Gravel

The line between a gravel bike and a mountain bike has been blurring for years. But 2025 was the year it basically disappeared. At the Leadville Trail 100, two of the top three finishers in both the men’s and women’s races were on drop bar mountain bikes — full suspension included. Keegan Swenson won on a Santa Cruz Blur with drops. Melisa Rollins podiumed on a drop-bar Liv full suspension. Dylan Johnson, the godfather of the drop bar MTB experiment, showed up on an Unno Horn with a Fox suspension fork and GRX shifters. ...

The current Specialized Crux has been around in essentially the same form since 2021. That’s a long time in a category that’s been moving as fast as gravel. Aero gravel bikes have gone mainstream, tire clearance expectations have climbed, and integrated cockpits are now table stakes at the top end. The Crux, for all its strengths — and it’s still one of the lightest gravel bikes you can buy — is showing its age. ...