Best mud road tyres?

[Panter]

We've moved premises at work so the nature of my commute has changed entirely.

The old route was 17miles of fast, nerve racking 70mph dual carrigeway.

The new route will be 13 miles but about 30% is on very narrow country backroads that, quite literally, have a 2" layer of mud in the middle, they're also quite broken up and full of pot holes.
I don't really want to use the MTB 'cause it's still quite a long way and most of it is still on reasonable roads but I think I'm going to have lots of offs if I try it on my 25mm Gatorskins and the SCR3.

Should I look at getting some cyclocross tyres? or, am I just being a big girl and my gatorskins will be fine?

Any advice appreciated

 

[Bodger]

Complain the the local council and get them to clear the mud off. You might not be successful but it'll cost you nothing and save you the price of new tyres if you are.

It was getting pretty claggy on some of the country lanes by me last year. I wrote a polite email to the council and within a fortnight the roads were cleaned to the extent that 19mm tyres handled them fine. Since then they seem to be keeping on top of it.

 

[Panter]

Ok, thanks for that, certainly worth a try

Only snag is though that as soon as it rains, they'll just clag up again so I do think I need a tyre which is good on the slippery stuff.

 

[spandex]

gatorskins will be fine just do not hit the pot holes

 

[RedBike]

You probably wont get a set of cyclo-x tyres to fit. You need to make sure you have sufficent mud-clearance between the tyres and your frame / brake calipers. You might be able to get a narrower hybrid tyre to fit?

Gatorskins don't have the best reputation when it comes to the sort of riding you're doing. But I think you've just got to accept that whichever tyres you fit you're probably going to slide on the mud.

25mm gators should be fine if ridden with care.

Just wait until the roads ice up. The mud will be the least of your worries.

 

[spandex]

Well gaters are great on ice as I found out yesterday not one slip, slide but loads of wheel spin when I was trying to put the power down.

 

[Bodger]

I find that marathon plus are good in the mud and off road on gentle trails. Not the fastest of tyres by any means but very reliable, comfortable and good grip for a road tyre.

 

[J4CKO]

I have a similar commute, I got some Michelin Transworld Sprints from Decathlon for a tenner each, much better at this time of year than the conti sports I had on. The roll slower but I am getting more exercise and speed isnt the factor at the moment it is in summer.

 

[BMR]

What you doing riding down the middle of the road anyway?

2" layer of mud in the middle,

 

[Panter]

Thanks for the replies all, much appreciated

What you doing riding down the middle of the road anyway?

2" layer of mud in the middle,

Well, I wasn't actually planning to be in the middle all the time
The point is that if there's that much mud in the middle, the "car track" bits at the side are going to be pretty slimy too.
Also, as they're very narrow roads, I will need to cross from one side to the other so that I'm in the best position for being visible to car drivers.

 

[HF2300]

I've just read that the SCR3 is "Aimed at sporty female road riders"...

I've found the treaded commuter / touring type tyres to be OK on even quite thick mud on bridleways, certainly on muddy roads; I've got Panaracer Crosstowns on one bike and Conti Countryrides on the other (the latter were factory fit, I didn't choose them).

I think I prefer the Panaracers as there's too much difference between the smooth centre and blocky shoulders on the Contis, which makes the transition as you lean a bit odd.

Worth thinking about going up a touch in size to help absorb some of the worst of the broken tarmac?