Marathon Supreme - 700x32c
#1
Thread Starter
Senior Member
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 1,486
Likes: 1
From: PNW - Victoria, BC
Bikes: 2002 Litespeed Vortex - 2007 Trek Madone 5.9 - 2004 Redline Conquest Pro - Specialized S-Works Festina Team Model - 93 Cannondale M 800 Beast of the East
Marathon Supreme - 700x32c
To anyone who may be waiting on a tire order with their local bike shop, I just received confirmation that a new shipment of 700x32c Marathon Supreme tires will be arriving on May 20th. Contact your local bike shop if you need a pair (or just one). If you have any specific questions, drop me a note @ support@schwalbetires.com
Ordinarily, I wouldn't post this, but we've been frustrated at the lead times for these tires, and I can imagine anyone waiting for a pair is just as, or even more frustrated.
Thanks for reading.
gb
Ordinarily, I wouldn't post this, but we've been frustrated at the lead times for these tires, and I can imagine anyone waiting for a pair is just as, or even more frustrated.
Thanks for reading.
gb
#2
aka Phil Jungels
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 8,234
Likes: 91
From: North Aurora, IL
Bikes: 08 Specialized Crosstrail Sport, 05 Sirrus Comp
I'm glad I stocked up on Supremes last year - they seem almost impossible to find - I'll bet you lose LOTS of sales with no product available....MHO
#4
Thread Starter
Senior Member
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 1,486
Likes: 1
From: PNW - Victoria, BC
Bikes: 2002 Litespeed Vortex - 2007 Trek Madone 5.9 - 2004 Redline Conquest Pro - Specialized S-Works Festina Team Model - 93 Cannondale M 800 Beast of the East
#5
Thread Starter
Senior Member
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 1,486
Likes: 1
From: PNW - Victoria, BC
Bikes: 2002 Litespeed Vortex - 2007 Trek Madone 5.9 - 2004 Redline Conquest Pro - Specialized S-Works Festina Team Model - 93 Cannondale M 800 Beast of the East
It's definitely not a good situation. Here's hoping that the production chiefs figure out the bottlenecks, and get them solved.
#7
Senior Member

Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 2,299
Likes: 16
I'm glad I bought my 700x32 supremes last year. Got about 4000km on them now and they're still great. I just bought a set of 700x37 marathon XRs for my touring bike. The XRs are quite nice too. Not quite as lively as the supremes, but very tough and they grip really well. I'm a little skittish about riding my supremes on dirt roads and other rough surfaces especially with a heavy load, but I have no such qualms about the XRs. Now I feel like I can ride my touring bike anywhere.
#9
Senior Member
Joined: Jun 2008
Posts: 107
Likes: 0
From: Picnic Point
Bikes: 17 Salsa Cutthroat, 08 Trek Madone 5.2 Pro, 09 Salsa Fargo
I just ordered some and received them 2 weeks ago from Everybicycletire.com. Love them, but amazingly got a flat within the first 100 miles!
#10
Thread Starter
Senior Member
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 1,486
Likes: 1
From: PNW - Victoria, BC
Bikes: 2002 Litespeed Vortex - 2007 Trek Madone 5.9 - 2004 Redline Conquest Pro - Specialized S-Works Festina Team Model - 93 Cannondale M 800 Beast of the East
[QUOTE but amazingly got a flat within the first 100 miles![/QUOTE]
Wow,.... I know anything is possible but that's really uncommon for this tire. I'm curious if you know the cause?
Wow,.... I know anything is possible but that's really uncommon for this tire. I'm curious if you know the cause?
#13
Senior Member

Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 2,299
Likes: 16
Compared to what? I bought a set of cheap tires last year and flatted on my third commute. First flat I've had in 10 years of commuting. Had to change the tire in the cold rain. Cut my finger finding the piece of glass that cut right through the thick part of the tread. Was late for work too.
In contrast, my marathons (supremes and now a set of XRs) have never had a flat. The supremes have logged hundreds of commutes over broken glass and other kinds of debris. The XRs are on my touring bike and have been great too. Personally, I'll never buy cheap tires again. $70 for a tire isn't much if you don't need to replace it until the tread wears out.
In contrast, my marathons (supremes and now a set of XRs) have never had a flat. The supremes have logged hundreds of commutes over broken glass and other kinds of debris. The XRs are on my touring bike and have been great too. Personally, I'll never buy cheap tires again. $70 for a tire isn't much if you don't need to replace it until the tread wears out.
#14
Compared to what? I bought a set of cheap tires last year and flatted on my third commute. First flat I've had in 10 years of commuting. Had to change the tire in the cold rain. Cut my finger finding the piece of glass that cut right through the thick part of the tread. Was late for work too.
In contrast, my marathons (supremes and now a set of XRs) have never had a flat. The supremes have logged hundreds of commutes over broken glass and other kinds of debris. The XRs are on my touring bike and have been great too. Personally, I'll never buy cheap tires again. $70 for a tire isn't much if you don't need to replace it until the tread wears out.
In contrast, my marathons (supremes and now a set of XRs) have never had a flat. The supremes have logged hundreds of commutes over broken glass and other kinds of debris. The XRs are on my touring bike and have been great too. Personally, I'll never buy cheap tires again. $70 for a tire isn't much if you don't need to replace it until the tread wears out.
Compared to EVERY equivalent tire on the market.
I think I had two flats in the rear and a large gash in the front tire. Booted it for a while and eventually had to trash it with about 95% tread left on the front and 50% on the rear. Turned out to be a really expensive set for me.
They weren't any worse than the other tires I've run flat-wise, but they weren't any better either.
- high grip
- comfortable
- expensive
- slow
#15
Thread Starter
Senior Member
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 1,486
Likes: 1
From: PNW - Victoria, BC
Bikes: 2002 Litespeed Vortex - 2007 Trek Madone 5.9 - 2004 Redline Conquest Pro - Specialized S-Works Festina Team Model - 93 Cannondale M 800 Beast of the East
Compared to EVERY equivalent tire on the market.
I think I had two flats in the rear and a large gash in the front tire. Booted it for a while and eventually had to trash it with about 95% tread left on the front and 50% on the rear. Turned out to be a really expensive set for me.
They weren't any worse than the other tires I've run flat-wise, but they weren't any better either.
- high grip
- comfortable
- expensive
- slow
I think I had two flats in the rear and a large gash in the front tire. Booted it for a while and eventually had to trash it with about 95% tread left on the front and 50% on the rear. Turned out to be a really expensive set for me.
They weren't any worse than the other tires I've run flat-wise, but they weren't any better either.
- high grip
- comfortable
- expensive
- slow
I'm generally very neutral with my posts on this board, but I'll have to take exception with this one. The compound and carcass construction of this tire dictates that it is empirically a fast tire, particularly when compared to a tire of similar size and inflation specifications. We will always have customers that have bad experiences with regard to punctures and flats; we all have bad luck occasionally. But slow? ... not this tire.
Expensive; that will always be in the eye of the beholder. Again, if one falls victim to bad luck, a good purchase becomes an expensive one instantly. Our overwhelming experience has been that the majority of our customers love these tires for their performance, endurance and puncture protection.
Last edited by Kojak; 04-27-09 at 02:09 PM.
#16
So *that* explains why I had to check so many places until I found someone who had them in stock!
I just had to replace my front tire, and checked about 8 online shops before I found one.
(Sad story here: https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...=477734&page=3 )
My road bike has 28mm Gatorskins and was getting a flat about once every 6 weeks last year.
I'm running the Supremes on my touring bike, and It took 5 months to get the first flat.
It was the worst debris I've ever hit on the road. No road tire could have survived.
I just had to replace my front tire, and checked about 8 online shops before I found one.
(Sad story here: https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...=477734&page=3 )
My road bike has 28mm Gatorskins and was getting a flat about once every 6 weeks last year.
I'm running the Supremes on my touring bike, and It took 5 months to get the first flat.
It was the worst debris I've ever hit on the road. No road tire could have survived.
#17
bulletproof tiger
Joined: Apr 2008
Posts: 1,934
Likes: 0
From: Portland, OR
Bikes: Waterford 2200, Litespeed Tuscany, Salsa La Cruz, Kona Fire Mountain
???
I'm generally very neutral with my posts on this board, but I'll have to take exception with this one. The compound and carcass construction of this tire dictates that it is empirically a fast tire, particularly when compared to a tire of similar size and inflation specifications. We will always have customers that have bad experiences with regard to punctures and flats; we all have bad luck occasionally. But slow? ... not this tire.
Expensive; that will always be in the eye of the beholder. Again, if one falls victim to bad luck, a good purchase becomes an expensive one instantly. Our overwhelming experience has been that the majority of our customers love these tires for their performance, endurance and puncture protection.
I'm generally very neutral with my posts on this board, but I'll have to take exception with this one. The compound and carcass construction of this tire dictates that it is empirically a fast tire, particularly when compared to a tire of similar size and inflation specifications. We will always have customers that have bad experiences with regard to punctures and flats; we all have bad luck occasionally. But slow? ... not this tire.
Expensive; that will always be in the eye of the beholder. Again, if one falls victim to bad luck, a good purchase becomes an expensive one instantly. Our overwhelming experience has been that the majority of our customers love these tires for their performance, endurance and puncture protection.
I don't know of an equivalent tire...
#18
Senior Member
Joined: Jun 2008
Posts: 107
Likes: 0
From: Picnic Point
Bikes: 17 Salsa Cutthroat, 08 Trek Madone 5.2 Pro, 09 Salsa Fargo
I got my flat from a sharp, little piece of metal that was "L" shaped. It got "hammered" into the tread and apparently worked its way through. I think it was a one in a million kind of thing and I don't expect any more.
#19
???
I'm generally very neutral with my posts on this board, but I'll have to take exception with this one. The compound and carcass construction of this tire dictates that it is empirically a fast tire, particularly when compared to a tire of similar size and inflation specifications. We will always have customers that have bad experiences with regard to punctures and flats; we all have bad luck occasionally. But slow? ... not this tire.
Expensive; that will always be in the eye of the beholder. Again, if one falls victim to bad luck, a good purchase becomes an expensive one instantly. Our overwhelming experience has been that the majority of our customers love these tires for their performance, endurance and puncture protection.
I'm generally very neutral with my posts on this board, but I'll have to take exception with this one. The compound and carcass construction of this tire dictates that it is empirically a fast tire, particularly when compared to a tire of similar size and inflation specifications. We will always have customers that have bad experiences with regard to punctures and flats; we all have bad luck occasionally. But slow? ... not this tire.
Expensive; that will always be in the eye of the beholder. Again, if one falls victim to bad luck, a good purchase becomes an expensive one instantly. Our overwhelming experience has been that the majority of our customers love these tires for their performance, endurance and puncture protection.
I don't care what the numbers say. The tire is a little slow. High grip should mean higher rolling resistance. Look back through threads discussing these tires. There are a number of owners who say the same thing.
My experience with the tire doesn't effect the price. It's the most expensive tire in its class. You should know as well as anyone that a lot of your models fall in this position. It's not news to ANYONE.
I currently have:
- two bikes with fat franks
- three bikes with big apples (including my kid's balance bike)
- one bike with Ultremo
- several other Schwalbe tires hanging on the wall.
My point is that just because I have a negative comment to make doesn't mean I'm not correct, or that I have some type of anti-Schwalbe agenda.






