The new Challenge Gravel Grinder TLR is their first tubeless ready tire, but there’s plenty more to come. It uses a similar tread pattern as the Chicane, but wider. It’ll be offered in 700×38 (355g) and 700×42 (425g) at first, followed by 700×33 and 700×46. Shipping in three weeks, should be available early June.
They’ll get the 120tpi nylon casing, so they’ll be quite supple. For smoother dirt roads, the Strada Bianca will be next to get the TLR treatment in 700×36 and 650×46. While we think tubeless is the way to go on these, they will offer limited sizes of both models in their cotton casing handmade tubulars and open clinchers also.
All of the vulcanized (meaning, standard clincher and not the handmade open tubular clincher) cyclocross clincher tires are in testing and should be available tubeless for this coming season. Basically, they revised their molds to make a tubeless bead, and they had to thicken the sidewalks to make them airtight. Look for Grifo, Limus and Chicane in 700×33, and a new Baby Limus in 650×33.
Excited for the new ‘cross tires. Tubulars are still the best, but tubeless is the next best, and accessible to more riders. Good to see Challenge get on board with tubeless.
Tubulars are the best until you get a flat. Than you are stranded until you can come up with a couple of hundred $$ to replace the tire and have them reglued. Doing it yourself sucks. So tubeless is probably the best when you take in account the hassle.
need an actual width for that new gravel grinder on a modern rim
Need somebody to actually think about what they’re typing before hitting the post comment button.
Are they licensing the TLR technology from Trek?
They could publish actually actual as measured on Chris’s bike. AAMCB standard.
Will they randomly blow off rims like the Parigi Roubaix?