Originally Posted by
ksryder
The knock on Compass tires from gravel riders I've known has always been that they don't have enough protection for truly gnarly gravel. Maybe that's changed?
Compass/Rene Herse tires are spec'd to be almost as supple as possible. The lack of sidewall or puncture protection is a very deliberate choice to achieve that goal.
Lack of sidewall protection is a problem when the sidewalls of your tires are being badly exposed to the riding surface. So, I'd generally recommend against erring narrow if you're going to use tires like this.
Lack of sub-tread puncture protection is a problem if you're dealing with very sharp stabby things. In many areas, the main cause of punctures through the tread is debris left by humans, which tends to be much less of a problem on remote mountain roads than in urban areas. People in goathead country or whatever obviously have more to worry about.
I still haven't suffered an off-pavement flat on my Rat Trap Pass ELs. I do occasionally take a puncture on paved roads, but not more frequently than skinny road tires I use on other bikes.