Lack of front suspension on the Check Point is well addressed with a RedShift Spots ShockStop Stem. I used one on my 2015 Boone (the papa to the Check Point) and found the ShockStop to be a perfect match to the Trek Isospeed.
For comparison I got the 2020 Salsa Warbird carbon, with it’s VRS rear and installed the ShockStop stem. I think the Trek Isospeed is superior to the VRS on the 'bird, for typical absorption in my area. That is even considering the VRS suspension AND the carbon Salsa post on my build. I am surprised, and a bit disappointed that it’s not as good as the Trek.
I have not spent any time on the recent Diverge for comparison, unfortunately.
TBH, the single biggest driver of how comfortable a gravel bike feels is the tire size. I think the most important thing if picking a gravel bike for comfort on long gravel rides is tire clearance.
The Salsa Warbird was the other bike I was looking at.
Totally agree on tires, but all else being equal, the frame and such still matter.
Case in point:
I have ridden my Boone for 3 hard seasons, on a 35mm tire and been perfectly comfortable the entire time.
My new Warbird rolls on 40mm tires and lower pressure than I did on the Boone. Despite that (and it being the quality Teravail Cannonball) I have gotten kidney pain in two particular situations and stretches of road that I never experienced it on the Boone.
Lots of real factors in play, but by most measures, the Warbird should be more comfortable in most/all situations. I was shocked in a bad way when I got those bouts of pain. They felt exactly like what I experienced when I started riding gravel on an aluminum CX bike. It is a brutal pain that I don’t wish on anyone.
All that to say, yes… tires do matter and should be considered, but they are not a cure-all either.
Thanks I’m 99% road (poor quality) but want some versatility for a few mixed road/gravel rides a year. I’ve got a gen1 Domane and 28c tires are too tight for safety reasons.
@zasxdcf2 How gnarly are you going to get? Where do you live? How tall of gear do you need for road riding (Do you use 53/11 frequently? )
The limitation with a gravel bike over a Tarmac is the limit of how big of a front chainring you can run. If you’re on group rides, over 30mph often, most of these bikes come with a 48t tops, which gets you to about 30-33mph. Sram’s AXS crankset / front derailleur get you a few more cogs at the expense of running a 9 or 10t fast gear out back, which isn’t ideal. Otherwise, there’s no real difference on the same tires.
On the dirt side, any time you’re touching dirt, you’re going to be faster on something 38c or up. The exception being pavement-smooth true roads. 42-50c if you’re hitting deform-able ground. If you’re hitting rocks and bump bigger than 3-4" you really need to start thinking about suspension so you don’t go over your handlebars.
On the “road bike” side - many disc aero bikes can take 33c tires now. Some “Endurance bikes” can take 35c. The Trek Domane can take 38-40c gravel tire. On the grave side, The best dual mode bikes are the ones without the ‘features’. A good set of flexy bars will do as much as many of these. The Cervelo (and 3t?) or a custom TI frameset are going to have the ‘raciest geometry’ (Tarmac like vs endurance fit - with a shorter head tube/ minimum bar height)
Last night I read some reviews and it sounds awesome. If I lived somewhere else would drive 2 hours this weekend to go demo it. But I do 2-4 rides a year on mixed road/gravel and 200 rides on paved roads.
For reference, here is my bike, and I have a fair bit of seat post exposed (long legs). Based on that, and adding in the VRS seat stays, (along with wider tires than the Boone) I figured this would be super plush by comparison.
As it happens, I own the RedShift ShockStop seat post (two of them via Kickstarter backing). I had hoped to not need it, since it is notably heavier than the stock carbon post. But I at least need to try it and see how I like it. I just need to get the Di2 battery adapter and give it a shot this season.
Something tells me it will be amazing and likely well worth the added weight, but we will see. I will report back once I get some rides on it. Depending on how that test goes, I may look for a better carbon flex post option.
I’d look at your seatpost (assuming same saddle). Most comfortable seatpost? | Mountain Bike Reviews Forum I had the same issue on my Crockett with the stock seatpost. Your Salsa looks OK, but it might be worth a test. I think Niner (RDO) makes the cheapest one. Ergon/Canyon has the softest non-suspension one.
The other this is mismatched F & R flexibility of the bars and post. At an extreme, if you’re bars are flopping up and down, you are pivoting on your pedals, while your bum is getting lifted and spanked.
Tire model matters, also the larger tire at the same pressure will ride harder (35c @ 50psi and 40c @ 50psi - the 40c will ride FIRMER than the 35c) due to casing tension.
I’d suggest you go to a Trek dealer, go for a ride on an Emonda, then a similar Checkpoint with the Emonda wheels/tires,… and then walk out of there with a Domane or Checkpoint - which ever has better paint. I think that would calm any worries in your bike about a Gravel bike as a One BIke. The other bikes you’re looking at just have different details. They’ll have the same road manners.
FWIW I can’t tell the difference between my AL Emonda and CF Checkpoint on the same wheels/ 25c tires (they have the same fit).
Yeah, I have the “Durable” casing for the Cannonballs (stock option, so I think it’s the “sidewall” option, not the “bead to bead”). Not as smooth as the “light and supple” version, but I don’t think this is a tank from the other reviews I have read.
I will check out those posts if I don’t like the Redshift one. Thanks for the suggestions
When I bought my Domane 5 years ago I did test rides on Emonda, Madone, Domane, Giant Defy, and Spec Roubaix. The Emonda (2015 or 2016 model) ended up at the bottom of the list, didn’t like it. The Domane fit like a glove, my fitter barely made changes.
More recently I’ve ridden a Madone but two sizes too small (college kid’s 54 frame - he is 1" shorter), and plan to do another round of test rides before making a decision. Based on that ride, on paper I like the Domane’s wider tires and H1.5 geometry (Project One). And I’ve been doing a few rides a year with 1-5 mile stretches of ‘gravel’ on current bike with 26c road tires, out here its pretty tame hard packed dirt with some loose rock and washboarding. Some of the roads I ride are worse than non-paved. Definitely plan to do a round of test rides before making a decision.
love this response thank you I quite often find myself pushing 52/15-17 which is like my cruising gear for my bike. I plan to run 40c tires when I do purchase and the gravel I will ride will be decently tame not to the need to a mountain bike or suspension I don’t think. In the winter time I will be doing more sole rides than anything so gearing for a 30mph group ride isn’t my biggest concern. Lastly I do want something that is raceable on gravel since I have my road race machine.
via Kickstarter backing). I had hoped to not need it, since it is notably heavier than the stock carbon post. But I at least need to try it and see how I like it. I just need to get the Di2 battery adapter and give it a shot this season.