Hybrid Bicycles - Faster tires for Giant Roam 1?

Hey guys,

First off, this is my first post on these forums, so please take it easy on me. Second, I am in need of some assistance. I've got a 2011 Giant Roam 1. Love it to death. Didn't ride it much last year, but have completely changed my lifestyle this spring and will be getting to know my bike quite well. I live in Canada, and while we do have great trails and paths and back-country, I am very much a city boy. Practically all of my riding is in the city. My urban riding consists of mainly roads and sidewalks, with some park riding thrown in for good measure. My bike came with a pair of 700c (x 42, I believe?) Kenda Kwiks. I'm finding them to be a bit overkill for the type of riding I do. I plan on biking to and from work, as well as some nicely paved bike paths. So I'm looking for a faster tire. A tire with a smoother tread in the middle to provide me with a better, faster ride in the city. Maybe something like a Continental Travel Contact, where it's smooth in the center, but has some knobbies on the outside. I just don't want a pure road tire, because I do take it off road. I don't want to slip out of control the instant my bike comes in contact with grass or dirt/mud. But I would say that 80% of my riding is on pavement. So I'm really looking for something with less rolling resistance, but won't turn my bike from a hybrid into a road bike. Any suggestions or advice is greatly appreciated. Btw, If you've made it this far through my writing, congratulations. Thanks!

I'd wager to assume that 28c tires would work, but can you check your rim for a measurement for me to be certain? Look for something that says 622xsomenumber. Give me that whole measurement please.

My rims show 622x19.

Panaracer Pasela TG (folding bead), 32c. Light, reasonably puncture resistant/durable; quick on asphalt, and a bit of grip off-road (on dry trails). Reasonably priced. Your description pretty much covers the kind of riding I do; I've been using these tires for years.
You can get them at MEC, if you've one locally (or online), or order through any LBS.
No need for a 28c, especially if you do venture off-road time to time; in fact, quite the opposite ... you want to stay with around 32-35c.

My rims show 622x19.

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/tire-sizing.html

The above link will provide you with information on which tires will safely fit your rims. There is a chart near the bottom of the page.

Badger1, those Panaracers look quite nice, and they are substantially lighter than some other tires I've been looking at.

Seve, thanks for the link. It's good to know that there's a decent amount of size options for my rims; I wasn't looking forward to the prospect of replacing them.

Any other suggestions? Up until recently, I never really thought much about bike tires. Now that I'm researching them, I'm getting a little overwhelmed at the amount of options out there. Do I go slick tread in center, knobbies on the outside? Just go with a semi slick? Or even go more of the Panaracer Pasela route, which is more of a road tire? There's so many avenues with this, so I'm looking for any and all options and ideas, with specific brands and models as well as rider anecdotes and experiences if possible.

Serfas Vida 700Cx32, enough tread for "hardpack" dirt trail but still rides nicely on road surfaces, I have them on my 2012 Jamis Coda Sport, flat bar road/utility bike, FYI.

Any other suggestions? Up until recently, I never really thought much about bike tires. Now that I'm researching them, I'm getting a little overwhelmed at the amount of options out there. Do I go slick tread in center, knobbies on the outside? Just go with a semi slick? Or even go more of the Panaracer Pasela route, which is more of a road tire? There's so many avenues with this, so I'm looking for any and all options and ideas, with specific brands and models as well as rider anecdotes and experiences if possible.

You simply have to decide what to optimize; anything will be a compromise in one direction or another if you are trying to find 'one' tire for mixed use.
For example, you can certainly do the 'slick centre/knobby side' thing, so long as you accept that on-road cornering/handling will inevitably be slightly compromised. Conversely, the Paselas (just an example) or similar, with what amounts to a rounded 'inverted' tread will be more efficient on-road, but "cope" with light off-road.

Hey guys,

Sorry for being MIA for a while; I've been sick all week. I did however, manage to muster up enough energy to make it to my LBS. Using advice from you guys, I gave the sales guy some criteria for what I was looking for. He pointed me to the tires I ended up buying. A pair of Specialized Borough CX Sport tires. They've got a smooth center while still providing lots of grip on the sides. And they weren't very expensive either, so I can see if these type of tires are the route I'm going to want to take from now on. Just wanted to say thanks to all of you for your thoughtful and helpful comments! I'll be installing the tires this weekend, and I'll be sure to post initial reactions as well as some long term thoughts. Until then, cheers!

These are the tires, btw (purchased a set of 700cx32):

Specialized Borough CX Sport (http://www.specialized.com/us/en/ftb/road-tires/freeroadtires/boroughcxsport)

Nice tire, but I wouldn't take it on wet grass. I had the roam 1 and now own the 0. The tires on both had the same characteristics, road tread in the center and a bit of knobby on the outside. Very fast and quiet tire on the road, ok in everything but sandy dirt. I'm surprised you felt the tire was slowing you down.
With that new tire tread pattern you've got nothing to grab onto once you leave the pavement. Be careful, hopefully you kept the original tires.
I was actually thinking about going the other way, trail riding I'm not as confident on the road due to the small tread on the edges. Having two sets of rims with different purpose tires would be the best solution.

I finally had to decide that I'm on the road 99% of the time and I wanted a more efficient road tire. My 622x19 rim came with 60 psi 32c tires. I bought 105 psi 28c tires, Panaracer T Serv and they will be here in time to commute on them next week.
I also just bought Gatorskins for my road bike.