folding tyres

[indysteel]

A good reason to have them is if you are on a multi day tour in areas where there are no bike shops nearby. If your tire gets badly cut or chewed up somehow, you have a replacement tire with you. Carrying just one could cover a lot of possible tire disasters for 2 or 3 people if they use similar size tires.

Ditto that. I usually keep a set of new tires in my car in case I need a new one at the last minute as I start a ride. I'm also taking a set along for my week long bike trip to Tennessee in September. I stock up from www.probikekit.com, which stocks my tire of choice for a lot less than I've found elsewhere.

I really want to emphasize that it wasn't hard for me to mount the tire. Since I've never (knocked on wood) flatted on the road before, I don't get much practice with it either. For the record, the tires are Vittoria Rubino Pros. Some tires are reportedly harder to mount than others and the wheel itself can make a difference, too. I have Veloplugs instead of rim tape on my wheels, which allegedly makes mounting easier.

[Eden]

For the record, the tires are Vittoria Rubino Pros. Some tires are reportedly harder to mount than others and the wheel itself can make a difference, too.

oh yeah - I had one Rubino that I got as a door prize. I put it on my rain bike as a winter/trainer tire. The thing was BOMB proof - never got a flat and showed little wear even using the trainer, but it was a BEAR to mount. It took both my husband and myself pushing and pulling to get the thing on my rim the first time.

[indysteel]

oh yeah - I had one Rubino that I got as a door prize. I put it on my rain bike as a winter/trainer tire. The thing was BOMB proof - never got a flat and showed little wear even using the trainer, but it was a BEAR to mount. It took both my husband and myself pushing and pulling to get the thing on my rim the first time.

They're a little tight to begin with, but the guy at my LBS who helped me put my first set on commented on how easy they were to mount, as did someone who helped me with a pre-ride flat (the valve stem actually came off). Maybe the Veloplugs really do help. In any event, my hands just don't seem strong enough for those last few inches of bead.

[Eden]

I think it was just a tire / rim combination that didn't get along so well - most tires were a bit stiff on them, the rubino was nuts. I'm sure it stretched once it was on there a while, but since it never flatted, I never had to find out. Forget about having to use a lever to get it onto the rim.... it took two adults (and my husband isn't exactly a small guy) to push it on there.

[indysteel]

Eden, I gotta laugh at the image of that. I was struggling enough myself with them last night and I'm sure I looked pretty funny to the outside observer. The whole process is more than a little awkward at times.