Hutchinson’s ProTour Tubulars are made in Italy for the ProTour teams and have won 9 of the last 10 Tours de France. Usually, all of them are used by the teams, but they made a few too many for the 2011 season and now have 340 pairs available worldwide with 34 pairs in the U.S and only 17 pair are left as of this post.
They’re hand made in Italy with the tread hand glued to a poly-cotton casing that’s aged after construction to improve puncture resistance. How? The cotton breaker under the tread hardens over time, so they store them in a cool dry room for at least six months (Lance rode tires that were aged at least five years, but he never got a puncture during his Tour victories). The tread pattern is the same they’ve used for their sponsored teams since the ’70s.
Want some? They’re $500 a pair and come in a special box that keeps them in the proper shape (Hutchinson says you don’t want to fold them) and includes two tubes of glue. Call Hutchinson NA to order: 609-393-1780.
Jump past the break for new Mountain Bike stuff…
New Convert Air tubeless conversion kit that has ‘consumer proof’ installation. Rather than tape that can be misaligned, messed up or require multiple layers, the rubber strip lays into the rim bed a the tire is mounted over it. Once inflated, you simply trim the excess off by cutting a slit towar the tire and pulling it off with your hand. Besides ease of installation, it also provides an additional layer of rubber between the tire bead and the rim, forming a continuous rubber seal. Works with rims up to a 24mm inside width. 26″ kit available now for $25 an includes two strips, two valves, a valve core remover and a bottle of their Protect Air Max sealant. A 29er kit is coming soon.
Toro (right) 29er tire bumps the offering from the original 2.1 and now comes in a 29×2.35 (705g) with a slightly beefed up tread to reinforce the side knobs for the wider girth. The Cobra (left) is now available in a 29×2.25 the first 29er size for that tread. No claimed weight yet, but should be slightly lighter or the same as the Toro.
The new Cougar tire is their first attempt at a Trail tire and is available in a 26×2.0, 2.2, 2.4 and 2.6 (590g to 940g).There will be a 29×2.4 available this fall.
