The Lynskey GR250 titanium gravel bike arrived on the doorstep of Gravel Cyclist HQ in January of 2017. Since that time, the GR250 has been ridden and raced at events such as the 2017 Middle Georgia Epic, and 2017 Land Run 100. In between, it has racked up a ton of training miles aboard multiple wheelsets in 700c and 650b, and multiple tyre combinations. The review also features a good amount of drone footage.
For those curious, the bike weighs between 19.5 – 20.5lbs (8.8kg – 9.3kg) with pedals, dependent upon wheels, tyres, etc.
Incidentally, the GR250 is the same bike Mrs K-Dogg of the Gravel Cyclist crew rode at the 2017 Dirty Kanza 200. She ended up taking 4th overall in her age group, with only a single two hour ride on the her new GR250 before the race. Impressive!
Thank you to American Classic, Stans Notubes, Shimano Road, Schwalbe, Terrene, WTB, Full Speed Ahead (FSA), 3T Cycling, Ritchey Design and Orange Seal Cycling for wheels, tyres, sealant and components that were an integral part of this review.
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I may have to get me one of these bikes! Very nice presentation. Love the drone shots!
K-Dogg
I have a factory tour scheduled with Lynskey this Friday… my people can talk to their people on your behalf 🙂
Your Mrs, Mrs K-Dogg, LOVES her GR250… and crushed DK200 on it, first time out!
Thanks for the review JOM. I’ve been shopping Ti and steel gravel bikes. Hard to decide, so I liked that you highlighted tire clearance. Not sure what will seal my decision, other than a good deal when I’m ready to pull the trigger.
Question: my wife was wondering, where is that brick road? We’re in Central Fl and haven’t biked up your way.
Mark
Mark, the road(s) in question are near Palatka, Florida. The longest stretch is known as the Old Dixie Highway. Sadly, it is still open to traffic (mostly hunters these days), and it is one of the last remaining sections of original brick highway in Florida.
Check this video I produced a year ago on the site – https://www.gravelcyclist.com/videos/video-dorothy-not-the-yellow-brick-road-ride/
I may put together another video later on… will be revisiting with some review bikes. The main section of road is quite desolate, which is a good thing really.
Well done review JOM!
Are you suggesting that w the new flat mount disc brakes there’s no or little harmonic distortion? I don’t have disc brakes yet but looking for a new GG and see many are either standard, some flat mount and a few a mix (the fork being standard and rear being flat mount). Which would you go with?
I’ve been going between this and the Open U.P. Do you think you’ll ever have the opportunity to review it? Thanks
JOM – i think you’re at Lynskey today? I just ordered a GR 250 – you’re a bad influence 😉 You can tell Lynskey you played a role in my decision.
Hi Jim!
Sorry, didn’t read your comments until about 11:30pm… I was very busy at Lynskey today, and afterwards, catching up with some friends in town. Definitely let Lynskey know I played a part in your decision… they will really appreciate hearing that!
Thanks so much… JOM
Hi Jom, great review and video!
Was Mrs K Dogg riding the XS size? Does it have the same tire clearances (frame and fork) to fit the 29er 2.0 tires as well? Thanks!
Thanks for the kind feedback. Mrs K-Dogg was aboard the size XS GR250. Same everything on the size XS, tyre clearance included. She LOVES the new bike, even with only a two hour pre-ride before she rode DK200 on it!
Ok JOM, one more for you…thoughts on Ultegra Di2 vs mechanical for gravel application? Lynskey is tempting me with a Di2 offer today.
Batteries and bikes kind of rub me the wrong way. Heck I even (sort of) miss my 80’s era Simplex friction shifters. BUT… I’ve had cheap plastic internal parts break on my Ultegra road shifters. I could make a case for the electronic version maybe being a plus in dusty environments with less moving parts.
Anyway, would love to hear your input on this. I’m sure you’ve addressed it already somewhere.
Thanks
Mark
Mark, sorry for the delay in replying.
Di2 all the way, that’s all I ride. Di2 works perfectly in wet, dry, dusty, mud, sludge. Do it.
JOM –
great review. The GR250 looks so familiar …
I believe they were hammering out the design details by producing Kona’s Ti Rove gravel bike.
I have been really impressed by the Rove and imagine the Lynskey version is even more refined and tuned. Thanks for the review.
In the early days of Litespeed, when the Lynskey family owned them, they were manufacturing frames for 24 different brands!
JOM,
I have given up on road cycling where I live – it’s just gotten too dangerous. I am very interested in gravel cycling and bike packing and maybe even some gravel racing at some point. My wife and I already have trail MTBs so I’m not looking for a drop-bar MTB. The GR260, at it’s current price-point, seems to be a very good bike for our wants (needs?). I’m looking at the Ultegra build with 46/36 rings in the front. We live in West Alabama – not quite as hilly as some of the places you’ve ridden in GA but we still have our red-mud gravel and hills. 🙂
Thanks for your reviews.
Joel
What are your thoughts on frame size.
At 176cm tall Lynskey suggest a M frame, but the top tube is 10mm longer than my current bike which fits like a glove.
Hence I’d need to run the M with a 90mm stem if I keep a seat post with a setback.
Would you suggest the I go for a small, where I could fit a 100mm stem and a 25mm setback on the seat post, but the seapost would then be extremely long to reach my 715mm seat height (from BB)?
Andy, I’m not a fiting expert and my method isn’t for everyone. I’m 178cm tall which is about 5’11”. I ride the size small in the PRO GR, whose geometry when I last checked was the same as the now GR270. You can always use a setback seatpost and longer stem to get the perfect fit. The top of my Arione saddle measures 766mm from the center of the BB. I have a fair amount of seatpost show, but I hope this helps a bit!
JOM,
When you convert from 700c to 650b, how wide have you gone with tires?
I’m doing a Strava virtual gravel series here in Upstate NY. This past week I used the stock Stans with 40mm WTB’s, but some of the downhills were too gnarly for me, so I’m considering going to 650b x 48mm – 50mm.
Thanks in advance!
650b x 48mm or 50mm does well.