Originally Posted by
mtalinm
just got a pair of 20" MWinters for my folding bike. due to the idiocy of the shop I bought them from, they arrived days later than necessary and on the eve of a huge snowstorm.
I could *really* use them, but the wrapper on the tires says they need to be "run in for approximately 25 miles on hard-top road to ensure spikes are permanently fixed."
Now that there's a layer of snow on the roads, I guess I pretty much can't use them until the snow melts ... in April? Or maybe I can go to a parking garage and do loops.
Any MWinter owners out there *not* break in the tires but not have problems with spikes/studs falling out? I am wanting to tempt fate here in Boston...
mtalinm and I ride the same route but in different directions. Today's conditions were excellent for the Winters, mainly hardpack with minimal fresh and "mashed potato snow." I think my first rides were on pavement so I can't comment about a break-in period, but tsl's advice is likely correct.
I did make note of one thing about the Winters, which was recently discussed on a winter cycling thread. The Winters do occasionally slide a bit, and it can be disconcerting. It seems to me to happen mostly on loose snow on top of hardpack, and I don't recall noting it on black ice. As I understand, it occurs as the bare, non-studded surface of the tires skids until the studs catch. On that recent post I think the writer advised not to oversteer to compensate. Personally I keep it slow under those circumstances; it's nerve-wracking when going fast down hill, but I haven't fallen yet.