Tires matched to the course you’re actually racing
Every course asks something different of a tire. Gravel Wire reads the actual course, surface by surface, and matches every tire in our catalog to what that course demands.
We read the course first
For every course we profile, we build a Gravel Wire course read: the whole route sorted into 5 surface types by how much of the distance each covers — pavement, hardpack, loose gravel, dirt and sand. Each rewards a different tire. Any stretch we cannot read is left out of the score, never guessed at. Your recommendation starts from the real mix on your course, not a generic idea of “gravel.”
Then we match every tire to it
We score every tire in our catalog against that course read: tread pattern, centre knob height, casing and width. Where a maker describes its tread in words, we translate those words into a knob class so every tire is judged on the same scale. We rate every tire, whether or not the brand works with us.
What you see on a course page
- A spec line: the tread, width range and casing that suit this course.
- Up to three short lists — Best match for this course, Best all-round, and If it rains — with up to 4 tires in each.
- Every rated tire with its score, behind “See all tires,” which carries the count.
When tires score the same, we tell you
On many courses, several tires meet the course’s demands equally well. We mark those with “=” so you can choose among them on what matters to you: price, availability, or what you already trust.
Claimed weight
Shown beside each tire where the maker publishes it, for reference. The score comes from how well the tire fits the course.
Built on makers’ own specs
Every spec comes from the maker’s own page, with the date we read it. Our tread, knob and casing classes are our reading of those specs, and every ranking says so. Where we cannot find a tire in a maker’s current catalog, or a maker has not confirmed a width, the tire carries the label “Not in the maker’s current catalog” or “Width not confirmed by the maker,” so you always know what you are looking at. Tube-type tires are listed as “Tube-type only” and not rated.
What real riders ran
Two things, on the courses that have them. What the winners ran: individual finishers’ setups, as published or as the rider reported them, each with its source. What the field ran: the tires, widths and pressures across the field, shown only where at least 5 riders’ setups reach a figure, so no single rider’s setup can be read out of an aggregate.
Money
No brand has paid for placement in these rankings, and none can. Rankings are the same whoever makes the tire. Where a tire has a buy link, we may earn a commission on it — that link is the only thing a brand partnership changes. A promoted placement, where one is sold, sits beside a ranking, is labelled Promoted, and is never part of the list.
When we change the scoring
We publish the new version and what changed under How this is scored, which also shows the arithmetic behind every row.
Rankings are computed by Gravel Wire's published model from tire specifications and our read of each course. No brand has paid for placement in these rankings, and rank is not for sale. Where a Buy link appears, Gravel Wire may earn a commission on the sale — that link is the only thing a brand partnership changes. Course surfaces are Gravel Wire course reads, estimated from map data unless marked otherwise.