Road tyres, off road?

[Candaules]

I've just bought a Boardman Hybrid Team, and am very pleased with it. It seems like a good bike for the price, and the people at Halfords (Selly Oak) were knowledgeable and helpful.
It came with Maxxis Detonator 700x28ctyres. I intend to ride on roads (i.e. tarmac), but my question is:

How careful do I need to be with these tyres? If a route involves a gravel path or unpaved track, should I risk it? Or should I pamper my tyres by staying on paved surfaces?


PS I have other bikes for off-road use, I just need to know how flexible I can be with routes, when out on the Boardman.

 

[GrumpyGregry]

Never take your hybrid off road. It is made of eggshells and glass and will self destruct in seconds.

But seriously....

Gravel path, unpaved track, sustrans route - go for it you'll be fine. Don't try any world cup downhills though, you may come unstuck on those.

 

[Paulus]

I have not heard of this brand of tyre before, and Halfords don't stock them. Wiggle does, but not that particular tyre. At 28mm, these tyres should be robust enough to use on gravel and you say unpaved tracks, do you mean towpaths and bridleways? They should be fine for that use.

 

[Keith Oates]

The tyres should be OK for the type of tracks you've mentioned, just be careful if there are some areas with very rough or broken surfaces that you slow down and don't hit any sharp edged pits!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[2Loose]

I have Maxxis Detonator 26"x1.5's - semi slick with 'some' puncture protection.
They'll be fine on pretty much anything that is not too muddy.
Obviously, they are not designed for flat out runs over big rocks, but bridleways, canal paths, (dryish) single track, gravel etc will be fine.

They are not puncture proof either...

 

[gbb]

I always found damp woodland tracks worse with road tyres...not rough surface but smooth and slimy...you can skid about quite easiy in the wrong conditions.

 

[youngoldbloke]

Don't worry, I have ridden towpaths, bridle paths and unpaved cycle paths on 700x18s - that was before I knew you weren't supposed to do that sort of thing - no problems, just be careful.

 

[Candaules]

Thanks

Thanks for all those replies.

I was a bit worried, as the tyres are narrower and smoother than I'm used to.
Encouraged by your advice I will venture cautiously onto non-paved surfaces and see how I get on.

Actually the tyres on my mountain bike, despite being fat and knobbly, are not always as grippy as I would like. I have slipped off several times, on wet grass and mud, and on loose gravel.

I think that keeping an eye on the road / path is the answer.

 

[GrasB]

part of my commute is on unpaved hard packed mud & loose stones. In all honesty it's down to how good the puncture protection is on those tyres & how rough the surface is, a rutted with deep churned up mud farm track will be a problem but a nice smooth packed surface will be fine. Use your judgement for the speed & YMMV for puncture protection.

 

[Downward]

28s are fine on that kind of surface.

I've head differing experiences with Halfords in Selly Oak, depending on the staff employed at the time. One of the best they had left a few years ago because he spent all his day just assembling kids' bikes.

Never realised they sold bikes - How long ago did this happen ?

 

[gaz]

Don't try any world cup downhills though, you may come unstuck on those.

You never know -
View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6CbQOLqZ8IA

All Halfords stores have always sold bikes haven't they?

Some only sell car parts.

 

[GrumpyGregry]

You never know -
View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6CbQOLqZ8IA

Excellent.

No less than what we all did as kids when MTB's were unheard of and all we had was 10-speeds and we went for a 'bomb down the woods'. I regularly take my tourer off road, but its tyres are nearer 38mm than 28mm

 

[Rohloff_Brompton_Rider]

what people have forgot to tell you is to keep the pressures up at the maximum to stop pinch punctures or snakebite punctures. i use slicks on my mtb sometimes and if i am too lazy to change them and want to go off road i just do it. the only problems with slicks are mud n slime as obviously they don't have enough tread to bite. your teeth will fall out before you max out on what the tyres are capable of simply because of the rigidity of your frame and high pressures.

 

[Norm]

Excellent.

No less than what we all did as kids when MTB's were unheard of and all we had was 10-speeds and we went for a 'bomb down the woods'. I regularly take my tourer off road, but its tyres are nearer 38mm than 28mm

That reads like my in praise of psycho-cross bikes post from a couple of weeks ago.

 

[jig-sore]

yep, grip is your problem not tyre damage.

tried to ride up a wet grass bank on my hybrid with slicks, didn't get very far