The headtube angle is steeper than a traditional bike, which makes turning require less effort.Ī shorter, raised stem would make the bike feel more like an endurance bike if you’re looking for middle grounds.
This allows for a more aero position and helps to put the power down. Race geometry stretches and lowers the front end of the bike. Race bikes are built on a stiff frame, which also adds to this responsiveness, but means you’ll feel more bumps on the road, and have a less comfortable ride. For crit racers however, tight consecutive corners on the course will be easier because of the increased responsiveness when cranking on the pedals and turning hard. On descents, you may feel less confident on narrower wheels, a steeper head tube, and a lighter frame, which may mean slowing down. For hills where aero doesn’t matter, the lighter race bike will outperform an endurance bike. Aerodynamics is a huge part of the speed gain on a race bike. If you don’t mind a more aggressive position, they offer the benefit of being very aero. Many people will choose race bikes for their feeling of agility. A wider tired, burlier endurance bike will handle harsh conditions but will be overkill on tame roads. Race bikes are generally made of lighter components and narrower wheels which are great for speed but make the bike less practical for the average rider.Īnother factor to consider is the quality of your roads. If you race, or just take KOMs seriously, then this may be the better option of the two. It is important to remember that the position can always be adjusted on bikes.Ī race bike is about squeezing out every drop of performance.
Sometimes they are, but when you look at the specs, a race bike isn’t always incredibly aggressive, but there are certain traits that you’ll consistently find. Oftentimes the word “race” scares away consumers as it makes them think the bike is very aggressive. If you’re willing to sacrifice comfort and versatility for performance, then a race bike is the way to go. When you choose a bike, you need to find the one which fits your needs and preferences best. It's not optimal for all-day hardpack or gravel riding.This post might contain affiliate links for which we may make a small commission at no extra cost to you should you make a purchase. They are more like "cushier road bikes." Compared to a gravel / cross / adventure bike, an endurance bike will generally be lighter, less robust frame, slightly more aggressive geometry, narrower tires / less clearance, fewer eyelets for racks. However, endurance bikes are a little different. you'd be fine with any bike in the above categories, as long as they have the clearance you want. The differences between these bikes are - as with so many other things - important for racers, and almost entirely negligible for everyone else. "Adventure bikes" aka light touring bikes are also very similar to both gravel and cross bikes, with a few nice touches for touring (e.g. Gravel racing and riding is getting more popular, so it makes sense that a handful of manufacturers are making bikes oriented towards that market niche. I have recently become obsessed with this idea of the gravel bike (thanks bike industry marketing!).I'd say it's about half marketing, half genuine need.Ī gravel bike is basically a cross bike, with a handful of geometry tweaks specifically designed for racing on gravel. You won't find these conditions on every gravel race, but I'm a fan of disc brakes for the gravel grinder. I was running disc brakes and no fenders, I'd get on the road and let the mud FLY (BTW - I did had a mountain bike fender, cause that mud got really annoying).
#Endurance bike vs gravel bike full#
I'm going to pick up some 35c or 38c before the Benjamin.ĭisc brakes versus rim brakes: Last year's Westside Dirty Benjamin was run in pouring rain and there are a number of trail sections that were MUDDY, this left the rim brake crowd on the roadside with sticks, cleaning out their brakes (same for the full fender crowd). But there was some much fresh gravel on the Almanzo this year, I was hating life. There are even organized gravel rides within riding distance of my front door.Did you ride the Almanzo this year? I had the wrong tires - my 28c were great on the 2014 Benjamin. Still, I'm quite happy with my setup and unlike you I have a lot of gravel available in my area.
Even so, 30 is as wide as I am able to go and the selection for good gravel tires is pretty sparse in that size. Yeah, I'm running a steel framed bike and they tend to be a little more generous in clearance.
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