop bars will never go away :)

by jpm_sd 5y ago

jeffbee 5y ago

I ride a Kona Sutra Ltd, also a drop-bar, fat-tire, 1x + disc rig and I love it. It's funny how old the idea is, though. There were CX events in the 1970s where guys were riding drops and fat (for the time) tires, and Gary Fisher was selling a mountain bike with drops before they sold the company, back around 1990. And of course Gary Fisher invented mountain biking on a Schwinn, wearing jeans and a denim jacket, basically giving zero fucks about the kit. The original "riser bar" mountain riders were the people putting BMX bars on Schwinns.

cbsks 5y ago
FYI, "fat tire" generally refers to tires that are at least 3.75in wide. Your bike doesn't quite qualify for that :) That bike looks nice! I am in the process of building a similar looking gravel bike, but with a titanium frame instead of steel. Interestingly, gravel bikes are now starting to have suspension, such as the Cannondale Topstone Lefty and Lauf True Grit. The line between gravel bikes and mountain bikes is getting more and more blurred.
- jeffbee 5y ago
  Well, “fat” meaning “too big even for motorcycles” is a recent thing. Decades ago a 43-size tire like the Rock ‘n Road raised questions about clearances. Bikes with a fork and brake that could accommodate the size were desirable for off-road use.

aidenn0 5y ago

If a gravel or all-road bike was an option, it's what I might have purchased when I got my road bike so many years ago. I considered putting drops on a hybrid frame, but that was a lot more work and was living in an apartment with few tools at the time.

soared 5y ago

The article is actually talking about something different - the 90s style mountain bikes that were precursors to gravel/cyclocross bikes had what is comparable to bullhorn handlebars. Drop bars will never go away :)