Riding the road ahead doesn’t always mean staying on tarmac. Allroad, gravel, groad, whatever you want to call it, routes are becoming more diverse, and so is our equipment. Not everyone wants to go full gravel, and honestly, if you are just looking to enjoy a little rough pavement and some light gravel, you don’t have to. The Hutchinson Sector is a tire that you can add to your road bike to provide a little bit more volume and protection, without sacrificing ride quality, whether you stay on the road or venture off to rougher surfaces.
The heritage of the Sector comes from the cobbled classics of pro cycling. Just like categorized climbs, cobbles get their rankings too. Sections of cobblestones are referred to as ‘sectors’ and are ranked on difficulty and length. These classics are very demanding on all of your equipment and require extra durability to survive, especially wheels and tires. Check out this video to see how important your set up really is.
The classics are races though and pro teams are looking for the fastest and most responsive setups that can cope with the challenging conditions they face. That is why Hutchinson created the Sector. It is a tire that can take the pounding of the toughest cobbles while still performing on the paved parts of the race.
To provide this protection, Hutchinson uses their Hardskin technology. This adds a puncture-resistant fabric under the tread that extends from bead to bead, providing resistance to cuts and punctures that could stop your ride. Additionally, they are tubeless-ready, providing additional flat protection by eliminating pinch flats and using sealant that can plug smaller holes when they happen. The dual-compound rubber tread balances a mix of rolling resistance and grip. The center section is smooth to help you roll fast on the road. As you get to the shoulders, the subtle “pebble” tread sections begin, with small dots in the first section and slightly larger dots in the second section. These treads provide grip in the corners and wet, and help when you get into rougher surfaces.
The first thing you need to look at is how much room you have to stuff tires in. Some road bikes have more room than others, and wheel choice will affect the true size of the tires due to the width of the rims. The Sector is only available in 700×28 and 32, which is on point with the current trend towards wider tires.
Mounting them was simple. Getting one side onto the Scope R4D wheelset was not a problem by hand. After adding some Effetto Mariposa CAFFÉLATEX sealant and Vitamina CL additive, closing up the tire was a little bit harder, but I would have no concern about needing to open up these tires along the side of the road with a tire lever is something major happened. Mounting them with a Topeak Joe Blow Booster with the valve core removed was a snap. The tires sealed up on the rim and have minimal (maybe a few lbs a day) air loss between rides.
As I’ve had a chance to test out tubeless tires, the original Schwalbe Pro One was my gold standard, until the Continential GP5000 TL came along. Grip, rolling resistance, durability, and sealing are qualities I consider. Granted, I can’t quantify any of those, so it goes by feeling, but in my opinion, the GP5000TL is one of the best performing tires out there (review coming soon). With that said though, the Hutchinson Sector is my go-to when I need a tire that I am confident can handle anything.
Comparing the two tires, the GP5000 TL has a softer, more complaint casing than the Hutchinson. It is one of the reasons why the GP5000 TL is such a smooth tire, but I am worried about its durability on rougher surfaces. It is the tire that I would use when speed is my top priority. The Sector has a much more robust casing that gives me the confidence that the tire can handle much rougher surfaces.
When it comes to the ride and grip of the Sector, it stacks up with other performance road tires I’ve tested. Riding the same course and bike, but different wheels and tires (3T Discus 60 with GP5000 TL vs Scope R4D with Sectors), both setups felt fast and responsive. On a few fast downhills into left and right-hand turns, I was able to push both tires as far as I was comfortable. Both felt extremely fast and grippy. Considering the Sector designed to be is a more durable tire, that says a lot. Differences in rolling resistance felt negligible, and as long as you get air pressures right, the Sector is a very comfortable tire. I was able to put about 750 miles of mainly road, but some mixed surfaces on the tires, and had no issues with punctures, air loss, burps, or cuts. Other than the expected light wear of the miles I put on it, they look great.
Hutchinson offers the Sectors in 700×28 and 32 in an all-black tire. The 28’s are targeted towards smooth and rough road surfaces. The 32’s that we tested, have a higher volume to take on natural surfaces or e-Bikes. At $79.99, they are priced on par with other high-end tires.
While I shouldn’t have been surprised by the Sectors, since they are based on pro-level racing tires developed for the cobbled classics, out on the road I was surprised by how they stacked up against other speed-focused tires. The Sectors performed well and never left me standing on the side of the road adding a tube or waiting for a ride. For a race like the Tour of Battenkill or other mixed-surface races that aren’t all out gravel, it would be my go-to racing tire. Even for training, if you prefer a fast, race-ready tire and need reliability, it is hard to find a better performing tire.
Heckling Editor, Image Taker, Crash Test Dummy, and Beard Master at Bikeworldnews.com
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Location – Lancaster, PA
Current Testing Rigs – 2024 Van Dessel Arch65, 2019 Van Dessel Full Tilt Boogie, 2018 Van Dessel Motivus Maximus LTD, 2016 Van Dessel Whiskey Tango Foxtrot, 2015 Bianchi Sempre Pro, 1978 Trek TX900
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Discipline – Cyclocross, gravel, road and duathlons (ride/run)
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