European Mountain Bike Championships. Friday evening in Bern city centre. Sprint Eliminator. Nadine Rieder from the Topeak Ergon Team rolls up to the start line on her Canyon 29er with Continental Speed King tyres. These are 29er prototypes that the German tyre manufacturer tested in Bern. The 26-inch version of the Speed King has been available on the Conti website for several months.
We asked Product Manager Sebastian Moos about it. He said: "As part of the European Mountain Bike and Trials Championships in Bern, the first Continetal Speed King 29er prototypes tested in racing. The relay race held in the city centre and the sprint races in particular offered ideal conditions for putting the extremely smooth-rolling Speed King through its paces."
The Speed King in 2.2 as a 29er version has the same vulcanised carcass as the well-known Race King, but achieves around 6-8 percent better rolling resistance values on the test bench thanks to its optimised tread geometry. The riders' initial verdict: more grip than the tread suggests. The market launch is planned for Eurobike 2013 at the end of August. The weight will be around 450-460 grams, the price of the "RaceSport" version made in Korbache will be 54.90 euros.
