How to Inflate your Road Bike Tires

Video Transcript

"Because proportionately the tires are so much smaller on road bikes, a few PSI of pressure is a lot more important. So, 99% of all road bikes, use the Presta-style valve, which you may or may not have on your mountain mike. But, as a general rule, the way they work is you unscrew that little brass knob, and it lets air in and out. So, you don't need a valve cover or anything on this. You can just close up your valve and no air escapes. So, pressure-wise you want to be running between, let's say 90 and 115 PSI in most tires. Some tires that are really fancy and have a lot of thread count per inch, allow you to run up to 145 PSI or so. That higher pressure doesn't mean that they're a stiffer ride, it just means that the actual cotton and fabric and rubber that the tire's made out of, is a little bit more compliant. Generally, you can run a little bit less pressure in the front wheel than in the rear wheel. And a little bit less pressure's usually going to give you better traction because it's going to conform better, just like on a mountain bike, it acts like suspension and conforms to the road. So, you want to run as little pressure as you can get away with, so you don't pinch flat, so that your tire doesn't squirm all over the place. And you want to check your pressure quite regularly because an under-inflated road tire is going to be a hassle, because you're going to get a flat, or you're going to have some sort of mishap."