Bikeforums.net is a forum about nothing but bikes. Our community can help you find information about hard-to-find and localized information like bicycle tours, specialties like where in your area to have your recumbent bike serviced, or what are the best bicycle tires and seats for the activities you use your bike for.chuychanga
06-10-03, 12:00 PM
I currently ride a mountain bike with Specialized Fat Boy 26 X 1.25 slick tires. I used to mountain bike almost exclusively, but lately it's all on the roads. I am shopping for a more traditional road bike. I will use it primarily for fitness riding, centuries, and the occaisional self-sustained tour. I would love to pick up a light speedy road bike for everyday use and also a sturdy touring bike for several vacations each year, but I can't justify buying two bikes right now.
Since a tour bike can be ridden as an everyday trainer, but not vice-versa, I have been looking mostly at touring bikes (namely the Bianchi Volpe). Touring bikes come with heavier duty wheels and usually 32C tires. That would be great if I'm on a tour, but for everyday rides, I'd like skinnier tires. It seems like the smallest I could fit on the same wheelset would be 28C.
The ability to load this bike up with 30-40 pounds of gear is important to me, but the competitor in me still likes the feeling of catching up with the roadies on a big hill.
How much difference is there between a 28C tire and the 1.25" tires I'm currently riding? How much slower is a 28C tires than a 23C? Could you still hang with your group if you had to ride a 28C tire on a steel bike that weighs 5 pounds more that everyone else's?
Since a tour bike can be ridden as an everyday trainer, but not vice-versa, I have been looking mostly at touring bikes (namely the Bianchi Volpe). Touring bikes come with heavier duty wheels and usually 32C tires. That would be great if I'm on a tour, but for everyday rides, I'd like skinnier tires. It seems like the smallest I could fit on the same wheelset would be 28C.
The ability to load this bike up with 30-40 pounds of gear is important to me, but the competitor in me still likes the feeling of catching up with the roadies on a big hill.
How much difference is there between a 28C tire and the 1.25" tires I'm currently riding? How much slower is a 28C tires than a 23C? Could you still hang with your group if you had to ride a 28C tire on a steel bike that weighs 5 pounds more that everyone else's?