Not the Slowest

Looks like the tires that came with my bike Vittoria Zaffiro Slick and at 26TPI should be replaced. I have ridden them at the track, maybe on the road once for 2 miles when I first bought the bike last year. These are not the best option out there and can be bought for $18 each without trying hard so I guess they are far from a good choice.

FYI, I am 210 ride at Kissena (Big Bumpy) and usually ride at 120psi
Most likley will use ONLY at the track.

Simply looking for what works.

So my thoughts are
A) Conti 4000 23's (sadly I have plenty of 25's )
B) Conti Supersonics
C) Veloflex Corsa 23 Clincher ( Open Tubular)
D) Vredestein Fortezza TriComp

Oh yeah, any issue with colored tires in the rules?


Thanks Robert

dudeyagnarbro

Congrats on the new bike Robert. I can't offer any help with tires, but am curious... What bike did you get?

queerpunk

Some tracks recommend against colored tires due to slippage issues. I can assure you this is not the case at Kissena.

I like Conti GP 4000s quite a lot. They are grippy, and fairly tough for how light and supple they are.

Not the Slowest

LOL, Understood on Kissena.Funny thing is as I have lost some weight oand gotten stronger I am feeling the bounce in turn 4.
I am doing some racing at T-Town Sunday.

Would the 4000 25's be a negative for a short term fix?

Not the Slowest

Thanks Jesse.
It's a Felt TK3 that I bought before last season new and saved about $250 from list. The reality is it does the job and made life easier as a complete bike. under $700, usually about $900 plus tax etc. The only down side (IMHO) is the bike uses 3/32 chain. This year I swapped to 1/8" and sold bought new 1/8"chainrings etc and sold the the 3/32 that came with it.

Just swapped out the cranks to DA 7710 and BB, same size but nothing else planned for this year unless I fall into something. Are there better(?) bikes, I would say yes but much better than a Windsor, Hour and the like.

I think handlebars, seatpost and then wheels will be next.

Flatballer

I ride GP4000S 23mm on the track, but ours is concrete. It's the same thing I use on the road, I love them. They last a while, grip well, don't flat more than anything else. I don't see why an asphalt track would be different from an asphalt road for a good clincher tire. I guess lower rolling resistance/less sticky would be good, especially for a flatish track or endurance rider, but I doubt it matters much. I think the Pro Race 3 has lower rolling resistance than the GP4000S, so on the track that might be the way to go.

If you put a latex tube in whatever you use, that'll help a lot on the rolling resistance. Just don't forget to pump them up before each evening's racing.

Not the Slowest

Thanks

wens

If I were buying tires for track and the price was the same I'd get the supersonics, shouldn't need a puncture belt on the track and they'll roll a little faster. If they were more than a couple bucks more expensive I'd get the 4000s though.

Not the Slowest

Looks like the 4000s will work. Any thought if I could use the 25's as I buy them for my road bikes and have plenty of them. I assume they would not slow me down.

kyle!

If you're not racing for medals or money, run what you have. They're not optimum given the higher weight but they'll work.

As stated, given the choice I'd get SuperSonics. Those are miles ahead the best clinchers I've used on the track. I race at San Diego Velodrome and there's plenty of bumps. I've also used them at ADT with no issue.

Not the Slowest

Thanks all

zizou

I've never riden on an outdoor asphalt track but for indoors and outdoor on wood ive been impressed with vittoria diamante pro light- 170g and can go up to 140 psi, low rolling resistance but also grip very well on the banking too (they also do a pista version which is a little lighter but has no puncture protection).

brawlo

I've used the Vittoria Diamante before and have been running SuSos since Christmas. The Vittorias are good and light, but with the odd bits of debris on our outdoor asphalt, my rear really cut up and was missing some big chunks after running them for a year or so. I kept the front on for nearly 2 years though. The SuSos are cutting up a bit already having seen half a season of training and racing. I'm yet to see how they hold up in the longer term. I don't have separate training and racing wheelsets and can't be bothered changing tyres all the time to only keep them for racing. If you don't mind getting new tyres every year or even up to 2, then the Vittorias might be my pick as at least for myself, they are 75% the cost of conti Susos and can take a slightly higher pressure.

Regular road tyres that are decently light could be fine as well, but for most of those, they are at least the same cost as the diamantes and SuSos, and most can't take the same pressures. For me at least, normal road tyres on the front didn't cut it as I liked the higher pressures better.

Run what you've got or what you can afford. As mentioned before, if you're not racing for medals or money, then most likely you're tyres won't really be the thing that holds you back

Not the Slowest

Okay, I've made some progress in this all important decision.
Raced yesterday at the Northeast Regional masters Event at T-Town on concrete using the original tires and took 2nd place in the 500TT with a 38.72. I was more than shocked as it was my first time at that track or any track other than Kissena.
So I guess the tires are okay, however I need to deal with the reality of a bumpy asphalt home track.

Going to get the 4000's for reliability and the fact that I could use them on the street if I choose to one day. No they don't get me the higher pressure I want (need?) but I am sure that I'll be fine. The Supersonics sound like a great choice but I think in the end, I will evaluate wheel options for Next Season perhaps getting some tubulars.

Of course being me, I could change my mind in 5 seconds 1,2, 3, 4 , 5 ...maybe a bit longer

THANKS ALL for the Positive Input.

NateRod

Slight threadjack, sorry...

Anyone ridden the Vittoria Diamante Pro Pista?

Do they offer any advantages over a decent road tire (which should be more versatile, in case you actually need to ride your bike TO the track)?

I have some Mavic Yksion tires on mine and have no major complaints. More of a curious inquiry than anything else.

Racer Ex 

First question on tires is do you need puncture protection. Second question on tire and tube choice is what kind of pressure you're going to run. Much over 145 and there's very little differentiation between tires as far as rolling resistance. Below that the tire casing and tube type comes into play.

Other than HDC, can't think of a track where traction might be a concern.

Kayce

Velo Campus, Cleveland, and Frisco all have traction issues as well. There may be others.

brawlo

See my post from above. The Vittoria Diamante tyre is a good tyre, but it is definitely one to keep on the track. If you have intentions of riding to the track, then I would suggest you go for something else that has pucture protection while still being light. Also check your tyre before racing for any debris that might cause you a puncture. The last thing you would want is a clincher developing a pucture while you have the hammer down at the front of a bunch.

I did some racing on the boards with Conti GP4000S's last winter while I was waiting for my SuSos. For me being a heavier guy, I definitely preferred the higher pressures attainable with the Vittorias or SuSos over road tyres.

Also make sure the rims you're running can take the higher pressures.

Flatballer

Partly because of this thread I bought some Supersonics and latex tubes for the track bike. Tires are here, not sure if the tubes will make it in time for Match Sprints on Friday.

I'm looking forward to the higher pressures (planning on running 145 in the rear and 130 in the front, at 210 lbs on Mavic Ellipse (which people say are good to 150+, Mavic says 138)). This should make a big difference over the 120/120 I'm running now in the GP4000S, plus the lower rolling resistance of the tire, plus lower rolling resistance of the latex. I'll see how it goes.