Continental Gator Hardshell
Strong and durable, Gatorskins have to be the most popular training tyres out there, and the Gator Hardshell takes things a step further with even greater toughness.
We didn’t puncture once in these despite autumn thorns littering our regular routes. Conti’s dense polyester anti-puncture breaker belt – they call it Poly-X – extends right into the shoulders and provides a solid barrier to sharp intruders. It’s even hard to force a pin through these. Three layers of Dura-Skin polyamide mesh protect the casing from cuts and tears, so you’d have to hit something big really hard for the sidewalls to give out.
The tread compound is sticky enough to provide plenty of confidence even when you’re riding through damp corners at speed, and there’s enough rubber for impressive durability too. All this and not too much of a weight penalty – great stuff.
Contact : www.contri-tyres.co.uk
Matt Baird
Editor of Cycling Plus magazine 
