Tires for Commuting and Long Distance

I always relate to my cycling experiences like model rail road hobbyist, everything is a prototype.  I am forever testing equipment, or methods in my cycling.  that is what keeps my brain intrigued with cycling.

Selecting the right tire for my bike is the focus that i am currently engaged in.  My new bike came with Vittoria Corsa CX tires.  I put 2,146.37 miles on these tires and they are shot.  I had two flats last week in one day.  I love these tires for the smooth comfortable ride, but I knew that they would not last long.

 I have a set of Continental Gator Skins on order and they will arrive on Tuesday.  I am going to install a new set of Vittoria Corsa CX tires today so that I can ride this week.  In the past I use to change my commuter tires for racing tires when I was planning a long ride on clean roads.  I may start doing this now.  I am also seriously considering trying out some 28 MM Schwalbe Marathon Supreme HS 382 HD SpeedGuard Cross/Hybrid tires.  I have never used Schwalbe tires, but several members of the Bicycle Commuter Cabal have suggested that I try them.

So my goal is to figure out what tires works best for the type of cycling that I am doing right now.  When I am on country roads which are fairly clean and free from glass and thorns the Vittoria tires may be the best choice for a long ride.  In and around the city where I see lots of broken glass and debris on the road a tougher tire may work best.  Only my testing of several tires on the road conditions that I ride on will determine what works best.

So this blog post is to document my tire mileage on my first set of Vittoria's, 2, 146.37 miles.

Update: I only replaced the rear tire. I usually rotate my tires, but I did not do this for this set. I am keeping the front tire on the bike because it is not worn out.

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