For those of you who ride Vittoria Corsa CX clinchers, 700x23. What air pressure do you use on IM race day. Vittoria suggest that you can inflate to as high as 145 lbs / 15 Bar. If we assume that you have a good enough rim to hold the pressure and smooth enough bike for the comfort factor what is the best pressure for efficiency, reduced rolling resistance and speed? Are you running 120 or 145? Thanks for your input.
I usually run 120-125 psi.
The EVO CX and its cousins, the Pave CG and the CK are among the oddest tires in the industry. They probably have better ride quality than any other tire with the possible exception of the Vredestein Fortezza Tri Comp, but we’ve found the the Corsa Evo CX (but not Pave CG and CK) are oddly susceptible to flats and losing air pressure over time. Pump your Evo CX’s up to 130 psi on Sunday morning, by Monday afternoon the darn things have about 60 psi in them. That is when using standard Continental brand inner tubes too.
I guess the best approach is to run the tires a max. Odd tires though. We sell them rather well despite their tendency to flat easily.
Ditch the Corsa’s before the IM, unless you want to chance it. Tom is right, these do flat and lose pressure easily. I have been riding on them during training the past two months and had 4 flats. If you want to stick with Vittoria tires try the Diamante Pro’s - good rolling resistance, light and do not flats as often.
I ride the clincher and tubbie version and I love them. For a general rule of thumb, 120-125psi is adequate unless you’re heavy or on the track.
I haven’t experienced the pressure loss that Tom describes, but I use cheapo Performance tubes (butyl), not Continental tubes. The tubbies, however, lose pressure quickly. I pumped them up Saturday afternoon and by Sunday AM they’d lost over 20psi.
I also ride the Vittoria Diamante Pro’s on my road bike and, while the ride isn’t as smooth, they’re bulletproof and relatively light.
For Moo, I had them at 115 because it was wet. Usually I have them at 120 or 8 bar mostly because that’s what the rim manufacturer (Rolf) said the rim was able to hold.
I did have a flat at Moo and had more flats this season then I’ve had in previous seasons using other tires. I’m not sure if the flat at moo was because of the tire or the rain that kept the crap on the tires. Either way I may rethink my tire choice for next season.
The EVO CX and its cousins, the Pave CG and the CK are among the oddest tires in the industry. They probably have better ride quality than any other tire with the possible exception of the Vredestein Fortezza Tri Comp, but we’ve found the the Corsa Evo CX (but not Pave CG and CK) are oddly susceptible to flats and losing air pressure over time. Pump your Evo CX’s up to 130 psi on Sunday morning, by Monday afternoon the darn things have about 60 psi in them. That is when using standard Continental brand inner tubes too.
I guess the best approach is to run the tires a max. Odd tires though. We sell them rather well despite their tendency to flat easily.
Umm…you’re right. This sounds VERY odd. What the heck would the tire have to do with losing air pressure? Sounds more like a tube or valve issue to me.
I’ve run the Open Corsa EVO CXs with both latex tubes (michelin) and standard butyl tubes and they hold air as expected for those two tube material types.
You’re right though that they have a VERY nice ride quality…which is even noticeably better with latex tubes as opposed to even thin butyl.
Oh yeah…for the OP, I usually run them at ~100 to 110 psi in the front and ~110-120 in the rear.
I run Corsa CX at 145psi, only one flat in a year and a half, but I used to flat more often when I used to run 110-120. I think they might be more likely to pinch at the lower pressure, but that’s just a theory. At 145psi they still have a better ride than any other clincher I’ve tried. Great tire.
Have used these tires and their predecessors for years. Never any problem with losing air or with more flats than would be considered normal, like from a nail.
Love the tires. Great feel, excellent durability. Run at 120-125 psi.
Ric