Originally Posted by
mschwett
am i going to hate riding something like a 35 or 40mm terra speed on roads? it doesn’t look like the rolling resistance would actually be more than the hard shell tires i’m riding on.
A 25mm Gatorskin has 19.3 watts of rolling resistance.
A 38mm GravelKing Slick has 20.8 watts of rolling resistance.
A 38mm GravelKing SS has 23 watts of rolling resistance.
So your 32mm Gatorskin almost for sure rolls slower than a 38mm GravelKing Slick.
I love the idea of 2 wheelsets, but would not use 2 wheelsets. If I had only a gravel bike, I would just end up keeping the larger wheelset on the bike for almost all of the time. I know my own laziness.
As for having to walk up 20% inclines with loose rock...yeah thats gonna be tough to ride up no matter what tire you use due to tire slipping at that angle.
Just buy high quality slicks with volume and see if you like em more. Something in 38-43mm thats relatively light, slick, and fast rolling. At worst its a $80-100 bust and you know you need to adjust your routes moving forward to stay on pavement. Or you find out getting off pavement is a lot of fun.