MOUNTAIN BIKING AUSTRALIA – 25 MAY 2018 Originally we picked one up to serve as a pseudo city bike, one that could be ridden to the shops easily to grab basic groceries and the like… but it actually felt like the bike was underutilised with a rack and mudguards on it.
The Apex gearing on the Bend RV gravel bike is fast enough for decent speed on the road, but we’re going to bump the rear up to an 11-46, and upgrade the front to a 40t, just for a bit more top end. The G-Ones should be considered a light-duty off road tyre; it doesn’t take much dust on the top of a gravel road for them to become skatey, but dropping a little pressure helps here. On road, though, they sizzle. Tyre spec is something that will play to your advantage here – if you do mostly gravel, changing to a bigger bagged tyre will pay dividends in comfort and grip, but the stockers are a great all-rounder.
