Commuter tyres for gravel bike (speed + grip)

[GRB84]

Evening,

After being knocked off my carbon bike on my way home from work I have decided to buy a gravel bike to commute on, however, I don't want to lose loads of speed on my journey. I'll also sometimes put a child seat on the back (with a child in it as well!) and want to remain stable.

Are there any tyres people would recommend which will allow for a good speed but also sufficient grip to feel confident with a child on the back? What kind of width would people recommend?

Thanks for your help.

 

[JayKosta]

Can you get 'road tires' with the appropriate width for the rims? Probably similar width to gravel tires. The contact patch is dependent on the pressure, so even a fairly wide road tire will be fine when properly inflated for road use.
I've done commuting (including snow) and 100 mile rides on 26X1.75 road tires, and never thought they had excessive drag.

With a child seat, using slightly lower pressure in the rear wheel might be less jarring.

 

[froze]

You have a child carrier with a child in it, hopefully you also put a helmet on your child. By child carrier, I'm assuming it's not a child trailer, which means the carrier is directly behind you?

Personally, if you have a carrier, I would not be riding gravel fast with a child in a child carrier. Children that age have fragile skulls and brains, this is why a child can easily suffer from being shaken, and if you take a tumble with that child, even with a helmet on you could have a major problem on your hands, and I doubt you want a dead child, or a permanently impaired one. Most people who ride with a child carrier are riding around in safe neighborhoods at low speeds. But I can't tell you what to do, only point out problems, it's your decision and your child, but maybe you should discuss this with the child's mother.

If you insist on riding gravel roads fast with the child on the back, then I would recommend running with 45 to 50-mm tires to give as much stability as possible, you won't run as fast as you could with 38s but you have a child on back you should be thinking about.

Conti Terra Speed is the fastest small-knob gravel tire, and it comes in a 40, it also performs pretty good on pavement for a gravel tire.