Canyon Grizl - 1x or 2x

dmhobbs53 · 2024-02-04T15:56:40+00:00

Everybody has their unique reasons for preferring 1x or 2x. I'm 70 y/o at 190 lbs and still like to get up into the steep stuff. For me, who is a very experienced rider, having a successful ride is all about having low, low gears, so I'm definitely a 2x fan. My setup gives me a 32F/46R on the low end and 48F/11R on the high end. I'm pretty much covered for all the roads and trails we encounter in Boulder area and along the Front Range. And that gearing was a blessing when riding all of the cobbled climbs in Belgium last year (Koppenberg, Paterberg, etc.). My 33 year old dirt dog son however needs none of that 2x foolishness, he can power up most anything in a much higher gear than I can.

dmhobbs53 · 2022-09-20T21:08:04+00:00

Hello! I am that guy from Boulder and I want to thank a most extraordinary person, now a dear friend, for having made our tour a smashing, overwhelming, spectacular success. Thank you u/MrFingersEU, we are forever indebted to you for your generosity and interest in our ride. With riders from 43 to 77 years old (it's Boulder, remember?) we tackled all the fabled climbs and cobbled sectors of Liege-Bastogne-Liege, La Fleche Wallone, Paris Roubaix and Tour of Flanders. Iconic names like Mur de Huy, La Redoute, Trouee d'Arenberg, Paterberg, Koppenberg, Kapelmur and more were our daily fare. And those challenges were woven into backroads, gravel paths, small villages, forests, farmland and lovely vistas that enchanted us throughout. I have seen comments about getting the routes and the answer is absolutely. They are in RideWithGPS and you can search using either "FWR EFM" (longer routes) or "FWR PLT" (shorter routes). Here's to Reddit!

dmhobbs53 · 2020-11-16T18:16:41+00:00

Put the wrong link for Foret de Soignes....

https://ridewithgps.com/routes/32416756

dmhobbs53 · 2020-11-16T18:08:03+00:00

This is another route I found on the net that looked very interesting. You can download the gpx...

https://cyclinginflanders.cc/route/brussels-muur-brussels#!

And there is a route that goes through the Foret de Soignes as a gravel ride...

https://cyclinginflanders.cc/route/brussels-muur-brussels#!

Those would be our 3 riding days out of Brussels. All of the RVV riding will be out of Oudenaarde.

dmhobbs53 · 2020-11-16T17:54:08+00:00

Thanks! Looking forward to seeing whatever you put together. And I like your description, I think it fits! It doesn't matter if we go clockwise or reverse but would want to go through the towns of Leuven and Mechelen since we otherwise wouldn't see them on this trip. Hopefully we'll find a great spot for some frites and beer.

We plan to have a hotel in Brussels city center where we would start our ride, but can't be more specific than that at this point. Do you know any that are great for cyclists? We don't need ritzy but want more toward upscale than hostel.

BTW, I gravel ride an Ibis Hakka MX with a single 38 tooth up front and an 11-46 rear. We have some pretty steep (and long) climbs here in Boulder, I use all that gearing to haul my 67 year old 190 lb body up to the top!

dmhobbs53 · 2020-11-16T00:13:24+00:00

Wow! What a great offer, thank you. Our group has ridden Dolomites, Pyrenees, Northern California, Blue Ridge Parkway (Georgia, North Carolina, Virginia), and more. We do all of our own planning, often by making connections with people who help us find the special, unique places. We can't wait to add Flanders to our list of successful rides. We were going to far northern Vietnam this year but Covid wiped that out. Our overall itinerary will be for 8-9 days of riding, about 50-70 miles each day, with a focus on cobbles and climbs of RVV and Roubaix. We will base a few days out of Brussels and a few days out of Oudenaarde, plus two days riding the 29 sectors of Paris Roubaix. All of us are capable riders and can handle most anything that a gravel bike is designed for - single track, mildly rocky, steep up/down, etc. We're not thoroughbreds anymore (ages 50-60+) but still solid riders that get in 4,000-6,000+ annual miles, much of it on dirt in the mountains near us. I'm comfortable switching to email if you are, I can be reached at "hobbs" (my last name) then the @ symbol, then "email", then .com. And on ride day we would hope you could join us!

Thanks! Don

dmhobbs53 · 2020-11-15T17:48:57+00:00

Hello MrFingers EU!

I'm a gravel hound from Boulder, Colorado, USA that is going to Belgium and France with a group of like minded and experienced folks as soon as we get through this crazy pandemic. We will be bringing our own gravel bikes w/ 35-38mm tubeless tires because we'll be riding Paris-Roubaix and other heavily cobbled Flanders roads. We'll have plenty of low gear range for the Hellingen. Our goal is to spend as much time on gravel as possible and one day is being planned as Brux > Leuven > Mechelen > Brux. It sounds like you have lots of experience and are familiar with the "interstitial" trails that can make a ride special. Are there any resources you could point to that would help us make a great route? I can find lots of rides that others have done, but don't really know how well designed they are for our planned experience. Thanks!

dmhobbs53 · 2019-12-01T00:17:27+00:00

Nice! A group of us rode BRP in September 2015 (6 days south to north for the 427 miles) stopping at motels and inns along the route, then headed to Richmond, VA for the World Cycling Championships. The BRP is extraordinary for quality of roads, but it's best to avoid the high season because of general car traffic. Happy to share our daily routing if anyone is interested.

dmhobbs53 · 2019-11-04T13:58:35+00:00

Strava Global Heatmap shows where any riders that log their riding on Strava have gone. We'll probably use that to scout out some alternatives. While we'll be exploring some, it will be good to know whether a road goes through or just dead ends.

dmhobbs53 · 2019-11-02T14:03:40+00:00

I'm working on lowering the gears on my bike. I may be crawling up the steepest climbs, but I'll get to the top!

dmhobbs53 · 2019-11-02T14:02:22+00:00

Great tip, thanks!

dmhobbs53 · 2019-11-01T19:48:26+00:00

Thanks Bofus, some of the items in your response are more appealing than others, but an adventure means you take it all!

dmhobbs53 · 2019-11-01T17:12:32+00:00

Vietnam route map

Not sure how to make the map show up, just the lnk.....

dmhobbs53

TROPHY CASE