Challenge Strada Bianca Handmade Tubeless Ready Gravel All Road Tyre (50mm) review

What is a 50mm slick tyre really for? That was probably my biggest question when I first fitted the Challenge Strada Bianca Handmade Tubeless Ready Gravel All Road Tyre. With its signature bright yellow tan wall finish, the 50mm version certainly gets some attention, but the reaction from riding buddies and teammates was almost universally positive, with more than one describing it as looking “pretty sick”. Having tried it, I think there is a pretty good argument for a tyre this wide – particularly for fast winter road riding and dry mixed-surface rides.

The Strada Bianca uses Challenge’s new, more rounded ‘Easy-Fit’ tyre shape. This is designed to make the tyre easier to fit, as well as making tubeless setup easier, and it certainly made seating the tyre straightforward.

However, the high volume 50mm version was a little different to the narrower 32mm Strada Pro I tested previously, as the large rubber section sat fairly flat and was significantly wider than the rim. This meant I had to bend the tyre quite a bit to get both beads over the rim lip, with one popping back off initially. I soon got used to bending the tyre up to get both beads over, but it was a little fiddly at first.

Then there is the look. The bright yellow tan wall is very much a signature Challenge finish and, combined with the sheer size of the 50mm tyre, it makes for a pretty distinctive setup. It certainly gets people looking, but as I said above, the feedback I got was overwhelmingly positive.

Ride feel

Getting the pressure right is especially important with a tyre this wide. Challenge recommends 20-30psi, and I found 25psi front and rear worked well for the mixed riding I was doing.

Once at the right pressure, the ride feel was excellent. I used the tyres on longer rides over mixed terrain and was surprised by how well they rolled on the road. They felt noticeably quicker than semi-slick gravel tyres such as the Schwalbe G-One, and even quicker than the GravelKing ZX, which has a slick centre section.

Despite the 50mm width, they cornered really well on the road. It did take a little getting used to, having so much tyre underneath you, but they were more than capable of holding 30km/h-plus without feeling like I was giving much away.

The tread pattern is obviously a big part of that. These are essentially slick tyres, rather than gravel tyres with a more aggressive tread, and that is both a strength and a limitation. On dry roads, rough lanes and light gravel, they felt excellent, but on loose, fast corners I didn’t have quite the same confidence in the grip. I also wouldn’t be taking them out into muddy conditions, although that isn’t really what they’re designed for.

Challenge backs up that allroad approach with a 260 TPI Super Polyester casing, its gravel-specific SmartPlus compound and a higher ‘Ganzo’ level puncture protection. It’s a fairly sophisticated construction for a tyre that is ultimately designed to keep rolling quickly across a mixture of surfaces.

What are they really for?

Challenge calls the Strada Bianca an allroad tyre, designed for everything from poor pavement to packed dirt and fine gravel. The name itself gives you a pretty good clue as to where Challenge sees them being of use, with Strada Bianca meaning “white road” – a reference to the gravel that defines the Strade Bianche race. A huge slick tyre like this would be pretty well suited to those fast, hard-packed surfaces.

For me, though, their biggest appeal is much closer to home. I think these are perfect for winter British road riding for those of us lucky enough to use a gravel bike as a winter bike. They hold speed really well on the road, while the 50mm volume gives you the ability to deal with all the rough surfaces and general crud you’ll find on British lanes at that time of year.

Over summer, I mainly used them on road rides with short gravel sections, and I really enjoyed how they opened up all those surfaces without sacrificing much pace on the road. Roads, canal paths, dry gravel and rough lanes were all fair game.

That’s where I think the 50mm slick really fits. It isn’t trying to turn a road tyre into a serious gravel tyre. Instead, it gives a gravel bike the ability to ride quickly on the road while being remaining unfazed when the tarmac runs out.

Value

At £80, the Strada Bianca isn’t cheap. There are plenty of capable gravel tyres for considerably less, including the Specialized Pathfinder and Maxxis Rambler, while the Schwalbe G-One R/S also comes in below it. The previous 36mm Strada Bianca was cheaper too.

The more interesting comparison is perhaps with wide road tyres. The Pirelli P Zero Race TLR 40mm is around the same price, but is much more road focused, while the Panaracer GravelKing ZX, which is £55, sits somewhere between a road and gravel tyre.

The Strada Bianca is a slightly different proposition, with the 50mm tested here offering more versatility away from the tarmac than the former but with a slicker tread than the latter.

At £80, you’re paying a premium, but there aren’t many tyres offering quite this combination of width, comfort and road speed.

Conclusion

I wasn’t sure what to make of a 50mm slick when I first put these on, but I can now see the appeal. The Strada Bianca 50mm is fast enough on the road that you don’t feel like you’re riding a compromise, while the huge volume means you can happily turn onto a rough lane or dry gravel without giving it much thought.

For me, that makes it a really appealing option for winter road riding, but also for making the most of our increasingly dry British summers. It’s one of the more interesting tyres I’ve tested recently.