I have a bike that you could put cantilever or disc on. I started with cantis but eventually went to disc. The reason was because I rode some pretty rough dirt roads and got tired of having to adjust the width of the brakes or trueing the wheels so often. A couple of times brakes had to open so wide I barely had brakes to get home. I still true the wheels but just not as diligent about it.

Discs are great but if you are only training don't let cantis prevent you from choosing the bike without discs if you prefer it for other reasons. Mine work great other than when really wet, snowy or super muddy - even then you get used to it.

For light gravel roads and not doing a lot of muddy rides, cantilevers are fine. More frames (even the one I have from 2004) have mounts for disc brakes and disc compatible hubs, so you can upgrade in the future.

I've ridden some single track too and been fine, but not heavy mud. You shouldn't train on muddy trails anyway in most places and it damages the trails. I might want a disc if I was commuting on it too and riding in the rain a lot.

My advice for a cross bike for training. Save your money and just get the cheapest Ultegra or Force equipped bike you can find that fits well. Tires and tire pressure makes the biggest difference on gravel.

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TrainingBible Coaching
http://www.trainingbible.com

What's snow and rain? I live in SW Arizona... lol AZ doesn't have a solid cyclocross environment... even if it did... I don't plan to race, just use the bike on the massive amount of dirt trails... I'm trying to stay off the roads and highways since where I live... for long riding days I either have to do like 15 plus x 4.3 mile loops, or go on the state highway with no shoulders.... plus there's access to a great mountain area via dirt trails. So, still cantis? It's weird the bikes that I'm looking at are the same maker, the canti model with Force 22 group with 50/34 and 11/26, and the other with DB7 discs with Force 10 and 46/36 and 12/28... a weaker gearing set... I wish the disc model had the canti gears.

I'll add another exception might be if you have long twisty descents on those gravel roads that require sustained braking.

For you purposes (training on fire roads/gravel) I'd go with the First option with the wider gearing range with conventional compact crank. The 2nd options is a typical cyclocross gearing combo that allows you to stay in the big ring on flat sections and declines off road without going and and out of the small ring as much, then the small ring is for technical sections, really muddy stuff, sand and climbs. I think I have a 48/38 on mine. I really like that combo for training on gravel roads.

I actually rode mine this morning. I was ready for a fun ride after 4 months of just sticking to the plan and grinding out sessions on my tri bike. I'll be doing that a lot more often going forward.

Also do you have a road bike? The first option could still be viable for a lot of group rides if you swapped out to a different set of wheels with 25c tires. OR you could ride 25 or 28cc gator-skins all the time of the gravel isn't too loose or soft.

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TrainingBible Coaching
http://www.trainingbible.com

For me the biggest appeal of discs would be no more wearing through the brake surface of the rim with rim brakes. The biggest draw back is that wheels would no longer be interchangeable.

I purchased a Niner RLT and am in love with it. While discs or cantis will work just fine for your intended purpose your comment about wheels being interchangeable would make me suggest you stick with cantilever brakes. I am able to use one of my mtn bike wheelsets as a second option for the RLT so for me it is not an issue. Cantis are not going away and there will be plenty of options for years to come. But also the amount of options for disc brake equipped 'cross/gravel bikes is just going to get bigger too.

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Contemplating a multi-sport comeback

I do have a road bike too.. a uber light tarmac for the road races that I occasionally do... unless racing in a RR or Crit... the tarmac is a little tough to take beyond 3 hours...this bike would serve as a roubaix type bike too for longer endurance training rides... and I like the idea that I could swap wheels if I had too. The canti model is $500 cheaper too... and I like the gearing setup better in case I do go on-road.

I wish I had disc brakes on my cyclocross bike. I weigh 175 and I always feel like I'm squeezing the life out of my canti-brakes when I get to a turn at the bottom of a hill. I've recently changed to mini v-brakes and that has helped with the amount of braking power that I have.

... Having said that, I'm sure if I just had more technical skill, I might just be able to use canti brakes without issue.

I've heard good things about some mechanical disc brakes (like the avid BB7) and would love to try those out.

Would go w/ Canti only because all my other equipment could be used.

Don't let the cantilever brakes hold you back unless you plan to race cx in wet, muddy conditions which it sounds like you won't. I ride mine (with cantis) daily as a commuter in very hilly terrain and it rains a lot here. A lot. The same bike is used for racing and while I haven't had any issues with stopping or control, my next *race* bike would likely be set up with discs. In the meantime, cantis work just fine and, if you care, are a bit lighter too.

The 46/36 gearing is a pretty traditional cx setup (I've got the Shimano FC-CX70). It's great for the crit-like environment in cx racing and very good in daily use too. If you're a grinder riding in places with few hills, this might be a drawback, but even though I also use mine on rainy day group rides I don't generally spin out the gears except on steep descents (where it's unsafe and bad form to blow up the paceline by hammering off on your own anyway).

Someone mentioned wear on rims and I can't say that I've noticed any unusual wear in a full year of racing, graveuring (is that a word now?) and commuting on my Hed Ardennes. I have split a rim in this way (on a hardtail mtb) way back in the day but that was after years of North Shore mountain biking and some unsettling use as a bike courier. That last bit also broke the steel frame but that's another story.

If resale is a factor, I could see this leaning towards discs although I have heard mixed reviews about the older mech. (road/cx) discs, especially regarding failure during actual races. Yours should be new so hopefully a non-issue but worth the research anyway.

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Kiwami NA Racing Team

My view is the opposite of shaggy and a couple others. I find canti to be acceptable to preferable for all racing situations, including lots of mud. But racing is the only situation where I'd be happy with cantilever brakes. If I was getting a bike that would be used for trail, road, commuting, etc, but no racing, my last choice would be canti. First choice would be disc, and second would be v-brake.

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It doesn't really matter what Phil is saying, the music of his voice is the appropriate soundtrack for a bicycle race. HTupolev

canti's are simpler, cheaper and easier to change flats with if those are considerations. you may also want to consider feel of the disc brakes versus what is on your other bikes in that they are much more sensitive so you would have to get used to going from one to the other.

Discs look sexier for sure... I'm just need enough stopping power to slow speed just enough from going over the edge of a cliff off the mountain during a 30mph curvy descent on a paved road... I do it on a mountain bike with discs... done it on a road bike... just would like reassurance that cantis would be up to the job. ;)

I like the look of a disc on a mountain bike but prefer the look of a canti on a cross bike. Old school I guess. My Avid Ultimates have seen everything including single track and mud and have been like a faithful dog.

Use good quality cantis (I use Paul touring canti front and back, wife's bike has Shimano CX50--both work great), set them up right and they will be up to the job.

Disc brakes will not stop you any faster. In dry conditions if the Canti brakes stop the wheel from spinning, which they almost always can do, its about the friction between the tire and the ground surface that determines stopping distance.

You actually don't want to cause the wheel to stop spinning and the wheel to slide along the ground , ie skid, that causes loss of control. You want the tire to grip the ground. That usually involves operator skill not type of brake.

The type of brake usually is not the limiter in stopping distance in dry conditions.

I did cantis 2 yrs ago when the transition to discs started for some of the reasons being mentioned.

That being said, all else like geometry/ fit being equal I would do discs now because we have steep descents around here and the cantis don't get it done. I am fine racing cantis in cross though. If you know how to ride, they are good enough for cross racing which is different than going on hilly dirt road rides.

To improve things, I just upgraded to trp cx 8.4 mini v brakes and you can get very good stopping power by uSing those and mtg your cost, wheel sharing and setup goals.

How hard is it to swap a couple chainrings and a cassette then? Certainly easier than switching brake systems (for framesets that are compatible with either).

I bought my cross bike with cantilever brakes because I wanted to be able to put my PT wheel on the cross bike for training/data gathering.

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Jason
None of the secrets of success will work unless you do.

Well, nearly all the posts that recommend cantis say, "if you get x, and set them up right." So, it is like a car with carburetor, works fine if set up right, but tuning it can be a pain. I ride canti, but would not recommend them to a friend. There is reason they are not sold on mountain bikes anymore. Even on the cross forums, there are fewer folks sticking with canti. About the only reason I see for folks buying canti bikes is: I got a bunch of tubular wheels already.

Do a test, take a road bike with road brakes, stop on a steep hill. Borrow a bike with canti and do the same. I find that my canti brakes are so much worse than my worst road brakes (a front-only suntour on a fixie), that I just don't enjoy riding canti on the hills where I live (at least on the road, I'll put up with them off road). Canti will stop, but they just don't modulate.

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It doesn't really matter what Phil is saying, the music of his voice is the appropriate soundtrack for a bicycle race. HTupolev

Disc. Canti is outdated tech. There's no reason to buy that bike with out disc brakes. Better braking and less maintenance.

I put Tektro Mini V brakes on my commuter and CX trainer.
They work really well, are cheap, are a doddle to set up and adjust.
The only PITA is the need for an adjustable noodle or inline barrel adjuster to facilitate wheel swaps.

maybe worth consideration.

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´Get the most aero and light bike you can get. With the aero advantage you can be saving minutes and with the weight advantage you can be saving seconds. In a race against the clock both matter.´

BMANX

Shouldn't cantis feel like regular road bike brakes or are the harder to modulate?