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Ignore the naysayers, gravel suspension WILL make you faster! Here's why I think it should be standard on all gravel bikes

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Liam Mercer's picture

Liam Mercer

Since beginning his mountain biking career while working as a resort photographer in Greece in 2014, Liam became a freelance contributor at off.road.cc in 2019. From there, he’s climbed the journalism job ladder from staff writer to deputy technical editor, now finding his place as technical editor.

Partial to the odd enduro race, heart rate-raising efforts on slim-tyred cross-country bikes, hell-for-leather e-MTB blasts or even casual gravel jaunts, there’s not a corner of off-road cycling where Liam fears to tread. With more than 40 bike reviews under his belt and hundreds more on MTB, e-MTB and gravel parts and accessories, Liam’s expertise continues to be cemented and respected by the industry.

10 comments

1 month 2 days ago

I bought a Giant RevoltX, with Rockshox Rudy gravel suspension. Over rougher gravel - like you get on the typical forestry roads in UK and Ireland - it's a revelation. You have much more control on descents, it's just another level (as anyone whose ridden rigid v front-sus MTBs down trails will know). But the real difference is in endurance - after hours of riding, you're just not as fatigued as you would be when your arms have to take all the battering.

There is a down-side. I've also ridden "gravel" in Spain, where it was more a mix of completely hard-packed dirt that was almost as smooth as UK tarmac, and concreted paths with smatterings of gravel over it, and lots of gradient. On those courses, there was little gain from the suspension, but the 1kg weight penalty of the suspension was noticable.

Investigating getting a rigid carbon fork, with the right adapters for headtube, for the smoother courses. Then the RevoltX will be perfectly adaptable for any kind of gravel.

1 month 3 days ago

I use my gravel bike basically as a ruggedised road bike, something that will take the stresses and strains that a poorly maintained British road inflects on you. I might do the odd bit of light off-road here and there but I really don't need the added weight and complexity of suspension. If I was doing anything "gnarly" enough to require suspension I'd prefer to be on a flat bar bike anyway.

I think "gravel" is quite a broad category, and unless it gets split into distinct sub-categories you're going to continue to see a wide variety of bikes within that category. Certainly some of them will have suspension, but I expect most of them will not.

1 month 4 days ago

If you really need suspension, just get a XC MTB.....

1 month 4 days ago

Thanks but no thanks. I want something simple and easy to maintain. As it is I find maintaining disc brakes a PITA, adding suspension is a no no for me. 

1 month 5 days ago

thrawed wrote:

 

The main reason people like rigid forks is because maintaining a suspension fork is a pain in the ass. Like look up the service intervals they expect you to do... Every 50 hours for a lower leg service? Every 100 hours for a damper and spring service??? It's obscene. If someone wants to deal with that they can go out of their way to pick a bike with one, or get one aftermarket, but it should definitely not be the standard.

 

Yep, I ran a bike repair business and suspension was a nightmare. First, nobody ever services their suspension until it fails. Then you have to disassemble the bike to send it off for 3 figure sums for servicing with no guarantee that the fork will be serviceable. 

Service yourself? Special tools, part specific spares, complex procedures, some involving risk of injury, and no guarantee you have a working fork are the end.

 

Imagine bleeding SRAM Avid disc brakes and multiply stress by 10.

1 month 5 days ago

Naysayer here.  There's nowhere near enough travel on gravel suspension forks to make an appreciable difference over high volume low pressure tubeless tyres which are probably already fitted, and if you want more travel you actually need cross country full susser.

There is no reason for gravel suspension - only to sell you more crap you dont need.

If popularised in 90's tubeless would have slowed the development of MTB suspension.

Its a sad state of affairs that suspension came before fat low pressure tyres.

1 month 5 days ago

Naysayer here.  There's nowhere near enough travel on gravel suspension forks to make an appreciable difference over high volume low pressure tubeless tyres which are probably already fitted, and if you want more travel you actually need cross country full susser.

There is no reason for gravel suspension - only to sell you more crap you dont need.

If popularised in 90's tubeless would have slowed the development of MTB suspension.

Its a sad state of affairs that suspension came before fat low pressure tyres.

1 month 5 days ago

The main reason people like rigid forks is because maintaining a suspension fork is a pain in the ass. Like look up the service intervals they expect you to do... Every 50 hours for a lower leg service? Every 100 hours for a damper and spring service??? It's obscene. If someone wants to deal with that they can go out of their way to pick a bike with one, or get one aftermarket, but it should definitely not be the standard.

Liam Mercer's picture
1 month 5 days ago

I'm here for full-face helmets on gravel bikes! Let's go!

Sredlums wrote:

 

Naysayer here.
The "it's going to make gravel faster" argument that seems to be the premise of this whole article, is missing the mark.

First of all, I don't think I've ever seen anyone debate that. Yes, in most circumstances it will probably be faster.
Are we all in a race now, though? Or is that a relatively minor subset of the gravel riders, and is the rest just out to have a good time? To challenge themselves a bit for their riding skills and stamina, enjoy the outdoors, and enjoy the fun that brings?
Why would those riders want to be home a few minutes earlier?

The very reason gravel riding became so popular, is that it harkens back to a simpler time, with uncomplicated bikes (yep, just like those early nineties mtbs, but more modern), and not just following predetermined mtb trails, but inviting exploration.
Suspension made mtbs more capable, but it also completely changed the sport, now involving body protection, full face helmets, suspension setups, high risk, bike parks, etc. etc.
I'll let everyone decide for themselves if this new mountain biking is better or more fun, but fact is that that new sport already exists. So why would we want to go the same route with gravel bikes?
Just keep it simple! After all, it seems that people are already having a blast on their gravel bikes.

 

1 month 5 days ago

Naysayer here.
The "it's going to make gravel faster" argument that seems to be the premise of this whole article, is missing the mark.

First of all, I don't think I've ever seen anyone debate that. Yes, in most circumstances it will probably be faster.
Are we all in a race now, though? Or is that a relatively minor subset of the gravel riders, and is the rest just out to have a good time? To challenge themselves a bit for their riding skills and stamina, enjoy the outdoors, and enjoy the fun that brings?
Why would those riders want to be home a few minutes earlier?

The very reason gravel riding became so popular, is that it harkens back to a simpler time, with uncomplicated bikes (yep, just like those early nineties mtbs, but more modern), and not just following predetermined mtb trails, but inviting exploration.
Suspension made mtbs more capable, but it also completely changed the sport, now involving body protection, full face helmets, suspension setups, high risk, bike parks, etc. etc.
I'll let everyone decide for themselves if this new mountain biking is better or more fun, but fact is that that new sport already exists. So why would we want to go the same route with gravel bikes?
Just keep it simple! After all, it seems that people are already having a blast on their gravel bikes.