Continental

The Grand Prix 5000 tube-type tire in size 700x30 on a 19mm internal rim measure 30mm width and 27mm height, The 700x28 measures 27.7mm width and about 25mm high on similar rims, so the 30mm tire is true. The tires were within 10 to 15 grams of claimed weight. They mounted easily to tubeless ready rims with Pirelli Smart (thermoplasitc) tubes. Changed to these from Veloflex, which are equally nice hand-made tires because I wanted a larger tire without going up to 32mm, which just seem to be overkill for a pavement-only racing tire. 30mm is appreciated on the rougher sections but for most roads with alligator cracks or better pavement, 28mm still seems more appropriate for me (168 pounds). The 30mm provides a very plush ride at the expense of weight and aerodynamics (if you care).

Late July, 2024, I ordered two Continental Terra Speed 700x45 tires from Bike Tires Direct. After mounting them on rims from which I had recently removed Continental Terra Speed 700x 40 tires, I was very surprised. The 700x45 tires had massive leaks in the sidewalls & where it seemed there was a seam where the tread cap meets the sidewall. It took me the better part of two weeks & about 90% of a liter of Continental Revo Tire sealant to finally get the tires to stop leaking. (This was in startling contrast to the 700x40 Terra Speeds that I had mounted on the same rims about 6 weeks previously. I mounted those tires, installed sealant, aired them up & was immediately, good to go.). I have done two races with the 700x45 tires & was surprised & very happy with the way they performed. The first race was on a very rocky uphill race, in the rain, where I expected the tires could experience cuts, but they suffered, no damage of any kind. The 2nd race that I did was a 57 mile race in Gering NE, where I saw people fixing flats, from goathead stickers, last year, in the same race. I had no flats or damage or any problems with the 700x45 tires at all. I gave them a 3 star Overall Rating rating because they are a great tire after I got them sealed but only a 1 star rating for value because of the added cost ($36) of the 1 liter of Revo Sealant. I contacted Continental tires, with photos, about this problem & they asked me to provide them, Date of Manufacture & Batch number, which I sent to them within hours of their request. After I provided the information to Continental, they more or less washed their hands of me, saying they couldn't refund my money since I hadn't bought the tires from them. I didn't expect a refund from them but I had hoped they would offer to replace the tires & send me a bottle of Revo Sealant, since I had used almost a whole bottle. I didn't contact Bike Tires Direct because it wasn't their problem & they had been so great & easy to deal with when I bought the tires.

For years I ran the Conti Gatorskin tires as I was convinced that I needed the extra puncture protection. After hearing so many good things about the Conti GP 5000s I decided to try them a few seasons ago. The GP 5000s are now my go to tire.

I run the GP 5000s with either latex or TPU tubes and I inflate according to the SILCA tire pressure calculator. The roads that I ride on are typically either smooth bike paths or pavement/asphault roads and highways that I would consider to be average to good condition (live in Nebraska, so we get our share of pavement break-up).

Over the 3-4 seasons that I have run the GP5000s I have not experienced any more punctures with these tires that I had with any other tire...they are extremely durable and reliable. With the miles that I ride, I will generally get 1 full season out of the tires, sometimes I can extend the front tire farther as it gets less wear. Besides the same durability as other tires, these tires are incredibly smooth and roll extremely well. I don't see any reason to consider changing to any other tires.

Continental has been my choice of tires for over 20 yrs. Started with the 4000 series 2003/2005 .They are still the best road tires for the type of long distance rides that i enjoy, 60+ mile days on paved roadways. I get between 5000/6000 miles on a set. I rotate them every 1500/2000 miles,depending on how well they are wearing which for me is about every 3 months. Not too much trouble as I have 2 sets of wheels mounted with these tires to swap out between. Running both sets tubeless.Wish the price were not so high,but I will still keep using them as I think they are the best tires for how I use them.