We've done a lot of work in here trying different tires. The tires I've ridden on more than just a few times over the past two years are:

Continental Attack/Force TPS: These are truly excellent and likely my favorite or nearly my favorite. Fast, comfortable and durable. I like these. Absolutely zero problems.

Continental Grand Prix 4000: Continental's new flagship Gran Prix is good- but not perfect in my opinion. that said, no tire likely is- but I was hoping for a little more from the Gran Prix 4000. The tire delivers in every department except two: Mounting and ride quality. I think our customers will find this tire a very tight fit, tighter than other Continentals, on many popular wheels. Customers don't like that, but insurance companies do. The ride quality of this highly flat-resistant tire is, well, did I mention it was flat resistant? It is a stiff riding tire. I don't care for that. You can't have everything in a tire, and these are nice. Just not my favorite.

Vittoria Rubino Pro: Stock on many bikes. Utterly under-rated. These are superb. We have ridden the heck out of them. Durable, comfortable, easy to mount, reasonably priced. They are a trifle heavy. Maybe as close to perfect as a reasonably priced tire can get. another candidate for favorite.

Vredestein Fortezza Tri Comp: The tire Hellriegel won Ironman on. This is an excellent tire. On par with the Rubino Pro, but $10 more (?). Very nice. The rumors of having to ride them at 145 psi are just that- rumors. Fine at 120 psi. Good tire. Very good actually.

Vittoria Open Corsa CX/CG: If you can't afford to use cocaine, stay away from these. You go through them fast and they are addictive. The ride quality is so far and away the best of any clincher tire anyone can feel the difference. Amazing. On ride quality nothing comes close. These also mount much easier than any other tire on this page. Which means they come off easier than any other clincher also. For a while, HED wheels had a notice on their website to not use these on their wheels. Scary. As for flat resistance...Did I mention the ride quality? Awesome. If you run over a speck of dust or a fly's eyelash you will flat. At least they are easy to change. They are expensive too. My friend Pierre is addicted to them, and we've tried to get him on the Rubino Pro 12 step program, but he is a millionare so he can indulge his addictions...

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Lots of good tires out there. Hard to say what's actually "the best", but I do like these.

http://www.veloflex.it/

how do these compare to the vittoria diamente pro lights?
That's what came stock on my soloist, and they didn't really work for me. if i was "ruralrider" they might have cut it, but even on my long rides i start in the city, & it didn't take long to get a flat... and a flat that took a little gouge out of the front tire. when i looked at the tire, there were a couple other spots that made me nervous.
nice ride, but not nearly durable enough for me.

oh, i've been trying the michelin carbons lately. seem good. i haven't been able to do much riding on the roads, though, so it's not a completely set opinion yet.

I have never liked conti clinchers or tubulars always preferred Vittoria Corsa CX and when they were around CG's. Clinchers, I have usually ridden Vittoria, sometimes the open corsa's but they are expensive to replace, so the cheap ones(I don't remember the name) always worked out fine. For training, I use 700x25's for racing 700X21 or 23 tubular at 140 psi. Vittorias ride very nicely and very plush Vredesteins are very nice also. You absolutely cannot go wrong with either Vittoria or Vredestein tubular or clincher, although if you ride 650's I don't think Vredestein makes a 650 tubular. Veloflex are great too made in the old Vittoria factory.

The tire delivers in every department except two: Mounting and ride quality. I think our customers will find this tire a very tight fit, tighter than other Continentals, on many popular wheels.

So Conti figured out a way to make their tires even harder to mount and remove? Great! <not>

Comparing to the I guess now-defunct 3000, are the 4000s an improvement in any way? I've been a huge fan of Continental for as long as I can remember, and the big key for me is durability as opposed to the subtle riding nuances perhaps evident in other tires...they've always been near bullet-proof for me so I'm glad to hear that hasn't changed.

The 4000's have a more advanced rubber compound that incorporates some weird fancy chemical stuff that makes good things more, and bad things less....

Sorry- I totally am blanking on the name of the chemical.

Try this:

http://www.conti-online.com/...l/home/index_en.html

Oh, Vectran. Better living through chemistry. That's it.

Also, there is an additional layer of stuff to make them more flat resistant. I have two sets right now: Never flatted one.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

My choice of tire is any tire that doesn't say "Tufo" on it.

(actually riding GP3000s for training and Michelin ProRace for racing)

ot

I found the same thing on my Soloist with the Diamente Pro Lights. Seemed like they provided a nice ride, but I flatted 3 times in my first 2 tris (never in training of course). Asked the lbs for something that'll offer better flat resistance--sold me the Rubbino Pro and no problems since.

Vittoria as a brand. Conti's are nice training tires, but Vittorias are my true love for everything though.

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"Non est ad astra mollis e terris via." - Seneca | rappstar.com | FB - Rappstar Racing | IG - @jordanrapp

Just on more hit man....

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Continental Supersonic. Because they are light slicks with excellent grip.

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"Non est ad astra mollis e terris via." - Seneca | rappstar.com | FB - Rappstar Racing | IG - @jordanrapp

I 3rd the new Conti GP 4000's for training only. Durable but no significant difference in ride quality than the Serfas that cost 60 bucks less/pair. I am not sure what shade of purple my hands turned when I mounted the SOB's!!!

I'm giving the veloflex carbons (sew-ups) a shot this year for racing. I dig the vittorias too but I ran through them faster than toilet paper at a chili convention.

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"In the blocks you're a prisoner, the gun releases you."

I usually wear through Michelin Carbons before getting any serious cuts or imbedded glass. Good for training, good ride, good durability, $30ea and ~3000 miles on a rear.

GP3000 I don't really like, they ride harsh at 120psi...how anyone could ride them at their rated max of 150 is beyond me.

Michelin Pro Race or Pro2 Race for races. Good feel, grip, rr, durable enough for races. The compound on the Pro seems stickier than the Pro2 and collected more crap on the tire.

Hutchinson Carbon Comp...not impressed either. Cuts easier than the Michelin Carbon.

Those are the tires I have put serious miles on in the last 2 years. My alltime favorite was the 700x18C Michelin HiLite SuperComp HD (what a name...ugh). Fast as hell at 130psi.

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Guess I should chime in. I'm new to the sport (only 1 year), but have some input. I've had good luck with Vittorias as well, but they were just training tires. I now train on Michelin carbons and they are comfortable and haven't shown one sign of wear in the 1000 miles I've put on them in late summer. I also have Michelin Pro Race 2s that I like. I've been lucky and have never had a puncture or pinch flat on any of the above. All of the above seem to hold up well. Since I've only ridden clinchers, I like to hear why some of you prefer sew-ups and why others prefer clinchers (I'm shopping for new wheels and want some input before I buy). This was touched on by at least one of you in a different post, so thanks for your input there. I know there have been a ton of tubular vs. clinchers debates and here, and I certainly don't want to start a new one, but I would like to hear opinions of pros and cons. Keep in mind I've never ridden or changed a tubie, so I'm nervous to start now for race wheels. Clinchers haven't given me any reason to not want them so far.

I really like the Tufo and Continental tires.



Oh... you mean on MY bike...

Well, not those then. I like those brands on the competitions bikes.



(If you don't get the joke, google rolling resistance, bicycle tires...)



.

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Tech writer/support on this here site. FIST school instructor and certified bike fitter. Formerly at Diamondback Bikes, LeMond Fitness, FSA, TiCycles, etc.
Coaching and bike fit - http://source-e.net/ Cyclocross blog - https://crosssports.net/ BJJ instruction - https://ballardbjj.com/

The only numerous flat issues that I have had in the past were on MTB or bmx. I have had good fortune with road tires so the reason that I chose tubies is not related to pinch flats. I tried them because they are generally much lighter than clinchers, I got a set at a premium discount, and didn't mind trying something different. No regrets. I have trained on them without issues. The whole feel, rolling resistance thing has been discussed to the hilt (do a quick forum search on tubular vs. clincher). I would add that if you have not had any problems on clinchers and like them then stick with them unless you are feeling a little adventurous. There are plenty of good clinchers out there.

I have known people to race on clinchers and really struggle to change them in a race/pressure situation only because they haven't practiced prior. No different with tubies.

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"In the blocks you're a prisoner, the gun releases you."

Good advice. Racing without having practiced a change is a bad mistake if it ever happens. The only reason I'm thinking of switching to tubular for race wheels is because of the HED Stinger series (tubular only). I am looking at a v6 for the front and is tubular only. I'd get my disc in whichever mode the front is in, tubular with a stinger, clincher if I went with something else. I'll search some of the posts when I get a few free hours. I'm sure there is plenty.

Michelin pro race. Light fast and ranked the best in a Tour mag tire test. I agree. My Tubbies are Gommitalia Platinum because I won them on Ebay at a reasonable price, and they feel as good as any tubular I've ever ridden.

I should have mentioned Michelin but I haven't ridden them since the introduction of the Michelin Pro Race Light. My prior experiences with Michelin were all largely good. The tires seems to be a trifle softish even at full pressure and the sizes ran oddly wide-ish. I swear a 700X23c Michelin was as wide as a 700X25c Conti. Interesting.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

I swear by Michelin Pro Race, and its new incarnation, the Pro2 Race. I use the Light version on race day, for an even better road feel.

The Conti GP3000s were a somewhat distant second (haven't ridden the new 4000s, but if Tom is correct that they are stiff...then I won't like them)

Vittorias are nice tires, but I don't like their durability...I get lots more out of Michelin and Conti tires.

I was not impressed with the one set of Vredesteins that I rode this year. Nor was I impressed with Hutchinsons...but I haven't tried them in a couple of years.

Right now I am trying the new Specialized Roubaix Pro tire that has a 25 casing and a 23 tread for a winter/nasty weather training and commuting tire. My only complaint so far is the super sticky tread that picks up lots of crap and tosses it toward the bike. Nice ride, particularly at 100psi. The extra casing smooths things out nicely. I'm only a few hundred miles into them, but I hope their durability proves as good as they estimate it is...like 4000 miles or so.

[reply]I have known people to race on clinchers and really struggle to change them in a race/pressure situation only because they haven't practiced prior. No different with tubies.[/reply]

That's probably one of the best indirect recommendations I've heard in a while. Whatever you race, make sure you are happy with changing it quickly and correctly. If you take your wheels to a shop to have them changed, you will be screwed if you ever flat in a race. I've changed my own tires for the last 20 years, and still occasionally screw up. :)

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conti's---i never get flats

This is very interesting to me. I just bought a bike with Vredestein Ricorso tores on it. I also bought some Continental Ultra 2000 at the end of the season last year for my road bike.

Which is the superior tire?

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This is your life, and it's ending one minute at a time. - Fight Club
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