Hey folks. I’m curious if anybody here has a XC bike and also a gravel bike. Love my HT29er, but have been thinking a gravel bike would be even better for ripping around some of the backroads here in the Annapolis Valley.
Worthwhile addition? Or, not going to be that much better than my XC bike locked out? Or take the gravel $ and upgrade the XC?
Definitely worth it for gravel rides. The ride specific geometry combined with the parts spec knocks any attempt to adapt another platform out of the park.
I’ve owned everything from xc race bikes to full on dh rigs and traditional road bikes to cyclocross bikes and have a gravel bike that sees just as many miles as any other one individually.
I say, go for it.
Edit, to sum up, currently own a 29er hardtail and a gravel bike, one is for mountain biking and one is for gravel rides and I never wish I brought one or the other on a specific ride.
Once you go gravel you never go back. I don’t even own an XC bike anymore.
Are you a single bike guy, or just not XC? I’m curious now 
I own both. I love my gravel bike for the exact reason you’re suggesting. I really like having my gravel bike when I’m exploring new places on vacation since you never know what a ride will turn into. I find it gives me a lot of flexibility - my gravel bike also becomes my trainer bike in the winter.
That said, the correct number is N+1.
I’m currently down to three bikes. A Giant Revolt for gravel, a Kona Process 153 for getting rowdy, and a Kona WO fat bike for everything else. I sold my xc bike, cx bike, trail bike, dirt jumper, and road bike.
I got a gravel bike about a year and a half ago. It’s fantastic for exploring backroads and ripping around in general. I like that I can string together routes that have a variety of surfaces from mild singletrack through to paved road. Drop bars are great.
I’m in the same boat. Road bike, gravel bike, xc hardtail. I’d trade the xc hardtail for a FS trail bike without a thought. I don’t even know if I would get into mtb at this point in time if I was just starting out, the cost for a trail worthy bike just seems a bit out of reach to justify when I can have just as much of my kind of fun on a gravel bike. That said, I certainly wouldn’t want to Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind my previous 30 years of MTB away.
I’d love/hate to be just getting into mtb right now.
It’s funny, for the majority of my mtb rides this year I’ve been on a 2008 specialized fsr with 26" wheels. It may be slower than the 29er but it’s hella more comfortable.
Bike prices are getting out of hand lately. The last full-suspension frame that I bought (Kona Process) cost more than my first full-suspension bike (Norco Launch). I’d hate to be getting into the sport right now.