Germany Trail Gravel Edition: Sandra's bike for her bikepacking adventure
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The route is continuously optimised, integrating campsites, hotels and other accommodation options. However, these aspects are of secondary importance, as the most important piece of equipment on a bikepacking tour is the bike itself and the correct riding position. Let's take a closer look at the gravel bike.
Coming soon: Germany Trail Gravel Edition
The gravel bike for the Germany trail: Rocky Mountain Solo C50
Rocky Mountain is still relatively new in the gravel bike sector, while the Canadian bike brand has been developing mountain bikes since 1981. Rocky Mountain's first gravel bike, called the Solo, was launched in 2021. A lot has changed since then. Rocky Mountain originally started with an aluminium model, but carbon versions are now also available, such as the Solo C50, which will serve as an adventure vehicle for the German trail.
Are summer tyres the right choice?
The Rocky Mountain Solo allows the mounting of tyres up to a width of 50 millimetres, which corresponds to 2.0 inches. For the gravel edition of the Germany Trail, I chose 45 millimetre wide Maxxis Reaver tyres, which are considered fast all-rounders. These gravel tyres are particularly suitable for dry conditions - it remains to be seen whether they will prove to be a good choice in view of the summer's recurring deluges of rain. Maxxis provides an overview of the gravel tyre range.
Weight tuning: wheels from Lilienthal
The Solo was originally equipped with an aluminium wheelset from WTB. Lilienthal has put together a special wheelset for the Deutschland Trail. The small company from Braunschweig offers off-road wheels with rims that are manufactured and assembled in Germany. These wheels can be customised. For the upcoming gravel adventure, the choice naturally fell on the Lilienthal gravel rim: Lilienthal GX.
This rim has an inner dimension of 25 millimetres and a height of 35 millimetres. Wide rim flanges are designed to protect against punctures. A special feature is the high maximum system weight of 140 kilos, while other models often end at 110 kilos. If you want, you can also customise the colour of the rims and combine them with colourful spokes, nipples and/or hubs to make the wheelset truly unique. I opted for Pirope spokes and left the choice of colour to the wheel builders. The result was a mix of black and gold textile spokes.
The result is impressive - not only visually, but also on the scales. The front wheel is over 500 grams lighter than the previous model. The new wheelset is therefore around one kilogramme lighter and costs around 2500 euros. You can find more information about the Lilienthal Gravel wheels at lilienthal.bike.
Downsizing on the chainring
The Solo gravel bike comes from Rocky Mountain with a 42 chainring and an 11-44 cassette, which means that the lowest gear ratio is 42:44, i.e. a gear ratio of 0.95. This gear ratio may be suitable for some gravel bikers, but not for me, especially when I'm travelling with luggage and also want to climb mountains. So I quickly installed a 38 chainring.
Good contacts?! Gravel saddle, gravel handlebars and gravel bar tape
With SQlab, we were able to gain ergonomics specialists as partners for the Deutschland-Trail. Just four weeks before the Deutschland-Trail starts, I went to Uli Plaumann from SQlab for a bike fitting. Not only was the bike customised, but some parts were also replaced. Instead of the 42 centimetre wide handlebars on the Solo, I was fitted with 40 centimetre wide gravel handlebars from SQlab, which offer additional comfort. The 614 handlebars - SQlab is all about numerology - are based on the ergonomic concepts of the front sweep, angular grip area and maximised contact surface of the 312R handlebars. With a rise of 25 millimetres, it ensures a slightly more upright and therefore more relaxed riding position, which is particularly advantageous on long distances. The 14-degree flare, i.e. the outward-facing drops, also offer more control.
>> SQlab Gravel saddle: Saddle 614 ERGOWAVE® active (available soon according to the manufacturer)
Sandra Schuberth
Editor
