Tire mousses have been used by off-road riders for years, ending the misery of a puncture in the middle of nowhere. Now, they've been developed for road tires as well.

Punctures a thing of the past?

If there is one way a car is superior to a bike it is in the act of dealing with a puncture: carrying a spare wheel and tire is a pretty easy solution to getting a puncture, even if, with the proliferation of space-saver spare wheel, there is always the problem of where to put the offending wheel when it comes off!

Of course, if you're running tubeless tires on your bike, it's not too difficult to plug the offending hole, as long as that is all it is - a small hole. But a lot of bikes with spoked wheels have to run with tubes in order to keep the air inside, doing its job. Get a nail through tire and inner tube and you're pretty much stuck.

Off-road bikes, of course, run spoked wheels and, for many years, riders have been able to fit what are known as mousses, which are, in effect, solid inner tubes designed to give the feel of a normal tire/inner tube combination without the possibility of getting a puncture.

The only problem is that they need to be changed often, being suitable for a limited number of riding hours only. That, of course, makes them unsuitable for road tires as who wants to be changing them every few hours of riding? It's just not feasible.

Up to now, that is.

Italian company Risemousse has developed a road tire mousse system called B-Sure. In effect, it is a run-flat system similar to those found inside car tires and is designed to enable the rider to ride slowly to their destination or at least to a tire shop.

It is a two-part system, with the donut-shaped insert (the mousse) and a tire pressure monitoring sensor linked to a small screen that is mounted next to the bike's TFT screen or clocks.

The secret of Risemousse's system is that the mousse isn't in constant contact with the tire and therefore not subject to constant compression/release and heat build up as the wheel rotates. Between the mousse and tire is an air gap, which is under pressure as in a normal tire. In the event of a puncture, the air escapes, triggering the tire-pressure monitor while the mousse maintains the shape of the tire, preventing accidents and allowing the bike to be ridden at reduced speed to safety.

Risemousse claims three years life span for the mousse, which, depending on mileage, is about the life span of a tire. It is aimed at the urban and adventure rider - sports bike tires are not catered for - and it makes you wonder why no one has developed it before now.