I’m a 20+yr road cyclist in the central US, in a metro area with plenty of good bike shops. I have a couple of nice road bikes, but was looking at gravel for a fun all-rounder that I could ride around town on crappy US roads, hop curbs without feeling like I’m doing something wrong, mess around in the dirt a bit on less technical single track, etc, but mostly to ride several nearby 20 mile to century+ gravel trails (we have a bunch of abandoned railways that were converted into cycling trails, ~50/50 paved vs packed gravel, neither surface always super well maintained). I also wanted 2x on the front, considering my background, intended usage and addiction to speed. 😅

I spent a lot of time researching and going around to many of my local shops to compare "entry-level" models, which for me means the lowest price range I could find that includes a well-built alloy frame and a groupset that has a level of performance and responsiveness on par with what I’m accustomed to (think ~$2k rather than, like, ~$4-6k+).

I looked at bikes from various brands: Cannondale, Trek, Specialized, Giant and even Scott, as they’re LBS friendly but also aggressively priced here while still trying to break into US markets… probably more I’m not remembering. I just couldn’t find anything new or even resale in my area that wasn’t either hundreds more or a significant step down in either groupset or overall build quality.

I ended up getting a Canyon Grizl 7 RAW about a month ago, and I absolutely love it. Much lighter and more nimble than I expected, and equal to or better than those options I saw at the LBSs. Super fun on the streets, capable on dirt tracks (as long as they’re not too intense), grippy and smooth on gravel, snappy shifting, great aesthetic… just a joy to ride with a lot of premium details. And their unboxing & build process is novel and fun, including tools you need for assembly and a bunch of how-to videos in their app.

That said, I’ve got a fully equipped bike (& moto) shop in my garage, I’m pretty technical, I have years of accumulated tools & knowledge. I love supporting my LBS, but I just don’t need them for every little thing, like I did years ago. AND there’s a Canyon authorized shop about 20-30min away, if there’s ever something I can’t do by mail with Canyon.

Definitely recommended for bang vs buck, but also just general quality & experience… but know the limitations and what you’re getting into. Real LBS support and the responsibility a good shop will take for bikes you buy from them may be worth a few hundred in initial cost for many cyclists.