ksdog

I live somewhat near part of the Dirty Kanza route and of course have a mix of gravel , dirt, and pavement roads. Want a tire that rolls well and fast, yet delivers good handling in our flint rock. What do you guys recommend ?

bikemig 

I'm picking up a pair of panaracer gravel king tires for this purpose but the largest size they come in I believe are 700 x 32c. Kenda small block comes in 700 x 35c size.

mrv 

been using a set of SERFA VIDALs 700x38 - my LBS carries them. otherwise I would have gone CONTI, maybe TOURING Plus, which I have on a 26in wheeled bike.
SERFAS: https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/Hw...U=w906-h679-no
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/9O...U=w510-h679-no

CONTI: https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/bQ...0=w963-h679-no

the CONTI's are smoother pavement, and both work well on dirt gravel.

TGT1

if you can fit 42's I can't tell any difference in pavement rolling resistance on pavement between Conti Crossrides and an Attack/Force racing tire set. They climb fire roads like crazy and don't sink too bad in the sand or 3/4" crush.

The trick is to find a tire with an effectively solid center stripe.

That doesn't mean no knobs, but the center knobs need to overlap so that the road tire interface in the center of the tread is effectively the same as a slick.

About 90% of the time I'm on pavement and as I said other than being about a pound heavier than an extreme race set there's no difference in required effort.

hup

I really like the Clement X'plor USH in 700x35. I think it rolls as well on pavement as the 700x32 Paselas that I swap it with. I think it's a great all around tire.
Its Clement sister the MSO comes in 700x40 if you can fit it.


Cheers
Henry

Jay Olson

I use the Schwalbe Marathon Supreme in 700x35 in the winter on my Specialized CruX. It does really well on pavement, and not too shabby on the kinds of dirt and gravel that don't require knobs. It's pretty sturdy too, so that should be good in flint. I know that more than one person has used this tire without puncturing in Dirty Kanza.

GravelMN

Schwalbe Smart Sam or Bontrager CXO

ddeand 

I ride a combination of gravel and pavement, and have used both Schwalbe Sammy Slicks and Clement X'Plor USHs. While the Sammy Slicks are truly at home on the gravel, I found the USHs to be the best all-around tire. They are faster, lighter, smoother on the pavement (I also commute on this bike), and stable on the gravel. Probably my favorite tire right now.

DirtRoadRunner

I use Conti SpeedRide's (700x42) for this purpose, but they also make the same tire in the Cyclocross Speed version in 700x35. Cheap, light, and fast rolling. We have lots of sharp chert gravel around here (very similar to flint) and I seldom get flats from rocks.

flargle

+1 ush

09box

Ush's are probably going to be your best bet..

MileHighMark

For more pavement than gravel, Panaracer Pasela. For more gravel than pavement, Clement X'Plor USH.

ksdog

I am running the stock WTB Freedom Ryders 700 x 35 on the new Space Horse and have read some reviews suggesting that they are heavy and don't roll as fast or smooth as some of the fore mentioned tires. So...I thought I might try something different to tweak a little better ride.

jtbadge

I have been rolling WTB Nano 40c on my Space Horse, ride lots of gravel. I'd definitely recommend that if you're not opposed to a larger volume - you may find it helps when navigating the real chunky stuff.

Myself and a number of teammates rode that tire at DK this year... the tires were one less thing we had to worry about.

Barrettscv 

In the the event that posters have never seen the "gravel" roads in the Flint Hills, please just imagine large pieces of broken dinner plates or bathroom tile. It's called the Flint Hills for a reason. The sharp, fractured rock chunks, that are as large as a dollar bill, are charitably called "gravel" and will cut and rip a lighter tire after a few weeks.

If I rode those roads on a regular basis, I would get a super tough tire designed for expedition touring. If I was racing to complete the Dirty Kanza, I might think about a lighter tire on the condition I would remove and discard it after the event.

This tire can take the abuse: Schwalbe Mondial HS 428

https://www.schwalbetires.com/bike_tires/road_tires/marathon_mondial

fietsbob

Conti travel contact is for riding past the end of the paved world, in 700c it's a '37' wide..

puncture protection band inside the casing, Gatorskin reinforced sidewalls.

DirtRoadRunner

We have similar conditions in the Ozarks - though here it is chert. Both chert and flint are a type of microcrystalline quartz and are both harder than steel. Native Americans used both types of rocks to make arrow and spear heads.

I've had all of one rock cut riding hundreds of miles of very cherty gravel roads. As long as your tires aren't over inflated it just really isn't a problem - in fact, I've had far more flats riding to the gravel road than on the gravel road. Road debris are a lot more damaging to tires than chert or flint, from my experience.

Maverick 13330

Barretscv.. Yup, I agree with you. If its just a one time trek on that trail such as the DK200 itself a narrower tire like a 35 would do the job well BUT if its a regular biking on that area a wider tire is the most practical.
I was there last May, my 700x40 tires serves me well on the surface of the Flint hills and i must say i did have a smooth ride But next year's race ill set my tire at 700x35. Schwable's land cruiser for the front and Smart sam plus for my rear.

bwilli88 

Here on the junk roads of Cambodia, I use Continental Tour Guard Plus tires, they take all sorts of crap.

mrv 

looks like you're riding on GLASS!

Canadian_giant

Just put on a pair of Clement LAS 700X33's and I absolutely love them. A much faster tire than I anticipated they would be. I know these have no flat protection so I put in a 1" tire liner. So far they are great on gravel and fast on pavement.

ksdog

Well...after careful deliberation and much research and with the many suggestions.....I ordered the Clement X'Plor USH. They will be delivered tomorrow. Hopefully I can give them a try this weekend. Thanks for your suggestions.

AristoNYC

I see you got the Celments but I figured I'd mention the Schwalbe CX Comp & the Kenda Happy Medium as two tires I like for pavement & "offroad".

macca33

Another vote for conti CX Speed 35mm tyres here - I have them on my Mares and they can handle tarmac (roll quickly) as well as gravel, some fairly ordinary, unsealed/coarse rock roads and dry grass. Not a bad all-rounder.

cheers

Richard8655

Specialized Hemisphere Armadillo 700x38.