Road Bike Tires Cracking

Cracks along the sidewall of road tires or mountain bike tires is a dead give away you have sidewall damage and your tire needs replaced.

Road bike tires cracking. Tire age is a common cause of tire sidewall cracking. The only safe thing to do at this point is replace the tire and ensure the tires are inflated normally for future rides. How to keep tires from dry rotting and cracking you might think of your tires as fixed unchanging vehicle components but they re actually some of the more alive elements of your vehicle. How to maintain bike wheels bicycle repair duration.

It is extremely important when riding in a bunch or descending at speed to be aware of this and be confident your tires are in good nick. Tire tread is always wearing and evolving as the miles accumulate but the tire tread compound also changes according to season temperature and road conditions. The only part of your road bike that actually contacts the ground is a patch of rubber the size of your thumb. If you were to run road tires at say 40 psi the tires will have more stress and more likely to develop cracks in the tire.

The same effect happens to the rubber in tires over time. Mountain bike tires are normally 25 to 35 psi. Tires are subjected to all sorts of harsh conditions and the rubber in tires naturally degrades over time. Think about how old rubber bands are brittle and more likely to break than brand new ones.