Mountain Bike Tires for Road Riding

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Mountain bikes are terrific for off road riding but terrible on the street. Traditional mountain bike tires are too rough for road riding. Changing tires on these bikes can convert them to adequate performers on the road.

I primarily ride my mountain bike on the road for quick trips to the store, riding around RV parks, and riding with my grandchildren. Off road riding isn’t what I do, aside from an occasional gravel road or trail for short distances.

This bike originally came with mountain bike tires. On-the-road riding was noisy and cornering was always a little rough. When it came time to change the tires on this bike I installed Kenda Kwest tires in 26 x 1.5 inch size. Holding as much as 80 psi and having a smooth tread pattern, these tires made my mountain bike ride great on the road. Gone was the rough noisy ride.

I’ve since replaced the Kenda Kwest tires with Kenda K847 Kross Plus in 26 x 1.95 inch size. The Kenda Kross has a smooth tread in the center section with a row of knobby tread on each edge. They ride smooth on the road but have some off road ability as well. They seem to be a good compromise between a road tire and a mountain bike tire.

A mountain bike will never measure up to a road bike in performance. The higher weight and wider, heavier tires and rims of a mountain bike can’t match a road bike’s performance. No tire can make it perform like a road bike. While a mountain bike lacks on-the-road performance, they make up for that loss with comfort and stability with the right tire. Though I’m mainly a road bike rider I do enjoy the more leisurely pace and comfortable ride.