Following extensive lab testing, Cyclingnews has this week concluded that the future of road bike tyres could very well be far wider than th🅘ose we're seeing in𝔉 use today. 

It's well known that over recent years, the industry's preferred tyre size has been growing. Where 23c was once deemed the standard, Tadej Pogačar raced 30c tyres at the 2024 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Tour de France and the 2024 edition of Paris Roubaix featured 35c tyres, so wide that they'd be illegal in aᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚ cyclo-cross race. 

When Pirelli launched a 40mm P Zero TLR race tyre last year, the Cyclingnews tech team posed the question: Should everyone just cut to the chase and switch t⛦o 40mm tyres now?

Our findings, which combined weight, rolling resistance data from a pedalling efficiency rig, and aerodynamic data from a wind tunnel, concluded that while time triallists and certain road racers might not benefit from making the switch, 40mm road tyres would be faster for 'most people', especially given the lower speeds amateurs hold and the prolifer💫ation of badly-surfaced roads. 

The tests also uncovered a potentially enormous saving for racers at cobbled Classics such as 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Paris-Roubaix. 

The testing, which was done by the same team that took 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:11 superbikes to the wind tunnel, covered six different Pirelli P Zero TLR tyres ranging from 26mm to 40mm, the Hunt CGR40 gravel wheels and the crazy-wide Zipp 303 XPLR SW, and spanned two days of testing at the well-renowned Silv🀅erstone Sports Engineering Hub. 

The team sought to understand whether the ꦆreduction in rolling resistance would be offset by the increase in aerodynamic drag. They tested the theory across two surface types, at two speeds, and seven yaw angles (the direction at ♉which the wind hits the bike). 

The results, which are available to 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Cyclingnews subscribers, showed that wider tyres could yield a saving of more than 80🌊 watts in rollඣing resistance drag alone.  

Of course, most aero race bikes can't fit a 40mm tyre – at this stage, barely any endurance road bikes will fit them either – but a specific example tied to Israel-Prem﷽ier Tech's use of gravel bikes at the 2024 Paris Roubaix, but wi⛎th 32mm tyres, showed a missed opportunity to save ov🎐er 40 watts. 

But whether or not everyone should 'cut to the chase' as posed earlier on, things are𒐪 a little less clear-cut. 

Since tyre size, wheel width and frame clearan🙈ce all work in sync, it's perhaps un𓆏surprising that things take time to change. A 35c tyre isn't very aerodynamic on a wheel designed for 28c tyres, and you won't get very far running a 40c tyre in a frame designed for 30mm. 

The data, the inferences and the conclusions reached, however, do suggest that road tyres are going to continue to grow, and t🦋hat 40mm might merel🌱y be a stepping stone toward the eventual limit.