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by KirkOls

Tire pressure is a very important facet of riding any kind of bike, including mountain bikes. By learning how to set the tire pressure, you can give yourself more control and help to make the ride down the mountain smoother. If the tire pressure is too low, then you will find that it is much harder to cycle and it can increase the chance of a flat, too. Tire pressure that is too high can make your ride very bumpy and out of control, as well.

Tire pressure can vary from person to person, because it is dependent upon the personal preference of the bicycler, the tire’s condition, and the terrain that you will be riding on. The tire pressure can be easily modified simply by using a high quality pump on the tires. A tire pressure gauge is also an essential part of keeping your tires at the optimum pressure.

The manufacturer of the tire will have a recommended tire pressure for your particular tires and this is where you can start. You can then adjust the tire pressure as needed from there. It is best to use the same tire pressure gauge and pump when you check your tires, because you may get different readings depending upon the tire pressure gauge that you choose.

A good rule of thumb is to start with a higher tire pressure for your bike. This means that you want to be around 40-50 psi (3-3.5 bar), and then lower the tire pressure a little at a time to find which tire pressure is best for your particular bike, terrain, and yourself. If you are a little heavier, then you will want to use a higher tire pressure for sure.

Taking a test bike ride is the best way to check the tire pressure. You will want to notice how the tire behaves, how it rides on the terrain, how it slides down the mountain, and how it hooks in the corners. If you have too much tire pressure, then drop it in increments of 5 psi in both tires. If the bike gains grip and is more stable at this tire pressure, then you will want to keep it at this standard pressure. If not, then you will continue dropping the tire pressure in small increments and redoing the test until your bike rides the way you want and need it to.

If you want to determine the lowest possible tire pressure, then gradually decrease the tire pressure until you see how it feels when you ride on almost flat tires. This will help you to learn how it feels so that you can keep your tubes from getting damaged.

If your mountain bike tires are tubeless, then you will want to stay with a lower tire pressure. The advised tire pressure for tubeless tires is between 30 and 40 psi. This is because tubeless tires experience fewer pinch flats and even rim contact occasionally is okay. This is why you can ride on tires with a much lower tire pressure than normal. If the tire pressure is too low, you will find that if you are cornering hard that the tire will roll under the rim.

Another thing that you need to be on the lookout for is rolling resistance. The increased rolling resistance will take more effort, but it will offer you greater control and better traction to allow you to climb easier. For racers who race cross-country, they would rather have a more efficient bike versus greater control, so you have to take into consideration what kind of biking that you will be doing.

Using your hand to squeeze the tire will help you determine what the right tire pressure feels like so that you do not have to rely so much on the tire pressure gauge.

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by pandaposse

Bike tires, unlike car tires, lose their pressure on a daily basis, so its necessary to check their pressure daily and reinflate when necessary.

A few days ago, I was driving happily along the highway, heading home from a run to a bookstore. A passing motorist honked at me and then pointed toward my car as if there were something wrong with it. I nodded and waved and slowed down, and they passed me. However, my car was behaving as it always had… there was no “pull” or rough riding to indicate that I had a flat tire. So, since I was only ten minutes from home I just kept on driving – albeit more slowly.

My mind being what it is, as soon as I pulled into the driveway I forgot all about the reason why I had been driving slowly for the last ten minutes, and just walked into the house.

The next day, I got into the car and had driven out of my apartment parking lot toward the access road for the main drag, before remembering that there was supposedly something wrong with one of the tires. So I returned to the parking lot, got out, and looked at my tires. The rear left was as flat as a pancake.

I couldn’t have driven home with it like that – it surely would have effected the handling of the car. So yesterday the tire must simply have been low, and continued going flat over night.

My dad, who had witnessed my return, asked me if I didn’t check the tires before I got behind the wheel every single time, and I confessed that I didn’t. I’ve been driving for years and years and never had a flat tire before, so why bother?

But I learned my lesson from that little incident, and now I take a few seconds and check the tires before leaving.

And that little story brings me to the point of this essay, which is that before you get on your bike – there are various things you should check to make sure you’ll have a safe ride. Indeed, in spite of my carelessness with my car tires, I always had and always will check my bicycle tire pressure before setting off on a ride.  The more so because I have had a couple of flat tires with that bike over the five years that I’ve owned it.

Tire pressure is important for cars, because if a tire blows while the car is traveling at high speed that’s a heavy piece of machinery that will go out of control. But it’s just as important for bicyclists, because since you have to use your own power to muscle along the bike, flat tires will effect your ride from the very beginning. And if you’re far away from home when the tire gives up the ghost, you could find yourself with a long walk home.

There’s no difficulty in knowing how many pounds of pressure need to be put into your bike tires – the manufacturer puts those specifications on the side of each tire. Get yourself a tire gauge and always use it when you inflate your tires.  However, although you won’t want to exceed the pounds per square inch that they recommend, there are reasons why you’d sometimes want to use less.

With a tire inflated to the correct pressure, your ride will be as smooth as the quality of your frame will allow it. If your tires aren’t inflated enough it increases the chance of getting a flat tire, but more importantly makes it harder to pedal. Too high of pressure will strain the tire itself, not to mention making the ride too bumpy to be comfortable.

Bike tires lose their pressure on a regular basis, so before starting out on your ride, always squeeze both front and back tires to ensure that they are hard. Mountain bikers do like their tires “mushier” than other bikers, and if that applies to you just become familiar with what the appropriate tire pressure for you looks and feels like.

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