reTyre have launched a tire system with a zip which allows you to fit a skin over the base tire. This allows a road tire to be quickly converted into an off-road or a snow tire. The tire doesn’t need to be deflated and re-inflated to fit the skin, it is simply zipped over the tire.
This could be a neat solution for long distance adventure rides or for covering distance on the road before hitting the trail. However, with tires being such an important part of a bike it will need to be of the highest quality to tempt serious cyclists. The join is where the two ends of the skin meet is also a cause for some concern. Whether this creates a noticible bump or increase in rolling resistance is yet to be determined. The risk of the skin coming loose and jaming the wheel would also worry me.
Let us know what you think