I recently started commuting 15 miles each way to work. Most of it is on good roads, but there is a lot of glass and trash in the city.

I have made the trip 4 times, and had 2 flats so far. The last one I found a small piece of glass in the tire. I am currently running old Specialized Nimbus III tires. They are size 38, and really heavy and slow. I just put in some Slime tire liners, and the bike feels even slower.

Oh, BTW, I am using my C'Dale Cyclocross bike.

I have a lot of hills, and some spots where I can easily exceed 35 mph, and I don't feel comfortable (meaining safe) on the big 38 tires. Plus, I just want to be able to go faster, but I don't want any more flats!

I'm thinking somethinig like a 28 or 32 would be better? I want smooth tread, since I'm not riding any trails. I saw a post about the Michelin transworld, I think?

Any suggestions?

A roadie I ride with swears that a narrow 23mm type road tire at high pressure is much less suceptible to flats than a wider tire, or one that is not pumped to the max pressure. His argument makes a certain amount of sense. A narrow tire has less contact with the road and therefore less chance of picking up that piece of glass on the road. Also, at high pressure the curvature of the tire further decreases the contact area. The high pressure and curved tire also helps to push stuff out of the way instead of "trapping" it underneath the tread. He asserts that most flats are related to an insufficient pressure on a road tire.

So, based on this logic, the 28mm with a high pressure might be a good choice. I personally run a set of 34 mm Ritchey speedmax tires at ~65 psi for the trail rides, but I use a set of 23 mm conti pros(?) at 120 psi when I'm doing more road riding than trails. I haven't gotten many flats yet (knock knock) with the 23mm tires but have picked up glass and gotten a few flats in the last few months with the 34mm tires. I like the way the Ritchey speedmax tires work on the types of trails (hard pack, fast, small hills) I typically ride and for the commute. However, they're now worn out so I need something new and the Ritchey speedmax tires are not available in this part of Canada through any LBS. I'm currently trying to decide if my next set of cross tires should be the tufo tubular clincher T30s or to look for something inexpensive with a similar tread pattern ot the speedmax.

Damn, if you're getting fl@ts with a Nimbus tire, maybe you need to switch to solid tires?

I've been commuting on my Langster for 3 weeks in pretty similar conditions....lots of glass, gravel, road rubbish, and bad pavement. I was originaly going to switch out the tires for something a bit bigger, but after riding the first week in both dry an wet conditions, the stock Specialized Mondo Pro Tire (I'm riding the 700 x 23) have done a fantstic job. I've been waiting for a flat, but the tire has taken a good pounding and stood the test. Just though I could help.

Peace

IM Walt -

Every one has their version of which tires are better for this or that. But I've said it here on RBR forums many times before: try the Vredestein's. I'm on my second rear tire already this year and have not had one puncture flat yet on the 28c Campos I use on my CX bike. Not one, and I ride city streets and country roads every day on them. I have had 2 pinch flats but that was the faulty rim strips I had, not the tires or tubes fault. Since I replaced the rim strips, no problems.

But soon I'm switching over to the 25c Fortezza Road for pavement riding, and they're the same exact casing as the Campo and Fortezza Tri-Comp. The Ricorso is another excellent model that is a bit less $ (about $15.-20. per), but are a tad heavier because of the steel bead instead of Kevlar. So, depending on what size you want, (Fortezza- 23 & 25, Campo- 28 & 32, Ricorso- 23, 25, & 28) and how much you want to spend, you have several good choices there.

I ended up switching to a set of tires I got from Performance for $10 each. Both are 25's. On the front is a Conti Ultra 3000, and on the rear is a Vittoria Courier. So far, no more flats.

I ride the specialized mondo tires, and they are great! I have had really good experience with specialized. Also, the vredesteins mentioned are a great tire too! My commute generally includes patches of glass and things like that, haven't had many problems at all. I would have to agree with riding a thinner tire to minimize contact with the road surface, makes rolling resistance less to so you go faster.
-Brad