If you were to walk into my garage you will see dozens and dozens of bicycle tires. I’m rather picky about my tires and I am always trying out new tread patterns, designs, rubber compound and etc. Though that may sound impressive…I really don’t know too much about tires. But I know enough to determine which works best for my riding style.
Here’s what I look for in tires. For one, I’m not a big fan of big knobby tires. Well, I take that back, I’m not a big fan of knobby tires that look like they belong on a dirt bike. Check this out. Below is a picture of a Specialized Enduro Pro tire.
That right there is a perfect tire. Here’s why. First of all, I like my treads/knobs to be closer together. To me that makes them roll faster. This type of tire is great for hard pack, rocky and single track riding. But they are not built for any type of mud riding. They act like velcro when it comes to mud. They don’t shed it at all, in fact these tires are so good at gripping, that when you run over mud, it won’t flick off…
This is the Bontrager XR Jones tires. Another great tread pattern. I like these tires because of the fact the tread/knobs are longer and lower profile. The longer tread (forgive me if I’m not calling them the right term) gives them a semi slick feel because there’s more contact to the ground. But surprisingly these are some of the fastest tires I’ve ever ridden in. They’re perfect for almost all conditions except…rocks. Due to the low profile and wider tread, these tires simply don’t grip enough AND the side walls are super thin. Both Priscilla and Jeremy ran these on their bikes and had the side wall cut after going through some rocks.
Now lets talk about the width of tires. Well it seems like 26″x2.2″ seem to be the sweet spot. 2.0’s aren’t bad either. Just think of it this way, the wider the slower, but the better the traction is. The more narrow, like 26″x1.90″ the faster, but you will pay for it in traction. On my full suspension singlespeed, I ran 1.95’s for my tires, I was flying! But I was all over the place and had to work hard to make sure I handled the bike. The new single speed I just built is running 2.2’s…the magic number! So I can still have some speed with these tires and still feel like I can take a rock bed or a berm without a problem.
Like I said, I’m not expert on tires. Heck Sheldon Brown’s site is chock full of information about it. But what I’ve shared is something I’ve learned on my own and it works for me. So don’t hold me to it if your findings are a bit different. However, if you disagree or have a tip about certain tires, then leave a comment!
