September 8, 2023

Tires

For me, it is about durability and minimizing hassle. I have two bikes at this time (unless I resurrect one of my old 700C road bikes). One is my Surly Ice Cream Truck, which I will continue to run the Surly tires on. The other is my Marin hard tail bike.

If I am actually going to ride dirt and trails, I grab the Ice Cream truck every time. So the Marin is now relegated to use on pavement (namely "the loop" in Tucson). I am still wearing out the tires that came on the bike, which are lowe end dirt tires. I am contemplating a smooth tread street tire, someday, for less rolling resistance.

My bike shop recommended the Vittoria Urbano, either in a 35 or 40 width. This is a solid recommendation. This is billed as a high durability city bike tire. Some people say it is heavier than it needs to be, but weight means durability.

Another recommended city tire is the Continental top contact. I have always had good results with Continental tires. Another Continental tire that gets mentioned is the "contact urban". The contact urban is a newer tire (2022 versus 2015) and looks like the better tire. Also consider the "contact plus"

Another is the Schwalbe Marathon Plus. They are heavy, but also probably the most durable "commuter tire".