HOW WE’ VE EVOLVED
As gravel has moved from a niche curiosity to a fully-fledged industry, so has its steeds, adapted to be ever more versatile across rough and remote terrain. How did we get here, and where are we going next?
IT’ S A QUESTION AS EXISTENTIAL as“ Where do I come from?” when we wonder how gravel bikes evolved.
The easiest way is to start with the modern-day gravel bike, find its influences and work backwards from there: double triangle frame = road bikes. Slacker head angle = CX bikes. Frame storage = touring bikes. 2.1in tyres = hardtail mountain bikes. Aero features = TT bikes. Easy right? But where is the fun in that? Rather, let’ s take a journey back in time.
NEW REQUIREMENTS
In the early 2000s, road cyclists in the US of A’ s Midwest ventured onto a network of rough and remote gravel roads: the perfect backdrop for endurance, solitude and a challenge unlike any that existed( at the time).
The setting was textbook gravel as we know it today, but the equipment needed to play catch-up. Road bikes weren’ t up to the task, and mountain bikes were overkill. Something new was needed. And it was needed in haste.
But good things take time. Like a nod to Mary Shelley’ s Frankenstein, riders needed cyclocross bikes, just with wider tyres. They wanted a mountain-bike-style drivetrain, just with higher ratios. These true pioneers started with a platform, often either a thrift CX frame or a retired hardtail, and added the respective parts, each somehow converging in the middle. Drop bars were repurposed, tyres were sourced, and cantilever brakes were cobbled. The first“ frankenbikes” were born. These early experiments sparked a revelation: a bike that could handle gravel efficiently, comfortably and at speed would be something special, regardless of origin. In fact, the origin was half the appeal.
By the early 2010s, brands started listening, innovating and creating. Salsa Cycles was one of the pioneers with its 2012 Warbird, a bike specifically designed for gravel racing. Around the same time, events began exploding in popularity, drawing gravel pioneers from around the world. The rise of blogging and social media meant riders could share their adventures with evocative photos. Gravel was evolving from a
80 NEDBANK GRAVEL BURN