Re: Rolling resistance, tire pressures, and road texture

[Callistus Valerius]

>
> In any case I'm getting fatter tires next time, and running them at lower
> pressures. The problem is I have a hard time paying $30-50 for a bike
tire, and
> the only ones ever on sale are the ubiquitious 23mm.
>
> Matt O.
>

I agree with you, I much prefer 25's, now that I've begun riding 150
mile training rides. Over long distances, you really can't take much
banging around, smoothness is the key. The 25's are hard to come by, once
my LBS had some vred volante's for sale for $10 a tire and I bought 4 of
them. They work ok, but the tread wears faster then vred's, more high tech
models. But you never see those in 25's. I feel safer on 25's, but of
course the argument against them is that they are not as aerodynamic as
23's. Maybe that makes a difference in races, but in endurance riding it's
really kind of silly.

 

[Kinky Cowboy]

On Mon, 06 Jun 2005 00:44:33 GMT, "Callistus Valerius"
<[email protected]> wrote:

>>
>> In any case I'm getting fatter tires next time, and running them at lower
>> pressures. The problem is I have a hard time paying $30-50 for a bike
>tire, and
>> the only ones ever on sale are the ubiquitious 23mm.
>>
>> Matt O.
>>
>
>course the argument against them is that they are not as aerodynamic as
>23's. Maybe that makes a difference in races, but in endurance riding it's
>really kind of silly.
>

For the record, I've been round my local 10 mile course in 28 minutes
on 37c tyres and normal handlebars, compared with a best of 26m15s on
20c an tribars. I wouldn't worry too much about the aerodynamic
difference between 23s and 25s!
Kinky Cowboy*

*Batteries not included
May contain traces of nuts
Your milage may vary

 

[Chris M]

You have to look around but I have been able to find 25s whenever I
need them. Conti sells lots of 25s so you just have to find a shop that
either stocks or will order them for you. The Ultra 2000 seems to be in
stock in 25s more often then in 23 and those are what I consider just
about ideal for training. There are also Performance Bike's own tires
that come in 25 or 26 (depending on the model, but not both per a given
model). They call them "Forte" and they are pretty good. They are good
enough to race unless youa re really picky about feel. Specialized has
all of their performance tires in 25s but the prices have been going up
so I don't use them right now. I got some Hutchinson 25s this past
winter and just changed the second one. Those are good all around tires
too, a bit more supple than the Ultra 2000 and about the same price
(depending on sales). Once I determined I did not want to train on 23s
in the back, I just make sure I have at least one tire ready to mount
or else I need to start looking for sales. Let's face it, for training
it is a bit decadent to use Vittoria Speed and Conti 155 gram ultra
vunter tires unless you get a really nice club or team discount.

 

[Callistus Valerius]

I'll have to try Hutchinson's some time, so thanks for the tip. I don't
use Conti's because I've had 2 sidewall blowouts using them. They have no
rubber on the sidewalls, so if anything even touches that sidewall watch
out. That's why I use vredesteins because their rubber goes around the
whole tire, not just the bottom. More weight, that's the price. When I
used conti's, I always carried a spare folding tire, a habit that's hard to
break, even though I don't use them now.


> You have to look around but I have been able to find 25s whenever I
> need them. Conti sells lots of 25s so you just have to find a shop that
> either stocks or will order them for you. The Ultra 2000 seems to be in
> stock in 25s more often then in 23 and those are what I consider just
> about ideal for training. There are also Performance Bike's own tires
> that come in 25 or 26 (depending on the model, but not both per a given
> model). They call them "Forte" and they are pretty good. They are good
> enough to race unless youa re really picky about feel. Specialized has
> all of their performance tires in 25s but the prices have been going up
> so I don't use them right now. I got some Hutchinson 25s this past
> winter and just changed the second one. Those are good all around tires
> too, a bit more supple than the Ultra 2000 and about the same price
> (depending on sales). Once I determined I did not want to train on 23s
> in the back, I just make sure I have at least one tire ready to mount
> or else I need to start looking for sales. Let's face it, for training
> it is a bit decadent to use Vittoria Speed and Conti 155 gram ultra
> vunter tires unless you get a really nice club or team discount.
>

 

[[email protected]]

Chris M wrote:
> You have to look around but I have been able to find 25s whenever I
> need them.

Just went down to the LBS and was surprised to find a big
going-out-of-business sale. I picked up a couple Michelin Pro Race
700x25 tires cheap.

I also dated myself by getting excited about the La Vie Claire and
System U jerseys they dragged out of the basement.

Too bad they're going out of business.

The nice 25's make a huge difference over the 23's I was running
before. I needed at least 120 psi on the 23's to keep the tire from
bulging out too much from my weight. With the 25's 100 is more than
enough. I only took a quick spin, but it seems promising.

Joseph