Just realized most bike commuters over-inflate their tires and it's making rides worse

I keep seeing people at the racks near my office in Portland pumping their tires rock hard like they're racing in the Tour de France. But for everyday city riding (you know, with potholes and gravel and train tracks) I swear softer tires are actually better. I run mine at about 40 psi front and 45 rear on my 32mm tires, and the difference in comfort is huge. No more feeling every little bump in my wrists, and I actually get fewer flats because the tire can flex around debris instead of bouncing off it. Meanwhile my buddy Mike runs his at 80 psi and complains about his back hurting. Has anyone else experimented with lower pressure for commuting or am I the weird one here?

2 comments

2 Comments

wendy97818d ago

Used to be totally on the other side of this, honestly. I always pumped my tires up to like 80 psi because I thought that was just what you did, you know? Then I tried dropping down to 45 psi on my commuter (28mm tires, so pretty close to yours) and it was like riding a completely different bike. My commute has these rough brick sections and I used to dread them, but now I barely notice. Still get a little nervous about pinch flats though, but so far so good.

logantaylor18d ago

I run 40 psi front and 50 rear on my 35mm tires here in Chicago and it totally changed my ride. We got these nasty brick streets near Wrigley and going softer made the bumps disappear without me feeling slower. Haven't had a flat in six months since I stopped pumping my tires like a roadie.