shovelhd

And the following year I will be 60. If I can get all this life stuff worked out we could have a hell of a time down there.

shovelhd

On this silly best tire stuff. So much of it depends on your wheels, your bike, your weight, your tire size and pressure, the roads you regularly ride on, yadayadayada. I rode and raced on GP4000S on Mavic Ksyrium wheels for a while. I thought they handled great and rode nice with latex tubes at 110/105. I recently changed to wide carbon wheels and the same tires in 25mm at 95/90. It's like a completely different tire. It handles better and rides significantly better.

bmcphx

I'm not even that worried about the performance difference, for me it's all about the feel I get. I want to be in touch with the road and get feedback from what I'm doing, but I don't want that in a negative way, is hard for me to explain.

gsteinb

sleep. walk course. eat pasta. sleep. openers. poop. nap. eat. sleep. eat. warm up. race.


it's like a veritable party.

gsteinb

tire guys are like audio guys

Wesley36

FWIW
Road Bike Tires Rolling Resistance Reviews

ridethecliche

Atleast it's friday!

grolby

Well, I'm trying not to overestimate things.

I can say this about having experimented with racing on 25m tires this season: they FEEL slower to me than the 23s (same tire, different size). I know that's basically total BS, because I'm not actually able to reliably detect the kind of speed difference they would make. But on top of that, I'm already riding pretty light (race weight <125lbs), so the additional tire width and volume don't seem to give me much benefit in handling confidence or comfort, either. So whether the aero penalty is large or small, I don't see much use in paying it for benefits I haven't really seen. And feeling faster is important, too.

grolby

If you think the GP4kS II is a brick, you should try the crappy tires I was riding before I switched. Compared to any number of cheapo tires I've experienced, it is like riding on fluffy clouds made from angel farts.
The GP4kS II isn't highly recommended just because it is durable. It is highly recommended because it's very versatile, with a good balance of ride, grip and durability, plus it can be extremely fast. The Conti tire commonly recommended for durability is the Gatorskin. That definitely does ride like a brick.

I mean, it's not like this tire needs my help and YMMV and all that. But at least understand that it's not made to be durable first, and that's not the major selling point for it.

Oh, we are so much worse than audio guys.

himespau 

+1

mike868y

what if they're one in the same?

i train on panaracer paselas, lol. they're bricks, but $20 durable as hell bricks.

i race on vittora evo corsas w/ latex tubes. beautiful setup, but I definitely wouldn't train on it.

caloso

I just bought some Serfas at the LBS for commuting/training. Don't really care how heavy winter tires are. Heavier the better.

Ygduf

that's worth a lot and just confirms my experience switching directly from gp4k to pr4 and back to gp4k.

bmcphx

I am not implying that I think the GP4000S is advertised and developed as a durable tire, but that's always everyone's argument when I knock that tire. This thread is no exception, people ramble about how good the flat protection is and how long they last.

IDGAF about how long they last, I want a tire that feels good.

Enthalpic

You need more fiber.

carpediemracing 

I remember being next to a guy that had wide, squishy tires on his bike. This was at Bethel so it had relatively good pavement and the short hill. I wondered how the heck he could get going out of the saddle on a set up like that. In the sprint it was like his tires were glued to the ground. My teammate beat him in a pretty close bike throw, and my teammate was, with all respect, weaker than said rider. I was weaker than both since I was behind them.

Apparently I optimize my bike for sprints, meaning tire pressures, drops position relative to BB, gearing selection, etc. I tried to use lower pressures for a bit but am back at normal/full pressure stuff for both my clinchers (23c on 23mm rims) and tubulars (23mm tires instead of 21 or 22 mm).

On the other hand when I did a really bad pavement crit (Rocky Hill) I was thinking, okay, this is where I'd want some soft 28mm tubulars.

Hermes

60 is the new 30. Go get some.

Tire and tire pressure discussions is akin to how many angels can stand on the head of a pin. Tire performance is all about goals and specifics or of course, hookers and blow.

I like the GP4ks in both the 23mm and 25mm sizes. I race on Vittoria EVO Corsa tubular tires and train on GP4Ks. And I have the older narrower rims for my race wheels and use 21mm tubies on those rims.

For training, I put 25 mm GP4ks on skinny rim Williams System 19s and pump them to 100/95. The ride is very nice which facilitates longer time in the saddle. I suspect the aerodynamics are bad due to the tire rim mismatch but I am training with power. On the roads that I use for training, anything lower in pressure feels like I am riding in sand. Higher pressure feels faster - very qualitative observation. So 100/95 is a good sweet spot where the tires feel like they are rolling well and the ride is nice.

I did the Low Key Hill Climb race series this year in the Williams wheels with GP4ks 25mm and thought they performed extremely well. Truth be known, my wife raced the fastest wheel set we had and I raced my training wheels.

I tired Pro Race 3. I got a lot of flats and my wife who hardly ever gets a flat because she is so light, was getting flats. Upon inspection under magnification, I found that the Pro Race 3 tires was accumulating bits of glass in the tread of the tire. I removed 20 pieces one day. Most of them just stay in the tire but obviously larger ones stick and then penetrate to the tube. This was not the case with the GP4ks. They do flat on occasion but we have had much better results with them. Maybe the Pro Race 4 is different.

TheKillerPenguin

Meh, I'll try them, worst case scenario is I switch back to 23s afterward. I used to ride 25s back in the day (pro 2's, FTW) and I liked em then, so I don't see why I wouldn't like em now.

bmcphx

It's funny that people are poo-poo on Pro4 because of its 5 year old predecessor that is no longer made, and was total crap.

but look, if you drive your car on some racing tires all day every day, of course you'll get a flat or two more, and the tires wont last as long, but the experience will be better than if you're driving on some ****ty Kumhos.

TheKillerPenguin

People dump on Pro 4s because Pro 3's were garbage and a step back after the Pro 2's. Sins of the father.

My experience with Pro 4's is they cut a bit more easily than the gp4000s and I don't like the ride as much. But again, opinions, hookers, yadda yadda.

hack

So many tire options and all I've ever used are Mavic Yksion, Pro3s, and GP4Ks. I've stuck with the GP4Ks because that was about all the local shop carried and they were comfortable and durable. I think I still want to give some Challenge tires a whirl since we get a great price on them (I think $25??).

Gramercy

I think it's odd that the new stock CAAD 10 105 comes with 25mm tires - I thought everyone races with 23's except for certain situations? I've never used 25mm's before but would consider it.

Also, I have only ridden the GP4000's. I need to get a new pair but I think they are much cheaper overseas in January, or around that time. I went 3000 miles before getting my first flat a month ago on the rear tire. I figure I'll get new tires for the new season.

bmcphx

my cannondale also came with 25s, which was great because it meant I didn't have to go out and buy 25s when I got the bike. I'll never go back to 23s.

Ygduf

my primary consideration is feel. pr4s feel like riding frozen tires to me. gp4k feel faster/smoother. It's all feel, and bikeradar measurements I guess

Wesley36

The trend has been in the slightly wider direction the last few years. Note that the newest iteration of the Cervelo S5 now has clearance for 25s (the previous versions could only really fit 23s).