Can a “commuter” bicycle be the best all-road TOURING bike?
In my home area of Central Wisconsin, unpaved roads outnumber paved roads.
Of course, we have plenty of paved highways, county roads and town roads. But the best bike riding is on the rolling rural grid of gravel roads. The sparse rural population and the massive expense to pave and maintain these roads means that thousands of miles of Wisconsin country roads will remain gravel.
Years ago, as a bicycle tourist on my first "10-speed", I avoided ALL unpaved roads. Back then, my long and fast bike tours were on 1.25-inch slick tires, and later narrow 1-inch tubular tires.
Today I seek out unpaved roads. The scenery is better, and you can enjoy it without being threatened by dangerous traffic.
I enjoy planning routes that MAXIMIZE the miles on gravel roads. Central Wisconsin may have some of the best crushed granite roads in the country. In fact, red granite is the official rock of Wisconsin! To the west and north, farming country tansitions into hundreds of added miles of gravel roads through state and national forests.
I INTENTIONALLY travel at a slower pace these days.
I enjoy rides of several hours, and bikepacking trips of several days. Besides, I also feel that every gravel mile is the equivalent of two road miles. I enjoy the scenery, encounter minimal traffic, AND get twice the exercise. Win-Win-Win!
I’ve owned many, many different styles of bikes over the years. After thousands of miles on all types of routes, roads, and trails I have compiled a long list of features that must be found on my perfect long-distance touring bicycle.
Designing my IDEAL Touring Bicycle: What features would I include?
First, my touring bicycle must have the lightest possible frame and fork but without sacrificing durability and without breaking the bank.
Steel is the proven favorite, but lighter aluminum is my choice. Titanium is still lighter but much more expensive and harder to repair. Since this is a bike for long-distance road touring (paved and gravel) and not a single-track MTB, I eliminated the suspension fork in favor of a traditional fork. I also specified an aluminum fork versus the trendy carbon-fiber fork found on many “gravel bikes” for bomb-proof dependability. The frame and fork must be designed to accept front and rear pannier racks.
Second, for extended loaded touring, I need the most versatile and strongest wheel set.
My choice for "all-road" touring is 650B (27.5") wheels built with tubeless rims. Many people believe that 700c wheels are lighter, but for touring wheels with similar tires, the slightly smaller 650B rim and shorter spokes are lighter and stronger. In addition, 650B tires are available in a wider range of widths and tread patterns.
My all-road touring bicycle must include tubeless tires.
On soft or muddy roads, I can run a lower air pressure with tubeless tires.
Not only do tubeless tires eliminate pinch flats, but they are also self-sealing for most thorn or road debris punctures.
Like your car or motorcycle, larger punctures can often be plugged without removing the wheel from the bike. You are back riding in a few minutes!
Finally, eliminating the inner tubes reduces the "rotational weight" of the wheels, which makes pedalling easier. I always feel that the conversion to tubeless tires is like gaining another gear.
Third, a "bespoke" touring bicycle needs a front dynamo hub to add both lights and recharging capability for all the electronics we carry.
Modern dynamo hubs are expensive, but add tremendous versatility to the touring bicycle. The dynamo powers the headlight for inevitable night riding. During the day, it charges a storage battery which I can then use to recharge my phone, GPS, camera batteries, etc. (Note that most electronics CANNOT be powered directly by the dynamo due to the constantly varying power output.)
Fourth, my touring bicycle needs flat handelbars.
I have toured thousands of miles on drop bar bikes. I have also logged thousands more miles on "gravel bikes" for recreation and competitive gravel grinders. But I prefer flat bars for a dedicated touring bicycle, especially an "all-road" bike that is going to see rougher roads and loose sand and gravel.
In my experience, flat bars give me beter control, especially descending on a loaded bike on chunky gravel roads. Equally important, I find it easier to pack my touring bicycle with flat bars and a harness/dry bag combination.
Finally, I would choose the most reliable and maintenance-free drivetrain.
As an experienced bicycle traveler and a former bike shop manager, I can fix anything on a bike and have repaired or replaced many chains, spokes, freewheels, derailleurs, and crank sets over the years.
After considering rear geared hub options, for my PERFECT touring bicycle, I chose the center-mounted, sealed Pinion gearbox with a Gates carbon fiber drive belt.
With the the Pinion gear drive, I eliminated spare chain links, a chain tool, and chain lube.
I also eliminate the need to carry a spare derailleur hanger.
The Pinion gear drive eliminates the time-consuming and grimy daily (or more often!) chain and freewheel maintenance on dusty or muddy roads.
In addition, the drive belt outlasts bicycle chains. (If it starts to squeak from accumulated road dust, I just rinse it off with WATER!)
And the symetrical single rear sprocket eliminates the dishing required on conventional freehub wheels, minimizing spoke breakage. This means that I also don't carry spare spokes or the freehub tool required to access the spokes on the inner rear hub flange.
Good News! I didn’t have to have my Dream All-Road Touring Bicycle custom-built. These wish list features are found in the Priority Bicycles Model 600.
The Priority 600 is designed to be a daily commuter and road rambler. But I saw the potential to transform this bike into a gravel grinder and all-road touring machine.
The Priority 600 features the 12-speed Pinion Gearbox with the a right-hand rotary shifter on the flat aluminum handlebars.
This is an automotive-inspired drive created by two former Porsche transmission engineers in Stuttgart, Germany. The Priority 600 bicycle is named after the Pinion’s massive 600% gear range that is equivalent to a traditional touring bicycle with 3x10 gearing. (In compariosn, the WIDEST MTB 1x12 gearing has a 500% range.) Most importantly, the fully-enclosed gearbox offers unmatched versatility and dependability in a sealed, maintenance-free oil bath housing. The Pinion gear drive replaces the standard bottom bracket and centers the weight at the lowest point of the bike frame.
For both commuting and bicycle touring, the chain and derailleurs have always been the weakest links in bicycle design.
These are expendable wear parts. The rear derailleur, in particular, is also the single most vulnerable component on your bike. If your bike simply falls over at a rest stop, the critical alignment may be ruined. Worse, crashes, impacts with rocks, or the accumulation of mud on cross-country routes can break the derailleur hanger. Your ride is over unless you have the tools and skills to convert your broken bike into a “single speed”.
I researched the Pinion gear drive extensively before making the purchase of my Priority 600.
One impressive story was that of Kamran Ali, who trekked from Argentina all the way to Alaska riding his Pinion-drive bicycle. Here is a photo of Kamran in Prudhoe Bay, Alaska. He writes: “Here, at this sign, my bike comes to a gentle stop. The bike computer shows that I have reached the destination of my tour at latitude 70°21’N. In 3 years, 7 months, and 10 days, I have covered a total distance of 33,105 km.”
Kamran logged almost 20,000 trouble-free miles on his Pinion gear drive! Pinion.eu has more testimonials of cyclists that have tallied even higher numbers, some circling the globe.
The nearly indestructible Gates carbon fiber drive belt is virtually maintenace-free. BUT - I strongly recommend that you don't embark on a bike tour without a SPARE drive belt! The belt weighs next to nothing and can be folded into a small ziplock bag. This is CHEAP insurance! Having a spare belt almost guarantees that you will never need it - which is great since the average bike shop won't have the right belt model in stock. Click HERE to order.
Closer to home, Ryan Van Duzer completed the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route, the Baja Divide, and the Colorado Trail (along with thousands of additional loaded touring miles) with his Priority 600X mountain bike, relying on the same Pinion C12 gear drive. He has also ridden his Priority P600 over 1,000 miles from his home in Colorado to Iowa, then across Iowa for the 500-mile RAGBRAI tour.
Priority Bicycles has equipped the stock 600 for the urban rider. But it really is an All-Road Touring Bicycle!
The Priority 600 is delivered with fenders, flat pedals, and slick street tires that are perfect for commuting. Priority is based in New York City and there are 10’s of thousands of commuters who rely on their bicycles. The trouble-free, maintenance-free Pinion drive is perfect for the year-round urban commuter.
Here are the steps to modifying the P600 to become the ideal gravel bike and long-distance touring or bikepacking rig.
Many bicycle tourists insist on adding fenders. While ideal for commuters on their way to work or school, I don't like the rattles - so the very FIRST thing I did was remove the stock fenders. This also means clipping the wire to the stock rear taillight.
Because I prefer to riding with Shimano SPD cleats, i installed a new set of double-sided pedals. I can ride with my cleated shoes, plain shoes, or sandals.
Double-sided pedals - with or without SPD cleats Then I installed a rack for rear panniers and/or dry bag. When not touring, the rack serves as a partial rear fender.
I replaced the stock street tires with a slightly more agressive tread for mixed road and gravel riding. In this case, I chose the 650b x 45mm Pirelli Cinturato Gravel tires. These tires roll great on the pavement, but have much better traction on gravel and stability when cornering. Of prime importance, during this swap, I also converted the stock rims to tubeless - see this related article for the process and more details of the MANY advanages of tubeless tires.
The Priority 600 Touring Bicycle - central Wisconsin gravel The P600 “commuter” bike has become an All Road touring bicycle!
The truth is that the best touring bikes -- combining durability, comfort, and versatility -- also make great commuting bicycles. (My bike will never see the streets of New York City!)
Now that I have logged hundreds of miles on my P600, I am very satisfied with the comfort of the bike as well as the performance of the 12-speed Pinion drive. The 45mm Pirelli tires are a good compromise. Tires in the 40mm to 45mm range have become the current favorites for gravel riding - and I rode the P600 in a 50-mile "gravel grinder". I like to travel very light for touring, and 45mm is still adequate. However, bicycle tourists headed for rough roads may choose wider 50mm tires - especially if you can live without the fenders.
I admit that there was a short learning curve when shifting the Pinion drive.
I learned to stop pedaling and count to ONE while shifting. That’s it! If you simply stop pedaling for an instant, the gearbox shifts smoothly and silently – exactly like your auto transmission, which is what you would expect from former Porsche engineers!
But the MANY benefits of the internal gearing far outweigh this small adaptation versus the unconscious skill of shifting while pedaling. NOW you can shift across multiple gears. I routinely shift down two gears as my speed drops on steep hills. Then, I also upshift two or more gears as I gain momentum over the crest of hills. The Pinion gearbox “snicks” precisely into the gear you select.
I give the Priority 600 my FIVE Star rating as a touring bicycle!
Want to learn more? Here's Dave from Priority Bicycles highlighting the features of the Model 600:
I liked the Model 600 so much that I also purchased the Priority 600X Adventure MTB for more vigorous off-pavement bikepacking.
Side Note: I love the P600, but found myself MAINLY #bikepacking on rougher roads that necessitate the suspension fork of the P600X. Therefore, I have since SOLD the P600. Another rider contacted me who was getting ready for a bicycle tour from the U.S. to Argentina! My lightly used P600 is happily doing exactly what I had intended – shedding the “commuter” label and has become a round-the-world traveler!
UPDATE to the original article: Two years later, Priority Bicycles has introduced the NEW and IMPROVED 600ADX as the replacement for the original 600X Adventure. Once again, I sold my like-new P600X to a new bikepacker and am enjoying the features of the P600ADX.
Watch for a review comparing the P600 touring bicycle and the new Priority 600ADX "adventure" bike so you can decide which belt-drive, Pinion geared model is right for your riding. I have since learned that the P600ADX makes a fantastic "gravel bike" and I can maintain a faster pace on rough courses where rigid gravel bikes thrash the riders. Please subscribe to the GreatOutThere.online blog for more #bikepacking content.
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