Post your gravel bike

[Nobody]

@warthog

You appear to be very budget and safety focussed. Essentially you appear to have chosen what is basically a MTB without suspension because it is cheaper and has less maintenance costs and because it is less capable, so if you fall off you will be going slower and be less injured. Further the trails you ride will be more challenging because it is less capable. Is that a fair summary?

I bought what I will call an ATB (which typically don’t have suspension) because I don’t need suspension. Big enough tyres are good enough. I bought it not because it was cheap, but because I thought it would be the best tool for where I ride. If I was concerned about safety, then I wouldn’t ride a motorcycle more than I drive a car. Suspension on bikes for recreational gravel and singletrack riding is overrated IMO.

$3K wasn’t a cheap purchase for me. I could have got a Polygon Trail dually for the same price. But I would have been overbiked, which is less challenging and therefore less fun.