If you’re looking for some wheels to knock around town, your options are nearly endless. I know because I’ve tried just about every one. I’ve been living and riding in New York City for more than a decade and have sampled the gamut: road bikes, mountain bikes, folding bikes, e-bikes, cargo bikes, cruisers and fixies, not to mention all manner of hybrid combos. And I have to say that perhaps my favorite city bike hails from a segment you wouldn’t expect: gravel.
Which I realize probably sounds nuts. After all, gravel bikes are designed not for city streets but for rough-and-tumble off-road trails. The idea is to combine the adrenaline rush of mountain biking with the speed of road biking. And when ridden roughshod over dirt and sand and rocks and grass and, well, gravel, these bikes are loads of fun. But to my surprise, I’ve found that rides like Evil’s Chamois Hagar (pictured) and Ritte’s Satyr are actually kinda perfect for the urban jungle. Here are a few reasons why.
1. They’re Nimble
Quick history lesson: over the past decade or so, as dropper posts became more common on mountain bikes, manufacturers realized the handlebars were getting a little cluttered with controls. So many switched to 1x drivetrains, meaning all the gear shifting could happen on the right handlebar and leave the left free for a dropper post trigger. One happy byproduct: quickly shifting gears during ascents and descents got much easier.
A lot of modern gravel bikes have picked up on that cue, whether they have dropper posts or not. And this quality turns out to be hugely beneficial in cities, as you don’t have to calculate gear ratios while navigating a traffic-packed avenue, negotiating a gnarly turn or accelerating down a wide-open street. In concert with wide, bouncy tires, your road time becomes much more playful than precarious.