I had the older Marathon HRs, which were pretty similar to the Marathons in the article, on a Surly Cross Check a few years ago and never had a flat once. Even ran over a stray piece of barbed wire! Those tires were bombproof and prompted me to buy Schwalbe Mondials (on 36h A719s) when I got my Hillborne which is my only bike. I use them with fenders for all daily, worry-free commuting during the school year but lose the fenders and shift them out for Smart Sams when school's out. I was actually surprised how supple they were. For lighter weight road riding I keep a lighter wheelset that is comprised of Extralight Barlow Pass tires on 32h Synergys with XT hubs. When I shift wheelsets, I notice a huge difference. The Hillborne feels almost like a different bike. I don't track my speed or distance but they do feel faster and I'm more confident on descents and in turns. The only complaint I have mirrors other complaints on the forum... they are difficult to mount cleanly on Synergy rims. Maybe it's time for two wheelsets. Be careful though, I've read that they can become a gateway wheelset to n+1.
John On Friday, May 6, 2016 at 5:02:26 AM UTC-7, Stephen Kemp wrote: > > I love Schwalbe Marathons for their robustness and versatility. Fit and > forget, ride (pretty much) where you like. Marathons are a great choice for > those one-bikers among us. Even if you have a stable of bikes, one of them > is probably a go-to utility/commuting mount – again prime Marathon > territory. > > > > Despite my Marathon-love, I often find myself reading gushing reviews of > Compass or Grand Bois or other sexier tyres and wondering if they’re really > so great. Will they transform my cycling? Have I been missing out on > something? > > > > I just read this > *http://www.bicyclerollingresistance.com/tour-reviews/schwalbe-marathon-2015* > <http://www.bicyclerollingresistance.com/tour-reviews/schwalbe-marathon-2015>. > > I appreciate the limitations of the steel-drum rolling resistance test but > this chap seems to be considering some of the wider aspects of tyre > performance and the Marathon comes out as a great all-round choice. > > > > Any stories of hardened Marathon lovers out there who changed to a more > supple tyre? How’s it going? Revelations or reservations? > > > > Stephen > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
