I mounted them using Stans No Tubes rim strip and sealant.. Mounting tires with a floor pump has always been hit or miss for me. I could not get the beads seated on the new tires so I finally broke down and bought a cheap air compressor. With the compressor they aired up on the first try. There were hardly any pin holes to seal which is pretty amazing for a sub 500 gram tire. Inflated to just over 20 psi in the rear and just under 20 psi in the front (according to my pump) and I was ready to roll.
The difference in the rolling resistance was obvious in the first minute. These tires roll so fast it took me a while to get used to it. Some of the downhills were scary fast vs what I was used to with my old tires. It definitely took less effort to get up to speed and keep it there.
In the corners I felt like I was velcroed to the ground. I have never ridden a tire that had so much grip. I was railing corners at full speed that I used to slow down for. When the trail got loose the tires would predictably break into a control-able drift. Of camber roots....no problem. Let it slide. Once they hit dirt again they were stuck on the ground like glue.
With this increased confidence in the corners and increased speed I threw down the two quickest laps on JRPS and FHP I have ever done! Schwalbe has proven to me that sometimes you can buy speed!
Very cool, these are frat tires for sure.
ReplyDeleteBTW: These tires rock in the CX version as well.
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