Silca says, “the tires [they] wanted to ride didn’t exist”, so they created four Protocols of their own. Always there for the marginal gains, Silca wasn’t happy with the current crop of large-volume race tires available. So they laid out a development brief (or protocol) of what they really wanted from a modern dropbar race tire. From 29-38mm road tires. And from 45-55mm gravel tires, plus an even bigger 32″ x 2.4″ gravel tire for good measure (which we spotted on that Leadville prototype Ventum last week.)
All-new Silca Protocol road & gravel bike race tires
Either scaled up from skinny road tires of the past, or scaled down from XC mountain bike tires, Silca felt like existing wide road and gravel race tires were lacking in performance, specifically tuned for how we race bikes now. So instead, Silca combined lessons learned from road & off-road tires, but rebuilt them from the ground up with lighter, faster casings and treads optimized for efficiency and control in a wide range of riding & racing conditions.
“Throughout my career, I’ve avoided official tire sponsorships so I could strictly run whatever tested fastest in the lab and on the dirt. The Protocol lineup is the first time a tire checks every box for volume, traction, and speed, making this partnership with SILCA an easy decision.”
– Dylan Johnson, Silca sponsored athlete, pro gravel racer & “marginal gains advocate”
So what did Silca actually want out of a road or gravel race tire?
Big volume, whether on road or gravel. Low rolling resistance and a supple ride. Balanced with plenty of conditions-specific grip and an appropriate level of flat protection for typical riding and racing situations. Designed for modern low tire pressures, and on wider rims. And they needed to be tubeless-ready, but also light and soft enough to work well with TPU tubes, too.
The results are three Silca Protocol tires for gravel: RCG-1, RCG-3 & RCG-4. Plus one for road: RCR. And several sizes of each. (And yes, we noticed that RCG-2 is missing.)
“For years, the industry approached gravel tires by just slapping thick, heavy rubber onto traditional road tire carcasses. We approached the Protocol lineup by first looking at lower-pressure dynamics. By optimizing casing ply angles, tread profiles, and material science together, we’ve created a tire platform that is faster, lighter, and more supple without sacrificing durability.”
– Joshua Poertner, Silca CEO
Tech details
- tubeless-ready gravel & road racing tires
- thin and supple 120tpi Race casing
- Pulsar high-performance solution-polymerized styrene-butadiene rubber with silica reinforcement promises “balanced rolling efficiency, grip & durability“
- variable height gravel tread knobs. “taller outer knobs engage earlier at gentler lean angles to maintain biting-edge traction, while asymmetrical tread patterns optimize independent braking and acceleration forces“
- carbon fiber bead reinforcement for foldable, dimensional stability (instead of conventional Kevlar/Aramid)
- made in Taiwan
- Protocol RCG-1 low-profile fast gravel tire
– lightweight Ghost Shield puncture protection
– available in 700c x 45, 50 & 55mm widths
– 460, 510 & 535g claimed weights, respectively - Protocol RCG-3 medium-profile, tightly-spaced mixed conditions gravel tire
– enhanced SealSkin puncture protection
– available in 700c x 45, 50, 55mm & 32″ x 2.4″ widths
– 495, 540, 590 & 710g claimed weights, respectively - Protocol RCG-4 medium-profile, widely-spaced loose-conditions gravel tire
– enhanced SealSkin puncture protection\
– available in 700c x 45, 50 & 55mm widths
– 545, 620 & 650g claimed weights, respectively
- Protocol RCR slick-profile road / all-road tire with cut-in tread
– lightweight Ghost Shield puncture protection
– available in 700c x 29, 34 & 38mm widths
– 290, 320 & 350g claimed weights, respectively - all gravel & road widths measured on a 25mm internal rim
Silca Protocol road & gravel tires – Pricing, options & availability
All three new Silca Protocol RCG – Race Casing Gravel & the new RCR – Race Casing Road tires sell for the same $99 / 119€ price tag. Regardless of tread pattern or size. All are offered in all-black only. And are all available to order starting today, of course, directly from Silca online, or through their partner retailer bike shops.
