Note: Guitar Ted was gifted these tires by a friend for his Singular Peregrine Mk4 bicycle build. Guitar Ted is not being paid, nor bribed for this review. Schwalbe is unaware of this review and have no input in the content here. All opinions are Guitar Ted's. The introductory post can be seen by clicking HERE.
Air Pressure:
Everyone should be experimenting with air pressures to find what works the best for their riding style, terrain, and loading scenarios. This can vary with weather as well. So, when I talk about air pressure and tires, I purposely try to be somewhat vague because just sitting on a number for your air pressure - while easy - is wrong. At least from the standpoint of squeezing out the maximum amount of performance you can. Just think about any motorsport racing. Those vehicles never use the same air pressures for everything. Now, of course, if this doesn't matter to you, then by all means, set and forget.
In my testing I vary the air pressure by allowing it to bleed off naturally over time until I like what I am feeling, then I check it. Note: I tried using the SILCA and Wolf Tooth pressure calculators. SILCA's was.....I don't know. I couldn't get it to work. Wolf Tooth's works great but it has limited input data fields. So, I know people rave about the online pressure calculators, but they are barely a "guide" and by no means are they a "hard and fast" pressure setting which you would want to live by. Tires vary so much, for instance, that this variable alone would make any online guidance merely a starting point.
Now, I started with 30psi in each tire and I did not add any air, or even check the pressure, until I felt what I wanted to feel out of these tires, which was a great ride quality with very good rolling resistance. Once the tires started behaving in a manner in which I was pleased with the overall riding performance, I checked the air pressures. I have arrived at a general starting point of 25psi as being where these tires work best for myself. This will change with temperatures, terrain, and if I add or subtract weight from my bike. So, I don't have a number, I have a range and again - This is for myself. Your pressures will vary, and that is as it should be.
These are a lot of words to say the following: The Schwalbe G-One Overlands are a tire I have to run lower pressures in to get what I want out of them than I would with other gravel tires. You may recall my saying these tires had stiff sidewalls? This is probably the main reason for where I ended up on pressures. A tire with only under-the-tread protection, or no protection belting, would have scored differently. In this area the G-One Overlands are very much like the Hutchinson Touareg tires which also had very stiff casings. (I really liked the Hutch's, by the way)
Rolling Resistance:
In my roll-down testing I found the G-One Overlands to be impressive. I ran these tests over a period of a couple of weeks on the same track using the same methods I have since 2022. The G-One Overlands scored Very Good on pavement and Very Good on the gravel/dirt section of the test as well. Remembering these are 50mm wide and not all that light, with a mind to how stiff the sidewalls are, and I have to say Schwalbe has done an excellent job with the rubber compound and casing construction on this tire.
This showed itself again anytime I coasted on hard packed gravel, dirt, or on pavement. There just was not any feeling of draggy, slower tires holding me back. Quite the contrary. The Shimano GRX wheels are pretty good wheels, but they are not as good a feeling wheels with other tires, in terms of rolling resistance, as they are with the G-One Overlands.
There are some who are trying to "categorize gravel" into neat little boxes so they can fit their findings into those categories. Things like "Category 4" gravel. This means nothing to me.
On my rides I can easily come across five different "categories" of gravel in the first five miles. So, again, trying to make this easy is doing you, and those who read into these so-called "categories of gravel" a disservice. It is not this easy. It is very complicated. Most places I have ridden have their own, unique to the area, challenges which are not found elsewhere.
I typically will show you or at least say how loose or not the gravel is in my area and you will have to judge for yourself whether or not this is relevant for you. I also ride in alleyways which typically are gravel here, but the gravel is decayed, and smoother. Less loose. I also ride test tires on dirt, sand, broken up pavement, and on pavement, of course.
Most tires are okay. Some do well in certain areas. Some are not very notable. Overall, the G-One Overland, a tire I'd expect to be good at varying conditions and surface types, is a tire I've found little to complain about. The casing is a rounded crown type of tire, but it is not overly so. Not quite as crowned as the previously mentioned Hutchinson Touareg. This makes for better loose gravel control and feedback. I liked the stability this provided in looser gravel at higher speeds.
I had feared the smaller, closely spaced tread blocks may be a cause for concern. Usually I find this sort of pattern type to be one which can grab a hold of smaller rocks and chips and fling them in the air. No such trouble was noted with the Overlands.
During a sandy minimum maintenance road traverse, where the sand was very loose, fine, and deep, the G-One Overlands were stable and flotation was excellent. I was a bit surprised by this, to be honest. Most tires do not work this well in those conditions.
So Far...
At lower pressures, the G-One comes into its own in terms of ride feel. This usually also means you have a compromise in performance somewhere else. Most of the time this comes with a penalty in rolling resistance. However; this is not the case with the G-One Overlands.
Now, everything I have tried with these tires so far has been done in very dry conditions. We are supposedly getting rain, cooler temperatures, and with this very different chances for testing. In my next, and final update, I hope to add my impressions of the G-One Overlands in softer dirt, mud, and wetter conditions.
As of now these tires have been a pleasant surprise and since they are a reminder of the Hutchinson Touaregs, this pleases me. I can no longer get Touaregs here, so the G-One Overlands, being somewhat similar, but better, are a great find for myself. If you want an all-around conditions tire for the dry, these would be an excellent tire to consider. We will see what happens when I can try these in moist, wetter conditions.
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