Compass Chinook Pass Tires

I recently put some new tires on one of my bikes and got my first opportunity to try out the very nice traditional-looking Compass brand tires -- specifically, the 28mm Chinook Pass. The Compass tires are billed as having exceptionally supple casings which should yield a great ride and handling with very low rolling resistance. Over the years, Jan Heine's Bicycle Quarterly magazine has published the results of a number of real-world-based tests to measure tire rolling resistance, and those tests helped lead to the development of the Compass tires. In the interest of disclosure, Bicycle Quarterly and Compass Cycles are the same company, and Heine is very up-front and forthcoming about that fact - but I'm inclined to put good faith in their test results which have helped lead a welcome trend in the bicycle industry toward larger volume tires.

The Chinook Pass tires on my King of Mercia. They have a great
 look on a retro-grouchy bike. Natural tan sidewalls, a traditional
file tread, and the label is small and subtle. Useful tip: always
 line up the tire logo with the valve stem.

The Compass tires are made by Panaracer, which also makes the Grand Bois tires, which are also available through Compass Cycles. Panaracer also makes tires for Rivendell, in addition to the tires they sell under their own name. One thing to note about the Compass tires is that all the different sizes that are available have different names, unlike many other brands/models such as the Panaracer Pasella, which comes in a wide variety of sizes and widths but all with the same name. For example, for a huge 700c x 38mm tire, get the Barlow Pass. The 32mm tire is the Stampede Pass. The Chinook Pass is labeled as 28mm, and the Cayuse Pass is the narrowest option at 26mm. All of the road tires are named after roads around the Cascade mountains.

Most of the Compass tires are available with either a black or natural tan sidewall. I always opt for the natural tan for my vintage-styled bikes. People with more modern rides might choose the black sidewalls if that suits their style better. All the different tires use the same traditional file pattern tread, and are available with one of two casing options: Standard, and Extralight. The Extralight is a little thinner and is supposed to be even more supple than the Standard casing, but it adds nearly $20 to the price. I opted for the Standard casing Chinook Pass for $57 -- not inexpensive, but that does appear to be the going rate for high-quality, high-performance clincher tires these days. Panaracer Pasellas sell for less, but they have a noticeably thicker casing and tread. I would not consider them a high-performance tire (that's not a criticism - it's just a matter of different tires for different missions).

The previous tires I had used on my Mercian King of Mercia were the Challenge Paris-Roubaix tires. I have to be honest in saying that, from a performance standpoint, those are tough to beat. The Paris-Roubaix is billed by Challenge as an "open-tubular" -- not just a "clincher" tire. That is, they use the same exact casing as their tubular tires, but instead of sewing the casing around the tube, they use the wire bead of a clincher. Okay - that's just a matter of semantics, or marketing-speak. But the tires were wonderful - springy, fast, and comfortable. The only criticism I've seen against them is that some feel they are a bit too vulnerable to flats. However, I rode mine for several years and wore the tread down completely and only suffered one flat in that whole time. The price on the Paris-Roubaix seems to have gone up since I last bought them. I'm certain I didn't pay more than about $55 each ($60 at the very most), but checking around lately, the going rate seems to be about $75 each. Gulp!

Hoping for a similar riding experience, I got the Compass Chinook Pass when the Paris-Roubaix finally wore out. I got the new tires mounted with no difficulty. I was able to pull the bead over the edge of the rim all the way 'round with no tools. A little pulling here and pinching there, and I was able to get them mounted perfectly straight and even as well. They seem very well made - a quality product.

The Mercian King of Mercia is my most "modern" bike.
Traditional-looking Reynolds 725 chrome moly lugged frame,
with modern Campagnolo Centaur 10-sp. drivetrain,
Ergo integrated shifters, and even a threadless stem.
It doesn't even have a Brooks saddle! But it does use 57mm
 reach brakes, and has room for fairly large-volume tires.

Mounted up and out on the road, my first impression is that the tires compare pretty favorably to the Challenge. I can't do a true side-by-side comparison, but they feel comparable. I would say, however, that the old Paris-Roubaix tires felt just a bit cushier. That's really hard to quantify, and the difference (if there really is one) can't be much. Even a small change in air pressure could account for the difference. However, one thing I can measure with certainty is the width of the tires. The Paris-Roubaix tires are labelled as 27mm, and installed on my Mavic Open Pro rims (19.6mm wide) they had an actual measurement of more than 28mm! On the other hand, the Chinook Pass is labelled as 28mm, but on the same rims, my calipers come up with a width of 26mm. Actual tire width can vary a bit from one rim model to another, but it seems pretty clear that the Compass tires run a little smaller than the listed size. It's not unusual for that to be the case, and a difference of 2mm is actually pretty small compared to some tires I've seen or used over the years. Many readers probably remember buying tires in the '80s and '90s that could easily run 4 or 5mm smaller than the listed size. In any case, if I'd known the tires would mount up on the smaller side, I might have opted for the Stampede Pass, as I have no doubt that I can fit a 32mm tire, especially if it only measures 30. I guess my advice for buyers who want fatter tires would be that if they are trying to choose between two sizes, go up.

I've gotten out for several rides on the new tires. They do live up to the advertising in that they do feel fast, and comfortable. Handling around corners is good, and on chip-seal paving (really common on rural backroads in my area) they do a good job of keeping the "buzz" to a minimum.

It's way too early to tell about long-term durability, but I don't expect any problems. I've had excellent experiences with Panaracer-made Rivendell tires like the Roly Poly and the Jack Browns, as well as Panaracer Pasellas. I will be interested to see how the lighter, more supple casing affects the durability on the Compass tires. Certainly, as I get more miles on these, if I observe anything that would change my long-term impressions, I'll post something. I should note, however, that the tires specifically do not have any kind of extra puncture resistant measures in their construction. Adding extra puncture resistant layers and belts can cut down on flats, obviously, but such layers also make for a stiffer casing and add rolling resistance. Though Heine mentions in his articles that they use the Compass tires over all kinds of roads without issues, I might suggest that if someone is really concerned about punctures on their heavy-duty commuting bike that they ride over roads strewn with broken glass or goat-head thorns, they are probably not in the market for a lightweight performance tire. Just getting that out there.

So far, though, I'd say that if riders are interested in a light, fast, performance tire - especially one that looks right on a classic-styled bike - then the tires from Compass give us several more options and in a nice variety of available sizes.