Hey, I'm seeking some advice on a new bike that needs to wear many hats. I came here because I'm a pure roadie(riding for 4 years, racing for 1) and have no experience in this area and some bikes that I'm considering have been covered here before.
I just moved to Seattle from SoCal and Seattle/Washington has some very different riding conditions than Souther California.
What I'm looking for(in order of priority):
1. A foul weather bike, or really just a bike that I can take out in any condition and not worry about it getting washed at the end of the weekend. -I got sick of washing my race bike(Trek Madone 7) after each ride or worrying about the roads eating it up -I would love it to have fender mounts for when the seasons change. Although if its raining steady I generally will not ride at all.
2. A bike that will still be up for riding with the roadies, at maybe the cost of some more effort to carrier the weight up the climbs but will not make the effort a sufferfest. I have considered spending some cash on another set of wheels for this bike to keep some 28mm road tires on. Some Gatorskins or what not.
3. A bike that could take me on some adventures rides once I learn the area better. I have never ridden a gravel event, just some hard pack dirt with the roadies trying to follow the trend that road bike on dirt is cool.....but for real now.
4. A bike that I could possible use to commute to work or run around town and not die if I have to lock it up for an hour or all day in the office building's commuter parking garage cage.
I though about just getting a cross bike and being done with it but then again I though to myself if I move into Cross racing vs road I would get myself a dedicated cross bike, made for the job.
The two bike I'm currently looking at are as follows
2015 Tamland 1 or 2 -very interested in trying steel -like that it has fender and rack mounts -would have to look into maybe changing the rings up.
2016 Diamond back Hannjo Trail -lighter frame from being alu vs steel, which could be a downside if Alu rides harsher -Better brakes, hydro
I'm looking at these two mainly because I have access to a dealer for both(price is good).
Any thoughts you guys might have would be greatly appreciated. Also, I kinda worried that these bikes are not thru axle. I have read that some people think QR disc bikes are not safe as the braking forces pull the wheels out.
I recommend taking a look at the Specialized Diverge. IMO it's the quickest of all gravel bikes and most likely to keep up with roadies. You can get a Smartweld with Tiagra for around $1500. GT Grade and Jamis Renegade placed in top 5 gravel bikes in Road CCs top bikes of 2015.
The Diverge very much leans to the road side compared to many gravel bikes. I have a Ridley X-Trail and it's almost like the Diverge. I rode it on Friday 75 miles on mix of road and trail and today I changed wheels/tires and rode it up Palomar Mtn - 4,500' in 14 mi and then down at 44 mph. And another friend bought the GT Grade in carbon and has been riding the heck out of it and mostly on road.
The X-Trail has fender mounts and Ridley makes a set for it though haven't seen them yet or know if they are even available. The Diverge also has fender mounts. Not sure about the GT but assume yes.
Thank you both for the feedback you have given me. I appreciate the focus on the ability to take this machine to a road ride as that is what I intend for it to mostly do until I learn area and the disciple of riding off road more.
I have also given though to just getting the Tamland to have as a do everything/coffee rides/the sort bike and getting and investing more into a dedicated cross machine as I do want to give it a try next season seeing that this season is coming to a close.
I do have have to consider that this might be a bike I lock up for an hour or two so I don't want to get just a crap bike but I also have to keep that in mind. Thus why my above option might be the better option, until its time to buy a Cross rig at the end of summer.
Also any insight as to if I should have any concerns about running disc on QR and not thru axles ?
Everyone will probably name the bike they have as one you should check out so I'll go first
I have had a Jamis Renegade carbon for about 1/2 a year and have used it on gravel, loose sand and rough rocky roads set up with 700 x 40 Clement MSO's. Performes great. I have also put a set of 700 x 25 Gator Skins on it and done a 130 mile group ride from Key Biscayne to Key Largo. I had trouble keeping up with the roadies when the pace exceeeded 25mph, but at under that it performed well.
Price is $2,400 which I believe is in the range of the bikes you mentioned. It has thru axels front and rear, fender /cargo mounts, Shimano 105 set and full carbon. The steel version is less $.
One thing to keep in mind is wheel swap-ability. If you have a 29er MTB with thru axles, you may want to go with something like a Santa Cruz Stigmata, Niner BSB or other frame using thru-axles to give you options with wheels. I have an original Niner RLT which is heavy, but I can swap the wheels with my CX race bike for the road (lighter), or use beefier 29er wheels for rougher rides.
As far as alu vs steel, I think with lower dirt road tires pressures, the differences disappear. In the wet of the PNW, I would go aluminum for no rusting. And it weighs less. Haanjo looks like a good rig. Fender clearance would be the primary concern I think. Make sure you can run the size dirt tires you want and still run fenders. If it will fit 40s, it may only take a 33 cross tire with fenders. At least thats how my bike is.
Yeah, I'm leaning toward Alu now and possibly even the Niner RLT as I have been examining people's secondary rides and they all seem to have a decently light ride running road tires for the foul weather group road rides. I would definitely consider a second set or lighter wheels and keeping road tires in them. While I don't MTB thus I don't have the comparability issue. However I do like that the Niner has drop out that are forward facing in the front
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