[phamby]

is this tire any good?

i live in kansas and it maybe snows & ices 4-5 times per winter, with the snow and ice staying on the ground for a week at the most.

would this tire be a good investment?

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[velo2000]

I just mounted a pair of these the other night. I only test rode them in my parking garage, so I can't say how they are on snow/ice yet. I've never ridden studs before, so they felt weird at first. I was afraid they'd slide out from under me on the smooth concrete. However, I couldn't get either tire to slide at all, despite trying to. I'll report back after I try them on snow (which is forecast for tomorrow). For only $31.15 a tire (from www.universalcycles.com using a price match), they seem like a good deal.

[andmalc]

velo2000: How'd it go with the Innovas?

Seems here in Canada these are the only ones my LBS can get without a special order. $60 each!

[velo2000]

I'm afraid that snow never materialized this weekend. So my studded tires are still sitting at home.

Here's a better price than your LBS: http://www.bikecanada.com/list.php?prod=tires&subcategory=mtb%20studded or for
the same money, a better tire perhaps: http://www.mec.ca/Products/product_detail.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524442243629&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302693791&bmUID=1196708483003

[Tequila Joe]

I've heard that the Innovas have good traction on snow & ice but the steel studs wear out rather quickly of you ride on pavement. If you intend to commute daily on these despite snow/ice or pavement, I would recommend a tire with carbide studs.

A fellow commuter in my office used the Schwalbe Snow Studs and complained about 5 or so crashes last year. He said that they were good on "predicatble" road surfaces but once the icy groves formed on the road, he said that they would break traction. He is changing them out for the Schwalbe Ice Spikers this year. If you go for the Schwalbe's I would at least get an Ice Spiker for a front tire.
http://www.mec.ca/Products/product_detail.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524442420071&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302693791&bmUID=1196710227518

[andrelam]

I've had these on my bike for the last month. During the last few days we finally had realy winter weather to test them and so far they are fantastic. Tme will tell if they hold up as well as the Nokia tires. At $24.95 each I was willing to try them, especially since I am not shure how much of the winter I will be able to ride through as this will be my first Winter.

Happy riding,
André

[velo2000]

I finally had a chance to try these tires out yesterday. I rode about 24 miles on city streets and bike paths and I'm happy with these Innova tires. They did really well on packed snow, slush, icy patches and pavement. The only time I had a little trouble was when I tried to ride through several inches of heavy slush (with an uneven dirt surface below) on the side of a busy road. Also, riding through 4-5 inches of untracked powder was a tiny bit slippery.

The few times the front tire would start to slide out, the traction was predictable enough I could maintain control. I didn't come across any long stretches of solid ice, but I'm eager to see how they do on that. All in all, they seemed well worth the money. Time will tell how the studs hold up to riding on a lot of pavement.

[StokerPoker]

I bought mine last year for my hybrid. I agree that the studs show wear rather quickly. I went for a pleasure ride last night (about 3 miles) on side streets. everything here had a coating of ice that I had trouble walking on. I could break the rear tire loose a little if I pedalled too hard but other than that they were great. I did take one corner at 12 mph and the rear tire caught a crak in the road. I slid a little bit but was able to recover without taking my feet off the pedals.
I hear many good things about the Nokians, but the Innovas are serving me well for the time being