Durable and reliable. Have used Continental tires for many years. My biggest issue is the threads that start to develop as the tire wears. If I'm not paying attention the threads can get wound around the cassette.
Gatorskins are the way, 28mm on my 2002 steel road bike. 3600 hundred miles year round on my previous pair with only about five flats. These tires deflect everything thrown at them, glass, and more glass in the bike lanes, minor gravel, wet streets, and then more glass, and road debris. This recent pair is my fifth set.
I like to have a fresh set of tires every year when I do the Seattle to Portland ride. This was my 35th year and I have used Gators for many of them.
They have been flawless and it's one more thing I don't have to worry about when I ride from Seattle.
I leave them on for training the following year, them change out again. However there would be no problem leaving them on for several years I'm sure.
I now have a lot of spares.
I've used this tire on my tandem bike for years and had great service. However I had an incident recently that shook my confidence. I installed this tire on the rear of my tandem and put only a few hundred miles on it before the sidewall blew out at the bead. The casing tore without being damaged by road debris. I am currently working with Continental to resolve the issue and they are being very responsive. It's a relatively expensive tire and touted for having strong sidewalls so I was surprised at this. Nothing is perfect and maybe this was just an outlier. I'm still using them on my tandem and regular road bike.
Nice fresh rubber gatorskins in 28mm. Smooth!
I and my riding friends have used Gatorskins for many years. When I saw the black version was cheaper, I compared the price and that fact that it was just the same as the regular Gatorskin but cheaper, I ordered a set. I have not been disappointed.
There were several complaints about Gatorskins not having a full width flatproof tread belt. I considered this and despite the fact that I've had VERY little problems with Gatorskins, I tried the flat proof tires from the major manufacturers. Well, the very first time out on a Vittoria armored tire I got a flat. Then I replacement innertube somehow got a pinch or something and exploded knocking the tire off of the rim. Luckily a group came along and had a spare CO2 cartridge. I made sure that it was a spare because I wouldn't want to have this happen to anyone else.
Now
Puncture resistant. Long wearing. Competitively priced. Just a great tire.
I�ve been using Gator Skins for a few years now, and nothing else will go on my bike. I recommend them to all my cycling friends. I will continue to use Gator Skins as long as I�m riding.
I've used gatorskins on my tandem bike for years with good results. I rode on a mix of gravel and paved roads without any major damage to either tread or carcass. I decided to use them on my road bike after a series of flats with another tire. So far they have been very reliable, handled well and returned good mileage. My rear tire is about worn out so I am ordering a replacement. They are reasonably priced too. This will probably be my go-to tire from now on. I ride about 600 miles per month.
I have tried SO many different tires over the years and keep coming back to Gatorskins because they last. So much longer than other tires and they are very flat resistant. If you are a weight weenie they probably aren�t for you because they are a little bit heavier but if if you like to mount�em and forget �em, these are awesome!
Precision made, great rubber, reasonable weight. I like them a lot. German manufacturing much better made than the tires made in China.
The Gold Standard in fast rolling puncture resistant training tires. Yes, they are a little heavier than GP 5000's but flat protection is second to none. I live in Wisconsin and try to ride year-round if possible- usually 5-6 thousand miles/year. Often have years with NO flats thanks to Gatorskins!!
I run these things on my road bike all the time now, because there's a lotta glass on the roads and paths (Portland, Or) these days. These things are heavier than race or training tires, yes they are, but I do like getting about 80% fewer flats. I stretched a pair of these to 4000 miles once, not one flat, but that was in Europe where there's far less glass & crap on the bikeways. I usually retire them at about 2000 miles, which is about 3 times longer than the training tires I used to use.
While the traction is a little less than real racing tires it is half the cost and has great training wear.
I ride the rough rides of Southern California for exercise. These tires hold up very well, although not completely bullet proof. I've had one flat over several hundred miles, which is remarkable considered some of the road conditions, which include glass, palm fronds, rocks, tree nuts, potholes, cracks in the pavement, goat heads, and every other piece of detritus one can imagine. While I'm not a super fast rider, they hold the corners well and provide a stable and secure ride. I'm 185 lbs. with a 24 lb. Bike and inflate the tires to 73 psi rear and 71 psi front. (Per the Silca professional tire pressure recommendation). I ride the 700x28 size on my Trek 3009 7.7 FX. These are a great reliable tire that keeps you on the road safely without having to fix many flats. I heartily recommend them for any one commuting or training on your bike.
I am a retired 77 year old 'club rider". I ride with the group 25 - 50 miles, 3 days a week. This is over various terrain. I use the Gatorskin Black on the rear of my bike. I have not had a flat in about a year now.
These are great tires for making sure you are not going to get a flat in most cases, however they def ride alittle heavier then some other tires. They are good tho, they'll get the job done.
Gator Skins have been my go to tires for a number of years now. These black version of the tires are not only cheaper than the gold label version but I was also able to get the bigger size for my e-bike. Just like the version I have used on my regular carbon fiber road bike, I expect to get many miles on these tires without flats.
Basically this tire performs well to prevent road type issues. Wears well, only challange is they are tight and difficult to put on rims on the road. The same thing that makes them wear well.
