With the Tour de France halfway through, the lovely fellas at Paligap have sent us something hot off the bikes of the pros: a set of Challenge’s latest and greatest Strada Special Edition tubular tyres.
They’ve been developed in conjunction with the Bretagne-Séché Environnement team, and the French Pro Continental outfit are using them in the race as we type.
All pro teams ride tubular tyres for a number of reasons. One is that tubulars still tend to be lighter than a clincher and inner tube combo – although road tubeless scores very well on that point too – and tubular wheels are lighter too, because they don’t need that extra bit of sidewall for clinchers to latch onto.
Only available in 25mm width, these hand-made tubs have a high 300tpi casing combined with two layers of Challenge’s puncture protection system (PPS2). Inside the tub is a latex inner tube all of which helps to keep the overall weight down to 303g per tyre.
Of course, being pro level kit means they come with a pro level price tag, too, and if you want a set of these it’ll cost you a cool £85 per tyre. You can check them out at UK distributors Paligap.
