In an ideal world we would all live somewhere wild and remote, with access to pristine gravel trails straight from our front door. But in reality, the majority of us live in urban areas and our gravel rides are made up of a mishmash of different surfaces and trail types.

Just because your gravel ride has an urban bias to it doesn't mean that it won't be fun though. By using your imagination and your trail finding skills, an urban ride will often provide just as much entertainment, challenge and stimulation as a ride somewhere more exotic could.

We head out on a ride with the new Shimano RX801 Limited Edition shoes and matching jersey to see how they cope with gravel riding in the urban jungle.