This Changed My Mind About Gravel Bikes 

This is literally a high spec hybrid but there's nothing wrong with that

Be careful, it sounds like this bike is a gateway bike to full on mt biking! And as a mt biker (who also owns a gravel bike), we ARE on to something!😁

This review is spot on. I bought a Hudski Doggler and it is a blast to ride. Sizing: I bought a large, because I really wanted the 170mm cranks. A medium might have worked, but I could not imagine living with 165mm cranks. I’m a mountain biker, and had spent many years single speed 175mm, so I insist on having that final bottom leverage grunt available. My inseam is 30”, and I can clear the top tube fine but this is not my dedicated MTB, it’s a gravel/road thing for me. Fit adjustment: I ended up putting on a slightly longer 60mm stem, and lowering it several spacers. Kudos to Hudski for providing a full length steer tube, so moving it up or down is an option. The supplied bars have a lot of rise, but if you wanted different flatter bars you might want that long steer tube. I bought the city bike build because I wanted the maximum bend in the bars, which is great for me. I just finished a 2 day 75 mile round trip camping excursion to a music festival on the Katy Trail in Missouri , and could not be more pleased. I do run a Brooks B17 seat and Ergon grips, Speedplay Drillium pedals. 💯 would buy again.

HHUUUUUGE props to this company for speccing shorter cranks even on the larger sizes. 165mm on Small and Medium then only 170mm on L and XL - now that's going against the grain. I'm one of the crazy people who can absolutely feel the difference between 175 cranks and 172.5 cranks. I fit a M/L size bike, and my choice is usually to go with a small for me medium just to avoid the annoyingly long 175 cranks that usually come on large sized bikes.

I love this bike. Basic fun for everyone.

Nice, but i'd prefer the frame in steel, but then it would be a Surly Krampus/Monkey.....

I've got a Doggler in Forest Service Green - took a fair bit to get used to compared to my Specialized Diverge, but I absolutely adore this bike now. Sizing is a bit strange, but as a short man with a very very short inseam, I am extremely appreciative of their slacker geometry, so I get to use the dropper even on a small without issues. 10/10, great party pace bike for sure

The Marin Muirwoods has similar geo to this & is also technically not suspension corrected like this. I know the Unit has an adjustable CS, but Kona's site nor bikeinsight gives me info on where in sliding dropout that 430mm number is.

I think the hudski is one of the best bikes for the money. One comment about the perceived small size: the short nose Deva saddle, zero offset dropper, and 74 STA bring you significantly closer to the bars (30mm!) compared to a traditional gravel bike setup (regular saddle, 15mm offset seatpost, and 73.5STA). Not a bad thing, just something to be aware of. The short nose saddles that are popular with road/gravel don't mix well with dropper seatposts which don't have any setback or as much adjustment range.

I’ve been waiting for you to review this bike!!! Can’t wait to watch!

Great video with some excellent insights. Hudski presently has the deore spec of all three doggler styles priced at $1120USD on their site. I think that for many looking to get a first 'ATB' that this is a stellar deal for what it comes with. I was curious about the sizing as well - I sit in between a L and XL at 6'1" with slightly larger arm span - I was advised by Hudski to go for the XL. I have it on order right now and will update after some initial riding! While the SLX spec is tempting, I believe that I am better served by getting the quality deore components and upgrading as needed. You can get an SLX shifter and Derailleur for under $100!

I bought those bars for my fat bike, and it's pretty great. Really nice product and affordably priced at only $60. Love it.

Nice looking bike. Looking for something like this to ride easy going, flowy trails, without the maintenance hassle of suspension.

Sal is a great mechanic. Looking forward to his bikes!

This bike has almost exactly the geometry as my Marin Bolinas Ridge 1 (29). I have upgraded my drivetrain to Deore 1x10 and newer wheelset. I also replaced the 40000lb shock for a nice light weight aluminum fork. Though I do not have the ability to have multiple front racks I do have a great "gravel" bike.

I just got my daughter a Salsa Journeyer . It’s not quite that slack, and she doesn’t need it to be, but the bikes seem kind of similar. No suspension, lots of mounts, flat or drop, big or little wheels. She’s got the flat bars and 650B wheels, and I expect her to ride 85/15 pavement to gravel. Nice bike.

Reminds me very much of what Stooge Cycles are doing in the UK.

It's a lot like modern version of an old school mountain bike. Solid fork mountain bikes are still in high demand around here. A lot of people just buy a mountain bike and swap out the forks. This looks like a great bike for the rest of us.(those who aren't racers).

This looks like a really awesome bike! As a mainly roadie/gravely guy I‘m strangely drawn to this 😀

*guy pointing at butterfly meme:* is this a gravel bike? jk gravel bikes can totally look like this, no need to gatekeep it

at this point we're basically removing suspension and calling it gravel instead of xc or mtb

Oh! Turns out my grandmother's 20 yers old bike is a grevel!

Russ, another great review! Appreciate the time you put into testing bikes. What handlebar bag are you using in the video?

25mm cst hp and buttery smooth concrete is my dream ride

I am starting to think they need to bring back my old Ragley TD:1 and market it as an ATB(how I use it) instead of a rigid, non suspension corrected XC race bike. Several bikes these days, including this Hudski, seem to be that sort of 13 year old geometry.

I'm curious is you have any thoughts regarding a Hudski compared to a Jones bike?

Sounds like a great bike all round. I wonder if it's available in Australia?

Tjat is a cool looking rigid mountain bike, but it's just too much money for me to justify buying it!

This Hudski reminds me of the little known Intec M5 rigid MTB by German framemaker Raco

I know you've never heard anyone say this before, Russ, but it's just the 2023 version of a 90s mountain bike! I approve.

Nice bike and just about perfect for the riding I do (mostly logging roads) around Seeley Lake, Montana. We’re in the same county! But price tag is rather steep and I’m looking into a lower end hardtail (which typically come with rear rack eyelets; a must for me) and replacing the suspension fork with a rigid one. That’ll most likely result in a weight around 26-28 lbs. at a price tag about half of the Hudski. I think rigid hardtail MTBs are perfect for roads / trails with plenty of ups and downs. Thanks for the review!

Reminds me of Marin DSX

First imprssion: not much different than some 'off-the-shelf' bikes I've seen from the likes of Kona or Jamis, but with quality cromo frames at lower prices too. Tyre clearances could be a factor I guess.

Looks like a solid bike with a lot going for it. The consumer has so many choices right now, and enough variations in components there's no barrier to dialing in the perfect fit.

One could build something similar on the cheap with an early to mid 2000s hardtail frame and suspension compensated rigid fork.

I am clinging to surly karate monkey

This is returning to the original mtn bike theme. Non-suspension narrow tires don't work for me. I like the technological development that mtn bikes have enjoyed since the '70s.

Someone had this on their car rack the other day. I waited outside to confront the person who owned it to ask how they liked it. They never showed 😢

I feel like this bike is getting closer to something that i feel like is missing. An intro bike that can go in alot of different directions. Something that can begin life as a $1000 ish gravely hybrid then take some modifications once someone learns what kind of riding they like. I recently came back to bikes from a long hiatus and gravel seemed good and versatile (especially as a former college roadie/gradschool fixie rider). I got a State Allroad (great bike) but almost immediately was drawn to a more MTB direction(which i never would have discovered or fathomed without the Allroad). I then immediately dropped $ on a Ragley Marley(great 2 bike quiver for my riding) but i would have loved to be able to take that Allroad and maybe change some bars etc and have just enough bike to hit a table top/drops/berms and MAYBE even be able to throw on a suspension fork in another year. As i said this bike is ALMSOT there. I think the price point is just high enough that its above what an intro - doesn't know what kind of riding they want to do - rider is going to spend. A build under 1000 maybe would do it. But at this price point i think most people are going to want it for a specific thing. Maybe that specific thing is mixed terain riding but thats a really specific use case compared to "learning what type of cycling speaks to me" which is an under delivered segment.

I like the look of that... ATB is the future, again...

I want a Doggler!

I have the Doggler V1 with both wheel sizes, and let me tell you it rips offroad with the 27.5x2.6 tires vs 700x50mm. It makes a big difference. I realize now that I didn't really need the 700 wheelset, as for me the most versatile setup is the MTB build with big volume, fast rolling tires (i.e. 27.5x2.6 Mezcals). I loooove the high bottom bracket on V1, no pedal strikes (it's now lower on the 2nd iteration). Russ is right when he tells you to size UP... I'm 5'8", 31" inseam and got the medium, but should've bought a large because the stack is too low and they cut the steer tube short (they fixed that on V2), so I had to put a longer, high-angle stem to compensate and now the handling is not as precise. I put this bike through its paces while bikepacking/touring. Frame is super solid and stiff, it happily takes a heavy load in the back. For me this bike has 3 main flaws: 1. The biggest weakness is the carbon fork. It's soft, you feel it bend when turning hard, making the brake rotor rub. This is the price to pay for a lightweight bike I guess. Steel forks are so heavy, but it makes me wonder whether a well built aluminium fork could achieve the right balance between weight and sturdiness. 2. The 12-speed drivetrain: the SLX chains wear out so fast, I can only get about 1,000-1,500 km out of one. It gets expensive. 3. Finally, the 30mm rims are too narrow for the 2.6 tires, the handling gets all messed up when you go lower than 25 psi, which defeats the purpose of these tires. Same goes for the 25mm rims on the gravel and city builds: the frame and fork will accept 2.25 tires, but I suspect you'll have terrible handling if you exceed the 2:1 rim/tire width ratio. I won't even try it. So as Russ says, this is a bike meant to live with you everyday and I just love that one-bike quiver philosophy. The Doggler is a big step-up from a conventional gravel bike in terms of all-terrain capability, thanks to the big volume tires and slack angles. That said, I do wish sometimes for boost spacing/bigger tires and bombproof fork and wheels (think Jones SWB).

There’s a $1600 version (Deore equipped) available in June. That seems like a great bike for the money

Bike insights: "very aggressive stack and reach" compared to, well, just about anything other than a hard tail MB. Does this qualify as a party pace bike?

This bike needs some bluelug treatment

This is still one of the most exciting things in the industry for me

Just buy a Cube Hyde/Travel, 29x2.2 tyres, framelock, cheap, sturdy. Put a Pizza Rack on the front and you have a perfect do it all, commuter bike.

Bike makers should just bring back classic MTB geometry on MTBs equipped with rigid forks and be done with it. Shimano MT200 with basic Deore or Alivio drivetrain cost less than mainstream Gravel groupsets, basic MTB handlebars cost less than equivalent Gravel dropbars, etc. I actually assembled something like that, but the MTB frame that i am using is of a modern geometry designed for a suspension fork. Equipped it with a non-corrected rigid fork (suspension-corrected rigid forks are carbon and i don't want to use carbon fork) which results in a wonky seattube angle, and so the seat setback is not optimal to the point where i already pulled it all the way back but is still not optimal.

This is a beautiful bike because it doesn't have a suspension corrected front forks. Suspension forks look awful to me. This is a new wave of atb. My 3 year old Project 12 Cycleworks patientZero has a slack geo too and it's a super nice bike to ride.

Would you consider the Bearclaw Thunderhawk to fit in the ATB category?

Taking some of those stem spacers out will make it feel bigger for sure.

Reminds me of my Surly Ogre.

Take out your glasses and look again, this is a mtb. Also, a dropper post, why tf?

Thanks for the review. The seat angle is quite steep for a pedal all day bike, what did you think of it?

looks like a Specialized Sirrus X

Hahaha sus out, thats a good pun

Ok...if you're riding off road like in the videos, why wouldn't you want a "squishy front" -i.e., front suspension? I don't see the down side, and it would be so much more comfortable. What's the point? Sincerely curious...

Basically a perfect flat bar gravel bike.

I am 6'4" is the extra large gonna fit me...ish ? They made an absolutely beautiful bike. I love everything about this.

how heavy is this?

I have an old 1999 Specialized Sworks that I am converting into this type of ride. I put a surly rigid fork on with a pizza rack, rebuilt the brakes, new seat, etc. I am looking for a new Stem and handle bars and very similar to what this bike has. Can you suggest some for me.

"suspension correct" is often cited as some sort of negative? Sorry by my ignorance, but what exact means "suspension correct" and when it is desirable and when it is not?

Does this have a aluminum or steel steerer tube? Carbon steerer tubes are the worse and so many companies spec their bike with full carbon forks.

What goes around comes around. Although technology has greatly improved bikes, we were riding similar bike builds back in the 80's before suspension hit the off-road bikes.

How tall are you? Because I'm often between S/M myself at 5'5. This seems like a rad "gravel" bike though!

What is a "gravel bike"? The only bike you can ride gravel with and not crash?

😂 squishy fronts 😂

Do you think road performance could be on par with say the marin dsx 1 with some inner bar ends and lower rolling resistance tires?

Uh oh,talking more road than I've heard from you Russ! Doggler looks totally Party Pace to me!😆🤭,must Be the tour dah franz,coming that's vibing you! Great review!!

Russ, would love to see a compilation video of all your funny made up words ie. squishy front, tot noggins etc…😂

how TF do you do that with know suspension

How well does the dinner plate cassette work with friction shifting Hey new term JFF just for fun I like it thumbs 👍 for that one

Thanks for this vid! What's the handle bar bag?

I have had two hardtails rigged with a rigid fork and they were great, so good in fact they were both stolen😒. They were comfortable and capable. I wonder if size Smedium or Merge will ever become part of the language.😂

I'm 5'8" Imma medium..... 56cm in a road bike.... it's all crazy

It resembles my Redwood, specially that fork; super upright and small rear triangle…. I like it

I would love to see a review of the Nordest Super Albarda if you liked this bike. Kind of a similar geo but with drop bars in mind.

Thanks, Russ, that bike looks like a winner and perhaps we need a non-curly-bar class in gravel events. And I like the Oury grips and i remember those being cool on BMX bikes in the early days.

Very cool!

I’ve always said this bike is pretty sweet. I’m going to get this via frame in a couple years for a townie on the cheap 😊

I wonder if this can have a FD? 2x11/12

JFF is a new T-Shirt Russ run with it please I'll buy one

The question is can I modify it to a dropbar?

Question about gravel bike riding. What's it like in reality? Most gravel roads I've been on have washboard potholes rocks etc. I can't imagine that's much fun to ride over. Curious, why is this not mentioned in all the gravel bike words?

It looks like a pretty good all around bike. I'll have to take your word on the price, since I'm used to department store prices. Getting into quality bikes has been eye opening, to use a euphemism. I need an uncompromising city bike that duplicates the virtues of my Huffy, as modified, but avoids the flaws. So I'm having an Azor built to my specifications, with all the options that look useful. They're quoting $2,000. A step up from Target prices, but apparently a good price for a premium bike built to spec.

I don't care for squishy bikes

This might be the first Gravelbike that you have reviewed that I might consider buying. Flatbars, 700/29 wheels/tires, wide range 1x drivetrain with a 10-51 cassette, mountain bike-ish geo, lots of mounts, is every thing I would want in a Gravelbike. I'm not into 650/27.5 wheels/tires, drop bars, 2x drivetrains, Roadbike geo. If this bike has clearance for 29x2.4 tires, I want one.

What kind of rear hub does it have? Shimano SLX?

Does the Doggler have internal cable routing?

How is this different from a 1980's mountainbike? Anyway, I like it.

At this point we are just using terminology to create hype, and lines between types of bike are completely blurred

I prefer Jones handlebars in that type of setup.

How is it for fender mounting? With those 700x50 tires, clearance looked pretty tight. I could not see if it has fender mounting points.

How does one join the discord server? 🤔 Haha

I’m not sure I like suspension either!

I was really close to buying this bike a couple years ago, but I went with a slightly different bike. However this is a very great bike for what it can do.

Pretty soon you'll be a mountain biker. Its addictive.

looks like a nordest super albarda frame

Trek dual sport? Or trek 1120 if you've got money to burb

Similar to Poseidon Redwood