If I may ask, do you have a roadie or a mountain bike background?
Yes, technique is a factor. So is geometry. But tires will have a significant impact, too. Certainly, swapping tires for something grippier will have a much more tangible improvements to handling than tweaks in geometry.
You could even just change the front tire for something grippier. Your tires, the Terreno Drys, have only these little hexagons as tread and a few, short lugs on the side. Instead, go for something that has more treat like Schwalbeās X-One Allround or something similar. Alternatively, you could even try a fast, narrow mountain bike tire if your fork allows. Before you start thinking about rolling resistance, I would argue that right now you are washing out in corners and probably donāt have complete confidence in your bike and your bike handling skills.
Tires will have a huge impact. For example, some tires have a more rounded profile and a smoother transition from center knobs to side knobs. So you donāt have a sudden change (e. g. loss) in grip, which makes it much easier to control your bike as you have a bit of warning before completely losing traction. Other tires are more squarish and they tend to have a less graceful transition. Usually, tires with little profile like your Terreno Drys will have a more squarish profile to them.
There is also an element of technique involved (duh!). But Iād practice with tires that have more profile to them, which makes learning to control your cornering easier.
Check out this video from hardtail party. He explains the different techniques used on older versus modern geometry bikes. He is talking about mountain bikes but the principles apply to gravel bikes as well.
This is fantastic. It explains so much. As I was mentioning above my road bike has a very short center, so I tend to scoot back and over the outside leg/pedal on cornering. I have been doing the same thing on my gravel bike, which seems to be the opposite of what I should be doing.
You may be right on tread transition. I am most familiar with Gravel Kings from my other bikes, and reading lots last night I think I may prefer or be used to a more linear transition to the side knobs. Researching front tires - like the GKs, Rene Herse Juniper Ridge, Schwalbe bites or ultrabites.
And as an adult I am mostly a roadie. My childhood and teens were spent on BMX bikes in the 80s. I am not as fearless as I once was.
The day I crashed it was probably closer to 26-28. I have been gradually trying lower psi, starting at around 35 and was liking around 25-30. I weigh ~72 KGs, the rims are hookless, and the tires are 47, but measure 50 on 25 ID rims.
I agree 100%, which is why I use my cyclo X bike ,a Scott Addict, for just about anything. Also my Titanium Ibis (2002 approx) 26" wheel MTB. All my bikes are old school geometry-wise, and I use a short stem.
I had the opportunity to try a couple of slack front angled trail bikes, and didnt like them. It was also harder to get round tight corners.
I would try out some different bikes, if you can get an opportunity. And practise a lot, on soft dirt,sand or mud, so when you crash it wonāt hurt so much. And wear protective gear . Because if you are trying to find the limit of grip, you will crash.
However good you are, you could benefit from doing a course with a coach eg Lee likes Bikes. As featured on the TR podcast 127 that wont play
Interesting. I was using a Ridley X-night CX bike w/ 38mm Gravel Kings as my gravel bike. Then I built up a Colnago G3X gravel specific bike w/ same tires. I didnāt closely research geometry (math hurts my brain), but I wondered if the handling might not be as nimble on the Colnago vs the CX bike. Not so. So far the Colnago handles brilliantly. Did a 100k race a few weeks ago with a lot of challenges - big loose gravel, sand, jeep track, 4k of climbing. Dropped the pack of 8 I was with and soloed the last 15 miles. I really pleased with it (still paying the credit card bill though)
The gravel kings are good, but at least the various models I am aware of do not have aggressive side knobs. These might help you get more traction. You can see that on the Schwalbeās I linked to.
Also, proper technique tends to translate well across different geos. If you have the right habits, a bike with a more progressive geometry may make many things more easy, but if you donāt have the fundamentals down (enough), I donāt think thatāll help you much. And depending on the terrain, geometry might not be a big factor at all.
Gravel Kings are great tiresā¦ā¦but they suck for people on your wheel, or at least on the gravel we normally ride. Hard packed sand trail w/ kitty litter over the topā¦ā¦GKās keep flicking small pieces of gravel to anyone behind you. Like riding behind a sand blasterā¦
Ben Cathro from Pink Bike also recently did a series called How To Bike which I thought did a pretty good job of explaining things while keeping it simple and entertaining.
This graphic was a game changer for me. THANK YOU! Finally a way to visualize and bring everything together. The big no longer felt like it was fighting me or visa versa because of me giving opposite inputs.
This.
OP, it is a matter of handling skills. Sure, equipment can make it easier to handle, but good handling skills overcome any equipment. It is atypical to wash out on gravel unless you have too much speed for the surface and corner youāre approaching. Some YouTube videos and consistency practicing will pay dividends. All riding, but especially off-road, is about line choice.
I wouldnāt swipe your CC to try to fix it (you already have a gravel bike w relatively big tires, which should make it easier to handle).
Tire Pressure - the right tire at the wrong pressure is just as bad as the wrong tire. I use gravel tires with very little tread, but when I get my pressure dialed I have all the traction I need.
Thereās a lot of good points here. I just want to jump in to add one thing I think is pretty actionable. Thereās a drill I do a lot during cyclocross season to program my brain and body in sync with my bike, especially since Iām really strangely proportioned and have yet to find a bike that both fits me and handles. I go to a baseball diamond (or similar hard but loose surface that doesnāt hurt to fall on) and I trace out a series of bends, from gentle to severe. I then go through and ride them at gradually increasing speed, and I find the point at which my tires start to break loose. The goal is to get the tires to break traction, but I want the rear to break first. I adjust my body positioning until it does. Then I go back to playing with speed and how tight the turn is, but the goal is always to ride that limit and find the balance. I fall down a lot doing this one, but itās one of the most valuable drills I do all year. You donāt have to go fast, the consequences are low, and it gives you an easy way to isolate variables in handling. Body positioning, fit, tire type, pressure, pick one and change it. You can learn a lot in half an hour that way.
As another data point on tires, I find the opposite of a lot of folks in this thread in that for those loose-over-hard conditions I am more confident with the handling of a semi-slick tire (like the Terreno Zero or Donnelly Strada USH) at very low pressure. I find that unless the ground is wet or soft, the knobs donāt add a lot for me and for my riding style they behave a bit less predictably. So adding knobs may work for you, and it may not. The best way to find out is to try.
