Jack Brown Review

• Having logged tens of thousands of miles on several sets of Rivendell's fine Rolly Poly and Ruffy Tuffy tires, I was pretty excited to give their latest checkerboard-patterned, Panaracer-fabricated, 295g light-but-fat slicks a go. The Jack Brown tire is available in both blue and green label versions, differing in the amount of tread (and therefore weight). I chose the lighter, $45 green version.

  The tires weighed in at 298g each, and were easily mountable to a Sun rim without tools. So far, so good! Naturally, they looked great (and gigantic) due to Rivendell's signature super-round clincher profile. Although ostensibly fast touring tires, I was keen to use them in two distinct modes: run at 95psi, as comfy road tires; and run at 50psi, as winter gear. The latest flurries have given me a chance to test out the latter.

  You simply won't find as voluminous a 700c tire that is so fast or so light. The checkerboard pattern and round profile make for a very quiet and highly maneuverable high pressure slick. Morning coffee rides were noticeably more comfortable, but I didn't sense any sluggishness or sagging under acceleration. Riding along at 20-22mph felt great! Having gone straight from 23c Panaracer Duros to these 34.33c balloons did require a change in cornering technique. One can't "dig in" by applying a lot of weight to the front tire, but the grip is still excellent and cornering at speed was not a problem.

  This morning Tim and I traversed the path alone, he on a mountain bike and I on my Jack Browns. The path was a mix of absurdly slippering ice patches connected by little mounds of collected flurries. And a few rather tall drifts. After wiping out repeatedly on the snow and spinning on the ice, I lowered the pressure of the front tire to 40psi and the rear to 50. Bingo! This is apparently the ideal ratio for someone my size, because the ride was relatively safe and stable for the remainder of the trip. Coming home, we kind of lost track of the path, and off-roaded it for the final few miles, and the bike handled like a champ.

  The Jack Browns are easily the most versatile clinchers I've ever ridden. They're probably the next best thing to Dugast touring tubulars (which can be run at around 20psi without trouble)... but then again, Dugasts run $400 per set. Although they may invite ridicule among your roadie buddies, you'll feel superior when the weather forces them to bust out the cross bikes, or worse: head indoors.