ContinentalGatorskin Black Edition 700c Road Tire(Return to Product Page)

32mm Gatorskin tires just barely clear on my Trek 1800c road bike, it was designed for 28mm OEM tires. At 265 pounds I need something stronger than the 25mm tires that were on the bike when I got it and they rode too rough. Every bump was harsh and I was concerned when I learned my 20/24 spoke rims were known to be prone to cracking. I measured my tire clearance and picked up an almost new pair of used 32mm Gatorskins to try out. They ride so much smoother and at a lower pressure than the old tires.

These tires might be 100 grams heavier than regular road tires, but at 50 pounds overweight I do not notice any difference in speed, they might actually be a little faster for me as they ride so much smoother. They also allow me to bike more often which helps my effort to lose weight. Without these tires I probably would have resold the bike and gone to a used touring bike or a new gravel bike for more tire clearance and better comfort. Now I don't have to do that.

So far no flats and no problems. With new tubes from BTD they do not leak much air either, I check the pressure before every ride and go. I top off the pressure about once a month.

I discovered the Continental tire brand while living in Germany. I typically use them on road bikes due to their reliability and durability. In most cases I have ridden Continental tires for hundreds if not thousands of kilometers until the tread is no longer safe to ride on in which case I mount another one.

There is no downside to choosing Continental for cycling and this company has a long history. Check the Wikipedia page about the company history.

I like to have a fresh set of tires every year when I do the Seattle to Portland ride. This was my 35th year and I have used Gators for many of them.

They have been flawless and it's one more thing I don't have to worry about when I ride from Seattle.

I leave them on for training the following year, them change out again. However there would be no problem leaving them on for several years I'm sure.

I now have a lot of spares.

Can't say enough good things about the Continental Gatorskin and the customer service at BikeTiresDirect! In regards to the product very durable and very fast tire. I ride about 60 miles per week on smooth and coarse aggregate pavement on a Trek fitness bike. I also encounter some potholes so I wanted a fast, durable tire and this tire fits the bill, very pleased! In regards to the customer service at BikeTiresDirect; outstanding! The day after I had purchased the tires online they went "on sale" and I was given a credit to the sale price, no questions asked. This was my first purchase from this vendor and it certainly won't be my last! "Kudos" to BikeTiresDirect!!

I have tried SO many different tires over the years and keep coming back to Gatorskins because they last. So much longer than other tires and they are very flat resistant. If you are a weight weenie they probably aren't for you because they are a little bit heavier but if if you like to mount'em and forget 'em, these are awesome!

On our Tandem we were riding on 28mm Gatorskins'. Because of their puncture resistance we had not had any punctures. This year, for comfort, I switched to another brands 32mm supple tire. After getting 2 punctures with the supple tires, I switched back to Gatorskins' size 32mm and have not had any issues. As you can expect with 32mm tires, they ride smooth and have the Gatorskin protection. I figure the weight of us on the Tandem is over 330 lbs. Yet I can get a 2000 mile season out of a set of Gatorskins.

I'm a frequent buyer of your products. I've had a hard time locating it on other websites but yours did have it and at a reasonable price compared to others.

Arrived timely for my Summer riding.

I've used this tire on my tandem bike for years and had great service. However I had an incident recently that shook my confidence. I installed this tire on the rear of my tandem and put only a few hundred miles on it before the sidewall blew out at the bead. The casing tore without being damaged by road debris. I am currently working with Continental to resolve the issue and they are being very responsive. It's a relatively expensive tire and touted for having strong sidewalls so I was surprised at this. Nothing is perfect and maybe this was just an outlier. I'm still using them on my tandem and regular road bike.

The Conti product is good for easy 4-5 k riding on mostly streets and some gravel. Last me 1 season for sure. Will expect maybe 1 flat or id be surprised.

Long lasting tire that is great for training on.

There were several complaints about Gatorskins not having a full width flatproof tread belt. I considered this and despite the fact that I've had VERY little problems with Gatorskins, I tried the flat proof tires from the major manufacturers. Well, the very first time out on a Vittoria armored tire I got a flat. Then I replacement innertube somehow got a pinch or something and exploded knocking the tire off of the rim. Luckily a group came along and had a spare CO2 cartridge. I made sure that it was a spare because I wouldn't want to have this happen to anyone else.

Now

It was a difficut choice to make when picking tires, these ended up being the best choice. A lot of people value speed, softness etc. To me tbh not having to deal with a flat on those silly shoes wins the cake.

I've used gatorskins on my tandem bike for years with good results. I rode on a mix of gravel and paved roads without any major damage to either tread or carcass. I decided to use them on my road bike after a series of flats with another tire. So far they have been very reliable, handled well and returned good mileage. My rear tire is about worn out so I am ordering a replacement. They are reasonably priced too. This will probably be my go-to tire from now on. I ride about 600 miles per month.

People tell me they're heavy and slow, but then they're bumming tubes off me when their tubeless setup fails, lol. I'll keep riding my Gatorskins, thank you very much. They last 4000 miles or more and very few flats in that time.

I run these things on my road bike all the time now, because there's a lotta glass on the roads and paths (Portland, Or) these days. These things are heavier than race or training tires, yes they are, but I do like getting about 80% fewer flats. I stretched a pair of these to 4000 miles once, not one flat, but that was in Europe where there's far less glass & crap on the bikeways. I usually retire them at about 2000 miles, which is about 3 times longer than the training tires I used to use.

Like fixing flats on the side of the road? If so, don't buy these tires! This is my 3rd or 4th set, and the puncture resistance is 10/10!

For me as a German and US citizen , riding a German Canyon bike, only German Continental tires are going on my wheels.

Ordering them from Biketiresdirect is fast, easy and reasonably priced.

I ride the rough rides of Southern California for exercise. These tires hold up very well, although not completely bullet proof. I've had one flat over several hundred miles, which is remarkable considered some of the road conditions, which include glass, palm fronds, rocks, tree nuts, potholes, cracks in the pavement, goat heads, and every other piece of detritus one can imagine. While I'm not a super fast rider, they hold the corners well and provide a stable and secure ride. I'm 185 lbs. with a 24 lb. Bike and inflate the tires to 73 psi rear and 71 psi front. (Per the Silca professional tire pressure recommendation). I ride the 700x28 size on my Trek 3009 7.7 FX. These are a great reliable tire that keeps you on the road safely without having to fix many flats. I heartily recommend them for any one commuting or training on your bike.

Durable and reliable. Have used Continental tires for many years. My biggest issue is the threads that start to develop as the tire wears. If I'm not paying attention the threads can get wound around the cassette.

Gatorskins are the way, 28mm on my 2002 steel road bike. 3600 hundred miles year round on my previous pair with only about five flats. These tires deflect everything thrown at them, glass, and more glass in the bike lanes, minor gravel, wet streets, and then more glass, and road debris. This recent pair is my fifth set.