Your Bicycle Tires May Not Be Black In The Future

Vittoria's "green" tan colored tire. (Image by Ari Andonopoulos)

 Last February I was honored to present a report from CABDA (Chicago Area Bicycle Dealers Association) which was sent to me by my good friend Ari Andonopoulos. In the report, Ari had an image of one of Vittoria's new "green initiatives". A tire made from 95% recycled materials. Because Vittoria is trying to reach a "carbon neutral" state in manufacturing, no material was added to make the rubber black. (Which, somewhat ironically, is called carbon black.)

Now it appears these tires with a "natural tan" color, are actually outperforming Vittoria's typical gravel tires. Several Pro athletes sponsored by Vittoria were using the tan colored tires at the recent UCI Gravel World Championships, according to an online report recently. 

With claims coming from the athletes making it sound as though these tires are faster rolling and have excellent traction qualities, will we see more of these tires in the future? 

As of now, Vittoria does not offer these gravel tires for sale, but one would have to think this will change soon. Especially if racers are sharing glowing comments about them. The amateurs will be clamoring for similar benefits, no doubt! 

From a social media sale post

Now, if you are old enough to remember, Tioga, (and a few other brands) were doing weirdly colored tires for mountain bikes in the 1990s. There were the Onza Porcupines with those round knobs in a white hue. There were Specialized "Umma Gumma" tires in a gray colored rubber. Ritchey had a reddish colored Z-Max tire. The Tiogas were a "butterscotch" and I have no idea if they would have been anything like today's Vittoria tires, but they did have a reputation for being fast wearing and fragile. So, there is that historical reference. 

You may be thinking there would be "no way" you'd ever run these "ugly" Vittorias, but let me tell you, don't be surprised if these get popular. Tioga "Butterscotch" Psychos were very trendy in the 1990's. Lots of brands stuck them on their mountain bikes back then, and they were a hot item there for a "hot minute". 

Plus, Panaracer has proven there is a market for colored rubber on your gravel tires. How many years have they offered weirdly colored tires now? So, yeah, I think there is a market for this.  

Psychos went out of favor due to their shortcomings in terms of performance and durability. However; if Vittoria has cracked the code on this, and the tires are faster than black ones, I think they will catch on. The fact the tires Vittoria are developing have a 95% recycled content makes this technology appealing to younger riders who have a deep sense of environmental preservation. Judging from what I have heard from young people, this is not a small number. So, the performance factor and the "green" factor matter here. 

I'd rock a set too. I always kind of liked those odd-colored tires back in the 90's!