Any tips on gravel road riding? These are very remote gravel roads and they can differ greatly between the size/type of gravel used as well as the depth. Right now the tires on my mountain bike differ, I have a Mountain King on the back, and Geax Mezcal on the front. Would it be better to have the more aggressive tire on the front to help bite into that gravel, or keep it on the rear where it is?

I hope to go scouting these roads soon, but I may (and probably will) wait to do some fit related changes to my mountain bike to allow proper knee extension and make certain my neck isn't too stretched out. It feels great on single-track, but the fit has a ways to go before I can do more road-like riding with my Jamis. This isn't a surprise, we went a little small on the size deliberately. Some of the gravel roads in the are I will be riding in are VERY steep and I need to make certain my fit is correct to make sure my knees, IT band and hip stay happy.

If I can get in enough gravel riding this winter, I hope to ride in the Sub-9 Death March in early March rather than volunteer, but we will see.