Rubber fetish

The 'rejects' pile.

Like many cyclists, I've got through a fair few sets of tyres in my time. If I'm objective about it, I would have to own up to an obsession only just falling short of the full Immelda Marcos (substitute tyres for shoes and you get the picture). I recognise, that is probably rooted in a tendency to put down accidents that may or may not be caused by my rudimentary bike-handling skills to my choice of tyre and immediately look for something better. There are those close to me who shake their heads in despair and claim that they can never discern any difference between one set and another and implore me to 'just ride round it'. In my view, however, I believe that tyres are important: they're the only thing connecting bike and rider to the road, after all. Based on a great deal of trial and error, I would like to present my recommendations and save readers the effort and expense of endless tyre swaps:

Road bike (clincher) - Continental GP4000S 24-25 mm

I've been using Continental's current performance clincher, the GP4000 and now the 4000S which improves on its predecessor by using Continental 'Black Chilli' compound with added p'tang yang kipperbangs. It's main attractions are light weight, good grip on wet or dry roads, satisfactory wear and reasonable puncture resistance. It comes in a range of sizes and I'm rather impressed with the comfort and low rolling resistance of the 25mm versions. I can't really fault it as an all-round tyre. If you were looking for something narrower, the Continental 'Attack' front and 'Force' rear combination are very good. They feel a little faster but are more easily cut by flints in my experience.

Road bike (tubular) - Veloflex Roubaix 25 mm

Despite the hype around modern clincher tyres, nothing still touches a good tubular and these handmade Italian beauties are some of the best. They roll really well, have excellent dry road grip and have a wonderfully supple casing, making them comfortable and easy to glue on. I like the natural-coloured sidewalls and they have a puncture-resistant belt, providing security at the expense of a little extra weight. Of course, nothing deflects a determined flint - our ancestors used them to pierce mammoth hides after all, so they are still going to puncture now and again. Although now advertised as 25mm, they are slightly smaller in volume than the Continentals. They are difficult to get hold of from UK retailers and I usually mail order mine from France. Expensive too at £80-90 each. I haven't tried Dugast or FMB, yet, but the Veloflexes will take a lot of beating. Lovely, lovely tyres.

XC bike (muddy conditions) - Bontrager Mud-X 2.0 in

I'm not keen on riding in mud, especially the gloopy clay that builds up in a layer round many tyres, adding a couple of kilogrammes and delivering zero grip. Unfortunately, it's unavoidable for much of the year. These tyres resist clogging pretty well, have a reasonably grippy compound, but do not feel draggy when the course dries out. They are well priced and can be run tubeless on my Stans rims. The width is a good compromise: they dig in in deep mud, yet still have enough volume to hang on well enough over slippery roots.

XC bike (dry conditions) - Schwalbe Racing Ralph 2.25 in

These tyres are very light, grippy in the dry and have enough tread at the edges to hang on in extremis. The width is a bit of a squeeze under the rear of my Giant Anthem, but as I don't use them when it is really muddy, this is not a problem. Again, I run them tubeless on Stan's rims and they go on easily and stay inflated.

Trail bike - Schwalbe Hans Dampf 2.35 in (front) Schwalbe Nobby Nic 2.25 in (rear)

Designed to be a 'jack of all trades' tyre, the Dampfs work extremely well, offering bags of grip on roots and rocks, have enough volume to soak up a lot of shock, yet are not as heavy as a downhill tyre. I use the grippy 'Trailstar' compound on the front and the lower rolling-resistance, slightly narrower Nobby Nics on the back in 'Pacestar' compound, complimenting the fronts very well and giving good traction in a range of conditions. Both tyres have the 'Snakeskin' protection casing, adding a little weight and stiffness, but resisting cuts very well, giving a real feeling of security. Once more, they run tubeless with Stan's on Easton Haven rims with no problems. I go for the 'tubeless ready' versions of Schwalbe tyres, rather than UST models as there's a significant weight saving.

Punctures really spoil a ride, especially off-road, so I've become a big fan of Stan's fluid and use it on all my mountain bike tyres, rarely, if ever puncturing these days. It offers a weight saving too, as MTB inner tubes are a couple of hundred grammes each. It is worth topping up the fluid every six months or so because it will dry out, leaving the tyres at the mercy of flints and thorns. I would urge anyone still using tubes to give tubeless a go: there's no going back!