Tubeless tires

[rydabent]

I know that tubeless tires seem to be all the rage among many cyclist. However, consider this. If you run over a piece of trash that rips the sidewall in your tire, you are probably going to walk home. But with tire that have a tube. in this case, simply put a boot in the tire, and a new tube and ride home. I carry a boot in my trunk pack, but a dollar bill will work just fine as a boot also.

[Flowrider]

Fair point, I guess with both setups they have advantages and disadvantages. In my opinion, the key would be to go with what you feel most comfortable with, which is a personal preference determined by the terrain you ride on mostly.

[JJMarsh]

(12-14-2025, 11:39 AM)rydabent Wrote:  I know that tubeless tires seem to be all the rage among many cyclist. However, consider this. If you run over a piece of trash that rips the sidewall in your tire, you are probably going to walk home. But with tire that have a tube. in this case, simply put a boot in the tire, and a new tube and ride home. I carry a boot in my trunk pack, but a dollar bill will work just fine as a boot also.

Good point about sidewall tears. I run tubeless but still carry a tube and a boot for big cuts. Tubeless seals small holes; a dollar bill saves the day on big ones.

[GirishH]

@rydabent and @JJMarsh,a dollar bill? I never heard of that trick? How does that work?

@rydabent, what do you mean by "boot i your trunk pack"?

(12-15-2025, 03:19 AM)JJMarsh Wrote:  

(12-14-2025, 11:39 AM)rydabent Wrote:  I know that tubeless tires seem to be all the rage among many cyclist. However, consider this. If you run over a piece of trash that rips the sidewall in your tire, you are probably going to walk home. But with tire that have a tube. in this case, simply put a boot in the tire, and a new tube and ride home. I carry a boot in my trunk pack, but a dollar bill will work just fine as a boot also.

Good point about sidewall tears. I run tubeless but still carry a tube and a boot for big cuts. Tubeless seals small holes; a dollar bill saves the day on big ones.

[JJMarsh]

(12-14-2025, 11:39 AM)rydabent Wrote:  I know that tubeless tires seem to be all the rage among many cyclist. However, consider this. If you run over a piece of trash that rips the sidewall in your tire, you are probably going to walk home. But with tire that have a tube. in this case, simply put a boot in the tire, and a new tube and ride home. I carry a boot in my trunk pack, but a dollar bill will work just fine as a boot also.

Tubeless seals small punctures instantly. A big sidewall slash is a problem, but that's rare. Run tubeless, but carry a spare tube just in case.

[rydabent]

(12-15-2025, 09:14 PM)GirishH Wrote:  @rydabent and @JJMarsh,a dollar bill? I never heard of that trick? How does that work?

@rydabent, what do you mean by "boot i your trunk pack"?

(12-15-2025, 03:19 AM)JJMarsh Wrote:  

(12-14-2025, 11:39 AM)rydabent Wrote:  I know that tubeless tires seem to be all the rage among many cyclist. However, consider this. If you run over a piece of trash that rips the sidewall in your tire, you are probably going to walk home. But with tire that have a tube. in this case, simply put a boot in the tire, and a new tube and ride home. I carry a boot in my trunk pack, but a dollar bill will work just fine as a boot also.

Good point about sidewall tears. I run tubeless but still carry a tube and a boot for big cuts. Tubeless seals small holes; a dollar bill saves the day on big ones.

Yes, I have a real boot bought at the bike shop, it is a heavy piece of cloth, kind of like canvas that has a thin piece of peal off plastic on it. Peal of the plastic on the sticky side, and put it over the tear. Also yes with the dollar bill. They are not paper, and rather strong, so they can be put over a tear in a tire in a pinch.

[Tony Tucker]

That’s a great explanation. Tire boots are one of those underrated essentials, and the dollar bill trick is a classic bit of bike lore. Always nice to have simple, real-world solutions when things go wrong mid-ride.

[meamoantonio]

tubeless is really great for proper mountain biking, like going on gnarly technical trails, smashing thru roots, rocks and more. When you're going down fast and get inevitably punctured in rough slippery trails, going tubeless really makes sense. It also helps with better traction since you have room for lower psi. Again, that's if you're out on technical trails. It seems pretty recent that road cyclists adopted going tubeless as an option, copying from MTB cyclists since tubeless tires were made for the technicalities of trail riding. I guess as a road cyclist, that would makes sense if you're going for weight savings to shave off a few seconds from your time, or if you generally get small punctures often when you ride and just want to get over all the hassle of stoping to patch it up. Overall though, I think most if not all road cyclists generally avoid trash that can cause damage from the looks of it, regardless if they're using tubeless or not, given the width and traction of road bike tires and the danger of slipping.

[enkei]

(12-14-2025, 11:39 AM)rydabent Wrote:  I know that tubeless tires seem to be all the rage among many cyclist. However, consider this. If you run over a piece of trash that rips the sidewall in your tire, you are probably going to walk home. But with tire that have a tube. in this case, simply put a boot in the tire, and a new tube and ride home. I carry a boot in my trunk pack, but a dollar bill will work just fine as a boot also.

There's nothing to stop you using a tube inside a tubeless tire. You should always carry a spare tube and a boot anyway. When touring/bikepacking, you should also pack tooth floss, a needle, and some duct tape, as well. It's no different to running clinchers, except that all of the time when you haven't suffered a badly damaged tire, you'll be enjoying the many benefits of tubeless.

I wouldn't bother running tubeless on a road bike, and if you're for some reason swapping tires frequently, tubeless can be a PITA for MTB/gravel, too.

[ReapThaWhirlwind]

Tubeless Tires suit special needs.

I personally think they're best for competition scene riding only.

I wouldn't want to ride them elsewhere, and I certainly wouldn't want to have to rely on this system as a daily driver.

But something that creates a new industry, and a pop-culture, will always have its hipster demographic. We just need to respect that.

[SPINMAN]

(12-14-2025, 11:39 AM)rydabent Wrote:  I know that tubeless tires seem to be all the rage among many cyclist. However, consider this. If you run over a piece of trash that rips the sidewall in your tire, you are probably going to walk home. But with tire that have a tube. in this case, simply put a boot in the tire, and a new tube and ride home. I carry a boot in my trunk pack, but a dollar bill will work just fine as a boot also.

I don't think tubeless tires are all the rage. Tubeless only rims even less. I don't know what a boot is? MTB with slime is good, but tubeless on the road, I can't imagine trying to replace it.

[Jesper]

The "hipster" comment is shallow and does not apply to tubeless tires.

As for competition; let us hear from an actual competitor (road and off-road); provide race type and bike type with wheel specs.

I now have nearly 60 years of cycling and have never had a sidewall flat so that must be an anomoly not worth my time.

@enkei pretty much nailed it: always carry a spare tube (or complete tubular ready to glue). Never needed a "boot", I have a spare tube and old tube can be made into a "boot" so save your $.

I have competed on tubulars before so until you've dealt with sew-ups I think you will find tubeless a better option, but very heavy compared to silks so not best for road efficiency.

[SPINMAN]

(01-19-2026, 11:33 AM)enkei Wrote:  

(12-14-2025, 11:39 AM)rydabent Wrote:  I know that tubeless tires seem to be all the rage among many cyclist. However, consider this. If you run over a piece of trash that rips the sidewall in your tire, you are probably going to walk home. But with tire that have a tube. in this case, simply put a boot in the tire, and a new tube and ride home. I carry a boot in my trunk pack, but a dollar bill will work just fine as a boot also.

There's nothing to stop you using a tube inside a tubeless tire. You should always carry a spare tube and a boot anyway. When touring/bikepacking, you should also pack tooth floss, a needle, and some duct tape, as well. It's no different to running clinchers, except that all of the time when you haven't suffered a badly damaged tire, you'll be enjoying the many benefits of tubeless.

I wouldn't bother running tubeless on a road bike, and if you're for some reason swapping tires frequently, tubeless can be a PITA for MTB/gravel, too.

Tube inside a tubeless? Then you have to swap out the tubeless valve stem. Then hope the rim an hook fit the tire. Floss, needle duct tape. Just bring a support van behind you and swap out the whole bike.

[enkei]

(01-19-2026, 03:32 PM)ReapThaWhirlwind Wrote:  Tubeless Tires suit special needs.

I personally think they're best for competition scene riding only.

I wouldn't want to ride them elsewhere, and I certainly wouldn't want to have to rely on this system as a daily driver.

But something that creates a new industry, and a pop-culture, will always have its hipster demographic. We just need to respect that.

There's nothing "competition scene only" about tubeless for MTB or gravel. IMHO, tubeless makes little sense for road bikes running narrower tires, especially given the benefits of TPU tubes. For the bigger-volume tires of MTB and gravel, especially on rough terrain (including the roads I ride) and anywhere with significant puncture risks (again, my local roads and anywhere off-road), tubes are just plain stupid. Tubeless allows you to run much lower tire pressures without the risk of pinch flats. This provides better traction/grip and ride comfort, which are big factors on rough terrain.

Tubeless is not some hipster, FOMO nonsense. Seeing it as this is simple ignorance.

Tubeless on road bikes, especially outside competition, however, does make little, if any sense, especially on narrow rims, and 1000% more so on hookless rims. Having said that, the gap between road and gravel is, almost literally, narrowing, as the width of road bike tires continues to, well, widen.

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(01-20-2026, 07:27 PM)SPINMAN Wrote:  I don't think tubeless tires are all the rage. Tubeless only rims even less. I don't know what a boot is? MTB with slime is good, but tubeless on the road, I can't imagine trying to replace it.

A boot is a thick piece of material, typically rubber or Hypalon (the material from which inflatable and rigid-inflatable boats are made) one sandwiches between an inner tube and a hole in the tire, typically in the sidewall. It's designed to get you out of trouble when you would otherwise be stranded. This is why one carries an 'emergency' tube when running tubeless.

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(01-21-2026, 04:48 AM)Jesper Wrote:  The "hipster" comment is shallow and does not apply to tubeless tires.

As for competition; let us hear from an actual competitor (road and off-road); provide race type and bike type with wheel specs.

I now have nearly 60 years of cycling and have never had a sidewall flat so that must be an anomoly not worth my time.

@enkei pretty much nailed it: always carry a spare tube (or complete tubular ready to glue). Never needed a "boot", I have a spare tube and old tube can be made into a "boot" so save your $.

I have competed on tubulars before so until you've dealt with sew-ups I think you will find tubeless a better option, but very heavy compared to silks so not best for road efficiency.

Thanks, @Jesper. Having cycled regularly for decades, I stopped cycling when I moved to SE Asia in 2003 (too damn hot and humid, to say nothing of the dangers of traffic!). Since returning to "the real world" 8 years ago, I have again cycled regularly. In the first 7 years of that return to cycling, almost all of which was on roads, I suffered not even one puncture on the road. I had one cut sidewall (glass, probably), which didn't manifest until I was already home, and that was it.

Last year, I suffered another cut from glass while cycling in London, but I happened to be on my Brompton, on my way to the Brompton shop, and simply walked the last few hundred meters, handing the bike to their mechanic for a new tube and tire, LOL. Lazy, I know.

In the last few months, I've had two punctures on my gravel bike (43mm tubeless tires run at 30-40psi, depending): one small hole from a large thorn (healed by tubeless sealant) and one from glass that was too big for the sealant to heal. Fixing that last puncture involved stopping, getting off the bike, pulling out the plug-insertion tool, plugging the hole, and pumping up the tire. Total time: about 2 minutes. A competitor with more experience and a better plug system could probably get it done in 30 seconds.

The last time I met a fellow cyclist with a puncture on the road, it was the highly experienced head of one of the local road racing clubs. He had already spent about ten sweaty minutes on the problem. It took him about ten more minutes of strenuous effort before he was going again. And this man is neither stupid, nor inexperienced. Beautiful top-tier bike, though.

I agree that sidewall punctures should be extremely rare on a properly maintained road bike. I have experience (over 40 years ago), of sew-ups. LOL, not much fun!