Tiagra wheels + Ultra Sports + roadtest

[gbb]

more of a comment really, but i'd be interested if anyone else has found the same.
New Tiagra R500 (IIRC) wheels on my commuter. It's one of those situations that's impossible to nail down, but i've found the last few days while riding a section of woodland track that the bikes very prone to slipping on the damp track.
Yes, theres a fair bit of damp slippy stuff, but i've been surprised how slippy the bike is.
Could it be the 23mm Conti Ultra Sports...flex in the wheels maybe ?.i do remember someone said the R500s flex a lot.

Obviously, a roadbike and a woodland track are not ideally suited , but although i dont abuse my bikes, they are tools, and i wont wrap them in cotton wool either.
Ive ridden similar tracks before....you know its not ideal, but not encountered any of my bikes being this twitchy.
Its going to be interesting when i take it on the road in greasy conditions...

This is the first decent mileage i've been doing on this bike (1980s Raleigh 531 frame) since i built it. Ive got to say it's very responsive, it accellerates beautifully. The frame geometry seems a bit long compared with modern bikes, so i seem a bit stretched out...bit more adjustment needed perhaps.

Comments on the wheels / tyres invited....

 

[Smokin Joe]

The wheels won't cause the slipping, that's down to tyre grip. Ultrasports are a road tyre, so it's hardly surprising they slip on a damp track.

 

[RedBike]

The Tiagra wheel do flex alot. However, this isn't whats making the bike feel slippy/twitchy. Its the tyres.

Flex is normally most prominant when you get out of the saddle to pedal hard up a hill. You might notice your brakes / mudguards rubbing. This is the wheels (and frame) flexing.

You could try running the tyres at a lower pressure; but ideally you want a wider tyre with a more aggressive tread pattern.

 

[gbb]

I take you comments re the tyres...of course theyre not suited for tracks, but my Conti Gatorskin shod bike doesnt seem so twitchy on similar tracks...but then, i havnt ridden that bike down this track....wrong kind of leaves probably. Possibly a bit damper than normal, it has rained a lot lately.
No matter.... i'm kind of pleased you dont think it's the wheels.


The track is only a mile long section of my ride. Abuse maybe....but its a bike, not an ornament.

 

[Smokin Joe]

I
The track is only a mile long section of my ride. Abuse maybe....but its a bike, not an ornament.

You should have bought Campag...then it would be both

 

[Steve Austin]

The wheels are awful IME. Terribly flexy, but this shouldn't affect grip.
That would be the tyres, and the ones mentioned do slip in the wet ime. but then most road tyres slip off road on mud

 

[gbb]

I kinda knew (understatement ) the tyres would be responsible. What else could i expect !!!
Its surprising how much slipping there is on these tyres...much more than i have experienced on other road tyres in similar conditions..hence my question.

Thanks for the replys guys....

 

[palinurus]

Obviously, a roadbike and a woodland track are not ideally suited .

Maybe not, but I can't resist it sometimes. It's not like I can justify a cross bike. Not yet anyway- there's too many other kinds of bike in front of that in the queue.