Bergamont Grandurance Expert: Relaxed graveling on the straights

The model name contains more endurance than gravel - just like the bike itself. Despite the rather long top tube, you sit upright in a relaxed position, the STR+ quotient is at the end of the scale together with the Koga, which means relaxed sitting. Due to the long, bulky head tube, the handlebars even come so far towards you vertically that riding on the lower handlebars is possible in a relaxed manner, but from here it's not easy to reach the brake levers with small hands. Not so bad, you might think, because with the Bergamont Grandurance Expert you don't necessarily want to be driving it anyway. On the one hand because of the longest wheelbase, the straight-line stability is great, but tight and fast bends not so much.

Secondly, because of the unusually steep seat tube for a long-distance bike; you feel like you're sitting high above the bike, like on a seesaw, rather than merging with it. The stiff carbon frameset "bucks" on bumps, meaning that impacts hit your bum quite suddenly. The high level of stiffness, especially in the rear triangle, and not so many but well-distributed threaded eyelets are just asking for luggage, and thanks to the wide range of gear ratios of the admittedly outdated GRX groupset, you could probably make good progress even with a load - albeit rather sedately, the bike weighs over ten kilos, and the upright position is not particularly suitable for putting a lot of watts into the cranks. For sightseeing, on the other hand, this is great.

Panniers on, hands on the fantastic handlebars and a relaxed view of the world - that's what you'd like to take the bike for. If you want to enjoy this for hours on end, you should use a suspension seatpost. As an athlete, it's too heavy, too sluggish, and at 24-27 km/h you're hanging right between the chainrings.

Big comparison: 16 gravel bikes in the test

• 3T Exploro Primo (Tip: sports equipment)
• Bergamont Grandurance Expert >> available here
• Bulls Machete
• Canyon Grizl CF SL 6 AXS (Tip: Test winner)
• Conway GRV 9.0
• Corratec Allroad C2
• Fuji Jari Carbon 1.3
• Giant Revolt Advanced 2 (Tip: All-rounder) >> available here
• Koga Colmaro Extreme >> available here
• Marin Headlands 1 >> available here
• Megamo West 10 >> available here
• Merida Silex 700 (Tip: Offroader)
• Rondo Ruut AL1
• Rose Backroad GRX RX820 (Tip: Test winner) >> available here
• Trek Checkpoint ALR 5 (Tip: Price/performance) >> available here
• VSF Fahrradmanufaktur GX-500 >> available here

Bergamont Grandurance ExpertNote & Details

• Note: 2,7
• Price: 2699 Euro >> available here
• Weight of complete wheel: 10.3 kilos
• Frame sizes: 50 / 54 / 57 / 61 cm (test size greased)

Geometry

• Seat/top/head tube: 560 / 570 / 182.7 millimetres
• Stack/Reach/STR: 642 / 395 millimetres / 1.625
• Stack+/Reach+/STR+: 691 / 565 millimetres / 1.223
• Wheelbase/caster: 1080 / 76.5 millimetres

Equipment

• Drive/gear shift: Shimano GRX RX400 (2 x 10; 42/30, 11-36 t.) | Grade: 3.0
• Brakes: Shimano GRX RX400 (160/160 mm) | Grade: 1.5
• Tyres: Schwalbe G-One Bite 45-622 (eff.: 43.5 mm) | Grade: 1.0
• Impellers: BGM Allroad, Syncros freewheel
• Impeller weights: 1818 / 2466 grams (front/rear)

Advantages and disadvantages of the Bergamont Grandurance Expert

• Plus: top directional stability, tyres for rough terrain, comfort geometry
• Minus: hardly any damping on the saddle, old GRX groupset, rather sluggish, heavy

More about gravel bikes

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>> Gravel camps and gravel events 2024.

>> Tips for improving your gravel bike riding technique.

>> Gravel accessories: The most important clothing for gravel biking.

>> Gravel accessories: The most important equipment for gravel biking.

>> Gravel exotics: E-gravel bikes

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>> Gravel exotics: Suspension gravel bikes