storckm

I don't know about Nevada, but I find the more flat-resistant Schwalbes are pretty good in Ohio: I can't remember when I've last had a flat, but it's been probably at least three or four years. I think they bill the marathon plus as "unflattable."

VegasJen

So back on topic. I did some shopping today and I think I'm going with some Schwalbe Durano Plus tires as they are advertised to be highly puncture resistant.

And then I had a thought. The other day I picked up a thorn in my back tire, which flattened the tire (yet again). The difference, though, was being on the back, the flat posed much less risk of a fall and injury. So I was thinking, why not buy a pair of these tires and just run the Schwalbes on the front of two bikes and a standard tire on the back? Some people have mentioned these harder tires increase rolling resistance and take more effort. Well, if I only run one on the front, I get the benefit of more puncture resistance on the tire that's most likely to take me down. But I also get the benefit of only half the increased rolling resistance.

It may sound convoluted, I know, but really, what do I have to lose?

Sy Reene

You have to be wary of bike frame compression. If the front of the bike is always slower rolling than the back, you can experience buckling of the frame after awhile

You could jump on this kickstarter campaign:
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects...asa-technology

tomato coupe

If you switched the tires, the bike would elongate and you'd get to your destination sooner.

SoSmellyAir

I read your post here, then your other post about being passed by "some guy ... like he's on his way to grandma's house for Sunday brunch."

Bike Forums - View Single Post - I am not as strong as I want to believe.

I cannot help but think that you cannot have your cake and eat it too; fast(er) almost always comes at a cost.

Chuck M 

This will not solve your flatting issue. Just lessen it on one tire. Besides, I can't stand mismatched wheels and tires.

spelger

i think your idea will work. just try it. if it feels wonky after a while just match up the tires on the two bikes you experiment with. no harm in trying.

but, if you are flatting so often then you really might want ot consider the tubeless route. i am not considering it for my self, have had about 6t flats this year. some years none but this year is a banner year. maybe next hear there won't be any, who knows.

if you do nothing at least pay attention to the front tire or try what one poster suggested to ride with a purposely flat tire to get the feel for it. no need to wipe out due to ignorance.

merlinextraligh

This will sound harsh, but I think you need to work on situational awareness and bike handling skills, more than obtaining a more flat resistant tire. A sudden flat can certainly lead to a crash, even for the best bike handler, but multiple crashes from slowly deflating tires in a short period suggests other problems.

VegasJen

That's what I was thinking. I realize I'll still be at risk of flat, particularly in the back. But I don't feel rear flats are quite as risky of a tumble as the front. I may go tubeless at some point but I will probably end up buying a wheel set that is tubeless ready instead of trying to convert the older wheels I'm currently running.
No offense taken. I can be honest and say I've really had a hard time identifying the difference between a tire that's fully inflated and one that's flat. To me, they feel far too similar. Fully inflated and I hit a rock, it feels like the whole wheel jumps (happened to me earlier today). When a tire is flat, I feel every rock on the road.

Going back to the event that prompted this thread, I was on an uncommonly smooth section of road (for here) and the only reason I realized my rear tire was flat was because it slowed me down so much. I had been maintaining a 17-18mph pace and all of a sudden I'm working just to keep it over 14. I knew something wasn't right, but I didn't feel the tire.

Maybe my arse is as tone deaf as my hearing.

choddo

You’ll probably get more familiar with it but there’s a definite difference in dynamics as a rear tyre softens. You bounce in the saddle more like on a car with too soft suspension.

terrymorse 

Well, if you really want to know when a tire is losing pressure, there is tech that will give you the answer. At a price.

DC Rainmaker - Hands-on: Quarq TyreWiz Cycling Pressure Sensor

SoSmellyAir

Or maybe your saddle is too squishy?

But seriously, it should be possible to take an occasional glance at the tires? Especially the front, but also the back.

VegasJen

I have seen that and I am very seriously considering.
I've had so many tumbles due to low/flat tires, that I'm constantly peeking at them. I've only had a couple of tumbles that weren't directly tire related.

PeteHski

If I was falling off my bike as many times as it sounds like you have then I would absolutely invest in a proper tubeless setup. I’ve been running road tubeless since 2019 and have not had a single flat since. On tubed tyres I would typically get up to a dozen flats per year, although I don’t recall any of them causing a crash!

VegasJen

I may be overstating things a bit. I've had a few tumbles, but it's not like a weekly thing. I had two so far this year directly due to flats. And maybe two or three total in the five years prior. It's just that flats have caused the majority of crashes since I seriously got back into riding.

As for tubeless. I'm not saying no just yet, but a more economical option might be the tire pressure monitor linked above.

rsbob 

The best protection is staying home. Just sayin’

curbtender

You can get a floor pump with a gauge and pump up to the suggested psi every time you ride. That way you can monitor if a tire has a leak. You should also be able to tell if the road feel changes.

VegasJen

I have a small 120v electric compressor. I generally run that up until the gauge reads 90-100 pounds and that's what I use to inflate the tires. I have to admit, though, I'm not really good about doing this every single time. Like this week, I checked the pressure before my ride on Wednesday, but before I rode today, I just gave the tires a squeeze to see if they felt soft.

Yes, I am admitting that I am part of the problem.

SoSmellyAir

If you can take the time to train for triathalon, you can take the time to inflate both tires before every ride with a floor pump, which will be much faster (i.e., < 1 min./tire) than the compressor, and cheaper than Quarg Tire Whiz. The additional benefit is that, once you dial in an optimal tire pressure for each tire, you will get used to it, and you can more readily tell if it is low as soon as you ride off.

VegasJen

You're probably right but I pretty much suck at things like planning and preparation, that kind of stuff.

SoSmellyAir

Maybe you do, maybe you don't, but I would assume that even having a chance to finish a triathlon before the organizers pack it up and go home (i.e., what you do) would require more planning than just going for a ride after finishing work ahead of time (i.e.. what I do)?

PeteHski

Since you are running 90-100 psi I presume you are on narrow tyres ie 23-25 mm. Moving to wider tyres 30-32 mm and going tubeless would allow you to run 50-60 psi and you wouldn’t lose any speed. But more importantly in your situation, minor punctures will self seal without much loss in pressure. You won’t even know you had a puncture.

At 50 psi, air leaks out a lot slower with a puncture than it does at 100 psi and there is more volume of air in the tyre. So low pressure, high volume tyres take longer to go flat with a puncture. So you are more likely to notice something is wrong before you crash.

The bad news is that you might need a whole new bike to get enough frame clearance. But it might be worth it in the long run because crashing can potentially get much more expensive than a new bike.

AllegroMike

Sometimes an old school tire wiper is the best remedy for puncture protection.

terrymorse 

If biking fast in a triathlon is the intention, I don't think fat tires are the way. Tri bike frames seem to max out at 28 mm, which seems to be an optimum (at least the manufacturers think so).

Unless you're riding really rough roads, you will be giving up watts with fat tires at low pressure.

t2p

have a number of floor pumps including two Silca pumps and now rarely use them - only use them to inflate a tube when installing a tire

instead now use a battery powered portable inflator

in addition to bikes - use it on our cars, garden tractors, wheelbarrows etc