. And while I'm not Tig/rickenvox fast I'm faster than average for my age group so I got that going for me too 
Yep, me too. At least a little wave or head nod, even from way across the road if they are going the other way. And I almost always say "Hi" when passing or being passed.
Yeah, the first time I messed with replacing a cable on the newer shifters was educational.
Yeah, actually that is true. The handling feels a bit like the old Merckx I have, which I am told kinda makes sense if you look a bit at the geometry of those two bikes. But it feels quicker to me overall in terms of acceleration, etc.
So I was searching around online today and found some Kona Libre's on sale for a nice price, brand new. Thinking of moving to pull the trigger, been wanting this bike for a couple years. Question, for those of you that ride a lot on road or cross/gravel. This bike comes with WTB 650b tubeless ready wheels and tires. I was thinking I would ultimately buy some 700c carbon hoops and built up some wheels like I did for my Kona mountain bike 29er. These wheels are not top of the line at all and are alu. But, was second guessing myself on 700c vs. 650b. I will ride this bike on road a lot, and likely it will replace my old Merckx I bought from @Tig for that purpose. For those of you who have ridden the 650b tires, or have friends or fellow riders that do, how do they find the speed out on the road, OR even out on the gravel/cross courses? If it is close enough for a rec rider, I might stick with 650b. I guess I can just find out for myself once it is here and I am riding it. But figured I would ask what you guys hear from your buddies or what you experience.
I am after the purple one. A grand less (less the closeout deal I found) and I want 2x. And I like the purple as it will match my mountain bike.
Yah, I think that is what I will do. Just sell the 650b set up new and get 700c (hopefully carbon) with dtswiss hubs or something like that like I did on my mountain bike. Just finished watching the vid again and it says I can go up to 45mm, 700c with fenders if I wanted. Pretty fat. And I will be using this as a road + gravel bike for all our dirt roads. I have a mountain bike when things get technical at all. Road, paved or dirt, will be the point of this bike, with the hope of getting some longer miles in to aid in training, and for just cruising and enjoying.I like a 2x chainring setup to avoid the big ratio jumps you get with a 1x.
Unless the bike is going to spend most of it's time off road, I wouldn't stick with the 650b wheel/tire setup. I might keep them for when the route is more technical than just gravel, though. That's entering MTB territory so I'd probably switch bikes, not wheels sizes.
I like riding 700c wheels on my road, mixed, and gravel rides because of the variety of treads and widths I can switch between. On a single set of wheels, I've mounted 25mm, 28mm and 32mm slicks for the road. When you go to 28mm, you can tell the with slows you down just a little, and can really feel it with 32mm's. For CX, I have 3 different 33mm width tread styles to choose from. For gravel and mixed offroad, I use 38mm and 40mm tires with different tread patterns, depending on the route.
Maxxis 700c 40mm Ramblers
Have you ever tried the gravel kings? Thinking for most use I will favor rolling resistance over big knobs at least in the rolling area. There may be some rocks in the road here and there, but the issue usually is dust or kitty litter over hard. Side/corner tread is way more important than rolling tread to me I think. So thinking I want something that feels fast-ish on the road and secure out in the dirt, if such a thing is made.I like a 2x chainring setup to avoid the big ratio jumps you get with a 1x.
Unless the bike is going to spend most of it's time off road, I wouldn't stick with the 650b wheel/tire setup. I might keep them for when the route is more technical than just gravel, though. That's entering MTB territory so I'd probably switch bikes, not wheels sizes.
I like riding 700c wheels on my road, mixed, and gravel rides because of the variety of treads and widths I can switch between. On a single set of wheels, I've mounted 25mm, 28mm and 32mm slicks for the road. When you go to 28mm, you can tell the with slows you down just a little, and can really feel it with 32mm's. For CX, I have 3 different 33mm width tread styles to choose from. For gravel and mixed offroad, I use 38mm and 40mm tires with different tread patterns, depending on the route.
Maxxis 700c 40mm Ramblers
I use the 40mm Maxxis Ramblers for all gravel rides and the OEM Specialized 38mm Trigger Pro's for mixed rides (I've had them on since early December):
