I just upgraded to tubeless tires and on my first ride I got a flat. Surprised the heck out of me because I thought tubeless don’t go flat. They were gp 5000. For my replacement I decided to go with a much more heavy duty tire. Hopefully this won’t go flat.
My question is, is it a good idea to train on heavy duty tubeless tires and switch to a faster tire on race day. Other then the mess is their any downside to switching out tubeless tire before and after races?
I’m curious if you identified the source of the flat. Was it a puncture? Not my first ride, but very shortly after I went tubeless on my race bike I did have a flat that ended my ride. Turned out that I managed to pick up a nail (probably) that went through and through. By that I mean it went through the side wall right at the edge of the wheel and then through the road surface of the treat. Sealant couldn’t fix it and I didn’t have a patch kit or spare tube at the time.
But so far, that was the only failure I’ve had with tubeless. Needless to say, my confidence in tubeless at that time was shaken. But I’ve ridden several hundred miles since and haven’t flatted on a ride since.
As to your question, I think that’s a totally reasonable strategy. I am curious if your plan is to switch out tires and sealant between races or have a second set of wheels. In the case of the former, that’s a bunch of work but if you don’t mind, then go for it. In the case of the latter, just know that if wheels sit for a week or two, the sealant will pool in the bottom and begin to dry out. If you have a set of wheels that you’re not riding regularly, you will need to maintain a schedule of spinning the wheels to redistribute the sealant and making sure they stay aired up.
I would set-up new tubeless tires for any important races and keep them until they’re worn out.
Also, I would definitely ride at least 50km after tubeless setup (ideally not in a single ride, so that I could check the pressure loss more than once), to make sure everything works and is sealed. This applies to tire bead and valve as well as to tire porosity (leaking through rubber itself that I’ve had on GP5000 TT tires).
If I wanted to have a separate training setup, I’d put in inner tubes. I would have no patience to switch from one tubeless setup to another.
Might I ask, what brand of sealant and how much did you use in the offending tire?
It was gp5000 s with silca sealant. It was probably glass in the south part of lakeshore drive in Chicago. Honestly I don’t know how to measure so I just poured some in. I tried to put 2 ounces, but the sealant let me get home after pumping up the tire again. The hole just ended up getting worse though.
I can change a tire in maybe 20 minutes, so it is a time investment just not extreme.
You should really try a DynaPlug. Now that you have a large hole in the tire this is a great chance to learn how to use one and be comfortable riding a plugged tire. Smaller holes and punctures should seal in a few tire rotations. For bigger holes, If you have your plug and CO2 handy you should be able to plug a tire and be rolling again in under a minute.
The 5000 STR is a pretty beefy tire that seals well. I would put your flat down to bad luck.