Vittoria's new foam insert for road bikes

NorthCascades
NorthCascades Posts: 10,970 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
My immediate reaction when I saw this was "gimmick." Actually it sounds pretty clever, if it works I'll use them.

https://cyclingtips.com/2021/04/vittoria-announces-run-flat-foam-tire-inserts-for-road-bikes/

These go between the rim and tire, on road tubeless systems. The air pressure within the tire compresses the foam, and, supposedly, it doesn't touch the contact patch when the tire is inflated - which means it doesn't add any rolling resistance. Is the claim.

If your tire gets cut beyond what the sealant can handle, you lose air pressure and the foam expands. You can ride about 50k on the foam without damaging your rim.

Tubeless systems rarely flat, but it's usually harder to get the tire off the rim when they do.

Replies

  • tbilly20
    tbilly20 Posts: 154 Member
    James does a nice job with his reviews. I’ll be eager to see what he posts after riding these for a while. The installation seems like a real pain to me, and riding home at 12 mph is not my idea of a nice afternoon if I am 40 miles from the house. Throw in a tube, and let er rip! Foam cores have always made sense for DH racing because of the threat of catastrophic failure in a loss of air situation. For road and gravel, you are unlikely to be “railing any ruts”.
  • NorthCascades
    NorthCascades Posts: 10,970 Member
    My rims and the tires I've been liking so far are a great combo when I'm riding, but it takes a bead jack and every swear I know to get the tire on or off. There's a different tire I'd like to try when these wear out, I'm not expecting much change in that regard though. If I know there will be no damage to the rim, I'd much rather limp back and deal with it later. I know some rim/tire combinations are like this and a lot aren't. I really like the way mine roll, so it's an acceptable trade-off for me.

    (I'm on a set of Enve 4.5 ARs and using IRC Roadlites in 28mm nominal.)
  • tbilly20
    tbilly20 Posts: 154 Member
    What are the tire you want to try next?
  • kcjchang
    kcjchang Posts: 709 Member
    A solution looking for a problem? Suitable for cyclocross and downhill racing but cannot see it for regular road use.
  • NorthCascades
    NorthCascades Posts: 10,970 Member
    tbilly20 wrote: »
    What are the tire you want to try next?

    The Enve ones. They built my wheels and I love those, so it could be a match made in heaven. Or maybe not, only one way to find out though. 🙂

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