There ain't no such thing as a free lunch. Nor have I seen any store giving away "free" tires. But, the closest thing to a "free tire" may be the "Hutchinson Flash" road tires that Nashbar is selling for five bucks.

I have some "ultra light" Hitchinson's on my "best bike", and they are everything you would expect for tires that sell for $100 a pair...very light. Very thin. Very fragile. Designed to run light and fast. Not designed to last long, or to survive abuse.

And, I have run a pair of 25mm Hutchinson Flash tires on a "beater bike". Heavy, due to being "beefed" up where the rubber meets the road, and because of the sturdy black sidewalls. But, tough enough to take months of pounding from the craters of the bombed out streets of inner city Houston with zero flats. And, the black sidewalls have not cracked and split from the intense summer heat and sun. Some "big buck" tires have sidewalls that begin to fray after just a couple of months of a Houston summer.

"Low end" tires from the best makers (Hutchinson, Continental, etc.) are designed to provide safe, sturdy, and durable service. These tires are not for the guys who like to brag about how much they spend on bike gear. Not for "weight weenies". But, they are ideal for folks who ride on rough roads a couple of hundred days a year and want tires that WORK, yet don't cost a fortune.

I just bought some IRC Metro slicks from Nashbar (26 x 1.5) for my Gary Fisher hardtail commuter. Can't wait to feel the speed difference over my knobbies.