Shadowx

Hey, first post. Just got my son a new bike, basic 21 speed mountain bike from a bike shop, xs frame. It came with 65psi light to medium knobby tires. Almost all the riding we do is paved trail, fall creek trail in Indianapolis. it does get rough in a a couple places and there are a few place where there is an inch or or so of dirt or sand (and or mud if its been wet). He is slower than me and having to work harder to do it, about a 10mph avs on a 20 mile ride. I want to get better tires with better rolling resistance but don't want to get him anything that will be hard for him to use in those conditions. i have been looking at the following tires but cant make my mind up. thought on slick racking tires for kids? thoughts on these tires (or others) for him? I don't want to give him something that is going to struggle to use, cant find a good balance.

Michelin protech 26x1.4 or 26x1.85. more agressive city/touring tire
Michelin Protech Urban 26x1.85 less agressive, semi slick road tire
Continental sport contact 2 26x1.3, file tread road tire
Continental Grand Prix 26 Inch 26x1.125, slick race tire

Update. I decided to go with the regular Michelin Protech tires in 26x1.4 I think this is the best, I dont feel comfortable putting him on slicks, these have a bit of tread and will hopefully do very well. Will post picks and a review when i get them

Viich

I have one of the sport contacts in 1.3 - nice tire. I don't ride 26" much though

spyguy

I know this doesn't answer the question, but an 8yo doing average 10mph on a 20 mile ride is probably better than 99.9% of the 8yo's out there. Is he uncomfortable with that speed and wanting to go faster? Does he feel it's the tires holding him back?

Shadowx

Its not so much about wanting to go faster, although I am sure he would enjoy it, its more about wanting to go farther and explore more. Faster is just a side benefit. With a better rolling tire he should be able to go faster and farther with the same ammount of effort he is already putting out. I feel like the tires are definitely holding him back, that loud hum/buzz on the road says it all.

Shadowx

yeah, I wanted 26 because of more tires and parts availability. he can just stand over the bar on the extra small frame with his feet flat, but it should take him a LONG time to outgrow.

atbman

You could try looking (for the future?) at Accessories for your Beinn 26 small from Islabikes where there are a variety of tyre types to suit all surfaces. They include mtb, 'cross and road

joanwturner

Informative thread.