The history of the Gravel

The history of the Gravel

The birth of Gravel bikes

If we want to give a geographical location to the birth of these bikes we have to fly overseas to the rough roads of Oregon, where some cyclists; tired of the constant quarrels with motorists and the presence only of fast roads, decided to look for alternative routes.

The alternatives were the dusty roads of the highlands of the Columbia River that could be travelled with the increasingly popular mountain bikes, but as we know, in the 80s a pure cyclist did not recognise a real bike in that sense. Hence the idea of equipping one's racing bikes with a tyre more suitable for rough roads.

The result was a strong movement in the United States which led to the birth of competitions such as Trans Iowa or Dirty Kanza in Kansas  which also launched the phenomenon overseas.

(credit Celeste Mathias)

The expansion of these bikes has also led them to being adapted for long journeys thanks to the evolution of bikepacking.

Today gravel riding has forcefully entered the world of cycling where more and more cyclists choose to spend days away from traffic and busy roads and instead, out enjoying their natural environment.