If you read Continental's ad copy for its Grand Prix 4000 tire, you will read about a tire made with an "activated silica compound" and "Vectran liquid crystal fibres". BO-RING. Starting tonight, I'll be reviewing bike gear on the ornery mechanic blog, and liquid crystal fibers do not interest me. I don't quite understand how a tire can be liquid while still holding its shape, anyway. What does interest me is the way a tire feels when you ride it. In fact, in all my gear reviews, I plan to present a phenomenological impression of the product tested. How the tire made the city streets feel like they were lightly coated with butter, for example. And I'll try to report back to you when the product wears out, so that there's a record of how long it lasted me, maybe even a rating on some kind of bang-for-buck-o-meter. Because, for example, The GP4000 tire retails for $59.99. EACH. (I only bought a rear tire, for now, because today it was my wimpy Hutchinson Carbon Comp tire that bit the bucket. I plan to buy a GP4000 tire for my front wheel when my current front tire does the same.) When you're rolling on $120 worth of motherfucking liquid crystals, they should really make the road feel like butter for at least 6 months in order for you to get your money's worth.
Anyway, back to the review. Tonight I purchased a black GP4000 tire from Manhattan Velo (why black, when the GP4000 is available in, like, every damn color? Word in the shop is that black tire is made with "more carbon" than the colored version, and will theoretically last longer) and installed it on the rear wheel of my 2003 Jamis Comet road bike. I rode home to Astoria, a ride of about 5 or 6 miles. The GP4000 was VERY smooth-rolling. I'm not the fastest or strongest rider out there, but let's just say that I had to hold back a good portion of my strength while riding in traffic. This tire wanted to GO FAST, and while I wanted to do that also, I did not want to rear-end a bus. However, what impressed me so much about the GP4000 was not the fact that it's smooth-rolling; I've ridden lots of smooth-rolling tires. What impressed me was the way that the tire grabbed the road. I got amazing torque when pedaling AND when braking. I found that switching my tire actually improved braking performance, which is to say that between this morning (riding a Hutchinson Carbon Comp tire in the rear) and this evening (riding a GP4000) I did not adjust my rear brake at all, and yet, between morning and evening the performance of my rear brake improved dramatically. I mean, earlier in the day it was working okay, but now I hit the lever and WOMP, it feels like the tire is instantly glued to the ground. Good stuff, and I'm going to join the chorus of bike snobby voices out there recommending this tire.
In other news, my friend B. has told me that recently he experienced, firsthand, a phenomenon that we all knew was coming eventually, it was merely a matter of when. The NYPD has finally profiled all cyclists ("messenger type" or not) as drug dealers, and as a result there are unmarked cars stopping and searching law-abiding cyclists. The operation is illegal in many ways, but it seems like the best way to protect yourself is this. Listen to your man, Jay-Z:
"License and registration and step out of the car"
"Are you carryin' a weapon on you I know a lot of you are"
I ain't steppin out of shit all my paper's legit
"Well, do you mind if I look round the car a little bit?"
Well my glove compartment is locked so are the trunk in the back
And I know my rights so you gon' need a warrant for that
"Aren't you sharp as a tack, you some type of lawyer or something'?"
"Or somebody important or somethin'?"
Nah, I ain't pass the bar but I know a little bit
Enough that you won't illegally search my shit
In this case, I recommend locking the zippers of your knapsack/messenger bar/pannier together, in which case the popo will need a warrant to break the lock. Do they call in the K9, as they did in Hovah's case, or do they relent and go harass another cyclist? I don't know. Maybe someone here can leave a comment about their experiences. Ride safe!
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