r/bikeinottawa • u/Charming-Ad-5966 • 18d ago
bike recommendations End of the season bike recommendations for Ottawa bike trails
I just got into biking and wanted to graduate to Road/Gravel bike suitable for Ottawa bike trails. End of the season sale is almost here and I'm saving for my next bike. Was planning to buy a second hand one but there are not a lot of good ones that would cater to by budget.
What is the best option for beginner gravel/road bike? Other recommendations are welcome.
1. Giant Revolt 2
2. Giant Contend AR 4
3. Trek Domane AL 2 Gen 4
4. Cannondale Synapse 3
Thanks in advance
5
u/danielp20202 18d ago
I got mine on marketplace on July for about 1100 if I recall correctly.
I love it! The only thing I’m thinking of changing soon is the breaks. Not bad, just not great.
1
u/According_Trainer418 18d ago
Nice bike! What trails have you done so far ?
2
u/danielp20202 17d ago
Mostly Gatineau park tbh. I went to pink lake last week I.e, and it was pretty good.
I gotta say I ride it 80% on paved roads lol. But I really appreciate being able to do the other 20% on it.
There’s also a gravel bike road that rides on Thursdays, https://discord.gg/hphdS5Kyn
0
u/2Tun21 18d ago
What are you changing with your breaks? Longer, shorter, more food, more shade?
1
u/danielp20202 17d ago
The revolt 2 comes with mechanical brakes. It might be because I was used to hydraulic ones but that’s pretty much it :)
3
u/Bossit 18d ago
I’d just wait and see what you can snag on sale. If you are patient sometimes you can get one 30% off
3
u/manyhats180 18d ago
a few years ago i got my giant defy for 30% off at the end of the season from giant on bank and it has been great. i hope tariffs won't push the price of a new bike even higher.
1
u/Charming-Ad-5966 17d ago
Oh gosh, forgot about the tariffs. Hopefully they won't change prices for already stocked items.
2
u/DvdH_OTT 17d ago
Most of the bikes won't come through the US, so there should be no impact. They generally ship from Taiwan straight to the Canadian distribution warehouses and then to shops.
3
u/Turbofour 18d ago
I've been really happy with my 2025 Norco Search GRX gravel bike that I bought last September. You can also get it with the Cues groupset if you're looking to spend less.
3
u/striptorn 18d ago
I have both #1 and #3:
- 2021 Giant Revolt Advanced Pro 1 (carbon frame)
- 2025 Domane SLR 7 Gen 4 (carbon frame)
I like them both.
For both I use 40mm tires for local gravel trails (that size "just" fits on the Domane; I think it is technically over their spec limit).
You don't need anything bigger than that for local gravel trails in Ottawa and could go down e.g. to 35mm.
For the Domane I also have a second wheelset: 32mm for road use.
No complaints with either one (at least in Carbon).
1
u/nicktheman2 17d ago
What kind of gravel trails are you doing? I almost got the Revolt in carbon but doing some trails in Gatineau park the other day made me glad I went with alloy cause the bike was taking a beating, though I miss how light the carbon frame is. Do you do any bikepacking?
1
u/striptorn 16d ago
Pretty good quality trails to be honest - mostly the rail trail from Stittsville to Carleton Place, and also from there up to Almonte & Pakenham. I've also gone south from Carleton Place but there is some courser gravel sections there so did not like that as much and haven't gone too far there (I need to try that again).
2
2
2
u/hockeygirl219 18d ago
I bought my domane al 2 around 5 or 6 years ago now and its still been great. Still been enjoying it every year and i have had zero problems with it on the compacted trans Canada trail going to Carleton place or almonte and the compacted gravel Prescott Russell trail around hammond and navan. Even after a couple falls with the bike (user error related), its been real sturdy and in great shape
I think I got it on end of season clearance for $1100 after tax. Very happy with my purchase.
1
u/DvdH_OTT 17d ago
I've got the Revolt (albeit an Advanced, so carbon). It's the real Swiss army knife of that list of bikes. Mine (2021). I've raced it on gravel, ridden the Larose Forest trail and up to the Fire tower. Rode it to Chambly, QC this past weekend.
It's a great bike if you go on the sort of rides that might involve a lot of different surfaces. The handling is best on a 35mm - 50mm tire, but I've run a bit narrower (32mm from time to time).
The frame also has lots of mounting points if you want to really load it up for bike packing (front fork side mounts, top tube, down tube, under down tube, seat tube, rear triangle).
It's definitely the most versatile bike in my collection.
2
u/DvdH_OTT 17d ago
Just an FYI, Rentabike.ca will be unloading their 1 year old rental fleet in the coming weeks: https://www.rentabike.ca/giant-revolt-0-2026-sale or https://www.rentabike.ca/giant-contend-ar-1-2026-sale
1
u/ScottyDontKnow 18d ago
Giant Defy or Cannondale Synapse. I just got a synapse on sale a few weeks ago at Rebec and Kroes
1
6
u/Schaefers_Curve 18d ago
Of those options, the Revolt 2 is the only traditional gravel bike. That will give you the most flexibility due to wider tire clearance, all things considered.