Fast comfy tires and setup…

Grand Bois 30-622...

I copied the text below from a post I made on BROL…rather than rewrite it this is good info to spread around. Let me just say that good tires that are setup well are the best and cheapest way to upgarde your bike for better performance and more comfort…the fact one leads to the other is the beauty of cycling…=-)

“The best [ie. fastest & comfy] tires I know of are:

– 349 [16”] GS Scorcher – 5 stars
– 406 [20″] GS Scorcher – 5 stars
– 559 [26″] Schwalbe Kojak & Specialized Fat Boy – both 4 stars
– 622 [700c] Grand Bois Cypres – if I’m allowed I’d give these 6 stars!

I’m not a racer, but I like to ride fast and effortlessly for long distances. To do that you need a tire that is supple and has enough volume to support your weight at moderate pressure so it acts like suspension. In the 16″ & 20″ sizes I run 40mm width because they don’t contain as much air. In the 26″ size I go down to 35-38mm and in the 700c size I use a 30mm width.

I then inflate each tire so I get approx 15% of the width as a vertical deflection when I’m sitting on the bike at rest with all my gear. So for the 30mm 700c tire I’m shooting for a 4.5mm vertical drop. This will give you optimal comfort and efficiency.

I’m amazed how well people like their old bikes when they let me set them up for them this way. I just swapped in some Grand Bois tires on my GF’s city bike….she is not into bike tech, but as soon as I made the change she started raving how much she loved the ride…fast and like she’s floating on air. She’d never let me take those tires off her bike now. Keep in mind she had to pay $100USD for a set which seemed highway robbery to her as she has never upgraded tires before…now she sees it as money well spent.

BTW – if you inflate both tires to the same pressure and/or you are inflating to the max pressure on the sidewall…you are not getting the best performance you can from your rubber. Max pressure doesn’t equal fast and may actually be slowing you down. Since both tires support different weights they need different pressures.”