and now I need to replace the tires. They were gp5000 clinchers. Awesome as a tire - low rolling resistance, not too heavy and great for all seasons in my area. But they are soooo tight replacing the inner tube is a real pain.
Any tire recommendations?
I’d like something similar - low rolling resistance, all season tire and good puncture resistance but easier to get on and off the rim. Not thinking tubeless.
I live in the UK so the roads are not smooth and the weather is changeable with lots of rain in winter but the temperatures don’t normally get below zero.
Former GP5000 user here. I experienced similar issues with the tires and the hours/frustrations that it took to change them weren’t worth the benefit.
I’ve been riding on Pirelli P-Zero (Normal and Race versions), and absolutely love the way they handle. They aren’t as “durable,” but are ridiculously easy to change, and perform quite well. The savings of both time and stress of changing a flat are well worth it, IMO.
There is nothing as sturdy and long lasting as the GP5000 (besides the 5000s TR).
The Michelin Power Cup is as good on paper, but has a stupidly narrow tire thread, rendering it borderline unusable.
I really like my Veloflex corsa race, very fast , very comfortable (350 TPI), grippy and easy to mount and according to bicycle rolling resistance more puncture resistant than gp5000 (though i doubt that), they also have a slightly sturdier every day tire corsa evo
I’ve found the s works turbo to offer the best balance of grip, rolling resistance and ease of removing and replacing after a puncture. Puncture resistance is pretty good with no punctures in 1800 ish miles this year.
This is in no way to insult your ability to work on your bike, but something I had to learn when working on my own.
GP5000s can be a pain to put on, BUT, there are ways to make it easier. it really has to do with squeezing the bead to be on the very inside of the rims on all sides when sliding that last bit of the lip over. When I started doing this, it because super easy for me to put every tire on (MTB, gravel, road) by hand and without tools.
Squeezing the bead into the center, and doing the valve area last made it super easy. I just changed four tires (two race wheels and two spares) and it is cake. I know you may be thinking “STFU dude, I have been putting on tires for 20+ years”. Me too, but this seriously helped!
If this is the only thing stopping you from using a great tire, maybe you want to give it a shot?
I have a pair of IRC formula pro X-guards that I used on gravel before having a gravel bike - they have taken some pretty hard abuse doing some gravel dirt road races and training.
But when I field tested them, they were 15W slower for the pair using those on 34mm aero wheels vs. the GP5000TL on 45mm aero wheels. (I would wager that the vast majority of that difference was the tire…) And they are still a pretty tight fit, which to some degree you really should want for tubeless…
My recommendation would be carry dynaplugs that will cover almost anything - and just accept an uber/spouse call for that photo above
Here is a photo I shared on the tubeless megathread showing a GP5000 sidewall cut where I stuffed in two plugs side-by-side. I did a 20 min full speed TT interval going home on it, no problem.
I have adopted the view that high quality plugs are the only thing I can plan to do roadside with road tubeless - but it’s usually enough - and saves the hassle and space/weight of carrying levers and tubes.
Bingo…this technique has saved me tons of ass pain on the side of the road in the heat after flatting, even with GP5000s. I usually can’t get enough pressure into the new tube to pop it back onto the bead, so it’s a bit of a wobbly ride back home. But I get home…
Was that your first GP5000? My experience - GP5000 in several sizes has fit several different rims without issue. The tubeless 5000 TL and 5000 S TR are a different story and waaaayyyyy too tight.
I love the road feel and performance of the S Works Turbo RapidAir 2Bliss but would only recommend running that tubeless. Doesn’t last as long as GP5000 but road feel is so much better.
I use and carry a tirejack in my jersey pocket. NEeded it to mount the GP5K and when I flat roadside. It’s super light and and gets that last bit of tire on without slicing the tube. Then you get to ride the tires you like.
I don’t know if they have changed since I used them last. I found them a great grippy, fast and robust tyre. Up to a point, then they’d suddenly fail overnight.
I’ve had a great experience with Turbo Cottons, haven’t tried the GP 5000 but somewhat hesitant to over concerns with hypothetical issues with changing them on the road side.
At present leaning towards tan wall Michelin Power Cups. I have non-tubeless wheels so will be going clincher. The only concern seems to be the narrow tread but haven’t seen anyone actually have issues with this yet. Huge thread on Weight Weenies about them New Michelin Power Cup Tubeless: GP5K S TR competitor - Weight Weenies
I think it was a Sheldon Brown article that debunks tread on a narrow road bike tyre as only a ‘sales gimmick’. Tread there isn’t needed as the tyre is too narrow to aquaplane unless you can hit an impossible speed. A wider motorbike tyre has to hit something closer to 100mph or something, a narrower road bike tyre cuts through water like ‘a knife through butter’. Im tubeless these days which originally ruled out Mitchelin Powers but I ran them before on my good bike (and still do on my TT bike and commuter, Power TT and Endurance) and would have no qualms about their lack of tread, its more to do with the compound and there’s more of that in contact with the road. Good choice and enjoy
The rolling resistance of a concrete wheel would be … ah … bad 
Downhills could be interesting.
