Schwalbe’s new fastest road racing tire is the Pro One Aero, a front- & rear-specific pairing that is up to 22% faster in the wind tunnel than the old Pro One TT, while also boosting control, durability, and protection. Developed with different profile shaping, internal construction, and even tread thicknesses to address the different requirements of front and rear tires, the new Pro One Aero is both a faster pair of tires in the wind tunnel and out on the road…
Schwalbe Pro One Aero F&R-specific road racing tires
Schwalbe calls their new Pro One Aero the “next-generation” of competition road bike tires, thanks to front- & rear-specific aerodynamics developed together with Scott and Syncros. The front tire then focuses primarily on reduced aero drag through the clean airflow at the front of the bike and low rolling resistance. The rear prioritizes low rolling resistance, but then also improved reliability through increased puncture protection and longer wearing rubber.
By optimizing the shape of the new aero front tire on modern wide 23-25mm internal rims in the wind tunnel, Schwalbe claims to have achieved “22% less aero resistance” between the new Pro One Aero Front in comparison to the Pro One TT (measured at 45 km/h and on a 28mm wide tire). They say in fact, that the new 28mm Pro One Aero Front even has reduced aero drag when compared to the current 25mm wide Pro One TT – Schwalbe’s previous aerodynamic benchmark.
Out back, the Pro One Aero Rear sits a bit wider to better support the rider’s weight with an incremental bit of extra tire volume, and adds extra RaceGuard puncture protection & 50% thicker rubber for longer, flat-free riding.
Overall, the new Pro One Aero tire pairing does increase rolling resistance by 5% over the no-flat-protection Pro One TT, but with the added security of the anti-puncture layers inside making this more usable as an everyday race tire, not just something to pull out for the special time trial stages.
Tech details
Schwalbe’s focus on the front tire: “Best possible aerodynamics and less weight. 235g.” The 28mm front tire has reduced tread thickness – down to just 0.8mm thick rubber – in a bid to lower both weight and rolling resistance. Schwalbe claims actual widths of 27.5 to 28.5mm from the front tire.
Schwalbe’s focus on the rear tire: “Lowest rolling resistance with high puncture protection. 270g.” The 28mm rear tire bumps tread thickness up to 1.2mm for longer wearing. Yes, that still sounds incredibly thin, and we are putting in the kilometers to see how long they will really last. But it’s really the RaceGuard protection layer that is going to increase durability here. Schwalbe claims actual widths of 29.5 to 30.5mm from the rear tire.
Designed to be fit on modern wide tubeless road bike rims (23-25mm internal), the tires are TLE tubeless-ready and compatible with hookless rims. That also means they have reduced max allowable tire pressure on hookless setups of up to 5bar, which is in the realm of where you will get the most low rolling resistance benefits from road tubeless anyway. Of course, you can also still ride them on hooked rims with tubes at higher pressures too.
First Rides: Both 28mm, but actually narrower/taller up front & wider/shorter out back
We’ve been riding the new Schwalbe Pro One Aero tires both on a set of hookless disc brake Syncros Capital SL & hooked rim brake DT Swiss ARC wheels, both tubeless setups. While we’ve limited ourselves to riding actual roads, I have to admit that we’ve ended up on a touch of gravel roads in Switzerland, Czechia, and Slovakia already… and haven’t had any issues with flats or tire cuts yet.
On the new Syncros Capital SL 40mm wheels which have the same 25mm internal width front & back, at 4.5bar/65psi I measure the Pro One Aero Front at 29.4mm wide & 25.5mm tall above the top of the bead. At the same pressure, the Pro One Aero Rear measures slightly wider at 29.8mm & a bit shorter at 25.0mm.
On the 19mm internal DTs they measured 26.8mm at the rear and 27.5mm on the front.
The differences are quite small (maybe half of Schwalbe’s official claims), but do support Schwalbe’s claim that the F&R construction differences do change the overall tire profile. Interestingly, I’ve also measured up to 1mm width difference between 4 & 5 bar, suggesting that lower front tire pressures (because less weight on the front wheel) may also have an impact making the front tire profile narrower than the rear.
Schwalbe Pro One Aero – Pricing, Availability & Options
Here things get simple. No worrying about different sizes (at least for the time being). The new tubeless-ready Schwalbe Pro One Aero tires come in just one 28mm size that Schwalbe seems to think is the perfect balance of speed, grip & control. Don’t forget, they are actually a bit different width front to back, anyway. The dark gray sidewall front- and rear-specific Pro One Aeros sell for 80€ each, and will be available in shops from this coming October.
We’ve already been putting in hundreds of kilometers on a couple sets this summer and are pleased with how fast they roll, and maybe more importantly – their improved durability!
