Ere Research Pontus tubeless tyres

The Pontus wet-weather tyres from Ere Research offer a good ride quality, but the rain grooves pick up a lot of grit which can penetrate the tyres' double-aramid layer easily. They're expensive too, though they do come in nice boxes.

• Pros: Good ride quality and excellent grip
• Cons: Difficult to seat and seal; many punctures; expensive

If there's one thing we can rely on in the UK, it's that the summer will provide excellent test conditions for a wet-weather tyre, eh readers? Not in 2018! I had to wait until August Bank Holiday for roads wet enough to test the Ere Research Pontuses (Ponti?) in their intended conditions.

We've already reviewed Ere Research's 'pro' level Genus tyre, which Stu found grippy in both wet and dry. The Pontus uses the same compound and I, too, found the grip excellent in both wet and dry. On an early test ride a lamb launched itself onto a collision trajectory with my front wheel, just as I dived right into a tight, steep bend. A reflex tug on the brakes stepped out the back wheel about six inches but the front tyre held tight and I lived to tell the tale.

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The question would have to be whether the grooved tread of the Pontus adds anything to the mix in wet conditions. There's a lot of debate around this. Car tyres need grooves to disperse the water to prevent aquaplaning, but the argument goes that there's little evidence to suggest this is ever an issue for cyclists. We don't ride fast enough, and even if we did, the narrow tyre profile and high road pressures are more than enough to disperse the water. Read more about it here. However, my own experience is that treaded road tyres are prone to picking up stones and flints, and that's what happened with the Pontus, as I shall relate in a minute.

Stu liked the ease of fitting of the Genus. I was the other way round! No amount of soapy water or blasts from the compressor would get the beads to seat on the tubeless-ready Halo test wheelset. I resorted to fitting an inner tube, then deflating it and carefully easing it out to leave one bead in place. After this the Pontus inflated at the first attempt. It's not a major investment of time but it's not going to endear these tyres to tubeless beginners.

The boxes included the tubeless valves (surely one of the most overpriced accessories in cycling) and a 2oz bottle of Stan's sealant for each tyre. I sloshed this around in the Stan's recommended manner and left them overnight, only to find the tyres had lost about 20lb pressure by the morning.

It seems that the supplied fluid wasn't enough to really secure the seal around the bead. Little wonder there wasn't much left over for puncture protection duties, which is how I discovered that the Pontus punctures like mad. I took these to Skye for a week's riding. Surely this would induce some rain? No chance – blue skies and temperatures in the 20s all week. It meant a lot of grit and dust on the single track roads and, the day after a 75-miler out-and-back over Ratagan Pass to Shiel Bridge, I found the front tyre completely flat.

A bucket of soapy water soon revealed the cause – a series of micro-punctures all the way around the central rain groove, which was studded with little flecks of grit. What of the '2 Armis' puncture proofing, then? Ere Research says there's 'an extra layer at the tread for added debris resistance'. Back to the drawing board, I'm afraid, chaps. Of course, if I'd added more sealant I might never have noticed the problem, but the sealant should be a last line of defence against punctures and not a panacea for poor penetration resistance.

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After I'd topped up the sealant the front tyre stayed inflated, although as the summer wore on the rear tyre became prone to deflating and a soapy water test revealed the same series of little punctures around the water channel.

It's all a bit of a shame because I like the ride quality and the assured grip. The tyres are fast-rolling, too, with a satisfactory selection of Strava PRs popping up. On smooth, rolling roads the bike fair flew along.

Verdict

Nice tyres to ride, not so fun to fit, and puncture protection is rather lacking