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When you start your search for the best bikes on the market, you’ll soon discover why keen cyclists tend to own more than one. The main issue is one of diversity: the requirements of an aerodynamically optimised road racing machine are extremely different from an all-out mountain biking monster, after all. But town and country cyclists need no longer remortgage their home to pay for an arsenal of models. A newer style – dubbed “gravel” – has blurred the boundaries between on and off-road. Of this genre, Ribble is an expert.
On the surface, a gravel bike looks like a roadie in shape and style, but boasts a handful of hidden tweaks – wider tyre clearance, tubeless tyres, greater gear range – that can handle all but the most demanding of off-piste terrain. Something of a jack of all trades, gravel bikes are viable all-rounders for those who don’t want the fun to stop when the tarmac ends. A prime example, Ribble's Gravel range shines brightest in its carbon fibre model.
Combining a super lightweight frame and fork with a range of build options – from the pocket-friendly £2,499 Enthusiast all the way up to the £4,399 Pro — the Gravel SL is a thing of beauty at any price. Finished in an eye-catching rusty orange and with internal cable routing, it’s guaranteed to turn heads whether you’re riding it on technical singletrack or slick asphalt.
To put Ribble's assertions of range to the test, I threw the Gravel SL Enthusiast (with SRAM Rival XPLR eTap AXS) in at the deep end, riding a 100km loop out from my home in north London into the Essex hinterlands. The route features the full spectrum of UK gravel riding terrain – from packed forest trails to twisting, technical singletrack that’s probably better tackled on a fully-fledged mountain bike.
On the smoother bridleways and tracks, the Gravel SL’s high-volume Schwalbe G-One tyres gobbled up the dirt, while the carbon fibre frame’s aerodynamically optimised tube shapes allowed me to hold speeds generally reserved for the road, helping me to bag a few Strava KOMs that have been on my hit list for a while. When things got rough, it was just as fast, the slightly flared handlebars helping me remain firmly in control on steep, rocky descents, and its sharp, SRAM hydraulic disc brakes staying consistent even when put under pressure.
But what of the pavement? Geared towards off-road riding (literally and figuratively), one criticism of gravel bikes is that they can’t keep up with an out-and-out road bike on the smooth stuff.
Cranking into the cassette's smallest cog and channelling my inner-Mark Cavendish on some pan-flat tarmac, how fast would I be able to go before my pedalling cadence started to resemble a washing machine’s spin cycle? It turns out pretty fast. The Gravel SL’s 12-speed drivetrain’s highest gear had me hitting speeds of 48kph (30mph), while I could hold 40kph (25mph) without spinning out, meaning it’s able to handle any road-based rides.
Although focused on being fast, the Gravel SL has a number of practical features, too. Four different mounting points and one on each fork leg mean it’s ready for some multi-day bikepacking action, while it can run a pannier if you plan on commuting on it too.
A standout from the all-road crowd, the Ribble Gravel SL is the ultimate bike. Fast and fun on any terrain, it might not be as kind on your bank balance as some cheaper, entry-level bikes, but if I had to have just one steed in my collection, there’s a good chance it would be at the top of my wishlist – saving any need for remortgaging (or storage woes) in the long term.
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