Gravel Bikes

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Stephen
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We have a Cycle2work scheme on at work and I'm tempted to take advantage of it, initially I was sold on e bike but am now thinking gravel bike may be more suitable, do any seasoned cyclists have any recommendations or advice as to what I should be looking for.
Thanks
 
All depends on the terrain and distance over which you will cycle.

A good hybrid is my preference as a suitable all-rounder.
 

Some discussion here.
 
An Ebike will give you motor assistance, good if you are new to cycling and are unfit (or have a health issue) when you have a lot of hills, plan on cycling long distance over 2 hours or so or at a high pace as part of a group. Ebikes come in the same formats as normal cycles - MTB, hybrid, road bike, gravel bike
You have to pedal to have the motor assistance, if you stop pedalling the assistance stops, i have heard that there is limited duration i.e 2 hours of constant use, so if used intermittently it will last longer so I would investigate that if going for an Ebike. I know of a couple of people new to road riding that have used ebikes to ride with seasoned cyclists on the road at a pace that they would not of been able to maintain and built thier fitness before switching to a lighter non-ebike

A gravel bike is a road bike with wider clearance in the forks and rear of the frame to allow wider tyres to fit. It may have a slightly more upright riding position than a similar road bike.
If you plan to cycle 20+ miles at a fair pace on a mix of paved and unpaved surfaces then a gravel bike would be better than a road bike or hybrid.
Road bikes have 25mm-28mm wide slick or slightly grooved tyres, Gravel tyres are 35mm+ and have quite a bit of tread
Quite a few people are buying Gravel bikes and using a middle ground tyre - wider than 28mm and more tread than a standard road tyre and riding them rather than a road bike so they have best of both worlds.
If you plan to ride short distances at your leisure than a hybrid would be the best option as this is quite upright riding position and straight handlebars rather than road style curved bars with drops.

I would determine what you plan to ride on surface wise and what sort of distances as this will dictate the best option for you.
 
Most cycle to work schemes don't cover most electric bikes.

There's a limit on what you can spend and typically this doesn't cover the cost of a decent ebike.
 
I'd go for a Hybrid or a maybe a Mountain bike with more suitable tyres ( A sort of Hybrid) As pointed out it depends on what you wish to use it for, What do you want to use it for ? Off ,road, mainly road or a combination of both and what sort of distances will you use it for ? Do you intend to transport much when you use it,
 
I think the cycle scheme limits have been raised or removed a couple of years back (though your particular scheme or workplace might still have a limit).

It is possible to buy e mountain bikes now, so the ebike doesn’t have to take away the off road side of the gravel bike. It’ll still be heavier, easier up hills, have some range after which the battery is flat, require less fitness for a day out, and cost more.

I’d find a local bike shop that would hire me one of each for half a day or a day. Ideally a shop that you can then do the cycle scheme with. Take them out and then work out whether batteries are appealing or not.

All this may be moderated by the current bike and part shortage / price rises, but good luck!

(I’ve got a gravel bike, but that’s about my idea of fun.)
 
Thanks for the input and advice, I went for a Trek MTB in the end and it should be ready this week.
 
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