Gravel Vs XC Mountain Bike: What Is The Best Do-It-All Bike?

Try riding a gravel bike in deep sand.

Chris always started with both feet clipped in

What is an XC moumtain bike and where can I find in the UK? I just see MTB full suspension or hardtails under Mountain Bikes

Try a suspension fork on the gravel bike. They make ones with only 50mm of travel specifically for gravel bikes.

Got as far as "and Canyon Supplied" elite bul sht

Chris is the best from GCN

I think Si’s real closing statement was, “and if you’d like to see another one, keep your comments to yourself “. 😂

Wheels and tires, rotational mass was quite different.

Mtb on the road just looks silly and my hands get numb on all terrains.
Gravel has too big gear steps on the road and my wrists hurt off road like hell.
I love my road bike on the road more than any other imaginable combo.

My next bike will be a gravel bike... Thanks.

I prefer Mountain bikes. Even for the road. For potholes and curbs. But are both great bikes.

Gey cyclists

MTB=HAPPINESS 👍

For bicycle touring, I love my Passage 2. Those extra pounds don't matter as much when wheels are carrying the load. I wish the poles were a little shorter, but still is manageable. The vestibule is huge. My issue is with my Z Rest and side lying hips! Self inflating mattresses always spring leaks or the foam core squashes, leaving hard ground against hip! You also can spend over $200 on a good one. Some are actually really heavy.

The difference between gravel and MTB on road is much less than on the MTB trail. This shows to me that the XC MTB is like... more universal. ;-)

Neither

Horses for courses. MTB for rough. Gravel for the rest. If you enjoy both, buy a MTB and gravel bike.

Excellent video. Thank you 10000 times. Save ridings and lots of fun

Gravel bike = new marketing term for cyclocross bike.

This needs a redo with different tires on the mtb. And maybe inner bar ends for aero.

Bike perfection: Full carbon Oiz, Supercaliber , Blur with 100mm max travel in full XC trim can hold their own in speed and traction on all surfaces. If built carefully , one can do it all.

Great video! I think there is a big range of overlap between the two. I would say the MTB is still better all-arounder, though. Simply because it will manage to ride all surfaces, even if it won't be as fast on the tarmac as a gravel or a road bike. This doesn't change the fact I have chosen a gravel bike, simply for that road-bike feel and the look of it.

Change MTB to modern Specialized Epic HT on SRAM GX Eagle groupset and the difference gonna be crucial

A somewhat demise of road bicycles on more common roads in the era after Trade Bombing?

Jesus while  Tweeting' on an electric scooter, bumps and runs into  many road bicyclist on more common highways! More specifically in my particular case.

A man from the church whose wallet  wallet was removed from his unattended mountain bicycle on the sunporch at a MacDonalds Hamburger in Ofallon, IL said to me: Did you hear that there was another road bicyclist killed nearby on Hwy 159 between Fairview Heights ,IL and Edwardsville, IL? My next trip  out there on that hoghway, I found an empty wallet on top of an overpass of an interstate highway. Police were hiding from Scud missles under the overpass, while making an arrest under the overpass! I sirmized the police were needing an backup, on top of the overpass.

In that era, expansive miles of bicycle paths were built in older areas.

glk

At 61, I’ve just bought my first new bike (as opposed to second hand), and I’ve gone for a Cannondale Topstone Rival AXS. Arrives in a couple of days. Very excited.

Well, for the type of riding i do (road and gravel) i should get a gravel bike BUT i just dont like that riding position, i think a mtb is just much more comfortable and i can do mtb trails if i want to.

Interesting comparison ... But MTB from Day 1 and a Gravel just looks/feels like a beefed up street bike.trying to do a little off road .. essentially a problem looking for a solution because someone felt like the gap betwwen off road and street needed filling for really no reason other than some street rider felt like they wanted to maybe kinda go off road sometimes.

As a guy who only has one bike, I'll easily trade a few tarmac and gravel seconds in return for not getting cancer as soon as the road gets a little rough.

Apple & Orange
Tire & Psi

I think another thing to consider is if you're going to be having a big backpack on feel like if you are carrying the extra weight the mountain bike gives more comfort in terms of peace of mind

Useless and irrelevant video. If your a sumo wrestler,your 100m sprint time is not very important. Much better biking content out there,these guys have gotten lazy.

1 road bike + 1 cyclocross bike = life is complete

I was looking forward to this comparison as I've often got nostalgic about the 1990's and thought about getting a gravel bike but I couldn't keep my eyes open during the road riding clip at the start!

:D

gravel bikes r sexy ❤️😘

I just did a 50 mile race and it was called rule of 3, had gravel, roads, and single track. Depending on your strengths and skill is really what matter when it come to choosing. Also some people arent very good at riding single track on a gravel bike.

Just got back into XC after going XC, XC w/slicks, fixie road/track, folding, and single speed track, and now back to XC. The XC frame geometry and handlebar gives more confidence and control in my opinion.

Riding a modern gravel bike reminds me alot of late 90s rigid mtb with skinnier tires. I can see the point and the appeal tho. But much like road bikes, as well as hybrids, id rather just run a set of skinnier on my xc hardtail

Thanks a lot. Now I can not decide. Have a road bike but only narrow tires and not a lot of space for another. MTB and rent storage nearby.

Proof that all bikes are awesome especially new ones

I think the gravel bikes just miss a little bit of suspension, 3cm travel 5cm travel or so, lockable sort of like in one of those old Cannondale headshocks

mount conti race king tubeless and road grips on xc bike, and test cx vs xc again

I have both a gravel and xc hardtail. And would have to say the Hardtail is "better" for anything other than tarmac. But the gravel bike is just more fun as long as you don't want to go on proper mtb trails.

My first was MTB XC, we live in a fairly plain area with some changing elevations but not much. Tried off-roading, and it just did not feel the best since it's so difficult to find proper nature trails around, our country is very small not a lot of nature to enjoy MTB fully. Found myself mostly riding with my friends who own gravel bikes, and always struggle to keep up. What is worse, I am always too exhausted after riding longer distances on bike roads, like 50-70km trips. Now with gravel bike, not only I am faster and able to keep up, but also have way more fuel left in tank after the long ride and at the same time able to do some pathfinding in the simple forest trails when connecting the bike roads with ease. I still don't sell my mtb, will how it goes. The only issue with off-roading gravel bike is as soon as you have slightly bumpy road, you just can't wait for that section to end as it's a horrible experience, way too bumpy and makes you ride standing all the time to spare your backside.

It gets down to how much you want to spend $$$$

MTB wins hands down....

So my final decision now is that I need to buy 5 different types of bicycles, no more indecisive now 😂