GT

Grade Carbon 105 Complete Bike - 2015

GT’s carbon fiber Grade Complete Bike, seen here with the Shimano 105 build, belongs to a new breed of "road" bikes designed to be ridden on anything that even resembles a road. A shorter-than-classic reach and relatively low bottom bracket team up to create a comfortable, stable ride, and GT’s spec’d a really smart mix of components to make sure you won’t get stuck in the middle of nowhere, along a lightly-traveled dirt road.

That starts with the wheels — Stan’s Grail rims laced to Formula rims. The Stan’s spec is a nod to this bike’s true talent; throw some 35mm tubeless cyclocross tires on there, and revel in the accompanying low pressure capability and no-flats peace of mind. The Grade’s drivetrain consists of Shimano’s 11-speed 105 group, complete with hydraulic disc brakes. Hydraulic discs at this price point is quite rare, and we’re impressed that GT rounded out the parts spec so nicely.

GT checks the rest of the frame design boxes, too: flex-tuned seatstays that reduce felt road vibration, a slim seatpost to provide a bit more give, and a tapered head tube and PF30 bottom bracket to allow the use of oversized tubes in the front triangle to provide lateral stiffness and steering precision. Wherever you’re headed, you’ll probably take some version of a road to get there, and the GT Grade would make a great travel partner.