Crosshill 3.0 Gravel Bike Can Be Your Winter-Crushing Machine for Under $2K

Folks, the golden wonder you have before you is a machine from Lapierre Bikes, yes, the one and the same that has been manufacturing bicycles out of France since 1946. That's longer than other famed brands like Trek or Specialized. After all, this crew is European, and that continent has always been known for cycling.

Why would I be showing you a gravel or endurance bicycle to be used for winter riding? Simply because they offer a more relaxed geometry, larger tires, and can be equipped with an array of extras to keep you and your riding buddies clean.

Since you probably already own a bike and just need another for colder weather, I decided to also bring to light a bike that won't cost you too much. That said, the 2022 Crosshill 3.0 is currently running for 1,600 EUR (1,815 USD at current exchange rates), depending on your dealership.

For this sort of price, don't expect to find a carbon frame, but rather Lapierre's Supreme 5 alloy. That's then opened up for internal cable routing and completely studded with mounts.

Speaking of mounts, this is the main feature that allows the bike to be equipped with things like fenders, racks, water bottle mounts, cargo bags, you name it, Crosshill can probably carry it. You'll find mounts on nearly every tube used to complete a bike, from the seat stay to the down tube, top tube, and seat tube.

Now, some carbon fiber did make it into the bike and takes the shape of the front fork. While it doesn't feature any travel, carbon should do just fine in helping eliminate some of the vibrations felt on rough grounds.

As for the drivetrain, this is one system that you may find less than to your liking. While nothing but a Shimano Tiagra groupset is found running 2x10 speeds, the bike's price is enough to leave you with cash to upgrade this component if you wish. Braking is handled by Tektro with a set of mechanical, hydraulic discs with 160 mm (6.3 in) rotors.

One feature that gravel and adventure bikes bring that road bikes don't are wider tires. In this case, Crosshill is equipped Mavic XC621 rims sporting a set of WTB Riddler with wire bead construction. Enough to soften your ride. If you have something else in mind, tires are rather inexpensive to replace; just make sure to adhere to size ratings.

To help you keep your ride light, comfortable, and in your control, Lapierre equips Crosshill with an alloy gravel-intended handlebar with a 16-degree flare. Sound good enough for the price it's in and doesn't add too much weight to the bike. Best of all, you can add a cargo bag with no problems.

All in all, Crosshill 3.0 is only going to weigh 12 kg (26.5 lbs), so there's definitely room to add all those extra goodies I mentioned. Just remember, you'll need to pick up things like mudguards and racks extra.

Best of all, if you don't own a bike, you might as well start off with something like this because when spring rolls around, you can just drop the guards and racks, throw on a beefier drivetrain, and rock this puppy year-round. Something to consider if you're in the market for a winter-capable machine.