Race Day Tire Pressure
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Toothless posted 16 weeks ago.
I weigh 150. Yesterday I ran 140 psi on a Continental Sprinter 22mm on a Zipp 404 tubular. I saw a lot of flats, but my bike split was clean.
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348 days
TriSooner posted 16 weeks ago.
Clincher 120. Three flats in three races isn't good. If you're putting 160psi in 220psi-rated sew-ups, I bet tire pressure isn't it.
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169 days
jonovision_man posted 16 weeks ago.
I run what it says on the side of the tire... Most of my riding was when in previous years when I was north of 190lbs, so I don't think weight really "weighs" into it all that much. I've had two flats in my entire life, both because I ran over metallic objects.
Did you try to diagnose it at all? Ie. inflate it and find the hole, see if it was on the outside or inside... sometimes imperfections in the rim can cause flats, or unseen little pieces of debris that get in the liner and poke into the tube.
Good luck... I understand the frustration!
jono
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SpeedDemon07 posted 16 weeks ago.
TriSooner wrote:
Clincher 120. Three flats in three races isn't good. If you're putting 160psi in 220psi-rated sew-ups, I bet tire pressure isn't it.
There not sew-ups.....Maybe i'm just having bad luck, because I know what I hit...its not a mistery to me. I was just wondering what you all ride with and if I ride with to high a pressure or if there is a recommended psi.
I won't be riding what it says on the side of my tire, 220?!?!? that would be stupid.
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UFTriGator posted 16 weeks ago.
Tubulars and sew-ups are the same thing.
The pressure isn't causing your flats, little pieces of whatever getting in your tires are. However, you're still running too high of a pressure for riding on the road.
I usually run about 130 psi and I'm just under 170 lbs. You can go lower if you're lighter, or higher if you're heavier, but definitely don't go too high. A lot of people want to go 150-160 psi on tubulars just because they can, but that's going to cause you to bounce around on the road, wasting energy. It feels like you're going faster, but you're actually going slower if you do that. That kind of pressure is good on the track where the surface is perfectly smooth, but roads have little bumps that you want to soak up. This helps, too: http://www.zipp.com/Support/AskJosh/Tires/Tires_rolling_resistance/tabid...
______________________________________________
-Matt
Not fast enough.
1127
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985 days
UFTriGator posted 16 weeks ago.
Tubulars and sew-ups are the same thing.
The pressure isn't causing your flats, little pieces of whatever getting in your tires are. However, you're still running too high of a pressure for riding on the road.
I usually run about 130 psi and I'm just under 170 lbs. You can go lower if you're lighter, or higher if you're heavier, but definitely don't go too high. A lot of people want to go 150-160 psi on tubulars just because they can, but that's going to cause you to bounce around on the road, wasting energy. It feels like you're going faster, but you're actually going slower if you do that. That kind of pressure is good on the track where the surface is perfectly smooth, but roads have little bumps that you want to soak up. This helps, too: http://www.zipp.com/Support/AskJosh/Tires/Tires_rolling_resistance/tabid...
______________________________________________
-Matt
Not fast enough.
72
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418 days
john_grieco posted 14 weeks ago.
I read somewhere that too high pressure is not so good, especially if you are a lighter rider and/or the course roads are imperfect, as most courses are. The basic argument against pushing beyond something like 120-130 is that the road bumps (or light rider) begin to bounce the bike more and you end up wasting some power in vertical movement, versus lower pressure in keeping the bike more contacted w/the road. Handling is also improved with a lower pressure. Seemed pretty subtle to me.
The other consideration is what your body can manage over a longer course (half/full) or long tempo in terms of the harsher handling, especially on the low back - For me, on longer/hard rides 65+miles (with higher pressure - say 130+), my back gets tired and when that happens my power drops..
-my 2 cents..
"Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go."
-T. S. Eliot
19
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1280 days
durf32 posted 14 weeks ago.
Generally speaking I run at about 120 psi. Running tire pressure too low risks pinch flats. As another poster stated I would guess that your issue isn't tire pressure; my bet is on some sort of debris in the tire or rim or your rim tape is 'off' just enough that the spoke holes are exposed, or you've just been unlucky.
I am the great Cornholio! I need TeePee for my bunghole. Don't make my bunghole angry!
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jsk85 posted 14 weeks ago.
I put in 120 on my clinchers b/c that's what it says on the side of the tire. I have replaced my tires 1x since I've had my bike going on 5 yrs...and *fingers crossed* have never flatted. Just to elaborate...in the past 5 years I've been anywhere from 190-210lbs...mostly around 205, so I'm not small either. I do tend to ride a good deal on manicured paths since I can get down and ride aero for long periods of time, so that's a factor, but I certainly don't avoid roads, especially not lately since I've been a little "hill hungry" so to speak.
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PrinceofClydes posted 14 weeks ago.
$80 tires huh?
I ran on tubulars for a year, I had a flat or two but not during ironman. That was my best bike split btw.
But $80 is a significant investment.
Since you didn't know they were also called sew-ups perhaps you didn't know that you can patch a puncture on these puppies?
Here's how:
I pulled the tire off the rim and I tried to locate the region of the hole by inflating the tire .
then
I peeled off the tape on the inside of the tubular (tubbies, for the familiar) and carefully cut the thread along the seam only in the region of the leak.
I put some air in the tube and located the hole.
- patch as normal: rubber cement, apply patch, wait a few minutes. Inflate to check.
Then came the finicky bit.
Using an ordinary sewing needle and ordinary thread, I carefully closed the seam by running the needle through the existing holes until it was sewn up (hence the name).
Some rubber cement re-applied the tape protecting the stitches and voilà.
best of luck,
PoC
"Pain doesn't last, chicks dig scars, glory is forever!"
- Shane Falco.
I've tried to search for this answer but I can't find what I'm looking for, so here's this thread. This question was prompted because I have gotten three flats in my last three races, and I'm getting a little frustrated. What tire pressure do you run on your tires? I heard if you subtract 10or15% of your body weight from your weight, then that’s a good pressure the ride.
I realize that it changes depending on your weight and what wheels you have, so here's what I run. I have Tubular Zipp 1080 Front and Tubular Zipp Sub 9 disk wheel on the back, both with Tufo S3 lite <250g. I'm 5-11 180, and I usually run 160psi (THE MAX ON THESE TIRES IS 220PSI). Needless to say, I am a little angry after I flat on an $80 tire.