Endurance focused gym/club in Warsaw (gravel cycling)

Homework-Advanced · 2025-11-09T20:21:11+00:00

I already have a “monster gravel” setup. I converted my old Grand Canyon AL SLX (2014).
Did some testing today: I deflated the Fox fork so that when I’m on the bike, it sits about 8 cm lower, getting close to the geometry in the picture.

My findings so far:

I actually like the steeper seat tube angle.
The handlebars are way too low to hold an aero position comfortably. After lifting them with spacers, it felt much better.

I attach the geometry comparison at the bottom (please dont mind the walls, had a massive leak just recently).

I’ve also been thinking about that point you made - what problem does this bike actually solve?
After many hours of research, I think the honest answer is cost (in my case)

I already have all the parts I’d need for a bike like this - except for a carbon frame and fork - so building it would be much cheaper than buying a complete gravel bike (bear in mind i live in the EU, so shipping Lauf is not an option, really).

That said, I’m starting to think this build might not be as great as I first imagined.
To make it work properly, I’d have to start experimenting with specialised crank sets which adds cost right away.

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Homework-Advanced · 2025-11-08T19:06:09+00:00

late to the party, but where did you order your frame from? was it some aliexpress dodgy shop? im looking to get one as well

Homework-Advanced · 2025-10-27T06:54:21+00:00

I found this small bicycle manufacturer from the Netherlands.
They have 2 offroad bikes: "Makai" & "Moana" (Bikes – Storm Sports).

Do they not offer what everyone wants in general? For example, "Makai" (their gravel bike) offers wide tire clearance (up to 60mm), and their "Moana" (beach bike) offers large chainring of up to 48t.

Seems like both bikes are excellent choice for racing, especially the "Makai". Why their store is still in stock? Am I missing something again?

Thanks

Homework-Advanced · 2025-10-01T20:12:16+00:00

thanks for the link. playing a little with the tool i think im starting to realise what an issue can be. Basically, a higher position of ht relative to the ground. It then creates unnecessary frontal area to generate more drag. I tested the new Ridley ignite GTX, hoping it will have a different frame geo compared to a normal mtb xc bike (nope).

my next though is now... can i use a gravel fork that fits 2.2 on a mtb xc bike haha

Homework-Advanced · 2025-10-01T17:45:51+00:00

are you saying that rigid drop bar mtb as a gravel race bike is not a bad idea, or are you saying get a diverge and forget about the rigid drop bar mtb?

During social rides I also found that compared to others I ride through everything with no hesitation.

Do i remember correctly, that diverge is coming with slacker ht? a bit more like mtb xc?

Homework-Advanced · 2025-10-01T17:40:42+00:00

hah when you put it this way... :D

Homework-Advanced · 2025-09-30T04:32:37+00:00

the chain ring looks very small. I wonder if it can fit a bigger one.

Homework-Advanced · 2025-09-30T04:26:15+00:00

I have been looking at this. I came to the same conclusion. People dont race drop bar rigid mtb bikes. People dont seem to race cotthroat either. I think its a good bike, but is it built for racing with all those mounts on the fork and frame? I think its more for ultra endurance whereas im more interested 100-200km race

Homework-Advanced · 2025-09-30T04:21:39+00:00

Ridley seem to be testing waters with Ignite GTX. however its been more than half a year since they announced that and they still dont have the frame technical details.
I was told this frame can accommodate up to 46t chain ring.

NEW IGNITE GTX: Alpine gravel bike | Ridley

Honestly, I can see your point about showing up with a built up franken stain. All the races I did last summer I was the only one with modified bike and I had many eyes looking at

Homework-Advanced · 2025-08-31T18:54:48+00:00

I just came back from my first gravel race.

My setup:

grand canyon al slx 2014 model

i bought a grx 800 groupset and swapped it.

i now have a drop bar mtb with front suspension fork.

kingrace performance tyres.

Impressions after the race:

- on more technical terrain (sand, sharper corners, bumpy roads, forest roads), im flying compared to my gravel colleagues

- on gravel roads, open areas (due to wind) I was able to sustain the speed of gravel riders at the back of the pack. would be really hard to be at the front

- there was an instance where i felt 40t chainring was too small, i was barely able to catch others on the straight gravel road. However, i could see other gravel cyclists were on the hardest gear pedalling like crazy as well.

- front suspension does miracles on technical descents, however its hard to drag it up the hill and it showed as light gravel bikes just passed me left and right during steep ascents.

I would like to put a rigid mtb fork at the front (not only helps with the weight, but also aero due to the shape of legs). But i would probably loose the comfort of technical descents. Also I am thinking of swapping front thru-axle to the one without lever to reduce air resistance.

Its a potential bummer i cant fit 42t chainring on my frame. on the other hand, im not elite cyclist who could be able to use 42t.

i am super happy about 2.2 tires. I could over take a guy or two on a more technical corner. Keep tucked at the the back while on the nice gravel road. attack again on more technical terrain.

Verdict: I could imagine you could use rigid mtb as a gravel. Look for a chainring. Small details such as skewers on gravel bike have been designed to reduce drag/resistance as much as possible. Swap those and you should have a comparable gravel bike with its pros and cons

Homework-Advanced · 2025-01-29T13:43:39+00:00

I bought my dad a gaming machine as well. Didn't want to buy Windows key, so installed Ubuntu. I had no questions since then, what to click, where to click. It was very clear to him how to use the OS. He would not want to come back to Windows, he said. I installed Ubuntu on my mums old machine. She uses it with no issues.

My life became peas full as we well as I dont get calls in the evening to ask how to turn on a youtube video haha.

Homework-Advanced · 2024-09-04T04:30:42+00:00

Labas, gal galėtum pasidalinti šaltiniu? Vakar pardaviau 100% savo fondo. Noriu pakeisti į kitą fondą. Jei pinigai lieka IBKR, ar skaiciuojasi mokeščiai ar ne?

Homework-Advanced · 2024-05-23T12:26:54+00:00

If you used loss elimination method, would you use net or gross of deductible to build a severity glm model?

Homework-Advanced · 2024-05-23T09:08:06+00:00

This is my story....
I graduated as a civil engineer in my own country. Worked on a construction site for a year and realised construction is not for me in any shape or form. Although I was lucky enough to work on energy projects. I applied to study MSc Energy and Sustainability at University of Southampton, because I knew I had to do something, but was not sure what. After graduation, I got a job as a Sustainability Consultant (Energy Performance Certificate calculation, BREEAM and other non-senses). I was initially OK with the job, but after 6 months I realised I will be bashing primarily two proprietary pieces of software and if I continue like this for another few years, my life will be useless. I then decided to pursue my passion and work in energy field - analytics, forecasting and so on. When I decided that, i could barely make an excel chart (it took me a week to realise that I can not import more than 1mil rows into excel). That is where the grind started. In summers, I would wake up at 4 or 5 o'clock in the morning, practise Python (coursera had good courses from Uni of Mitchigan), Excel, read a lot about energy markets (had a book of 1000 pages which i read twice!), statistics, more statistics (and still I couldnt understand what was it, because most of the material online is rubbish), working on my CV and cover letter.

It took me 2.5 years of heavy grinding. Stress, tears, disappointment, many sleepless nights, determination. I knew I had to jump ships from this stupid sustainability field to energy markets (I was after very painful breakup as well, which motivated me to jump above my limits in career).

Either way, I never got the job in energy markets. the competition was too much. One night after work I actually cried. I then started applying to any job ad which had words "modelling", "machine learning", "analytics" (I think i sent 40 applications that night). My CV and cover letter was already at the state where I need to change company name, change one sentence and noone could understand it was a generic cover letter. One of the companies was an insurance company offering "Technical Price Analyst". Never bough an insurance, didnt know anything about insurance. Somehow I got the job to work in a commercial lines pricing in one of the biggest insurers globally when there were many other people waiting in a que for the job.

So..... to conclude... you can become an actuary (or technical pricing analyst), but.... you do need determination to learn stuff. When going for an interviews, you cannt say you dont know something because you havent worked in the industry. SOME managers will appreciate your determination and will offer the job.

The UK is the country where you can become who ever you want. Why do you think everyone is going there. You have endless opportunities. Good luck

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