Depending on your neighborhood, bike riding can be a nice alternative to driving while getting some often seriously lacking exercise in our modern lives. But isn’t it a pain to deal with inflating tires and getting the occasional flat tire when you are miles from home? Colorado-based start-up Britek Tire and Rubber has your back. The company has developed a non-pneumatic tire called the Energy Wheel Return (EWR). A video of the “reinvented wheel” for cars is available on their website and the video for bike tires on YouTube.
Originally, their tire was designed for cars so they could improve fuel efficiency and performance while eliminating flats. Of course, the big players in the tire sector – Michelin, Amerityre, Goodyear, and Bridgestone – were also looking to develop game changing new tire technology while defending their traditional tire market share.
But back to bikes. The new mountain bike version of the wheels incorporates lightweight 29-inch carbon fiber rims and is open on the sides. Britek may add thin sidewalls to the wheels to keep mud from accumulating. Instead of adjusting air pressure, riders fiddle with the rubber-tensioning rods to make the wheels run harder or softer. I’d be curious how smooth the ride is. I doubt it as nice as an air filled tire ride, but if it isn’t uncomfortable it may be a reasonable trade off. The company is now looking for companies interested in licensing its product in the U.S.
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