as a quick recap, road tyres are a pretty simple affair — a few layers of rubber and that’s it. they’re designed to roll easily over generally even surfaces, stick to the road, and handle high air pressures and not much weight. there’s not much else to em, and they do their job well. but then there’s randonneur tyres, which is what the rubino is. these are designed a little differently, and the main difference is a MUCH thicker outer layer of rubber. this provides more puncture-resistance and a longer wear life, as randonneuring traverses longer distances over rougher roads and with more weight supported thereon. most randonneur tyres also provide thicker sidewalls, and sometimes even a different rubber compound on the sidewalls, as you’ll be cornering a heavy beast when you turn.

because randonneurs are made this way, the MASH SF guys are all about em — the longer wear and tougher sidewalls make for a great skidding tyre, and the added puncture-resistance is perfect for city streets.

now, in my own one-day experience with the rubino, i’ve noticed a handful of things straight away. i’ll be updating this thread as i go, but i wanted to get down the things i felt so that i could have a reference point not only for other cyclists on the board, but for my own self, too.

CUSHY…
the rubino i have in the back feels cushier, right away. because of that extra-thick outer surface, when the tyre receives an impact, it isn’t dispersed immediately through the entire bike, as with a road tyre — a lot of it is absorbed into the tyre itelf. you can feel this over every crack in the street, as well as when you drop a curb. or you could just stand next to your bike, pick up the back end and drop it (or slam it) onto the ground. it doesn’t smack the ground solidly as a road tyre does — it has a lot more … "squoosh." it’s a welcome change, actually. it makes a ride a lot more comfortable.

another thing that’s great about this "cushiness" is that you can feel the road a lot more through your drive train. it’s that extra-thick outer layer again. as it reacts to the road surface, the micro-sensations are transferred through the wheel to the chain, cranks, and pedals, and right to your feet. it’s pretty outstanding.

SKIDDY…
i really don’t know how to evaluate this just yet, as the roads are all coated with rain, oil, and mud right now, but even on the dry patches of road that i found, skidStopping is effortless. i’m not necessarily saying that as a positive thing, though. something that’s great about skidding on true road tyres is that since they’re designed to stick to the road, skidStopping is an immediate decrease of speed. within just a couple feet, in fact. this tyre here has a lot less stick to it, and as such, the skidStop takes longer to take effect. maybe 10 feet or so at a good clip. JUST TO SLOW DOWN. a road tyre would STOP you before 10 feet at the same speed.

the real fear i have with this "skiddiness" is that i’m gonna slide out around a turn. cornering on a fixed gear is usually controlled through subtle leg muscle control and done at low speeds anyway, but there’s nothing that’ll make you feel sicker to your stomach than feeling your back end go out. it’s a fast shot down to the street when you slide like that and it hurts like a motherfucker and it’s DANGEROUS. so i’m keeping my eyes on this.

BETTER BEADS…
this was an unexpected treat to discover. something that sucks about most tyres is that the beads (the wire rings that "hook" under the rim’s inner edge and hold the tyre on the wheel) will often sit ON your tube when you change it, so that pumping the tyre up either pinchBlows your tube or pushes the tyre right off the rim. but the beads on these tyres flare out more than i’ve ever seen before, so not only do they (presumably) hook into the rim better, but they also don’t easily pinch your tube. i LOVE this.

so at the outset, i love these tyres with only the one exception of their decreased traction (comparatively to road tyres).

more later!

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