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great british gravel rides. cycling the wild trails of england, scotland and wales. markus stitz. vertebrate publishing softback. 243pp illus. £25

great british gravel rides - markus stitz

following the wholesale introduction of the mountain bike in the 1980s, in retrospect, that particular genre of bicycle was cited as being the saviour of the bicycle industry. caught-up in the latest trend from across the pond, folks who lived nowhere near a humpback bridge, let alone a hill or mountain, opted to purchase these eighteen-speed bicycles that featured knobbly, but comfortable tyres and sturdy, dependable frames. i know this because i was one of them. desirous of something that would offer a wide range of useable gears along with the ability to fit cycle luggage when necessary, i purchased an original muddy fox courier.

it's possible that i did, at one time or another, climb a hill that demanded the sort of suntour gears fitted at the rear, but i can almost guarantee that it was on metalled roads, and not the scrabbly stuff for which it was designed. the majority of riding undertaken in the hebrides was of similar constitution, eventually replacing the two-inch knobbly tyres with 1.5" road specific rubber, along with a lengthy, steel stem a set of touring bars and bar-end levers, effectively converting it into a touring machine, a specification that endured until its ultimate replacement.

during that time, i bought numerous anodised widgets and umpteen mtb magazines, (if only for the cartoon mountain biking sheep). but i'd struggle to categorise myself under the heading of 'mountain biker'.

my long-standing cynicism would tend to hold gravel cycling with the same level of suspicion. both north america and europe have long had the option of the cyclocross bicycle to undertake a similar style of cycling, and though i'd imagine there are any number of adherents who will be keen to point out just how wrong i am, currently, my cynicism holds true. but that cynicism, while not denying the right of the cycle industry and its customer base to supply and purchase whatever is en vogue, i cannot deny that the gravel bicycle might well be emulating its mountain bike antecedent.

aside from the variations of gravel bicycle currently to be found from any number of manufacturers, it has fostered the growth of bikepacking and the products required for so doing, along with a series of articles and guides for the aspiring gravel cyclist. a major proponent of the genre has been edinburgh-based, round-the-world cyclist, markus stitz. but rather than simply adopt a a style of bicycle and leave it at that, markus has appeared tireless in his efforts to popularise gravel cycling, mostly in scotland, by forging and discovering new routes, while maintaining a high profile on social media to publicise these efforts.

and now the enterprising vertebrate publishing has released his first book, curating a total of twenty-six rides the length and breadth of the uk, contributed by several well-rounded and respected cycling authors, including guy kesteven, jenny graham, and my good friends, esther tacke and warren sanders. the final route, worded by markus himself, is right on my doorstep, just across the stretch of water known as the sound of islay.

but first things first; as markus asks in his introduction, "Why a book about gravel riding in Britain? the answer to which almost paraphrases my own thoughts. "...my opinion about gravel riding was mixed [...] when I picked up a Surly Straggler, I didn't see the need for another bike and thought gravel bikes were simply another marketing move from the bike industry." perhaps the difference is that i still hold that opinion, while markus, who has far more experience of such matters than have i, has accepted it lock, stock and gravel. "By the time I was researching this book in the summer of 2021, my definition of gravel riding had changed significantly."

markus maintains that since he joined the gravel revolution, he's hardly touched another bike, but admits that what we call gravel riding has been around "...ever since people took their bikes off the beaten track, often in the pursuit of adventure." assuming you subscribe to 'Gravel joy', it's hard not to be drawn in by his enthusiasm, and that being the case, he has provided a comprehensive guide to what constitutes a suitable bicycle, what clothing might be deemed pragmatic, preparing the bicycle prior to departure on any gravel adventure, and several other points that even experienced cyclists will find useful.

after all that, we're onto the rides themselves, beginning with, naturally enough, scotland

each ride description follows a logical pattern, featuring both illustrations and a detailed map, all of which extend across two pages, with the route clearly delineated. in the top right corner of each opening page is the location of the ride highlighted on a thumbnail map of britain, along with the distance clearly marked, and followed by a brief profile of each author. and should your enthusiasm for gravel cycling receive a boost from the route description, markus has thoughtfully included a list of other nearby routes.

this is augmented with notes on where to eat, nearby bike shops, should you have left something at home, or suffered a mechanical malfeasance while strutting your gravel stuff, and where to stop along the way. each ride features footnotes describing, amongst other things, the amount of climbing involved, the percentage of path versus road and singletrack, the grade of route (expert, challenging, etc.), the best time of year to ride and a profile of the route to place it in some sort of context.

to be highly partisan, if i might quote from the raiders gravel ride by esther and warren, "We were actually coming from the road cycling scene, and during wintertime it was just not very nice to be out on the roads. We absolutely loved gravel cycling! We could actually go out in wintertime and just ride."

personally i have yet to ride markus' bonus route on the neighbouring isle of jura, though one or two friends of mine have done so in recent years. but when that happens, i'll be riding a cyclocross bike. if you're into gravel riding, this is to gravel, what simon warrren's excellent series on climbing has been to road cycling, and one would hope that, as the gravel scene continues to expand, markus and vertebrate publishing may find the resolve to produce more. reading may not have cured my cynicism, but it has brought the likelihood of my crossing to jura for a scoot around the base of the paps on inver estate potentially a tad closer. and, if enthusiasm gets the better of me, i can always go and visit esther and warren in dumfries.

if you're into gravel, this is the shizzle.

great british gravel rides is published by vertebrate publishing on thursday 7 july.

tuesday 5 july 2022