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

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.

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.

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!

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 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.

I�ve been buying Gatorskins for awhile now and really like them. They are durable and well made. Knock on wood, I have not had any flats with these. These are the first Blackwall versions I�ve owned and they go well with my Cannondale Bad Boy Disc.

They ride very well, good puncture resistance. They feel faster than my thinner gator skins

I replace my Bontrager R3 tires that are crazy speedy but often flat so tried Gatorskin and only one thing they feel like they are connected with magnet to the ground super safe hope flat would be less with them but only disadvantage is speed, they are totally lazy comparing with R3 if you can compare those two tires. Very happy with my purchase traded speed for comfort.

Continental Gatorskin are my go to tires these days. I like the puncture resistant focus and the build quality. I have noticed over the last few years that I have fewer punctures for longer period of times as compared to Michelin Pro Endurance which were at one time my tire of choice until they were no longer available. The Gatorskins are a bit heavier but a good trade off for peace of mind. I especially like the Black Edition as it complements the titanium color of my bike. I ride daily for pleasure and appreciate a dependable tire. I change my tires at about 2500 miles even though the Gatorskins probably have some life left. I prefer to do so in order to minimize potential punctures as the tire tread starts to wear down. I rotate my tires at around 1200 miles to balance the wear between the front and back as the back usually wears faster.

It's a toss-up between Continental Gatorskins and Vittoria Randonneur (old style, original 110 (?) PSI casing) for everything except the number of miles I can will out of the Gatorskins seems to be a bit lower. My first set of Gatorskins came to a premature demise when I ran through a day-old automobile accident site and sliced the casings on some plastic debris. I didn't get full life out of that set, so it remains to be seen if my lower mileage predictions are correct. The positive tradeoff is in wet road grip. The Gatorskins are much safer in the rain. As I'm an all-weather cyclist, that is a trade I'll gladly make if it costs a few extra dollars a month to replace the tires more frequently.

I have had great success with these tires. Very durable and comfortable ride. And, Bike Tires Direct makes it so quick and easy to get them. I am completely satisfied with the tires and with Bike Tires Direct.

I was using the Grand Prix 5000 tires and though I loved the smooth and supple quality of the ride they provided, I was getting too many flats. I was concerned that the Gatorskins would be too harsh of a ride. They are heavier and stiffer but, honestly, not that bad. I find the ride to be pretty comfortable and, after many rides, I am still free of flats so definitely worth the switch. I think this is the only tire I'm going to use from now on, year round.

Mounted these on a Bushnell tandem last month and rode 500km with 12000ft of climbing in Morocco. Tires handle beautifully especially on descents. Only 20 minutes of showers to test road grip but all went well

Outstanding tires� I have ridden Continental tires for over 25 years.

The Gatorskins are an excellent tire for serious training, high mileage, and puncture resistance.

A little more work to mount but worth the effort

The Gatorskin, black edition tires have been a great choice for my road riding. I typically get around 6000 miles out of a set with very few flats.

Been running Continental Gatorskins for years. I feel like they provide excellent flat protection without sacrificing ride quality. I run them on road bikes, single speeds and gravel bikes for high mileage, commuter, on-road riding.

After riding Gatorskins on my road bike exclusively for the past seven years, I have had three sidewall blowouts so far this year. The last, which was yesterday, after only 280 miles of use. In each example, I could not find a specific cause. Up until yesterday, I had loved these tires. So I�ll be switching to another brand because I�m tired of being stranded miles from home.

I've used Gatorskins for several years. Since our city (Portland, OR) no longer seems to care to maintain its bikepaths and bikelanes, I need a tougher tire than the Rubino Pros I used to rely on. Only drawback with Gatorskins was that when they were brand new, they often didn't seat in the rims at first, causing unexpected blowouts a few minutes after inflation. Sometimes it took several attempts to get them to seat properly. These new black edition tires -- for whatever reason -- did not have that problem. I've installed several, all perfectly on the first go. They are hard to mount/dismount, especially when new and/or cold, so unless you have hands of Hercules, pack a couple tire levers in your repair kit.

It is so nice to have some peace of mind that I will not be getting a flat. These tires are tough and still give a smooth ride. They will puncture but then it usually means it is time to get a new tire. I am a big fan of these tires.

Ive been using Gatorskins for a while now. Ive had other brands come stock on bikes and usually wind up with punctures quickly. Fingers crossed but i when switching to Gatorskins I've yet to puncture them. I highly recommend these tires. And the fact that you get the choice of two different sidewall colors is a plus too.