Last time I checked, tires are a pretty important part on a BMX bike. Not only do they keep you rolling, but it’s one of the easiest things to change on your bike that can make the entire feel of the bike ride different. Over the years we’ve seen tires smoother than your smoking hot sisters butt to some really agressive tires with more knobs than you know what to do with. We’ve also seen tires go from skinny little 20 x 1.95″ all the way up to 20 x 2.35″ (and even more recently 2.40″) monster truck sizes. One thing we haven’t seen up until recently is something that also helps with safety. Fit recently released their Night Vision version of their popular F.A.F tires that not only will help keep you rolling smooth, but they also have reflective sidewalls that helps make you stand out to car lights and looks pretty rad too. I figured it would be a good time to take a closer look at these guys, so let’s get into it.
I’m sure by now most of you are familiar with the F.A.F tire (Fast As Fuck). Fit released these tires about 5 or 6 years ago (rough guess, my memory doesn’t believe in the concept of time) and they’ve definitely proven to be popular due to how good they are. I know I’ve had about 2 or 3 sets myself over the years. The FAF Tire is made from a single ply, 60 threads per inch rubber compound that helps keep rolling resistance down with a proprietary Kevlar belt under the tread and a silkworm casing that not only helps extend the life of the tire, but helps to resist things like thorns going through your tire. With a maximum tire pressure of 110 PSI, you can find your perfect pressure from a little bit softer of a feel to rock solid. The tire features a tread pattern that reduces rolling resistance in the middle, with a more aggressive tread on the sides that wraps down along the sidewall for extra grip when you’re leaning around a turn on the streets or ripping a berm at the trails.
The FAF Tire comes in two versions; wire bead and Kevlar folding bead (F.A.F-K). The traditional wire bead tire weighs in at 24.6 oz. The folding F.A.F-K Kevlar bead version has a weight of 21.2 oz. Both tires come in sizes of 20 x 1.95, 20 x 2.10, 20 x 2.25″ and 20 x 2.30″ with 20 x 2.40″ coming in October. The tires comes in color options of black wall, red wall, tan wall, teal wall and why we’re talking about this whole thing, Night Vision.
When I first saw the Night Vision tires at Interbike last year, I was just thinking the tire had a grey strip around the sidewall for a unique look. Chris Moeller quickly let me in on the secret that the paint is actually made to reflect light (Subrosa did something similar for some collaboration shoes with Osiris a year or two ago that some of you might recall) off of it. In regular light, you might not notice the reflective abilities as much, but during a night session with these a car light will make these look like they’re wrapped in lights when a car rolls by. The reflection is similar to signs on streets and highways ( terrible example ). This reflective strip makes it easier for people driving cars to see you so you don’t get monster trucked at 30 mph by some mom in a mini van talking on her cell phone and will get her to check you out because it will draw her attention in. It’s a win / win situation and you live to get some late night sessions in.
Who should be getting these? Well, unless you’re planning on riding trails or your skatepark in the dark, these really won’t do you a ton of good. So I’d say these tires are most ideal for you street guys who like going out late at night to avoid security and cops or the blazing sun. I know the reflective sidewall might be a bit of a giveaway, but statistically you’re going to come across way more moms in mini vans, dumbasses in Smart Cars or old rich guys in BMW’s versus a cop car so that really shouldn’t be a reason for avoiding an easy way of being safe riding at night.
You can pick the traditional wire bead version of the Night Vision F.A.F tire on Dan’s Comp for $24.99 in the 20 x 2.25″ and 20 x 2.35″ sizes. If you’re looking for the folding Kevlar bead version, hit up your local shop that carries FIT or have your local shop hit up The Building Distribution to get you a set ordered up today! Like I mentioned above, the 20 x 2.40″ monster truck version will be available in October.
So that’s what the Night Vision tires are all about. If you’re looking to stay safe during your night sessions or you just want something different that stands out on your bike, these are definitely worth giving a go.
You can find out more about Fit Bike Co. and their products by visiting their website — FitBikeCo.com
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