New Gravel Tires, Roval Wheels & Winter Kit

I went to Taiwan, but the show must go on. While I was away, Mike Levy, Lisa Charlebois, and Logan Jones-Wilkins had plenty to talk about. Predictably, things got heavily focused on gravel tire pressure, but that wasn’t all.

For one thing, Charlebois is our resident big-mileage rider. She posts huge rides on the regular, and this time, she finished a 300km Marin County mission. She kicks things off by recapping the 193-mile weekend ride through Napa and Sonoma aboard her titanium Mosaic GT2 AR—and delivers a crucial public service announcement regarding the specific protocol for crossing the Golden Gate Bridge late at night.

For Jones-Wilkins, it’s all about gravel tires—specifically Specialized’s new Pathfinder TLR. He is currently working his way through a massive pile of test rubber, and the new Specialized got a deep dive of its own. He explains why pros like Keegan Swenson opt for the slickest, fastest-rolling options, but argues that the more aggressive Terra tread is actually the better choice for the vast majority of riders who need reliable braking traction.

Levy, being the king of crazy rough gravel, has his own hot take on tire volume. He takes a firm stance that most gravel riders are severely under-tired. His direct advice to road cyclists venturing into the dirt is to stop obsessing over aerodynamics, mount the biggest tires the frame can clear, and run a tire insert.

Speaking of Specialized, the crew also takes a quick look at the newly launched Roval Terra Aero CLX and Terra CLX3 wheelsets. They discuss the $3,400 Aero CLX’s chopped aero profile, the 27mm internal width, and the notable design decision to utilize a wide carbon hook rather than going hookless.

Finally, there is some crazy clothing to discuss. Jonas Vingegaard recently won a freezing and wet stage four while wearing a second set of modified, cut-up bib shorts over his normal kit. While we don’t recommend doing exactly that, the crew shares their own extreme cold-weather survival tactics. Expect confessions about crotchless long underwear, the merits of baggy mountain bike pants on drop-bar rides, and Charlebois’s deep appreciation for the Albion Burner down chest piece.

Give it a listen, and let us know in the comments if you have a favorite tire or if you think Levy is wrong on his hot take.

Episode Timestamps

00:00 – Intro
01:25 – Lisa’s 300k
05:04 – Gravel Tires
27:54 – Specialized Wheels
34:28 – Clothing discussion