Interbike 2012: Schwalbe Develops Road Tubeless Ultremo ZX Tire

25mm version soon, please! Then a 28, and so on.

I have been riding Hutchinson’s Atom Tubeless tires (23mm) on DT’s Tricon road wheels for 1.5 seasons – and I am a road tubeless believer ever since. Significantly more comfort and/or control on bumpy road surfaces, resulting in less fatigue and more joy of riding – as I could ride with 6.5bar pressure rather than 9bar when riding clinchers with an inner tube. But without any additional rolling resistance, which is the real clue here. What else do you want on a road bike?

To me, road tubeless clearly is the way to go for amateur and casual road bike riders. And also for cobbled classics, by the way. Tubulars are too much of a hassle in handling, and in combination with rim brakes they can be dangerous, as the glue might fail when the rim heats up on long descents.

4oz of Stan’s in a road tire?! I run that much for my 26×3.8 fat bike tires (2 oz for my 29er). Yes, you have to carry a spare tube and a means to inflate but after experiencing the benefits of tubeless for several years on dirt I can attest that the pros far out weigh the cons.

@Carl – KISS = fewest points of failure.
fewest points of failure = least number of parts prone to failure.
least number of parts = rim + tire + valve.
Rim + tire + valve = tubeless.

Don’t even have to use sealant if you don’t want, let alone 4oz of it.

If you are not capable of a tire change, carrying a spare and handpump, or noting the ride difference, don’t adopt tubeless. But do not decry the concept as foolhardy, because others who would benefit from tubeless may actually listen to you.

Carl, I don’t remember having too much difficulty with the mounting of my tubeless hutchinsons. I did need levers, which I carry along with a tube but otherwise it was pretty painless and I don’t expect having to tube-up would be much of a fuss.
fwiw, I probably used less than 2oz of sealant per tire that by now will likely be more or less completely dry.

The ride quality is really good. rolling resistance seems very low, and I’ve hammered them through some dirt road descents at speed. nary a problem.

bummer if your experience has been less than awesome but I’m a fan and would recommend them.

If you flat w/ tubeless you do the same dance that you would do on the MTB.

You just throw a tube in it.

Tubeless road tires are smooth and simple. You eliminate the most common types of flats possible and add great confidence that you can ride farther from home w/o issue. You can still flat them for sure, but anything that would flat a tubeless road tire would also certainly destroy a standard clincher or tubular. We all scoffed at tubeless on mtbs at 1st too. The benefits are the same or greater.

Not to sound completely sexist, but many women love tubeless road since they add a lever of protection that a standard clincher does not offer. Consider that some riders are calling for a ride w/ any type of flat.