Originally Posted by
big john
What size are those tires? Are you happy with the 1x on the road?
Tires are 32s (Spec. Roubaix Pro, the 'tubeless ready' ones). I've been using them for years now: light, quick, supple but with pretty good durability. They work well for me on paved surfaces and hard-packed non-technical trails. If these went out of production I'd probably go with the Conti 5000 32s. I've a set of 38s (something Specialized) hanging around, but never feel the need to use them.
The 1x: I like it perfectly well for the riding I do/where I ride. Always ride solo, and around here (SW Ontario) we don't have mountains; hell, we don't really have much in the way of hills as such, though lots of long stretches of rollers. Mine is a 40 x 11-42; gearing is more than high enough/low enough for me. If I rode in the mountains, though, or in groups, I'd probably have stayed with a 2x. I can tell that I might miss the more closely-spaced ratios (right word?) under those conditions.