A full-on visitation from the Puncture Fairy this evening, leaving me muddy, tired, and halfway
across town carrying the world's largest pannierful of shopping. To add insult to injury, I've just
broken my last-but-one tyre lever in fumbling around trying to fix it. Grr bloody grr. This has
happened three times over the past fortnight, so either the local kids are placing their broken
bottles more accurately these days or my tyres are - hidden from my sight behind winter permacack -
chock full of glass shards all happily pressing against the kevlar breakers and ready to burst out.
I'm considering replacing the mixed bag of cheapo UKP 13.00 tyres on this bike: a Panaracer Pasela
Club aft, and a Schwalbe Blizzard (kevlar) to the fore. The Panaracer seems to snag any shards it
passes over, and the Blizzard is already heavily scarred and lacerated after less than 6 months of
middling use. Does anyone have any recommendations for 25-622 (a.k.a. 700C, 25mm) touring tyres that
can take a bit of punishment? I've had good experiences with the Continental Top Touring 2000 model
in the past on a previous bike, but does anyone have any good alternatives they can suggest before I
commit myself?
(No, I don't want slime, gel, solid tyres, things filled with foam, or any kind of tyre with knobbly
bits on. Nor am I looking for things made of tissue paper, frogskins and blind faith. I'm really
looking for a recommendation for a good basic touring tyre that'll hold up for a few years)
(I should add: damn you, Puncture Fairy. May thy black and tattered butyl rags gum together in a
horrid gooey torrent of poly cement, may thy wand's shards be ground to sand and to dust, and may
chalk dust get up thy haughty elfin nostrils and make thee sneeze and thy nose run uncomfortably.
But I won't, as that a) might be tempting fate, and b) somebody out there might have puncture_fairy
as a nick somewhere)
Right, I'm off to learn to play the spoon handles.
--
STRANGER: I wear no mask. CAMILLA: (Terrified, aside to Cassilda.) No mask? No mask!