Ritchey Outback (frameset)

Ritchey's new Outback is a steel frame/carbon fork gravel frameset that offers a stable and super-smooth ride. It lacks the mudguard and rack mounts required of a true all-rounder, but if you want something that sits at the sportier end of the market it's a slick offering.

• Pros: Smooth ride, stable
• Cons: Lack of mudguard and rack mounts will put off some

I've been riding the Outback over pretty much everything I can think of – fire road, muddy bridleways, chalky hardpack, gravel, tarmac in various states of repair, and even winding singletrack – and it has coped admirably with the lot.

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It's at its best when you can point it in a straight line and hammer over broken and bumpy roads and rolling terrain. Hit a hidden or unavoidable pothole at speed and it's easy to keep the Outback on track. Most times it'll just carry on with the minimum of fuss and no need for correction, and just occasionally you'll need to tap the handlebar back into line. What it won't do is dart off at a curious angle at the merest hint of irregularity, looking for any excuse to scare you witless. That means you can settle in and enjoy the ride.

You don't tend to notice smaller lumps and bumps too much. Of course, some chatter gets through to you in the saddle but the Outback is good at smoothing over high-frequency vibration. You're not shaken about like you are on some bikes, even if you're running quite high tyre pressures. That can make a big, big difference over a longer ride over rough roads when a harsher-feeling frameset can make you lose the love.

A long wheelbase means the Outback isn't the most dexterous bike through super-tight, super-slow turns – walking pace stuff – but it's happy to mix it up with the best of 'em over all other types of technical terrain. Head down slopes as steep as you dare, for example, and there's no judder from the carbon fork, and the rear tyre will keep biting on any ridiculously sharp off-road climbs you fancy tackling as long as you stay seated.

You couldn't describe the Outback as especially light, our XL model (built up with a Shimano Ultegra groupset and Ritchey WCS Zeta Disc wheels) coming in at 9.8kg (21.6lb). Ritchey claims a frame weight (including the axle and rear derailleur hanger) of 2.17kg (4.8lb). As we often say, though, you can get way too hung up on weight. I didn't actually put the bike on the scales until the end of the test period and I can't say it ever felt particularly heavy in use. It's certainly a long way from sluggish. I'd be far more interested in ride quality, especially on a bike that you're likely to ride on the dodgiest roads and tracks you can find, and that's where the Outback really scores.

The Outback doesn't feel like the stiffest bike out there either, especially if you've just jumped off a high-end carbon road machine with oversized everything. That's clearly not a valid comparison, though. This isn't a bike where converting every milliwatt into forward motion when you're bouncing around in a sprint finish is a particularly high priority. The bottom bracket area can stand up to a bit of rough treatment without undue flex, though, and the front end will get you where you want to go when you find yourself halfway through a sweeping bend at an optimistic speed. I'd say that the Outback offers a ride that's not too harsh and not too flexible for the sort of multi-surface rides it's likely to be used on.

Geometry

The Outback shares a lot of its DNA with Ritchey's Swiss Cross Disc cyclo-cross bike, but the geometry has been tweaked and tyre clearances have been increased. Let me tell you about that geometry. As mentioned, we have the XL frame here, the largest of the five sizes available. This has a 583mm effective top tube (569mm actual), a 550mm seat tube and a 180mm head tube. Both the seat tube and head tube angles are 73 degrees.

The stack on this size is 596mm and the reach is 401mm. The chainstays are 437mm on all of the Outback frames, the wheelbase on the XL model is pretty long at 1047mm and the bottom bracket drop is 70mm, considerably more than it is on the Swiss Cross.

All of that lot means you ride in a position that's quite aggressive by gravel/adventure bike standards (although not as aggressive as a typical road bike). Of course, you can use a big stack of spacers under the stem to keep the front end high, but the Outback is certainly a more sporty setup than many other bikes of this genre.

The frame is made in Taiwan from Ritchey Logic heat-treated, triple-butted steel tubing. You might think that's a good material for a gravel bike that could take the odd ding or two. It looks traditional in many ways – or at least traditional-ish. For a start, those tubes are skinny compared with those of most carbon and aluminium bikes, and you get a 68mm English threaded bottom bracket (I did say traditional-ish), which will please anyone who has suffered at the hands of a creaking pressed-in BB. It takes a slim 27.2mm diameter seatpost too.

All of the plumbing is external, the front derailleur cable and rear brake hose heading south along the underside of the down tube and the rear derailleur cable taking a route along the top of the top tube and then down the seatstay. The post-mount disc brake is fixed between the chainstay and the seatstay.

Outback up front

Ritchey's Gravel fork is full-carbon with a straight 1 1/8in steerer. Like the frame, it uses a 12mm thru-axle to hold the wheel in place and has clearance for tyres up to 40mm wide. That might depend a little on the rim and tyre manufacturer, but we had plenty of space around Ritchey's own WCS Zeta Disc wheels and semi-slick Speedmax 700 x 40 tyres. A lot of brands are offering a little more clearance than that these days, especially if they're pitching their bike as more of an all-rounder.

Speaking of that, the lack of mudguard and rack eyelets might raise a few eyebrows, especially among those hoping to use the Outback for a bit of everything, including commuting in typical UK conditions (yes, it's all about us!).

We asked Ritchey and were told they'd been omitted because the bike is designed to be sporty and to work with frame bags and a light load. Fair enough. It also allows Ritchey to use a slightly lighter tubeset than would otherwise be needed. Ritchey already offers the Ascent, which has mudguard and rack braze-ons and can be run with either 700C or 650B wheels and flat or drop handlebars. So, there you go: that's the reasoning.

As mentioned, the Outback is available as a frameset only (frame, WCS full-carbon fork, and WCS headset) for £1,299, so you can build it up however you like, or have your caring, sharing local bike shop do it for you.

As well as the Shimano Ultegra mechanical groupset, Ritchey WCS Zeta Disc wheels and Ritchey Speedmax tyres already mentioned, our test bike came with a Ritchey WCS handlebar, stem and seatpost and saddle. I won't go into depth on the components because they're not part of the package, but it all worked well. I was very happy with a 50/34-tooth chainset and an 11-32 cassette for the type of riding I like to do although you could spec a cyclo-cross chainset if you preferred or go for a 1x system with just a single chainring. Your shout.

One thing I will say is that although tyre selection is important to any bike it is absolutely crucial to a bike like this. The new tubeless-ready 40mm version of the Ritchey Speedmax has a low-profile tread down the centre with some knobbly edges that provide traction through the corners. Although it can get a little overwhelmed in really muddy conditions, it's an excellent option for gripping hard and rolling fast on chalk, gravel and anything else that's closer to firm than gloopy.

Good value?

You can get something like a Genesis Croix de Fer frameset for £499.99. That's a steel adventure bike that scores very highly for value. The four-season Mason Resolution frameset, which uses Columbus steel tubing, is £1,495. The Outback sits between those two in terms of price. You certainly don't need to spend £1,299 to get a made-in-Taiwan steel frame, but this is a very good one.

> Buyer's Guide: 18 of the best gravel and adventure bikes

The slim, steel-framed Outback is about as far away from being a 'me-too' gravel bike as you could wish to get. The lack of mudguard and rack mounts might be an issue for some, but if you're happy without and you're after a gravel/adventure bike that's sporty, stable and above all smooth, this would be a very good choice.

Verdict

Steel-framed gravel/adventure bike that offers a smooth ride and plenty of stability