Tag: Continental

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Vittoria Rubino Pro Tires

My Team Cofidis De Rosa Merak came equipped with 700×28 Vittoria Rubino Pro tires. Bike-room.com set up the tires with tubes. (The wheels are Fulcrum Airbeat 400 DB, an OEM wheel that is similar (but heavier) to the Fulcrum Wind 42)

Vittoria Rubino Pro Tubeless ready tire mounted on Fulcrum Airbeat 400 wheel
Vittoria Rubino Pro Tubeless ready tire mounted on Fulcrum Airbeat 400 wheel

The rear tire started showing wear through the tread at 2050 miles and I retired it 30 miles later. I attribute the wear to my weight (~211 lbs – 97.7 kg).

Vittoria Rubino Pro Tubeless ready rear tire wear after 2080 mi
Vittoria Rubino Pro Tubeless ready rear tire wear after 2080.3 mi

The front tire, after almost 3300 miles seems to have a lot of tread left. In the center of the tire, there is still a trace of the flash.

Vittoria Rubino Pro Tubeless ready front tire wear after 3300 mi
Vittoria Rubino Pro Tubeless ready front tire wear after 3300 mi

I replaced the rear tire with a 700×28 Continental Grand Prix 5000 S TR and went tubeless. The Continental tire has a little over 1200 miles on it and the wear indicators are still showing. I did get a puncture, a 1.5 mm long cut in the tire (probably from a glass shard), that the Orange Seal Endurance sealant sealed.

For safety’s sake (see this video of my descent down Conzelman Road in the Marin Headlands), I decided to patch the tire from the inside. I removed the tire, cleaned out the sealant and put a round Rema patch over the hole. I’m wondering what other high performance tubeless road tires there are that are slightly more puncture and cut resistant.

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Specialized Roubaix Armadillo Elite

Specialized Roubaix Armadillo Elite tire
Specialized Roubaix Armadillo Elite tire
Specialized Roubaix Armadillo Elite tire

To get up into the hills, I ride my bike through glass strewn, broken city streets. Including the weight of my bike, I’m pushing almost 100 kg. I was getting a lot of punctures from very small pieces of glass, frequently enough that I started to consider tire savers. If I hear a crunching sound or ride over small pieces of glass I don’t see in time, I reflexively put my thumb down on the rotating tire to hopefully flick off debris.

Though I need a rear tire that is more resistant to punctures, I also didn’t want to compromise too much on weight because I am riding a racing bike, even though it is from the early 80’s. Years ago, when I lived in Manhattan, I went from tubular tires to a Specialized Armadillo. It was like putting on a truck tire.

After I read Bruce Weber’s account of his flatless cross country bicycle ride with Schwalbe Durano tires, I bought a Schwalbe Durano Plus. With a folding bead, the 700 x 25C tire weighs 380 gm. Compared to the Continental Grand Prix 4-Season (that I was riding in a less demanding environment) the Schwalbe Durano Plus tire had a certain sluggish response.

One of my local bike shops suggested a Continental GatorSkin. They didn’t have the foldable version so I bought the 300 gm, wire bead, 700 x 25C. The GatorSkin felt more responsive than the Durano Plus and through it’s life, I only had one puncture. Unfortunately, the cord started showing in one spot after about 3500 miles.

I would have bought a folding Gatorskin, but LBS #2 wasn’t a Continental dealer. They suggested a Specialized Roubaix Armadillo Elite. I mounted it on my Mavic Open Pro wheel without shredding my thumbs or using tire irons to get the final part of the bead over the rim. Even though it weighs 305 gm, the Elite feels more responsive than the other two tires. For $60, I hope it wears well.

Specialized says, “The Roubaix is an Endurance Road tire for epic rides from smooth country roads to rough field roads.” Since my riding is none of the above, hopefully it will just work.