I\u2019ve had my Continental GP5000 S TR 35mm test samples for a few months now and I\u2019m hugely impressed by the ride.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s the same familiar, sticky compound, and the same textured surface that provides impeccable grip in the dry and gives me lots of confidence in the wet.<\/p>\n
Moving up
\n![\"Continental](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/continental-GP5000s-TR-35mm-Woz-1.jpeg\")
The Continental GP5000 S TR 35mm measures up wider when mounted. Warren Rossiter \/ Ourmedia<\/p>\n
Moving up to 35mm also means I\u2019ve been able to drop my tyre pressures<\/a>, vastly improving comfort. On 30mm-wide tyres, I\u2019m running 58psi up front and 62psi at the rear. With the increase to 35mm, that has dropped to 49psi at the front and 52psi at the rear.<\/p>\n The nigh-on 10psi drop front and rear may not sound like much, but the effect on the road is huge. Poor surfaces, which are the bane of any British road cyclist, are handled better. Ride smoothness improves noticeably and grip is better in all weather.<\/p>\n Bigger isn’t always better Now, any rider concerned about bike weights will have reservations, and there are still plenty of weight weenies out there. <\/p>\n The 35mm GP5000s weigh in at a not inconsiderable 365g each. Compared to a 28mm GP5000 at 280g, that\u2019s an 85g jump per tyre \u2013 a total of 170g. Then there\u2019s extra sealant to consider \u2013 on a pair of 28s you\u2019ll need 125ml, but for 35mm tyres, that jumps to 140ml. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n So, the weight penalty is almost 200g. That’s not a deal-breaker for me, especially because the ride quality is so, so good, but I can see how it could be an issue for some.<\/p>\n In contrast, on my latest bike, I\u2019m using Tufo\u2019s racy Comtura Prima in a 32mm and this weighs in at 254.9g, so lighter than a 28mm GP5000, and a fair bit lighter than this 35mm version.<\/p>\n The other big downside, however, is trickier to negate \u2013 and that\u2019s compatibility.<\/p>\n Most of the latest endurance bikes<\/a> provide 35mm of clearance. However, when it comes to race bikes, big names such as the Specialized Tarmac SL8<\/a> only have provision for 32mm, and Giant\u2019s TCR<\/a> offers 33mm clearance.<\/p>\n This got me thinking \u2013 if, like me, you don\u2019t necessarily buy, or have the budget to buy, a new bike every couple of years, larger tyres could be an issue.<\/p>\n I have a lot of bikes, but I struggled to find a road bike<\/a> in my collection these tyres would fit. <\/p>\n I didn\u2019t expect them to fit old favourites such as my Giant TCR Advanced SL from 2018 \u2013 and they don\u2019t.<\/p>\n The same goes for my custom titanium Lynskey endurance bike from 2017, and of course none of my rim-brake bikes stand a chance. I\u2019d expect that, but more \u2018current\u2019 bikes such as my Tarmac SL6<\/a> and third-generation Cannondale SuperSix EVO<\/a> \u2013 even the super-versatile Rondo HVRT<\/a> \u2013 can\u2019t take a 35mm.<\/p>\n Continental GP5000 S TR 35mm initial verdict The 35mm Continentals do fit my Vitus Venon Evo<\/a>, another versatile endurance\/all-road bike from 2023. You could, of course, ‘roadify’ a gravel bike <\/a>with a second set of wheels and a the 35mm GP5000s.<\/p>\n The bike industry is often criticised for pushing new standards<\/a> on its customers, such as big road tyres, or the shift to 50mm+ gravel tyres<\/a> (I also don\u2019t own a gravel bike that can take 50mm tyres).<\/p>\n Whether or not I’d buy these tyres is a difficult decision, because they offer serious tangible benefits: better ride quality, grip and speed on more stubborn surfaces.<\/p>\n Do they merit a whole new bike, though?<\/p>\n Well, I won\u2019t be selling my favourite racy bikes just yet, but I know I\u2019m in the enviable position of having multiple bikes and testing many more. <\/p>\n So, my advice would be you shouldn\u2019t feel compelled to upgrade your bike now, but when it comes to your next road bike purchase do not skimp on tyre clearances.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The subject of bigger road tyres has been a hot topic for over a year now and I…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":513781,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[59,86,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-513780","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-technology","8":"tag-gb","9":"tag-technology","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom","12":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/513780","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=513780"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/513780\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/513781"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=513780"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=513780"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=513780"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n![\"continental](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/continental-GP5000s-TR-35mm-Woz-2.jpeg\")
The same sticky compound, but with more comfort. Warren Rossiter \/ Ourmedia<\/p>\n![\"Tufo](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/tufo-comtura-prima-32-woz.jpeg\")
The Tufo Comtura Prima TR 32 is fast, light and above all big. Warren Rossiter \/ Ourmedia<\/p>\n
\n![\"Vitus](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/vitus-evo-woz-copy.jpeg\")
My Vitus Venon Evo is my only road bike that fits a 35mm tyre. Warren Rossiter \/ Ourmedia<\/p>\n