2023 is Schwalbe's 50th birthday, and to celebrate the brand renowned for making some of the best mountain bike tires, it is repositioning itself for the future. On day one of Eurobike in Frankfurt, at a stand populated with what seemed like hundreds of Schwalbe tire reps, decked out in the new "Schwalbe Skyblue" corporate color, they launched the new Schwalbe logo and what they say is a comprehensively rethought brand presence using the "Get There" message.
The new Schwalbe logo features a swallow bird soaring to new heights, which my rep Tim was keen to tell me symbolizes the company's values of Freedom, the joy of discovery and optimism. Also, amongst the frenzy of activity around the new branding, Schwalbe has launched some interesting new tires, updates on existing models and presented some of its new green initiatives for the future.
Central to its new message is the Schwalbe Green Marathon tire, which is claimed to be the first tire made from around 70 percent recycled tires, with the rest of the material being sourced using the 'Fair Rubber' policy which sees Schwalbe paying all small farmers at the beginning of the supply chain an additional premium per kilo of natural rubber.
The Schwalbe Marathon has been around for many years and the new Green Marathon replacement model is intended for a wide variety of uses from mountain bike touring to urban commuters and e-bikes. It also sets what Schwalbe says is a new standard for environmental friendliness in tire development. The Green Marathon is also the first tire on the market that uses 100 percent recycled carbon black (rCB). The rCB is a direct product of the recycling process and replaces fossil-derived industrial carbon black – which saves around eighty percent CO2eq compared to the previously common burning of bicycle tires. The bead core wire is made of recycled steel.
The Green Marathon is available now and comes in new sizes including higher volume options that are suited to eBikes starting at $32.00 / £30.99 / €30.00.
Also on show was the excellently named Schwalbe Tacky Chan which has been three years in the making and developed to be what they say is the fastest and best downhill mountain bike tire in the world. Tim who was showing me around, also added that the unbranded tire during testing had already won several downhill MTB World Cups, ridden by the likes of last year's current overall World Cup downhill MTB winner Amaury Pierron and Commencal/Muc-Off team riders including former downhill world champion Myriam Nicole.
As mentioned, the new Tacky Chan tire design process started three years ago, with prototypes made from the Schwalbe Big Betty tire, with different versions created to determine the optimal balance between shoulder support and lower weight. Prototype versions also featured more stable shoulder lugs than the Schwalbe Magic Mary which increased lateral support, with longer braking edges and with an increase in distance between center lugs to help reduce weight. That combined gives the Tacky Chan a claimed better braking traction and higher speeds.
The Tacky Chan is also available now in various sizing options priced from $98.00 / £80.00 / €80.00.
There were also some interesting 'development' tires on show at Eurobike that we currently aren't allowed to tell you about but will be coming soon... Meanwhile, check out all things Schwalbe at Schwalbe.com.
