Germany_chris

I brought up in a past thread that I'm moving to the DC metro area and plan to bike commute.

Right now the bike I plan to bring with me on the plane has RH extra lights



Since I haven't ridden city street since I was in college at OSU I figure I'll assume I'll need something tougher than what I have installed. I'n my parts bin I have some 38 Specialized Hard Case and the infamous Schwable Marathons if you were going to ride the DC streets would you which would you choose

Smitty2k1

DC has fine roads, much better than the Midwest where plows and freeze/thaw cycles destroy pavement.

That said, sure there is some glass and debris in the roadways but I don't think it's terrible. One of my bikes has a RH extra light front tire and it has flatted no more than my other tires. I don't have any bikes with hardened/commuting tires, though I used to have a bike with Panaracer TServs.


​​​​​​Welcome to the District!


PS: beautiful ride, make sure you practice good lock etiquette.

chaadster

Yeah, I wouldn’t worry about using the RH ELs either. I run a pair on a bike I regularly traverse my university town with, so there’s often broken glass from partiers in the street, and all manner of debris that’s related to specific periods, like end of the school year when folks move out and pile debris on curbs and overflowing trash bins. That, plus the aforementioned trash condition of the streets from salt, frost heaves, and frequent rains sweeping rubble all over the place. RH ELs have been fine.

As I recall, the tread thickness on the RH ELs is pretty good, thicker than most race tires, but it’s the sidewall coating which really differentiates the ELs from the Standard or Endurance casings.

One thing that probably helps is using Schwalbe Aerothan tubes, which are more puncture and cut resistant than butyl or lated tubes. Tubolito have a new X series TPU which remain light and fast rolling but up the durability even more (presumably), to the extent they give a 1 year warranty on flat proofness.

jpescatore

It depends on your commute route, but most of the bikable roads in DC aren't bad from a flatting perspective. A few years ago I participated in Bike to Work Day from College Park to downtown where there was a festival. Coming in from the NE, I'd err on the side of those Schwalbe Marathons but for coming in most other ways, agree with others - any of those will do.

Kapusta

My experience with many Compass/RH EL tires over the past 8 years has been that they have decent puncture protection in terms of punctures from road debris in the tread) as the tread itself is respectably thick. But they are not bomb proof as tires designed specifically for puncture protection.

Where they are very fragile is in the sidewalls.

I live in a small city in Upstate NY with terrible roads/streets that are constantly under construction. These are every bit as bad as in any major city. I ride through these streets a few times a week on my road/gravel bike and have never had a problem. I’ve also done about 10 trips to bikes around NYC with EL tires with no issue.

That said, if these streets were all I rode on for purposes of communing around a city, I’d likely choose something with sturdier sidewalls and extra puncture protections.

Pop N Wood

You will fit right in with that bike.

Like said above DC roads are pretty good. At least in the touristy areas. DC, especially the Virginia side, has an excellent bike trail network as well. I've never felt the need for bomb proof tires.

Check out the C&O canal and GAP trails. Definitely will want some wide tires for the C&O, lots of soft spots there.

rumrunn6

when our Son spent a semester there, a cpl years ago, I was impressed with the cycling infrastructure, as-in, protected bike lanes! enjoy!