CX Tires

I am always looking for a better cyclocross tire. I own a disturbingly large number of bikes but find myself on a cross bike more often than anything else. While the UCI limits competition cyclocross tires to 33mm in width, the terrain I ride (and my larger than a pro-racer size) require something a bit more substantial. With the luxury of multiple frames that can fit 42mm or larger tires (My Black Mountain can actually fit 29"X1.95" mountain bike tires) I prefer tires in the 35-45+mm range.

Finding a large CX tire that rolls smoothly on the road and provides good traction in the dirt and weights less then 600grams is always a difficult task made more so by the constant churn of the bicycle tire industry products. For many years I rode a Ritchey WCS tire in 38mm that reamins my single favorite CX tire. It has a supple carcass and large, agressive knobbies but still rolled very smoothly on pavement. It provided a perfect balance of rolling resistance and traction. I rode them, rotating front and rear frequently, until they were nearly bald. 10 years later, I have still not found a replacement that hits that perfect balance. Ive tried Bontrager, Specialized, Maxxis, Michelin and Vittoria tires searching for the magical combination. The closest was the Schwalbe Marathon XR that offered the low rolling resistance and nearly the same traction but have a rather thick carcass that lacked the "feel" and light weight of my beloved Ritcheys. To make matters worse, it was discontinued right after I bought my first pair. I moved to another Schwalbe, the 42mm Marathon Extreme that is much like the XR, heavy, strong and durable. Availability of these larger CX tires from Schwalbe is problematic, often requiring ordering them from shops in Europe and paying some stiff shipping for tires that are already on the high end of the scale.

After reading reviews by men who know about such things here and here, I recently purchased a new tire that seems to offer everything I want from my tires. It's the new 40mm Clement X'PLOR MSO in 120tpi construction. It rolls like a road tire and offer great grip off-road. The carcass is soft and provides great feel. They have quickly become my favorite tire and are the heir-apparent for the "Best Cross Tire" title. They work well on the loose, gravel covered hardpack common in mid-summer California. It digs in nicely to redwood duff and provides out-of-the-saddle-climbing traction when the trail is a little damp. They work best when aired-down -- I don't use a pressure gauge but I suspect I prefer them at or below the suggested minimum on the sidewall.

Last Sunday I did expose a possible weakness due to that soft carcass and preference for lower pressure -- pinch-flats (or snake-bites). I hit an exposed root descending the newly-recontoured White Oak trail in Stevens Canyon and simultaneously pinch-flatted both tires -- something I doubt would have happened with the Schwalbe tires. Add a little forgetfulness on my part (leaving my seat bag, tubes and patch kit on the Tandem after a ride with Kathy on Saturday), poor cell coverage, and being 20+ miles from home provides all the necessary ingredients needed for an "Epic". Oh, and I also managed to lose (and much later recover) my wallet too.

To be fair, this is a pretty agressive mountain-bike trail where cross tires in general may not be the best choice so I'll hold final judgement until I get a few more miles and roots under them but in every other category they are without question the best large, agressive, CX tires I've ridden in many years.

Dry cleaning bag to the rescue

Putting the 4th of July holiday to good use I rode my bike to the beach yesterday via Lexington reservoir and the old Santa Cruz-San Jose highway. I met Kathy there where we had a nice espresso, walked the beach where I learned to surf, and enjoyed lunch at Betty's Burgers. On the ride I was reminded how fickle our coastal weather can be. I left the house in full sun wearing nothing but shorts, a light jersey and PI's "Sun Sleeves". Nearing the summit I got the first taste of the wet, cold wind that was waiting on the other side. The heavy fog at the summit became a cold rain as the trees filtered the water from the air and dropped it on my already cold back. Where was the warm sun I left just a few miles ago?, I wondered. As the "tree-rain" continued, the temp dropped to the mid-50s I began to shiver. Taking a que from the Tour riders I began to look for a newspaper to stuff under my jersey for a little insulation and respite from the wind until I could reach the Summit Store a few miles ahead and wondered wether they would have warm clothing for sale. Then I spied it, a plastic dry-cleaning bag tangled in the weeds just off the roadway. It was clean as though it was placed there moments before and torn a little by the hasty removal of hanger and cloth. It was perfect. I smoothed it out and stuffed it under my jersey where it did an awesome job blocking the wind and cold during the 16 mile, 40+ MPH descent from summit to the beach where Kathy was waiting with a warm sweatshirt. I didn't even think to stop at the summit store. The ride would have been much different without my little roadside find. Here is the ride on Strava.com.