Come along with me for a shakedown ride of the G.1 and hear my first reactions to riding this budget gravel bike.
I have a bicycle workstand and some mechanical skills, so the night before this ride, I gave the bike a once-over, pumping up the tires, setting the seat height, flipping the stem to increase the stack a bit, checking the wheels for any loose spokes, checking the shifting (using the barrel adjuster to add some tension) and making sure that the front and rear wheels spun freely – the front was delivered with the front disc rubbing a bit. While flipping the stem, I did add a little grease to the headset, which felt a little stiff upon delivery.
With those adjustments made, I took the bike out for a ride and these are my first impressions – it’s a solid budget bike! I have the medium, which is listed as a 50cm. The reach to the bars is similar to my 53cm Cinelli Hobootleg touring bike. I’m 5′-8″ with a 30″ inseam and normal length arms and average flexibility. I’m used to drop bars so the bike feels good, but I can imagine a newer rider my height or a rider not used to drop bars feeling like the reach to the bars is a bit long. For folks my height looking for a more upright riding position, the small may be better, but I haven’t tried one so that’s just a guess.
I had the G.1 delivered to my door. It arrived within 24 hours of ordering and was delivered without a box in the back of a hatchback. If I had immediately gone for a ride without giving the bike a once-over, the front brake would have squealed, the bike would have felt sluggish from the low tire pressure, and the shifting would have been off. Considering the pricepoint and that many buyers appear to be new riders (and likely without bike-fixing skills), these small initial quality issues are a miss and could quickly sour someone to their new bike. All new bikes, of course, need a little breaking in and adjustment period, but Walmart should work on the quality at delivery and set buyer expectations accordingly.
I hope to do some longer rides this year and maybe a bikepacking trip or two with it. But for now, here are my first ride impressions.