Gravel geometry/fit?

[dvancleve]

My next bike will almost certainly be an all-road/gravel bike with hydro discs. How do you folks size a gravel bike, pretty much the same as your preferred road bikes? I have happily ridden on some pretty rough roads (paved and dirt) and done some "under-biking" on my Rivendell with good results, so it seems like a road bike fit would be fine.

OTOH, I can also see how more top tube and shorter stem might be good for taking weight off the front wheel. The Lauf has a pretty long TT, at least in my size, for this reason. I am intrigued by the Slate, but what I would consider my road size (M) has a shorter TT & HT than some of my road bikes but the next size up is L with a 57cm TT. With a 9CM stem, that would work and the standover would still be okay, don't think if myself as riding a size L frame though...

Thanks, Doug