Just for grins, I got a pair of Kenda Klimax Lite tires for Grace's bike. While the Karmas are light at 450g, the Klimaxes are deep into ludicrous territory -- 345g each!! They're listed as a 2.0, and although I haven't measured, they look more like a 1.8, maybe a 1.7. They're SLIM. There's also a bare minimum of tread... they look more like cyclocross tires than MTB tires... and I think most cyclocross tires are even heavier.
So, with all this in mind, I tell Grace that I'm putting them on so she can try them, and we both more or less expect she won't like them. One time we tried Racing Ralphs, which are another light race tire, and she hated them, and wound up crashing. So, with that in mind, she set off on a ride today. (I actually tried to join her, but that's a story for another post... soon to come.)
I nervously awaited her return from the ride, to find out what she thought of the tires, fully expecting something along the line of "get these $%&#ing things off my bike"... but when I see her, she's SMILING. Ask her how the ride was -- it was REALLY GOOD! The tires? She loves them. Had some problems on steep, loose climbs with insufficient traction (not surprising!) but beyond that, they were FAST and they accelerated like nobody's business.
So, it's all good, surprisingly. We won't leave them on for daily riding, but they'll be great for hardpack events like Fair Hill.
Oh, and with those tires on ... 18.06lb!
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