Gravel Bikes vs Road Bikes - Which is Best For You?

Gravel bikes have been around for a while now and there's a handy introduction to them in Outside Sports bike blog last year – but if you’re still on the fence about whether a gravel bike vs a road is right for you this article might help you make the decision. So let's start with what's most important - whether you should get a gravel bike to complement or even replace your road bike depends on these three main criteria. 

• The surfaces you expect to ride on 

• Do you want to go bikepacking or racing? 

• Your body 

Yes you can definitely use a gravel bike on normal road surfaces and many people are finding that gravel bikes actually do a better job of all round street riding than a dedicated road bike.  

Gravel Bike Frame Geometry

The more upright riding position due to the frame geometry and less low-slung handlebars helps give you better visibility of what’s going on around you. That means as well as recreational riding, a gravel bike could make a great commuting bike for work too.

Gravel Bike Tyres

Another feature of gravel bike frames is that they have lots of tyre clearance, which lets you run significantly wider, grippier tyres that handle lumpy, potholed streets with ease, and make riding off the road onto gravel shoulders safer. You’llprobably alsofind you spend less time fixing punctures and replacing cracked rims too. 

Your exact tyre choice comes down to where you’ll be doing most of your riding. If you’ll mainly be on the road and smooth gravel trails you can go with narrower tyres with a light diamond tread for less rolling resistance. If you plan on going onto rougher, more technical terrain you can spec wider tyres with aggressive tread with side lugs for extra traction. 

Gravel bikes are the ideal base for a backpacking set up. They’re lighter than mountain bikes, and tougher than road bikes. You can ride them on most parts of the New Zealand trail network and they tend to have plenty of attachment points on their frame for bags and accessories. 

Lately there are more and more bike racing events run on gravel. The vibe is more relaxed than road racing, all levels of riders are welcome, and you get to ride through some magnificent country. John Knight, Outside Sports founder and ex-professional Ironman triathlete had a lot of fun doing the Marsh Glenorchy Gravel Grind recently and you can read all about it here.

Some people find road bikes are very hard on theirback, neck, and shoulders, because of the hunched over position they put you into. As we mentioned above,the geometry and handlebars of a gravel bike put you into a more natural upright position. That means you can ride for longer with less discomfort. 

Gravel bikes are light too, so unless you plan to hit gnarly offroad trails, they can be a better alternative to a mountain bike for that reason alone. MTBs tend to be a lot heavier as they need to be built to handle much more rugged conditions. And there's something else that might sound trivial, but can actually make a big difference is getting your bike on and off your bike rack on the car – especially if it’s a roof mount. A light bike is a lot easier to manage, especially if you're a smaller person or you're nursing an upper body injury.

The ebike revolution has reached gravel bikes too. Everything that's good about e-MTBs holds true for gravel bikes. You'll ride for longer, more often, get fitter, and going up hills and into the wind becomes a breeze.

Cyclocross bikes are racier and less practical than gravel bikes, but less racey and more versatile than road bikes. 

If you like the stance and speed of a road bike but would like a bit more unpaved surface ability a cyclocross bike might be worth considering – especially if you like competition as the cyclocross racing scene is growing in New Zealand. However having said that, cyclocross bikes are a bit more of a niche bike to own – and you’dprobably still want a gravel bike as well 😁. 

For most people a gravel bike is going to be a better choice. These days we’re seeing a big decline in people who want road bikes for recreational riding – they're either going mountain biking and/or gravel biking.  

Whether a gravel bike is for you depends on the factors we’ve outlined here. But ifyou’re still not sure and want to check out and ride a gravel bike for yourself please get in touch with Bikes by Outside Sports in Queenstown or Wanaka.