I have not had a flat as long as I used this tire
I live in an area that produces a fair amount of flat tires. I carry two spare tubes on every ride just in case. Since switching to Continental Gatorskins, I have had few, if any flats. This is good for me, but bad for the people who sell tubes. I ride an average of about 5,000 miles per year. I am tall and weigh about 210 pounds. I run a 22 cm tire in front and a 24 cm on the rear. I find this provides more comfort and stability. In my opinion, you can't go wrong with Continental Gatorskins.
25 makes a comfortable ride. Very few flats
I'm tough on tires. I ride roads with too many potholes and gravelly shoulders with too much glass and other rubble. Plus I'm 250 lbs. Pinch flats and glasssteel shardsthorns have punctured my tires too darn often. These tires are the best I've found. I don't know if they are too heavy or lose road feel, which is what racers might worry about. Me? I just don't want to go through 20 or 25 tubes and a set of tires every summer! These Gatorskins just carried me on two centuries in the past month, about a third of one was in the rain, and I had zero issues. Good grip, never a puncture, and I started forgetting about tires and flats altogether. THAT was the best part.
A great compromise without feeling very compromised. My mechanical breakdown frequency is very low. only 1 f&^t in almost 1500 miles of road work on the last set. I try to never ride with anything else.
PROS
Last forever at 110psi or less
CONS
A bit heavy if you are an elite racer
I prefer to ride the Grand Prix 4000s but due to some flaws in these (see my video review here __________) I have come back to these Gatorskins. Inside these on Charleston, SC back roads, which are pretty dirty, and they are great. There is not more flat-resistant tire on the market - this is the one. That said, if you over inflate them, or get about 120psi, and you are a heavier rider, you will get a flat sooner. Shop around, MSRP for these is a bit high, but you can get a good deal online, right here like I did.
Pricey compared to the competition, but so far on my rubble strewn 22 miles Round Trip commute, not a flat yet. I am running 28C for things that go bump in the night...literally. Riding in the dark this time of year, reliability is critical. I was waiting to get some miles and some wet weather riding. We had a delayed rainy season, but I find these tires do just fine in the rain. I would not high speed corner on wet leaves or frost or ice...but I wouldn't do that on knobbies.
I am just using this on the front so far, running a tire with tougher sidewalls on the rear. I may get brave when the days get longer and run it front and rear. I like the way they roll easy and handle well. I thought it installed without too much effort.
This fold up Gatorskin 25cm is the go to for volume training. Where the roads are uneven (ok they are rough) and the potential for flats are many I use this one to keep rolling and train more with out frustration. I use one set per season and that is around 7K training miles. Most of my training partners use the same except for the occasional insecure rider running 50cm carbon wheels with 23cm light tires.
I also like the 4000 Cont but not for long mile training.
these tires seems to last a long time and good as far as flat resistant. No tire is impervious to glass and and other sharp objects on road, but these do as well or better than any similar tire I've tried. So far I put on about 300 miles and no problems at all.
I use the Conti gatorskin on the rear of my Gold Rush Replica recumbent bike. I have tried other tires but always come back to the gatorskin due to fewer flats and consistent long wear on each one. I am on track for 10,000 miles of cycling this year so I have given the gatorskins a good workout.
I don't particularly like the cosmetic crosshatching threads on the sidewall as some of them tend to peel loose after several miles but this does not affect their performance.
These tires are a good training tire. They don't flat easily and come off and go on the rims easily. You may not even need levers. Yay!
I am on my second Continental Gatorskin and have been very impressed. At 6'1 250 I need a very durable tire and I have found the Gatorskin to be very reliable with solid overall performance. I ride about 1,300 miles per year and only changed my old tire out as a precaution before a century ride. It handles the corners very well and is a very solid tire. I would recommend this highly.
Bought these tires about a month ago. Only 150 miles so far, but no problems. Work great on all surfaces. I am somewhat of a weekend warrior, but wanted a good dependable grade of tire. A friend suggested these tires, as he has several pairs on the bikes that he rides. Fairly easy to install, and they look cool too. Plus the name. Gatorskins. That is awesome.
i purchased the gatorskin tires to replace the original tires that came on my trek mondone.I am very happy with the gatorskins,,after 2000 miles,no flats and I feel that the tires will give me at least 2000 more miles.Tires are easy to mount,and look pretty good too.
I bought these because I am tired of spending money on tires and tubes, not the mention the aggravation of always repairing/replacing them. These cost more than I usually spend, but I figure if they hold up, I come out ahead.
700 miles so far without any trouble, which is good for our bad roads. Lots of potholes, broken shoulders, and gravel strewn around. It's just impossible to avoid everything.
I wanted something with good tread AND sidewall protection and so far they have done the trick. I notice only the slightest difference in ride from my previous and various tires.
I also bought a pair of Michelin Pro4 Endurance at the same time, but so far I haven't had a change to try them!
Pretty bullet proof. Long wearing. Just works!
I bought the wire version. A bit hard to mount on rim. If you are finicky about that, get the Kevlar version.
These were replacement tires for my Specialized Sirrus hybrid (700x32). Have 250 miles and no flats. But more importantly, I immediately noticed improved speed and power due to the tread design and profile. Ordered a second pair for my other bike and experienced the same results.
Both bikes previously had the original Specialized tires which weren't bad, but not as good as the new gators.
I bought two pair. One for my wife's road bike and one pair for my daughter's.
They are both very happy with them and looks like they wear like iron! (Don't ride
like iron tho)
Great tire though to be honest, the wire beaded version is pretty hard to get on to my aero rims. Wears very well. No flats yet in purely urban and some suburban road riding. Have over 300 miles on current new set and they still look brand new . No fancy colors or patterns on these tires, they just work perfectly. Generally a bit expensive, but the current sale makes me envious.
This is my 2nd pair of Conti Gatorskins for my touring bike. They're fast, they last and can take the punishment of these rough Maine roads. Have never gotten a flat and even go a little dirt road riding on them. They're pricey but the lasting performance makes them a good deal. My first pair easily got twice the mileage of any other tire I've used (5000 miles estimate). I replaced them because they looked worn, but were actually still functioning fine. Went through 3 sets of other tires in 2 summers so definitely a good deal. I'm sticking with the Gtorskins from now on.
