Measuring tire pressure and inflating tires on a racing bike

Inflating the tire of your racing bike requires some attention. If you want to drive smoothly, you prefer to inflate the tire hard, but what exactly should you pay attention to? And what is the correct tire pressure for a racing bike?

Most racing bikes have a French valve, also called a Presta valve. To inflate a tire with a French valve, follow these steps.

1. If present, unscrew the valve cap.
2. Now open the screw cap as far as possible.
3. Now inflate the tire. Many bicycle pumps have a smaller hole for a Presta valve. Connect this smaller hole to the valve.
4. When the tire is at the desired pressure, close the screw cap again and, if necessary, replace the valve cap.

Where is the tire pressure for your bicycle tire?

Look at your bicycle tire, it indicates the minimum and maximum pressure. In between, you can set your ideal tire pressure according to your preference. The thinner the tire, the harder you have to inflate it. Don't inflate the tire too hard, otherwise you will lose too much damping and you will feel every pebble on the road. Too low tire pressure makes the tire susceptible to holes.

What your body weight means for tire pressure

Also include your own weight in your adjustment. The rule of thumb for cyclists is to divide your body weight by 10. Anyone who weighs 80 kilos should therefore maintain a tire pressure of 8 bar. You can sit half a bar below that if that feels more comfortable. Because you lean forward as a cyclist, it is advisable to inflate your rear tire half a bar harder than your front tire.

The correct tire pressure in autumn and winter

Rain and leaves can make the road surface slippery in the fall. In winter, frost causes the same problem. From the autumn onwards it is therefore better not to inflate your tires too hard, then you will have more grip on the road. Too high a tire pressure makes the tire narrow where it touches the road surface.

How often should you check your tire pressure?

The Cyclists' Union recommends purchasing a good bicycle pump with a tension meter and checking the tension regularly. Tires always lose some pressure naturally. Therefore, check the tire pressure of your racing bike at least once every two months. It is even better to check the tire pressure every week.

This is how you create your own ideal tire pressure table

Inflate the tires of your racing bike with a compressor? That is possible with the electric bicycle pump from Donrox. This mini compressor gives you the choice of five pre-programmed and customizable settings. This allows you to create an ideal tire pressure table yourself, for your car and for different bicycles. This way you only have to look it up once and you can be sure that you have exactly the right voltage.

Effortless inflation with compressor

Inflating is effortless and stops automatically at the desired pressure. You will receive an adapter nipple for French and Dutch valves for free. Also useful: thanks to the built-in light you can clearly see what you are doing, even in bad weather conditions.

Compact bicycle pump and bicycle bag

The Donrox racing bike compressor is compact enough to always have with you. With the accompanying bicycle bag that you can attach in different places, you do not have to carry a bag on your body. The bags have been specially developed for the air pumps and you can easily attach them to your bicycle. The bicycle bags are waterproof and have a transparent pocket for your mobile phone. This way you can check the route along the way. This versatile mini compressor also works as a power bank, so you can always charge your phone.

Do you want to inflate your tires, but you are not sure how best to do this? Then read one of the following blog posts!