mustang1

I tested a tricross recently and it wasn't as fast as my Allez (I already knew this before starting the test ride).
Many have advised the 32mm treaded (treaded, not knobby) tires will slow me down a lot compared to 23mm slicks on Allez (also Allez has Aksium, Tricross has Alex DA22).

Anyone have experience of using road bike in warm months, and cyclocross bike in cold months? What's the time difference between your rides? What's your overall feeling between the two types of bike? I have an 11 mile one-way commute in combo of open roads (4 miles) and city roads (7 miles). But I like speed, and more than that, I like efficiency.

DoB

I never run tread or knobbies, but I do have experience with a wide variety of tire widths. For me, 28mm is marginally acceptable on the chuckholed disasters they call 'roads' here in Hooverville. I generally prefer 32mm tires because they absorb the shock better.

There is more to tire width than speed. Keep in mind the boys running the TDF on tiny 23mm tires are also running on pristine pavement. The worse the pavement you ride on the more you will prefer wider. And the speed difference is quite small as far as I can tell.

Now studded tires for ice are a different animal. Those slow me down something like 25% to 35%, a huge amount.

Bekologist

on an 11 mile commute the time difference between 23 and 32 road tires is going to be less than 5 minutes.

if anything, wider tires let you carry more speed as you have both a larger contact patch for cornering/braking manuvers AND better shock absorption of rough road conditions that would require a little kittyfooting on 23's.

knucklesandwich

The roads in France that the Tour follows are anything but pristine. You would be surprised at how choppy some of them get.

That said, when your commuting entails 10 separate 40 minute rides each week (the OP’s is the same length ride as mine), a little extra comfort goes a long way, as does the ability to hit a crack or seam in the dark without having to worry as much about flatting. I use anything from 25c to 32c’s on my commutes, and keep the tires pretty high in PSI, and don’t notice a huge difference. I’d say the cold in the winter slows me down more than the fact that I’m likely running 32c tires on the coldest days.

Hot Potato

The 32mm specialized burroughs I use have a flat, treaded center and some knobs on the outside. A little slower than 23's by a few mph, until I hop on the gravel mup, then they leave MTB and road tires far behind. Not enough difference to bother me on the road.

tjspiel

I'm tired of arguing about tire widths and speed from another thread but what you've said about cold weather has been my experience too. It's a speed killer. I've heard different theories as to why that is but it does make a difference.

tjspiel

Just curious. When you say it wasn't as fast, was it measurably slower or did it just feel slower? BTW, I own the low end Allez triple. I replaced the triple with a double and now I'm pretty happy with it. For a relatively cheap road bike, it's a lot of fun. I'd ride it all year if I could squeeze my 40 mm studded tires between the forks.

Andy_K 

I ride a CX bike with 700x28 semi-slicks in the warm months and a 29er with 700x50 semi-slicks in the winter. The 29er weighs nearly twice what the CX does, which slows me down going up hill. The riding position seems more of a factor than the tire width. If I get into a good tuck, chewing on the handlebar, I can get it going as fast as the CX.

In any event, the colder weather slows me down way more than weight, tires and riding position combined. It's winter...relax and enjoy it. If you try to be fast, you'll end up miserable.

FWIW, in the late summer and fall, I put CX tires on the CX bike, and that slows me down a lot.

Here are my treads:

Summer


Winter (daily rain, but hardly any snow)


Fall

mustang1

Firstt of all it certainly felt slower. But then I rode the Allez at a low speed, along the same stretch of road I took the Tricross on earlier, just a relaxed checking out the scenery kinda pace. And, well, I dont have a computer, but the Allez certainly required less effort to go at a similar speed.

Praxis

I personally started at 38 I think, then to 32, then to 28. Don't see myself going under 28 most likely.

Note that there are going to be other factors in your speed. Even if you're feeling the effects on acceleration, the wheels are probably different on those two bikes and it wouldn't be surprising at all if the CX bike had heavier wheels.

Curious LeTour

I'm trying to decide on a commuter bike and tire width. This thread is interesting. I'm currently riding a beach cruiser with 2.125's, with some tread. I like the soft ride, but I want/need more efficiency.

I'm in Austin, the road conditions will not change much with the seasons here.

Andy_K 

I'd definitely blame the tires (or maybe the fit). I can really feel it when I switch from road tires to CX tires on my CX bike. Of course, my tires are quite knobby. The Tricross has Specialized Boroughs, right? The tread doesn't look like it should give you much problem, but they're almost certainly at a much lower pressure than the tires on your Allez.

I noticed that a lot of people on your other thread encouraged you toward the Tricross. We CX bike owners tend to be fanatic that way. I won't brake from that too much, but I will suggest that you try some other cross bikes. Is there a Kona dealer near you? I love my Jake.

What I would really recommend, however, with any cross bikes you might test ride, is to have the LBS swap out the wheels for something with road tires on it. It would only take them a minute or so and would give you a better comparison for the bike. Then knowing what the bike is capable of, you can figure out what kind of winter tires you'd want independent of the bike choice.

Andy_K 

Nearly anything will be more efficient than your beach cruiser, regardless of the tires. As I noted above, my rain bike has 700x50 (or 29x2.0 if you prefer) Schwalbe marathon Supreme tires, and they roll really well while still providing some cushion. I could lower the pressure to make it more cushy if I wished (at the expense of speed). You can't really do that with a skinny tire.

mustang1

Yea i have a Kona dealer right next door but they;ve sold out of 09 jakes