Does a Gravel Bike work as a Road Bike?

Can a gravel bike really be two bikes in one? Gravel with chunky tyres and a road bike with slicks? It's a question I get asked all the time so I set out to find out whether it works or not using the Scott Addict Gravel with two pairs of wheels and tyres

Supported by Saddleback

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[kinglamhui]

I have been using gravel bike as road bike with road tyres for 3 years, it does work perfectly for most situations, and super versatile when swap back to gravel tyres, especially I just use shimano 105 52/36 and 11-34 setup which is pretty standard, I think, it will suit many ppl as well

but when it comes to group ride, the more relax geometry and weight penalty of gravel bike do make you harder to catch up, so in that case a road bike is more recommended

[Caleketa]

I'm riding a 2020 Cannondale Topstone 0 Alloy. I purchased this bike the1st of april this year. The former owner rode only 200miles with it. The reason for me to purchase this bike was that i wanted a bike what i also can ride offroad. The setup is Ultegra RX. The downside on this bike is the crankset from fsa. My plan is to swap this for a shimano 105 or ultegra crankset. I also have a extra handbuild wheelset. When i purchased the bike i was 109kg, now i am about 92kg. For me the bike is really versatile and does the job for me. For road cycling i use a 11-25 cassette and for the gravel 11-34. There are some minor shifting issues with the 11-25 cassette because the rear derrailer is a long cage. Now the Topstone is hooked up with a Wahoo Kickr V5. So now i am doing alot of indoor trainings on zwift.

[JoeCincotta]

I definitely believe that the right gravel bike could be the perfect all around choice. For two years, I was riding a rondo ruut CF2 as both a gravel and road bike. Having two sets of wheels is the best way to get the most out of having one bike to do it all. At first I was swapping tires, a lot. Everything from 700 X 28 through 700 X 45 fit on my bike and I loved every minute of it.
I have since added a Tarmac SL6 to my garage and keep the gravel bike set up with 700 X 45 Pirelli cinturato gravel H, which are my favorite tires. And although the tarmac is absolutely amazing, and fast, and light… I still find myself choosing the gravel bike, because I find it more fun and comfortable.

[Ravenlight_]

I totally agree 👍 I don't like taking my road bike out in a PA winter so I bought a AL gravel bike to ride in the messy winter. My bike shop just happened to have a spare wheels so I snatched them up and equipped them with 32mm slicks to speed things up. I've timed my self on a 10mi/16km loop on all three bikes and the results were predictable, light weight road bike had the best time followed by gravel bike w/32mm tires but not far behind. Then 6+ mins behind that was the gravel bike with 45mm gravel tires. I'm not looking to break any PBs in the winter. I'll do anything to not ride the indoor trainer. I'll even go for a run. 😲

[Jay-qqso]

I just bought my first full carbon Giant revolt advance 3 and totally LOVE it. I’ve owned a Giant defy road bike for years along with a Giant Yukon fatty and Trance X but have to say out of all my fleet the Revolt takes the lead. Such a comfortable bike and a perfect cross over to be used on gravel and road so fast and slow when needed to be.
I’m not sponsored by Giant but I do like the fit and geometry of their bikes.
GO GIANT!!

[michaelcostner]

Just got a brand new BMC Kaius 01 Two. I have 3 sets of wheels with a set of 700 x 30 road tires, 700x33 cross and 700x40 gravel. They all work great and the bike is a dream in any of the discipline. Dream bike.

[CuriousMind_LVG]

I bought my Litespeed Watia on purpose to be both my road and gravel bike. The key was having two wheel sets and two 11spd cassettes. Road is 38/9-39 and gravel is 38/10-42. Tyres I run 700x42 (Specialized Pathfinder Pro) for gravel and 700x32 (Corsa NEXT) for road. For the relatively flat Midwest USA in which I live, this setup is perfect. Cheers and another great video.

[DreamClean]

Endurance road bikes need to start having this gearing. The 50 tooth is wasted on me, give me a 46 so I can use the bottom half of my cassette.

[IvanKhramov]

After touring and commuting on an MTB for a few years, I realized that my bike choice was way off. So, last year i sold it and bought a Cro-Mo gravel (Outleap Hardway S 2022). It has a relatively relaxed geometry which allowed me to transition comfortably from an XC bike, boasts all the mounts for touring that i could need, and now that ive put 32mm slicks on it, also works great as a commuter. Yes, the gearing is, well, tuned for gravel with 11-42 cassette and a 40t chainring, but again, for my purposes it works just fine, since I knew what I'd be using the bike for. For me, as someone who can only afford one bike and needs to ride on rough surfaces regularly, this gravel-as-a-road bike worked out just fine :)

[anttibusk]

I’ve got a Canyon Grail CF with GRX Di2 groupset. I use that bike mainly as a year-round endurance bike here in Finland. In the summer with Zipp 303S wheels and 28-30 mm slicks, and in the other seasons shod with 40 mm gravel tires. A very fast bike but at the same time also very comfortable. That famous double-decker handlebar works really well both on the road and off road.

[kl]

I got a gravel bike because of all these videos online which convinced me that it could in a way be just as good as a road bike. It definitely works as a road bike in the sense that it has gears and wheels and rolls as a bike would and you will be comfortable. But in some ways it definitely is not the same as a road bike. I ride with friends with road bikes and my gravel bike just does not keep up, the gearing is made for a different purpose, the geometry is also and when you ride with road bikes you will have to work so much harder. It’s like driving a family SUV with Sports cars. I would say it only works as a road bike if you only ride by yourself or with other gravel bikes on the same ride. Otherwise it isn’t fun. I feel that this point is often missed for people just starting to get into this sport and want to join friends who ride road bikes.

[originalkontrol]

I've had my 2020 Giant Revolt since 2019. Until recently used for road 99% of the time. Zipp 303s wheels and 28-32c tires. 2x until now, just Switched to Rival AXS XPLR 1x. Doing a lot more gravel/light trial now, running 650B 47-50c tires. Not quite as sharp in the corners on road, but plenty fast. Will be interesting to see how it does on road rides with 1x. I doubt it will hinder me much. As always great vid, gravel bikes FTW!

[mrmotomoto]

Having been a mountain biker for a decade, I wanted something more efficient for the times I rode the recreational trail. Comfort was important. I was convinced I wanted a gravel bike but once at the shop, I rode an endurance bike, and knew that if I was honest with myself, this bike would see almost all tarmac. Went for a Domane and I think it was the right choice as I still have a mountain bike for single track and fire road. I think a bike that does it all might have too many compromises and if possible, one would be better off with multiple bikes. Which is more fun anyway :)

[ynotyoga]

This was fascinating, thank you for doing this video. I downsized a few years ago to get rid of older bikes and decided to get the "One Bike to Rule Them All"...an Open U.P. It is by far the best frame I've ever ridden, and I've since accumulated three sets of wheels over the last three years for it. 700c w/ 38mm gravel tires, 48mm gravel tires (for aggressive off-road days), and just recently a set of carbon road wheels with 32" Continental Grand Prix 5000 TR S. For me, this setup is all I ever need for whatever riding I want to do, and the bike performs exceptionally with each of the sets. It's nice to really have a bike that can do it all. I never need anything else...except "need" sometimes has nothing to do with it. I like bikes!

[Dark_Wings]

I went for a 3t Racemax after having spent two years with a specialized diverge. Hesitated a while going for a second road bike instead. In the end the one solution gravel bike prevailed. The 3T weights around 8.2 kgs in my configuration, is pretty stiff, has a near Road-bike Geometry and is aero. Gearing is pretty flexible nowadays with a lot of different options and I am happy with a 38x10-44 gearing. The difference is marginal compared to a road bike. Biggest advantage is the space I save in my cellar. Second biggest advantage is the flexibility when on holidays. With 2 sets of wheels I can ride everything. Would need 4 bikes with my wife otherwise… For the average rider I think this is more important than saving a few minutes on your ride !

[jbrownky]

I've started doing a 2 wheel set up this year on my 2022 Giant Revolt advanced pro 1. I love it! Works perfectly for me. I put Schwalbe Pro Ones on the stock Carbon wheels that came with the bike and put my Gravel King SKs on a set of used DT Swiss aluminum wheelset. I like the aluminum too because I was always concerned about damaging my carbon wheelset. It's not perfect for everyone but I think it's awesome and I think it would be great for a lot of people who, like me, just ride for fun and fitness. I'm about distance and confort more than speed so any speed I lose on my road tire set up is of no concern to me at all. I love it!

[nerigarcia]

I use my gravel bike to commute on. I have another set of wheels with 32c road tires and it works nicely. The geometry is a little more comfortable for commuting than my road bike so that's a plus. It doesn't seem as fast but it goes plenty fast to get me to work without overexerting myself. With a 1x and 11-speed there are more than enough gears to suit my route. I like the setup so much that I'm getting a custom steel all-road bike made with similar specs which I can use as my all-arounder and may just replace my road race bikes as I don't ride that fast anymore anyway.

[garyhocking]

Nice video. I'm riding a Giant Revolt, and use 2 wheelsets. Easton EC70 AX with gravel tires and Vision Metron 55 SL with road tires. After riding the road setup for a while, I found no difference to my endurance road bike. Gave it to my son.

[patphilloccap]

Riding a custom Ti frame gravel bike which doubles as my road bike. Got 2 wheelsets for the 2 uses. Only rant I can give right now would be the brake caliper adjustments I need to do every time I switch wheelsets. Great video, kudos!

[michealwhite]

I use my steel framed Jamis Renegade Expat as a road bike. I am also able to keep up, and even surpass a good number of my fellow club riders on carbon fibre road bikes. It's all about the legs. I do have a road bike, but I find I have more versatility riding my gravel. I can decide on a whim to jump on a few gravel trails if I so chose.