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@Wannabe
Right, I took some photos of the tyre so people could see the importance of checking / gluing.
It seems I'd neglected my tyre maintenance / gluing schedule...I'll be more careful next time to say the least!
Tyre was a 700x25C Bontranger Racelite Hardcase. My first successful attempts at skidding tore the tyre.
The flap that ripped up:
That's the full extent of the rip:
And the the little bugger that punctured me:
Right through the full thickness of the tyre:
Checking the rest of the tyre, I can see that it had taken a lot more damage. To take the photos of the cuts, I had to squeeze the tyre pretty damned hard, it's a thick casing. They appear to have grit / glass in the bottom. These are the bigger cuts. Plenty more smaller scratches / marks
The damage to the Bontranger inner tube:
Not worth patching with tubes available at 1.25€ each...
And the new 23c michelin on. I can feel the difference – smoother, faster, running at 120 not the 100 I had in the last one. And less comfortable, but not by much.
Summary: my neglect of the tyre shortened its life. Smooth, fast-rolling, comfortable enough in 25c, but an utter bugger to fit. Not for fixie skidding, but a decent enough tyre for training / winter riding. Griptastic.
The Michelin glided on, thumbs for almost all of it, and careful single lever for that last bit. Less comfortable, obviously, and seems faster and perhaps slightly less grippy. I'll update on its wear / durability in due course.