Schwalbe has officially dropped the gauntlet on tubulars with their all-new Pro One road tubeless tires. Available in two versions, Schwalbe say they’re as comfortable and as fast (or faster) as tubulars, but without the gluing and other inconveniences. Actually, they’ve been saying this for several years, but the latest iteration makes it clear: Tubeless is their future… definitively.
How clear? Development of new tubulars has ground to a halt. And it’s likely the tubulars will be phased out of their line within a couple years, if not sooner. Why? Because the new Pro One is about 10% faster than the prior version, meaning, 10% less rolling resistance. Aerodynamics are still going to be the limiting factor… and there’s no aero story here. It’s really about rolling performance, though. And Schwalbe say these are the best out there. Retail will be $82 per tire.
There’s also a TT version for race day only. It removes the puncture protection, and the tread is thinner. This saves about 45g and it rolls a lot faster since it’s more compliant. Also $82.
We broke down the full details of what makes them faster last month, so dig in to read more about Schwalbe’s latest road tubeless development here…
Not shown, the old Pro One carries over as the regular Schwalbe One with a drop to $61 MSRP, and it gains a new road-specific Addix Race compound to improve durability. And tube type versions are still available, slightly less expensive. All are available now.
The Durano and Lugano get updates for 2020, offering more of their latest tech for endurance road bike tires.
Schwalbe G-One Ultrabite gets bigger
The Schwalbe gravel family also gets a new bigger & more aggressive tread with the tubeless G-One Ultrabite. Now rolling their gravel tires up to 40 & 50mm widths for both 700c and 650b wheels.
The new Ultrabite starts with the familiar, fast-rolling dots of the other G-Ones, but makes each knob taller & links them together for more structure and grip digging into loose surfaces. Chainlink-shaped shoulder knobs also offer stability & straight line grip in corners. Overall the profile is quite similar, but slightly more open than the regular G-One Bite, linking pairs of knobs together for support.
The new Ultrabite has a sturdier casing to handle the extra width and create the necessary support when put on wider rims. The G-One Ultrabite will be available later this fall in 700 x 40mm & 50mm, in both Evolution black wall & Performance tan wall versions.
New sizes for all the most popular Schwalbe mountain bike tires
On the mountain bike front, the big 2020 news is more sizes across the board, and e-bike E-25 certification across the aggressive trail tire range.
The Magic Mary with SuperGravity casing & Addix orange Soft rubber adds a smaller 2.35″ option for 27.5 wheels, plus wider 2.35″ & 2.6″ 29er options (and 29×2.35 purple Ultra Soft). Han Dampf adds SnakeSkin, Addix Soft in 27.5 x 2.35″ and 29 x 2.35″ & 2.6″.
Nobby Nic with blue Addix Speedgrip seems mostly unchanged beyond the e-25 rating, with sizes for 26″, 27.5″ & 29″ from 2.1″ up to 3.0″. Marathon Plus MTB gets the same story, but with ECE-R75 approval and a 50km/h E-50 e-bike rating, and 26″, 27.5″ & 29 x 2.1″ or 2.25″ widths. Smart Sam adds a host of new sizes to its wired, non-tubeless version including both 27.5 & 29″ diameters in 2.25 & 2.35″ widths.
Smart Sam DD with its double defense casing, perfect for eMTB and hence the ECE-R75 approval & E-50 e-bike rating, adds a new 29×2.6″ option. Smart Sam Plus, which does all of the e-bike-ready DD adding one more layer with 3mm of GreenGuard flat protection, also gets a skinny new 299×1.74″ option, as well.
