Are there times during a ride where you just wish you could swap out your tire tread? Norwegian company Retyre had this issue and has done something about it. The company's interchangeable tire treads, or 'skins,' use a zipper to attach.
Retyre
Zip on and off
As the video above shows, Retyre's solution to swappable tire treads revolves around a simple zipper. A base tire is first installed and then the tread of your choice is zipped onto that. Retyre claims it takes only seconds to zip the new tread on.
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There's no mention of weight or durability of either the skins or the zipper mechanism. Retyre does state that its skins are made from 90% natural rubber.
Additionally, according to Retyre, the skins are small and light enough to be carried in pack, so switching your bike's tread can be done mid-ride.
A tire for all roads and seasons
Three tread options, all in 700c (29in), are available.
For the road, there's an urban-style 40mm tire with a reflective sidewall stripe and minimal tread for low-rolling resistance.
The off-road option consists of a 42mm "all-terrain" tire with flat knobbies that looks like an aggressive hybrid style tire.
And for icy conditions, Retyre offers a 42mm wide studded winter tire with 156 lightweight studs. The studded tire also has a reflective sidewall stripe.
Retyre's website claims that more tire skins are coming, including some with embedded electronics, exotic materials and customizable graphics.
Pricing or availability was not noted as information is pretty limited on Retyre's website.
