Tread
The tyre tread for a road bike tyre is much simpler than that of a mountain bike, but there are some important things to consider when choosing one. The tread of a road tyre is often slick or has a very shallow pattern. This is for two reasons. Road bikes are made to go fast while still maintaining rolling efficiency. No tread or very little tread at all helps to reduce rolling resistance.

You may ask, "What about traction?" Traction is not as much of an issue because of the narrow tyre width used on a road bike. The contact area to the pavement for a road bike tyre are narrow, this enables the tyre to press through any moisture that may reduce traction. This is the second reason for slick treads and no tread so as not to interrupt the squeegee process.

Dual compound treads are another thing to consider in choosing a road tyre. If you need more confidence in cornering, many tyres are available with softer rubber on the sides of the tread to give you more grip to the road when you lean your bike into a corner. Often this tread is a different colour than normal black tread and many people choose the colour as a way to accent their bike. It is sort of the road bike equivalent of white walls, but with a function. Of course dual compound treads will add to the price of a tyre.

Tyre Width
Road tyres come as narrow as 18 mm and as wide as 45 mm (hybrid road tyres). Narrow tyres are for the fast tourist or the racer. Wider tyres are for the gravel road rider or the loaded cross country tourist. The most common widths are 20 mm, 23 mm, 25 mm, and 28 mm. If you use a tyre narrower than 20 mm, the ride is very harsh and the probability of flats from pot holes or gravel is much higher. Tyres wider than 28 mm may require a special frame and brakes to give enough room to prevent the tyres from rubbing.

Most road bicycles come stock with 23 mm tyres. If you would like more speed, don't mind a harsher ride, and can live with the chance of more flats, try a narrower tyre. If you want a cushier ride, want to reduce the chances of pinch flats, and can live with slower acceleration due to increased weight, then try a wider tyre.

Casing (Side Walls)
The casing of a tyre is the network of cloth that gives the tyre its shape. Nylon and cotton casings are the most common for clincher tyres. The threads per inch of the casing is usually a clue to the characteristics of a tyres side wall. A lower thread per inch count indicates a less expensive tyre that will be heavier and give a slightly harsher ride. But this tyre may be less prone to side cuts. This is because more rubber fills the cracks between the threads than on a tyre that has a higher thread count. Higher thread count casings offer a smoother ride, a lighter tyre, but often these tyres are not very forgiving on rough pavement and gravel.

The Bead
The tyre bead is the portion of the tyre that sits inside of the rim. Tyre beads are most commonly made of several strands of wire surrounded by rubber. The other less common bead is made of Kevlar surrounded by rubber. Kevlar beads are more flexible than a wire bead and are popular with tourists because a tyre can be folded up more compactly to fit into panniers or bags. Kevlar beads are also popular with racing cyclist, because a Kevlar bead saves around 100 grams of rolling weight (rotating weight slows acceleration). The catch with Kevlar beads is that they usually double the price of a tyre.

Puncture Resistant Belts
Belts inside of the tread of a tyre made of steel or Kevlar can reduce the chances of glass or cinders from cutting into your tyres. There is a weight penalty and some gain in rolling resistance from adding belts to tyres. Another option for belts to reduce flats is to use a plastic or Kevlar insert between the tyre and the tube. This method is more versatile in that you can use it with any tyre and you can re use the tyre liner after you have worn out your tyres.

Inner tubes
The most common material for road bike inner tubes is butylized rubber. You can get rubber tubes in different wall thickness. The standard width wall offers a compromise between light weight and puncture resistance. Thinner tubes offer light weight, but give a greater chance of a puncture from anything that cuts into the tyre. There also is a greater chance of a flat from the thinner inner tube seeking out a hole in the tyre casing or a rim hole under a misaligned rim strip. Thicker tubes offer more resistance to flats from these causes but suffer from slow acceleration due to added weight. Thicker tubes also give a slightly harsher ride.

Latex and latex mixed with butyl rubber tubes are reserved for the riders who are looking for a light and resilient ride, but don't mind filling their tyres more frequently. Latex inner tubes leak slightly over the course of a day. Latex tubes are also prone to flats from the same causes as a thin butyl rubber inner tube.

Wipe Them Tyres
After riding through gravel or glass, it is a good idea to wipe your tyres lightly with your gloves. This will displace any small particles that may inch their way into your tread as you ride. Make sure that you keep your hands away from any space that may jam your fingers between your tyres and your bike (the frame or the brakes). After a ride you can even pick out tiny bits of glass or cinders from the tyre tread further reducing your chance of getting a flat. If you are on a mountain bike, don't wipe the tyres (knobs at speed on hands = pain).

Tyre Pressure
How much tyre pressure should you run? Start by trying the manufacturer's recommended pressure, which you'll find printed on the tyre sidewall. This suggested inflation range is a good starting point. If it's a wide range, for example 40 to 60 psi, experiment to find which pressure works and feels best.

Check tyre pressure on a road bike before every ride. Softer tyres pick up more debris, which may work into the tyres popping the tubes. Second, when you hit holes, ruts, rocks, etc, soft tyres can deform to the point that the rim hits the ground or rock so hard that it pinches the tube (between the rim and obstacle) and cuts it in two places, which is what's known as a pinch flat or snakebite puncture (because the holes in the tube resemble a snakebite). Besides damaging the tube, this impact can bend the rim, leading to an expensive repair. Under-inflated tyres also lack the sidewall rigidity needed for hard cornering. And, too-soft tyres wear quicker.

But this doesn't mean you should always inflate road tyres to the maximum pressure. Roads in the real world aren't billiard-table smooth. The jarring effect of bumpy pavement on over-inflated tyres robs energy and makes for a bone-rattling ride. Properly inflated tyres will roll over bumpy roads smoother, stay at the lower end of the pressure zone for comfort and rough roads. Tyre pressure also depends a lot on your weight.

Content for this article was sourced from: http://www.athenscyclepath.com/wconnroadtires.html