What hobby is that?! I actually can’t think of a hobby that isn’t gear-driven in one way or another.
Cycling can get absurd, but it’s nothing like golf or any kind of motorsport.
And I don’t mean to sound like a scrooge, I love my 47s, but I’m not going to throw my bike in the trash to ride 2.2s… I think it’s a fad, and while it probably benefits the pros greatly, the average Joe doesn’t need it.
I agree. I don’t think most of us ride at the speeds where a mtb tire will make a life changing difference. We’re not usually in the front pack of 20 guys going 24mph through a gravel sector completely blind and unable to see what’s in front of us.
I am a 63 YO amateur rider, and I have had the experience of being in a race, going downhill at 24 MPH (or more) in a group, over rough ground, and not seeing what is coming… OK, of course the pros are much faster, but there have been plenty of important moments for me where a bit more rubber would be appreciated. I do not think larger tires for gravel is a trend which is going to change. I suppose things will settle out at 45-52 for most racing, and 54-56 for extreme courses. Then there will be, maybe, some outlier bikes for drop bar MTB riding. I prefer a real MTB for that anyway.
I can concur with this, I’m faster than ever on my 47s, but I’m also more fit than ever.
The only testing I’ve done, and inadvertently no less, is racing the same course last year and this year, the former on 42 s works pathfinders and the latter on 47 pros, I went 0.2 mph faster this year on one (yes one!) less watt of normalized power.
That is not testing…that is random data comparison.
I have no idea what you’re trying to say with that table in regards to my post.
I can respect more rubber and it being appreciated. More rubber is almost always more comfortable…but is it necessary? Probably not. To each their own though. I just run whatever I have on my bike at the time of an event lol.
Same power, same course, wider tire slightly faster. May be random but the comparison can be made.
The graph is pretty self-explanatory…at a 17mph (pavement) / 15mph (gravel) pace (IOW, speeds that most of us would ride), there is up to a 10w difference between a 45mm Conti Terra Speed and a 2.2 Conti Race King.
So you don’t need to be riding at 24mph / Pro pace to see significant wattage gains by running wider tires.
No, you really can’t unless…
- Wind was from the same direction and speed on the same day, 1 year apart
- Weather was the same, 1 year apart
- You rode in groups at the exact same time at the exact same moments both years (and then obviously solo for the exact same periods both years)
- Those groups were going at the exact same pace at the exact same times
- Plus a myriad of other reason why you can’t draw any meaningful conclusions between two races, 1 year apart.
Josh Poertner seems comfortable with BRR data as being a reliable baseline to work off of, and he is one of the most knowledgeable and scientific thinkers in cycling.
So if BRR data gives you a 3-4 watt difference, then you double it for 2 tires, you are sitting at 6-8 watts of potential benefit (depending on the specific tires involved).
And I think we all accept that the delta between a skinnier tire and wider tire will only increase the farther away we get from the nearly smooth drum…so as we get rougher surfaces, the benefits should increase from there, to a fairly significant number on chunky cat 3/4 gravel surfaces.
There is a minor aero penalty at higher speeds, in the order of a couple of watts for a 5-10 mm increase. As well as a weight penalty for bigger tires, which is really only much of an issue during prolonged climbs.
But the data seems to indicate pretty strong performance for bigger tires in most non pavement events. Im open to seeing any data that shows otherwise though.
TLDR; have fun on whatever tire you want. But to dismiss the data as being too small to bother worrying about seems incorrect. It appears it may be as small as 5 or 6 watts, but then go up from there.
I think it is clear the bigger tire has a decent advantage on the rougher course. However, when you add pavement to the mix I think that is where tire selection becomes more interesting.
There should probably be a short form TL;DR for tires/rolling resistance that can be referenced.
Such as;
Slower riders will generally benefit from wider tires (as current year) because suspension losses are higher at lower speeds, and most likely with heavier riders and riders with higher body fat.
If anything, the current data shows that age-group racers need wider tires more than professionals as their potential marginal gains are higher.
The wider tires reaction seems more reflexive enforcement of social norms from the previous road racing era, than anything else. For many, it’s a struggle to realize that what benefits professional gravel racers, will also benefit amateurs and casual riders
I’m barely a 70th percentile gravel racer and almost every single event I’ve done has had long sections of this type of racing. Not 24mph but 20-22 is common.
It’s also worth reiterating that gravel tires appear to be getting faster. This thread will probably end up irrelevant in the long-term if/when 42-50mm gravel tires more consistently show 14-16w results at BRR.
I’m not really buying it. But you can. That’s the great thing about all of this. You can believe whatever you want 
I think people keep overlooking the fact that different people living in different places can ride wildly different terrain. In live in Vermont, and fatter tires have been a revelation over the rougher gravel we tend to have here.
Couple pics from a route by my house. The whole ride isn’t like this, but there are significant sections that are. And nothing is at all technical enough to require an MTB over a gravel bike. Fatter tires are faster, more comfortable, and less likely to flat.
Most of the riding is hardpacked gravel with lots of washboard like this, and fatter tires roll much better over the washboard.
Last year’s VT Overland course (88% unpaved according to RWGPS, with lots of Class IV roads as pictured above)
We all make choices based on what and where we ride. I ride lots of very chunky gravel on sketchy dirt roads and Class IV roads, so fat tires are awesome here. If I lived somewhere else with different terrain, I might use different terrains. But I guess I don’t see the point in telling everyone else they’re doing it wrong. As we tell our kid, why do you need to yuck other people’s yum?
I do not rely on beliefs, I pay attention to testing, and I confirm via my own testing. Relying on “beliefs” is misleading at best. Testing is not that hard if you have training routes which you ride regularly. With Strava segments and a power meter one can get a pretty good idea of real world differences (of course taking into account variables like wind, etc). In my testing I only base conclusions on multiple test runs, as these will average out hidden discrepancies and variables.
As I said…Data > Belief.
I have made many of the same arguments over the last couple of years. “What happens when you add pavement to the equation?”, “Is a wider tire actually faster on smoother gravel?”, “Dylan admits he should not have used wide tires for BWR NC”, etc.
As we have gotten more and more actual data, the answer is even more clear…a wider tire is faster in almost all circumstances, with the notable exception of course with long stretched of pavement (especially sections of pavement where a selection may be made).
You can believe in anything you want, but belief doesn’t change actual data. If anyone has any data countering what I just posted above, as I said earlier, we’d all love to see it.
Well, keep doing what you’re doing if you enjoy it. Cheers! I actually think “belief” is an extremely powerful thing. If you don’t believe in what you’re doing or what you’re riding, your mind isn’t going to be fully available to you when it matters. I derive my beliefs on feelings. If I feel like my set up is fast and I’m confident in it, that’s what I’m going to go with.
edit you’re definitely not wrong in what you’re doing. You’re probably the majority and I’m the minority on this subject.