Mountain Biking Slicks?

[melissam]

Any advice on buying slick tires for a mountain bike?

I'm trying to convince one of my roommates to do a charity ride with me in a few weeks. She only has a mountain bike, so I thought it would be easier for her if she traded in the knobby tires for slicks. As a matter of fact, I'll probably ride my mountain bike if she goes on this ride, so I'll be in the market for slicks too.

Performance has a set of slicks for $9.99 each that look like they'd do the job, but I thought I'd ask some of our resident mountain biking experts (Hi Irulan and Adventure Girl, and Lizzie!) if they have any input.

Thanks!

-- Melissa

PS I was thinking of posting this in one of the Gear & Accessory forums, but couldn't find one that fit so well.

[Adventure Girl]

I have an extra set of rims for my mountain bike, and I had some slicks mounted to them that I used to use before I got my road bike. There's a HUGE difference between knobbies and slicks on my mountain bike. My slicks are Specialized Fat Boys. (26 x 1.25) and I put 100 psi in them. They're good for things like paved bike trails. I got them because my LBS had them in stock and they fit my rims. I didn't concern myself with weight (they're on a mountain bike!!). And there are no concerns of tread choice. So I don’t know how you could go wrong.

How long is the ride? What kid of terrain? Will it be windy at all? At the Cinderella, I was surprised to see how many women rode mountain bikes or hybrids. And many of them had Knobbies or semi-slicks. That would be fine on a flat ride like the Cinderella. But if there is a lot of climbing, it would be pretty tough!

P.S. don’t use ultralight tubes ;) .

[missliz]

The slicks are a good idea- I've never bothered to put mine on, but I use dual tread tires thathave knobs on the sides and a slick web down the middle. They act like slicks on the road; the point is that you ride on a very narrow bit of tire just like a road tire so you get less resistance. I wouldn't ride the road on knobbies- the noise will rive you nuts and they're a little more prone to slip on pavement. And they want more work to push them. I've ridden 50 mile tours on the dual use guys.
I have no clue what the Performance tires are like- but they'll probably do the job for a while, some training to get used to them and then the event. Make sure you ride them and get a feel for them before you get in a big ole crowd of bikes.Personally I like riding missbike on the road- plushy fork, low gears, you all should have fun.

Lizzy