Put on my new SKINNY tires today...

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

OK, so I've spent about 6 months biking on my "training wheels"- my big cushy fat grippy safe 700c x 38c tires. A few weeks ago I began to feel as though they were holding me back and unecessarily wide.
This evening I was very proud of myself- I changed both my tires and tubes all by myself- never had changed a flat before. (only watched a couple of times and had read about it). Had a little trouble at the end getting the back wheel coaxed back in with the chain etc. DH helped for a moment. I think I could do it myself alone next time though, with a few attempts. The CrankBros. Zip lever I have is a truly fantastic simple tool- the tire beads just glide on and off like magic, like turning the hand of a big clock. The whole proceedure was fascinating and exciting to me, and made me feel empowered and very self sufficient. Now I don't have to worry about that first flat on the road someday- I'm ready!

Anyway, I have my usual 21 mile daily route timed, and I can't wait to see if the new skinny tires shave off some additional time. My new tires are 700 x 28c instead of 38c wide. It really is a huge difference. They seem so hard and thin! I hope the ride won't seem TOO uncomfortably bumpy. We'll see tomorrow on my ride. (maybe I should wear a double chamois the first time?)
The new tires are Pasela Panaracer "TourGuard" which should hopefully help avoid flats on gravel roads (which we ride a lot).
Another bonus is the extra half inch or so of standover room I have now. I will have to reset my wheel circumference size setting on my bike computer. But the ride timer/clock will not be affected by the change.

Will report back after first impressions tomorrow.

[Triskeliongirl]

Hey Lisa- big congrats!! It does feel good to take care of your own bike doesn't it! Do you ride gravel roads? If not, even the tires you got may be wider than you need for general purpose and go fast riding. For touring I like the panaracer pasela tourguard 32s, for city use (i.e. commuting) I started with panaracer pasela 26s, but found I like schwalbe stelvio 23s even more and they actually flat less so I use them now both for commuting and go fast club riding. I think the thing about comfort on wider tires is overated unless you are riding very bumpy roads. Your 28s are still very much on the wide side. Looking forward to your ride report! -e

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Do you ride gravel roads? If not, even the tires you got may be wider than you need for general purpose and go fast riding....Your 28s are still very much on the wide side. Looking forward to your ride report! -e

Yes, we often ride VERY rough gravel back roads here in the country. By rough I mean hard packed dirt with sharp gravel and rocks that range between 1/2" up to 2"...it can get pretty hairy. We also ride over some cow fields in the tractor ruts sometimes. I'd really be risking frequent flats by going thinner, I think.
Will stick to civilized paved roads tomorrow for my "maiden voyage" though!
Next year we hope to do some touring through New England...NY,MA,VT & NH.
That's why I'm trying to get stronger!

[Triskeliongirl]

Yes, we often ride VERY rough gravel back roads here in the country. By rough I mean hard packed dirt with sharp gravel and rocks that range between 1/2" up to 2"...it can get pretty hairy. We also ride over some cow fields in the tractor ruts sometimes. I'd really be risking frequent flats by going thinner, I think.

In my experience skinnier tires don't give you more flats if properly inflated and with a flat resistant compound like kevlar, TG, etc., but they do present handling problems on rought surfaces. When I toured in Chiapis on packed dirt I used ones similar to your panaracter pasela TGs and they were fine. I have used paselas with and without TG and the TG ones definitely flat less. But, I also find all tires flat more when underinflated so be careful about that too. I actually have two wheelsets, one I keep 32s on for touring and one with 23s for faster riding on smooth pavement. Where you live you may want to keep a wheelset with your original tires for those very rough roads, and use your new tires for packed dirt and pavement. But you'll just have to see how it goes.

[snapdragen]

I've been very happy with my Pasela TG's - they are the tire I used on the AIDs ride. I never had a flat.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

TOTAL BUMMER!!!!.....
Like a fool I had attempted to fix some minor shifting problems by myself yesterday at the same time I put on the new tires. After an hour and a half tinkering and reading derailleur tuning instructions, I seem to have gotten the shifting working smoothly on the stand, thought all was ok.
But today's ride was a total bust. I couldn't even tell much about the new tires at all- because my rear gears kept popping in and out every time I shifted, cable tensions were all wrong, and the chain was coming off. The more I tried to adjust on the road, the worse it all got. I simply screwed up.

So I aborted my ride today, coasted/walked home, swallowed my pride and called the LBS. Am bringing my precious 6 month old BABY in for the very first time to have a STRANGER work on him and tune the shifting/indexing/cables etc.
I guess I'm lucky that the mechanic is coming in tomorrow afternoon and it will likely be ready to pick up tomorrow evening. He only comes in twice a week.

My tire report will have to wait until the shifting is back in order again.

[Thistle]

Hey Lisa ... like you i recently went to skinny tyres. I took the advice of Velogirl (i think?) and put slightly lower pressures in my front (100) to my back (110). This seems to make the ride a bit more comfy.

Dont they make a huge difference to rolling resistance though?

Cant wait to hear how you went!

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Dont they make a huge difference to rolling resistance though?

I'll find out tomorrow on my ride!

Thanks for the tip about lower front pressure...good to know!

[momof4greatkids]

I'll be watching for your report! Good luck w/the new wheels, Lisa.

Colleen