> Most touring bikes these days also come with tyres that have a puncture-preventing layer
And "airless" tires are starting to appear as well.
> Racing bicycles are probably not well-suited for post-apocalyptic duty.
Probably not, a touring or XC-type mountain bike is probably a better idea (or an hybrid, more efficient than an XC but with more "all terrains" abilities than a straight touring bike).
Airless tires are quite a lot older than pneumatic tires, actually. But the introduction of the pneumatic tire made bicycles practical for a much wider range of people and uses.
Yes, I meant airless tires which can actually compete with pneumatic on efficiency and comfort, obviously you could always have a back-breaking full cylinder of rubber.
Oh? How do those work? Obviously they're physically possible (you could fill a tire with Utility Fog) but I didn't realize they were yet technically feasible.
Although they still have the issue outlined in http://www.livestrong.com/article/222689-airless-bicycle-tir... (on the subject of the previous airless generation, using flexible foam instead of rubber fill): shocks can't be spread around as they are in pneumatic tires (where the tire gets overpressured all around and most of the shock's energy is spread around the tire unless it's so big it reaches — and damages — the wheel's rim)
And "airless" tires are starting to appear as well.
> Racing bicycles are probably not well-suited for post-apocalyptic duty.
Probably not, a touring or XC-type mountain bike is probably a better idea (or an hybrid, more efficient than an XC but with more "all terrains" abilities than a straight touring bike).