Van der Poel on the trend of riding increasingly wider tires: "I think there is a limit"

The increase in tire size in road cycling seems to have no end. Not long ago the standard was 700x23c and today that measurement has become so obsolete that it is very difficult to find tires of that size and current rims, with a wider rim bed, no longer allow them to be mounted. A topic that Mathieu van der Poel was recently asked about.

Mathieu van der Poel will use tires of only 30 mm in the cobbled classics

With the arrival of the peak moment of the cobblestone classics, with the double, this same weekend E3 Saxo Classic and Gent-Wevelgem, which will lead to Dwars Door Vlaanderen, Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix, the equipment that cyclists will use in these tests takes on special importance and regarding which tires Mathieu van der Poel will use was recently asked.

The reason is simple: in just three years we have gone from seeing professional cyclists using 25 mm tires on a daily basis, to 28 mm becoming common and, this season, it is not strange to see bikes equipped with 700x30c tires, measurements that until recently were only used in the cobbled classics.

RECOMENDADO

Why does Van Rysel have such cheap premium bikes?

Does the current UCI limit for bicycle weight make sense?

What is the difference between mountain and road saddles?

What benefits does bicarbonate have for cyclists?

What Pogacar took for cramps in Roubaix

We tested the new Cannondale Topstone Carbon 2025: the gravel bike that doesn't give up anything

In fact, recent tests suggest that the fastest in road cycling would be to mount 40 mm tires, a measurement that, even today, is common in gravel. However, Van der Poel resists the change "last year I was one of the few who still rode with 28 mm tires simply because I liked them. The team was already using 30 mm tires. The great advantage is that you can use lower pressures which makes a big difference on the cobbles. There is a good chance I will use 30 millimeter tires in the classics this year".

Meanwhile, Van der Poel also reflected on where this increase in tire width will stop "You already see riders with 35 mm tires in Paris-Roubaix which is very wide" while pointing out that there comes a point where if the tire is wider you are no longer faster. This is because the tests that are carried out only take into account the factor of rolling resistance which is what improves with wider tires.

However, the increase in tire size also implies an increase in weight in a part of the bike, the wheels, which when in motion imply greater inertia that affects the bike's handling, in addition to other aspects such as how these wide tires affect the bike's aerodynamics.