User submitted reviews
Review by Cactus Wren
After reading the negative reviews concerning this tire I was somewhat surprised by what my experience actually was after expecting a host of issues from mounting, to off center tread alignment and manufacturing mistakes.
To begin with, as usual, the service from BTD was top notch and without a doubt the best on-line tire retailer in the country.
While others had problems mounting the tires my experience was quite the opposite.
I was able to mount them without any difficulty utilizing only my fingers, and no spoons, on at least 15 year old Mavic A119 (19mm wide) high walled rims using new Continental tubes.
They set straight in the bead with the first airing and needed no further correction.
The tread rolls true and no humps or bulges noted with the side wall decals also appearing aligned and positioned correctly.
As far as the ride goes; they are soft and grip well on pavement and I imagine will wear faster with that type of compound but having only 400 miles on them they currently still look fairly new. No wet pavement time as of yet so unable to evaluate.
Owing to their marketing as road touring tires they lack good off road performance quality and loose it in sand and gravel but these were primarily purchased for a road ride and not backroads gravel grinding. (That�s what my Mezcals are for); however, they do well on decomposed granite type trails.
An outstandingly good price and coming from the Indonesian bicycle tire manufacturers of the world (Schwalbe and others) I believe they are on par with them.
Very happy with them except for their off highway performance and would buy them again for pavement touring.
Review by Kevin
Just rode 240 miles of crushed limestone and gravel known as the Katy Trail in Missouri. I'm 250 lbs and had about 30 more lbs of clothes, gear and supplies on my bike. After hosing off the dust, the tires showed no sign of wear. Best tires I've ever used and expect them to get me through my next couple of adventures.
Review by Anonymous
Got these for touring, and couldn't be happier. Had no difficulty with installation, no quality problems that others have mentioned. I have ridden Gatorskins for years and been satisfied, other than they wear quickly- not so these! They are probably twice as heavy, which i noticed for the first week. But they ride great and they last. I have roughly 500 miles on them & they look brand new. Just ordered a second set for my around-town bike.
Review by Cindy Tews
We just finished a 513 mile 9 day bike / camping trip. We each carried 40 lbs of gear. Our trip was on paved trails, paved highway shoulders and dirt/ gravel trails. I had these tires on my previous bike also. (3) 500 mile plus trips on those and no issue! We love them as and tell everyone how good they are!!!
Review by William
I�ve used these tires for several years now on roads and trails and they are great on both! Plus I get very few flat tires with these compared to other tires I�ve used.
Review by Anonymous
Ride well, so heres hoping for maximum milage!
Review by mjwallis
Rolling the 700x47s. Had them on my commutehybrid. Super comfortable, no need to pick the best line down a bad street, just ride on. They are slow, as others have noted, but for shorter commutes, sketchy roads, light gravel, dirt, snow, rain, and short cuts through lawns and construction zones, they're a bargain buy. Plus they look awesome (the big 47's at least, that's 29'x1.75 size). They can be tough to mount, as others have said, but in my experience, most Conti's do fit tight on most rims. If you're looking for a nice, stable, stylish, and economic tire for short rides across multiple terrains, and in varying conditions, you're not going to go wrong here.
Review by Rick
Put this on my secondary, upright-sitting utility bike, bike for local errands . Mounts nicely, rolls well, seems lower rolling resistance than other tires in this class / price range. In cornering feels appropriately sticky. Pretty graphics.
Review by Anonymous
Not a super technical guy, but I can tell you what I like about the tire.
Compared to Marathons, for example, this tire is really smooth. It is a softer rubber... maybe more supple is the word. Tires seem to be wearing great. I have at least 1500 miles on them with very little wear and tear. I ride all sorts of dirt, fire roads, bike paths, asphalt, concrete, Lake Hodges (San Diego) dirt and cactus. These tires GRIP really well. The supple rubber provides superior grip to my other gravel bike with the harder rubber of the Marathons. The supple rubber seems to really absorb the bumps better as well.
Third point is the price! That price for a set of 2 tires 700 x 42? Unmatched. I expected lower quality due to price, but I am very happy with the ride, the bump absorption, the amazing grip on ALL surfaces, the traction on the dirt and dirt hills, both up and down, I have a hard time finding a con.
Review by Anonymous
I have a Crosscurrent S2 ebike. The stock tires were worn out and shot by 1000 miles. The 700x45c or 700x47c is a hard size to find. I came across these Continental Ride Tours and decided to give em a try. These are GREAT tires and after almost 700 miles I see almost no wear. I'm convinced this will be a 2000 mile plus tire, at least on the rear. And probably well over 3000 miles if I rotate. I put a lot of miles on this ebike and this is the perfect tire for what I do. I highly recommend.
Review by Joeh
Had a set of Terravails on my gravel/touring bike. After 5 flats I had it. Yes the tires were lighter in weight but they were not reliable. . Enter the Conti Ride Tour. This tire is a solid well made tire that will perform on road and gravel. 500 miles so far no flats. Are they heavier, Yes. Do they ride a bit slower, Yes. But if I want speed, I�ll go to my Ritchey or Merckx road bikes. These are about comfort and multi surface riding. I�ve yet to load up the rack and tour, but I expect they will perform well.
Review by Frank Z
I previously had some pretty fast thin road tires on my Trek but whenever I wanted to ride a trail or bike path, I'd consistently get flats. I needed something that would be reliable on trails but also fast enough on the road to have a smooth ride. This tire fits the bill flawlessly. I've been on my set two years and have ridden two Five Boro Bike Tours on them and they still look like they have a lot of life left in them. Granted most of my rides average 5-10 miles and I don't ride daily. Even so, I have enough miles on them to say that these are solid tires!
Review by MW
I found these after shopping for a long time and so happy I found your store! I love supporting owner operated business and am happy to be a part of the group. these tores are simply the best, Continental all the way!
Review by BikeFanatic
After regularly flatting on my previous tires, which included several CST, Bontrager and Kenda tires, I decided to buy a set of Conti's after hearing how some road cyclists swear by the Conti Gatorskin. At the time, I was rather skeptical given they were only [$] a piece. Now, after 500 miles, any doubts I had were gone. So far, these tires have covered 500 miles on MN roads and bike paths. My daily commute covers sections of road where there are numerous cracks and small rocks that made riding a flat-fest. I have yet to flat with the Tour Ride. The lower inflation pressure also gives a much better ride than any previous tire I used, and the aggressive tread pattern performs better than expected on dirt. I can't wait to see how they do in snow.
These tires are not the fastest, but they are not so slow that you think you're riding on a flat. For my commute and weekend trail rides, these tires are great. And at [$] a piece, a definite steal.
Review by RickyLeland
Very smooth ride and easy to install.
Review by Rich
So I ride rough roads in San Antonio. Conti gatorskins are no match. I wanted something beefy and long-lasting.
I wanted decent puncture protection. I do weekly long training rides (60-80 mile), and for that purpose these are pretty good. Sure, I lose some speed but I gain confidence. A tradeoff. Based on the review I read, I was worried that I would have trouble mounting them, but nope. Easy. BTW, I ride a 2007 Fuji Newest 4.0 entry level road bike. Tire size: 32-622. Barely fit but good enough.
Review by Anonymous
I have these on several bikes, and what I like the most is the puncture resistance. Not say I've never gotten a flat with one, but a thumbtack is a tough thing, to roll over.
Review by James
As some have stated, they run narrow to the stated width. I picked a set of 32's knowing this and they fit my Klein R�ve perfectly like a set of 28's would under the brake arches. Love the tread on these! I had no unexpected issues installing these on Mavic CXP30 rims. Highly recommend!
Review by Anonymous
I love them. Mostly I�m riding on pavement, but sometimes I have to go off-road a little bit. These give me that extra grip, off-road, without slowing me down on pavement.
Review by COMOBiker
This is the second time I've purchased this tire. Previously I used them to update an old Schwinn, those were a 37mm width, and this go around I picked up the 32mm to upgrade from the slicks on my road bike to something that could better handle rough streets and the local trial system. A big upgrade in comfort going up from 25mm tires while not looking too out of place. A great value tire as well. If you have perfect riding surfaces then by all means go for a fancier slick, but if your roads are rough and you like to be able to hop on a trail from time to time this the tire for you!