10 articles
Mountain biking, gravel, bikepacking and bike touring: choosing a bike, planning rides and going further.
A gravel road rolling between farm fields, a stuffed frame bag and a whole day ahead: riding off the pavement has a lot going for it, as long as you start out on the right bike with a solid plan. Here you’ll find what you need to choose between a mountain bike, a gravel bike, a touring bike and an e-bike based on the terrain you have in mind, then dial in the basics, like riding position, frame size, tire width and tire pressure.
Planning a ride starts with a realistic route: reading elevation gain and surface types from a map or a GPS track, figuring out where to find water and food, and knowing where you could take shelter or cut the day short. For bikepacking and bike touring, we cover how to spread the load across your bags, what you really end up carrying, camping with a bike, and taking it on a train or bus, where the rules vary from one carrier to another.
Riding off-road also means knowing the rules. Not every trail is open to bikes, national parks, national forests and state parks can each set their own restrictions, and sharing the trail with hikers and horseback riders comes with etiquette worth knowing. These rules come straight from official sources and agency websites, with a link to the source and the date it was checked. E-bikes get the same treatment, since land managers don’t all handle them the same way.
Maintenance has its place too, without turning your garage into a bike shop: fixing a flat, taking care of a chain, spotting wear before it leaves you stranded far from the trailhead. For gear, we start from manufacturers’ specs, read with a critical eye and sourced, and a test, when there is one, is told by the person who ran it. Beginners will find clear basics, and experienced riders more in-depth topics, starting with the never-ending debate over the perfect gravel tire width.
BikingHow-to guide
On a bike light box, lumens get top billing. In the law, they show up nowhere. Germany reasons in lux and a cut-off beam, France and Britain in color and mode, and US states in feet of visibility, one state at a time. Here’s how to read those numbers before you buy, starting with the American rules.
Julien de Jurquet··9 min
Sold Secure, ART, FUB 2 roues: three European bike lock labels, what they measure, why their levels can’t be converted, and what insurers ask for.
Julien de Jurquet··10 min
Chainring, cog, tire size: work out gear inches and meters of development, compare two drivetrains and choose gearing for hills or loaded touring.
Julien de Jurquet··11 min
Lights, bells, helmets, vests: what France, the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland and Britain require of cyclists, and what is advice only.
Damien Poirier-Boucard··11 min
La Loire à Vélo is 392 miles (631 km) from Cuffy to Saint-Brevin, France: the easy sections, miles per day, the train back, luggage transfers, and costs.
Julien de Jurquet··11 min
Bikepacking: where each bag goes, how much it can carry according to the makers, the limits to check, the lights the law requires, and a printable gear list.
Julien de Jurquet··14 min
Why cold weather cuts e-bike range, when it’s OK to charge, and what charge level to store the battery at over winter, per Bosch, Shimano, Yamaha, and Bafang.
Julien de Jurquet··11 min
Mountain bike and gravel tire pressure: manufacturers’ charts by rider weight, the front-to-rear split, the terrain, and the limits of your rims.
Julien de Jurquet··15 min
A 500, 625, or 750 Wh battery: what watt-hours actually measure, what a climb costs, and what really drains the battery on an electric mountain bike.
Julien de Jurquet··9 min
Mountain bike size: why size charts differ from brand to brand, what reach and inseam really tell you, and how to choose when you’re between sizes.
Julien de Jurquet··8 min
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