I recently got into gravel as well, and maybe got some good tips as someone who very recently got to experience a lot of new shit since it was all foreign haha.
It was a lot more new stuff than I thought for gravel…
- Have a good understanding on how to plug a tubeless tire
- Bring a pump, not only CO2 cartridge
- Get a tool that can handle taking off the chain if it gets stuck, as well as a space chain master link
- Take it easy in the corners
- A rear derailleur with a clutch is a must, don’t do my mistake and run a normal rear derailleur and then have chain sucks from hell…
- There is a lot more maintenance when you have been riding gravel
Thats probably all things that I would think are good to keep in mind, the rest are just stuff you’ll learn long the way…
I tried to ride gravel like I ride road, and I have just now started to realise that I kind of need to think of it as a completely separate way of riding… everything from planning routes, food, equipment, clothes etc.
It gets a lot more fun being prepared, and having the right tools etc. helps a lot 