They are bulletproof tires and super durable, but also very slow via high rolling resistance.
The TrainerRoad podcast with the Flo Cycling guys cover this and gives some wattage values between them and others.
Here is another option to compare tires.
Around 10w more resistance, per tire, for the Gators. That’s 20w off your speed compared to a race tire and tube.
Basically, they’re great for training, but not best on a race bike.
Cool, good to know. I got new wheels this year that support tubeless so when I have the money going to look at some better ones that are tubeless.
Is the strength training recommendation available anywhere or is this going to be released later on?
Love the banter about how to ‘slow down’ a lighter rider. But effectively, if it’s a race situation and the lighter rider is even semi-smart, the only hope is really to put a gap on them before the hills with a strong crosswind and putting them in the gutter… If there are no crosswinds, it’s probably best to just conserve as much as possible before the climb.
If the climb is more than a few minutes long, it always comes down to W/kg - and the best you can normally do against a light rider is save energy before the climb, limit your losses up the climb and then try and pull back any gap on the descent.
The advantage is that if a number of other clydesdales get dropped on the climb, you can work together with your collective high horsepower (which should be larger than that of the smaller riders who could break away) on the subsequent downhill & flat roads to get back into the bunch.
Once you’re back in the bunch, the high power of heavier riders often puts the advantage back in your favour for a sprint.
Additional thought:
If you just want to put the hurt on your lighter buddies, ride a high tempo pace on the flats (something that makes them work hard too). On the small rises, ease up (just a bit) to let them go past you and gain a small gap of a couple of bike lengths. Upon cresting the rise, they’ll look back, see the gap and will naturally ease up - you then immediately power back on hard and come past them at pace. They will need to sprint and then work >really< hard (without a draft) to catch back on.
This is a good way to break someone. BUT if you do this too often, and they can capably cover you, you may just not make it over the main climb, as it’s also hard work for you (just not as hard as it is for them)…
NB. This is generally considered to be anti-social in anything other than a race…!
I’ve only recently found this guy but I like what I’ve seen so far. Often very simple sessions that are clearly explained and demonstrated. I also like the fact that most of the sessions require no additional kit.
Sounds like it is set for release later. The fact that Nate felt comfortable mentioning it makes me hopeful that is will be reasonably soon. But no firm time was stated, so we get to wait and see.
Gatorskins are decent tires. Depending on your definition of decent… in fact, depending on your definition, they might be GREAT tires.
The #1 functional priority of Gatorskins is not to flat. Period. They sacrifice a lot of ride quality and rolling resistance efficiency in pursuit of this durability.
My wife has a road bike and is a recreational rider and has Gatorskins on her bike. She loves them – why? Because they have never flatted. And she doesn’t know how to change a tire (nor does she have any interest in learning how to do so). I replace them for her after 1500 miles – whether I need to or not – just in case some unseen wear has occurred. Because if her Gatorskins flat, plan B is me coming to pick her up.
As ride quality and rolling resistance become more important to you - or if you know how to change a tire and carry a spare tube - the reasons to ride Gatorskins starts to dwindle.
In my opinion, with the advent of ‘road tubeless’ there is less and less of a reason to roll Gatorskins…unless you have wheels that aren’t tubeless ready. My wife’s bike isn’t tubeless ready.
I’m considering upgrading her wheels because if she can fit 28s, road-tubeless is actually superior to Gatorskins in terms of flat protection - and ride quality is vastly superior. Unless you get an out-and-out gash…which isn’t as likely on the road as it is on singletrack.
If you want to feel what you’re missing rolling Gatorskins, set your rig up with some Vittoria Corsa G+ gumwall 28s and latex tubes (not the Corsa Speeds, not the Corsa Control tires…just the regular Corsa G+ – see link below) – and let the quick, grippy plush-ness wash over you 
Again – I’m not knocking Gatorskins. Just understand what they’re made for and what you’re getting from them. They’re great at being tough and taking a staple or goathead without flatting…but they’re not fast.
@chad would you be able to share a link to the online resource you mentioned with additional information on hyperthermic training? Thanks!
I’ve been sitting in a 183 deg sauna daily before bed. Pulse only gets up to the mid 70’s. I’m going to switch to 30 min after TR workouts and see what happens
Just wanted to comment on the statement that road disk rotors last basically forever and that it’s hard to wear out a rim braking track. Both of these statements are only true is the weather is dry. I lived in Virginia for a while and rode outside all winter in the rain and snow. In one winter I wore out two sets of rime brake wheels because of the gritty mud and dirt that would get on the wheels in the wet. So, I got a disc brake bike. The next winter I went through two sets of rotors and 5 sets of pads. So, your mileage may vary.
@chad loved your praise to saunas, I wonder if you are aware that there’s ~2 million saunas that can be heated to 100 °C or above, but generally they are used in more humane 85 °C temperature. (Bare facts of the sauna in Finland - thisisFINLAND)
I’ve had years of problem with heat regulation as “non-sweater” but with some dedication and sauna training I nowadays feel that it’s not a problem really, I tend to build a pool of sweat while sitting in nice hot sauna for 20-30 minutes. Highly recommend (:
i know there was some mention that there wasn’t any preference of traditional dry saunas and infrared, but what about steam showers? Is the wet heat less helpful - consistent with the prior heat adaptation conversations in older podcasts?
One thing, I could never imagine staying in a steam shower at 100+ degrees. At 85 degrees I get super not good feeling. Infrared I can go to 120+.
I had no idea about this! Signing up my son today! Thanks!
I was actually very disappointed with a certain aspect of this episode of the podcast. I was actually rather offended with the attitude the three presenters took, especially @Nate_Pearson
He basically totally scorned the potential benefits of detoxing, juicing or however you want to describe trying to get rid of so called “toxins” .
This is a subject that is totally attacked by the mainstream medical profession, mainly because it goes counter to their “philosophy”.
Whilst it may be true that “toxins” is such a generic term that it has become almost useless, there is NO doubt that following many of these types of healthy regimem can be super beneficial.
It’s kind of like someone saying there are no benefits to breathing fresh mountain air compared to an office. These don’t get measured yet obviously there is a benefit.
I was really disappointed by the smug know-best attitude despite the fact that the medical profession does not have all the answers and in fact can cause far more harm than good and despite asking forum readers for suggestions to handle their own “medical” issues.
I’m sure there are quacks in the natural health field but in a similar way, you wouldn’t write-off the whole medical profession because some doctors are fat, smoke, are alcoholics or abuse some patients.
Guys, not everything can be proven by science. I also take into account common sense and empirical evidence.
Really disappointed in this smug attitude that’s shown frequently towards anthing not “authorised by a doctor” etc…
This is a bit of a straw man, IMHO. Those people who fit the examples you gave (and the do exist) are doing so in direct contradiction to the mountains of scientific & practical evidence (that they no doubt have been exposed to while getting to their position) to the known issues with those choices.
The core of the TR issue with the “toxins” seems to be lack of empirical evidence from that realm. They do strive for finding grounded and validated studies for the majority of what they discuss and even recommend. I think that’s appropriate considering their reach and potential influence. The lines of recent discussions like the beet root or pomegranate benefits are the most recent examples I can remember. They take a deep dive to find substance behind the claims in many cases.
Despite that, we also hear them admit to doing some things and making some choices on “feel” or even admitting to placebo effect in other cases. So I don’t think they are overly locked into a strict world.
Yet they were very flippant and practically sniggering in their contempt of the possibility of it being useful.
Not a very balanced view, and very dismissive of a huge number of successful outcomes that have been achieved.
I think the attitude comes from the unsubstantiated claims of the cleanse/toxin industry. I don’t think that anyone is saying that good juices,etc can’t be nutritionally good for you. The skepticism comes from the claims of toxins and detoxification. I have never seen any info on what the “toxins” actually are- the chemical or molecular names, by what mechanisms juice or anything else removes them from the body, etc. It all comes across as nonsense. If drinking juice or whatever makes you feel good that’s fine. Keep doing it. But don’t ascribe medical properties to them without any shred of evidence or even a real theory of what they do. Built up “toxins” should be measurable. What are they?
Also, the breathing air analogy is not at all a good one- the impurities and chemicals in office air, as compared to mountain air, are easily measurable and quantifiable. Do that for even one body “toxin”. And you can’t include mercury and other heavy metals, polymers, pesticides, etc. All of those are already known and measurable and also not removed by cleansing or any of the other proposed methods. Just document even a single “toxin” and a explanation of how they end up in the body and how these methods cause elimination and the skeptics will change tone.
I’m not trying to convince anyone of anything. There is already a wealth of information available regarding how toxins/chemicals/drugs whatever can reside in the body for years after they have been consumed deliberately or accidentally.
They are found in fatty tissues in the body, in the liver, in the spleen, in lymph nodes, the places where the body tries to get rid of waste. It does a wonderful job of getting rid of most things, but some chemicals are not so easy to eliminate.
Autopsies cover this often. Also, tissue samples of fish, cows, chickens, and other animals often show these things.
We live in a chemical society and our bodies are not used to it. Many modern illnesses are now being linked to this. However, you won’t find much literature in the average medical practitioners office about this. It just isn’t taught in med school.
As I said before the results speak for themselves for many people. I find out for myself rather than rely on being told something where the source may have other agendas or vested interests.