I will admit I am a complete newbie to gravel grinding so I don't know what to expect. I did lots of research over at Bike Forums and was able to buy a 2016 Raleigh Tamland 1 with the Corporate discount for $799. I put the bike together as much as I could straight out of the box but had no clue how to put the front disk brake calipers on so sent it off to my local Raleigh dealer. It is to be down by next Friday and I can hardly wait. I have already look at the Whiskey Rebellion ride close to Philly Pa. as I live mid state Pa. close to the Mason Dixon line. I can't seem to be able to find out much info on how they set up gravel grinding races. Do they have food/rest stops every so many miles on the course since it must be back roads and I would guess there are many food/c/stores along the routes.
I will tell one of the reason I decided to go this route was that I was hit by a drunk this last Jan by his mirror and just a few more inches and I probably wouldn't be telling you about it. This is the second time I have been hit now and have arthritis in my left elbow from the hit almost 10 years ago.
I also read about a ride down in AR.(Pig Tail Gravel Grinder)in Sept. that interests me for sure. How would I know if I should sign up for the big ride or not or do some shorter ones first so I know what is going on. To say I have the fever would be an understatement.
I would appreciate and and all help or feedback especially of the 2 day weekend ride in the AR in Sept. which I see is on the site as the Pig Tail Gravel Grinder.
I have also looked at the calendar and see lots of rides in WV.
I guess I should say I am a big Greg Lemond bike fan as I own my fair share of them. A 1998 Zurich lightweight steel. A 2006 Lemond Victoirre which cost way more than my gravel grinder. I also have a 2003 Lemond Victoirre all ti frame which I haven't built up and a 1999 Lemond Tourlamet.
My mountain bike was/is a Schwinn Highlander that is heavier than a rock and may have come over on the Mayflower. lol
I could list some of the crazy ultra rides I have done but will save that for later. I will say I came into cycling in 1992 after having a injury while doing a pick up game of volleyball and ruin my one and only chance to run the Boston Marathon. After a botched surgery cycling seemed to be the right sport to try and my first ride was on a heavier than a rock Trek 540 touring bike and my first ride was the Hanover Cyclist Century Labor Day ride. I got lost on the bike 2 miles from the finish line and have been lost on the bike every since. To me I have to go out and do a 150 mile ride to get the same feeling I had when I was competitively racing marathons and then that still might not be enough. So yeah I like the long distance stuff but still have no clue how the gravel grinding is going to play out.
Sometime in the future I plan on taking the Tamland cross country touring or camping on the C & O Canal.
Hi Zman - you are in about the same boat as I was last year, when I started to take GG seriously. I'm a little older than you - but I also have a long endurance sports resume that dates back to 1958 when I rode my first bike race as a 15 year old Junior in NYC's fabled Central Park. Since I went through your experience last year, and I'm still basically a beginner myself, I can offer some advice from a beginners perspective. - Riding is more important than equipment selection. Don't waste too much time worrying about your equipment -- just ride your dirt roads and figure things out. - The Tamland is an excellent bike. I believe that the Tamland was designed for Raleigh by Guitar Ted who manages this forum. The stock tires and equipment are well balanced , reasonably priced and will likely work well for you. If you are looking for upgrades, I would suggest tires. My current tires are the 40mm tubeless Ramblers, the 35 (actually 38) mm Panaracer Tubeless Gravel Kings, and the Compass 35mm Bon Jon Pass (extra light casing) with latex tubes. - There seem to be many ideas about what constitutes a GG bike. Some folks want a bike to literally ride anywhere. If that's you, then start looking at wider tire and even 650b 2" tires. But if you are confirmed roadie like me, and ride mostly on maintained dirt and gravel roads, I think that you'll find that the stuff designed for "shredders" is overkill. My current gravel ride is a Ritchie Swiss Cross Canti with standard 130 skewers, light weight HED Ardenes wheels with Compass Bon Jon's and Challenge latex tubes. I'm equally comfortable with this rig on fast paced group rides on pavement, as well as most of the local dirt and gravel roads in southern NH. No doubt many of the other regular posters here, will have much different advice. But, only getting out to ride, will help you decide where on the spectrum your ultimate bike lies.
Thanks for your reply bokknh. I will kind of tell you where I am coming from or where I think I am coming from. My Lemond Victoirre is my road bike and always will be. To say I wasn't shook up bad after the drink hit me with his mirrors in Jan. would be an understatement. For that reason I am looking forward to get in some gravel grinding races whether I like it or not is another story but I suspect that I will as I am an outdoorsy guy. I have already looked at the Whiskey Rebellion ride in or close to Philly PA. I was somewhat pushed to the limit in buying this bike as I still have lots of other stuff in my life going on. One was a car crash on ice back the week before Christmas in a Subura Forester where I the car did 3 360 deg. turns and probably slid 200- 300 feet before rolling over on it's side. No injuries but I had to buy another car and now a roof rack to haul my bikes and a kayak. I have learned from the school of hard knocks from road riding on what works and what doesn't so hoping not to waste a lot of money on buying things for the gravel bike that doesn't work.
The real only question for you or others that I have now is what to buy to carry my stuff on the long rides. I did see some people use the under the tube bag(large Blackburn because it is to have adjustable straps)but am wondering if there are any chances of that rubbing your legs especially if you are climbing or standing. The other option is a rear trunk. Even though I am not a weight weenie I did get carbon water bottle cages for this bike and figure probably one of the lightest strongest racks would be the way to go as when/if you are doing 100/200 mile rides in gravel the lest weight you have to carry up over the mts. the better. I have this thing in the back of my head that I would luv to do the Leadville 100 but not sure if this is the bike for that.
I really plan no upgrades on this bike in the near future as it has to be tons better than my Schwinn Highlander that is heavier than a rock and might have come over on the Mayflower and is/was just a step above a Wally World bike.
BTW I guess you could I have somewhat of an endurance background as a 4 man relay team finisher of RAAM, 2 man relay of what use to be the Furnace Creek 508 and a couple of 1200k rando finishers in there and some ultra crazy day rides one of which was riding 301 miles in 22 hrs. So yeah I am looking forward to see how gravel grinding racing compares to some of them.
Any help or suggestions would be gladly appreciated.
There's no real set format to gravel races. I've done some that were practically catered and had volunteers at every major corner, and others where you were handed a set of cue sheets and you were on your own to find food at convenience stores. Some are racy, some are more of a hangout group ride. Coming from the rando scene you should feel at home, you might even find it a little loose without RUSA rules. Assuming you are reasonably comfortable riding on a dirt road you could probably jump right in the longer events.
drwelby thanks for the info and the vote of confidence. I understand the difference between some are racy and some are hangouts as you see that difference in the rando rides sometimes and it depends on what group you are riding with and how many miles you have to ride that day.
So last question how good is the navigation or cue sheets on most gravel grinding rides? On the rando scene they usually pre ride them the week before or maybe 2 weeks before to check to see if anything needs to be changed?
Zurichman wrote:Thanks for your reply bokknh. I will kind of tell you where I am coming from or where I think I am coming from. My Lemond Victoirre is my road bike and always will be. To say I wasn't shook up bad after the drink hit me with his mirrors in Jan. would be an understatement. For that reason I am looking forward to get in some gravel grinding races whether I like it or not is another story but I suspect that I will as I am an outdoorsy guy. I have already looked at the Whiskey Rebellion ride in or close to Philly PA. I was somewhat pushed to the limit in buying this bike as I still have lots of other stuff in my life going on. One was a car crash on ice back the week before Christmas in a Subura Forester where I the car did 3 360 deg. turns and probably slid 200- 300 feet before rolling over on it's side. No injuries but I had to buy another car and now a roof rack to haul my bikes and a kayak. I have learned from the school of hard knocks from road riding on what works and what doesn't so hoping not to waste a lot of money on buying things for the gravel bike that doesn't work.
The real only question for you or others that I have now is what to buy to carry my stuff on the long rides. I did see some people use the under the tube bag(large Blackburn because it is to have adjustable straps)but am wondering if there are any chances of that rubbing your legs especially if you are climbing or standing. The other option is a rear trunk. Even though I am not a weight weenie I did get carbon water bottle cages for this bike and figure probably one of the lightest strongest racks would be the way to go as when/if you are doing 100/200 mile rides in gravel the lest weight you have to carry up over the mts. the better. I have this thing in the back of my head that I would luv to do the Leadville 100 but not sure if this is the bike for that.
I really plan no upgrades on this bike in the near future as it has to be tons better than my Schwinn Highlander that is heavier than a rock and might have come over on the Mayflower and is/was just a step above a Wally World bike.
BTW I guess you could I have somewhat of an endurance background as a 4 man relay team finisher of RAAM, 2 man relay of what use to be the Furnace Creek 508 and a couple of 1200k rando finishers in there and some ultra crazy day rides one of which was riding 301 miles in 22 hrs. So yeah I am looking forward to see how gravel grinding racing compares to some of them.
Any help or suggestions would be gladly appreciated.
Thanks Zman
I'm not the type that carries a lot of stuff. Most of my rides are under 3 hours -- 2 large water bottles, mini-tool, a tube tire levers. Everything fits into a small saddle bag, and my jersey pockets. I do have some touring experience on my old 'Dale R1000 Tandem. For those outings I had a rear rack with a large rack bag on top and a pair of large panniers hanging on each side. For longer rides there are various bags available. I have a small bag by Revelate called the "Fuel Tank". It was designed to go on your top tube under your saddle. But I found that it rubbed my legs. Instead, I use it on the front of the top tube connected with velcro straps to both the steerer and top tube, where it doesn't hit my legs and is generally out of the way. It's a small bag though --- good for about the same capacity as my small saddle bag. Useful when I want to carry a few extra things, or have some things like my cell phone or energy bars handy without getting off the bike. I also sometimes use it when I'm riding with a rear snap on fender and need room on my seat post for a rear "see me" light. I also purchased a larger under the top tube bag that is designed to carry more stuff, but I use it on my tandem which I ride regularly with a friend who suffers from Parkinsons. BTW, it's great therapy for my friend and gives me an excuse to keep the 'Dale in my garage where it takes up a lot of space. Sorry, that I can't be more helpful, but I hope that others can post more helpful advice and pic's.
Same deal. I did one ride where the organizers made the cue sheets from Google Maps and the road names they used didn't match what it said on the road signs. Others are better and they'll confirm it, flag out roads you might miss, and give you a GPS track to use if you want it. I consider the navigation to be part of the fun and I've screwed up and gotten temporarily lost many times.
