Would tires with a higher psi improve my road bike's ability to carry both me and my heavy backpack to school?

Question

I have a Trek 1.2 (with 100psi tires) and want to drive it to school. I am a nursing student, so I carry several books to class every day. I notice several things when I ride with this weight. Since the weight is distributed differently, I feel like too much weight is being put on my front tire. The other thing I notice is that I seem to get less traction with my tires, which is a problem. So i guess some of my questions are: am I hurting my bike? Would a higher psi tire help with weight control?

Answer 1

you sound smart..... sorry i cant help.... i dunno how i even got to the cycling questons

Answer 2

increasing tire pressure will help only minimally but i suggest you get a rack to attach to your bike to help take the strain off your back and also distribute the weight better

As for traction issues it may be cos of a worn thread on your existing tire  or it may be too thin in any case a quick tire change will be a quick fix

Answer 3

The rear tire supports more weight than the front. That's one of the theories why the rear flats much more often than the front. A higher pressure tire will not change the weight distribution between front and rear. Give some more info about why you feel the rear tire is losing traction. Traction implies drag. A higher pressure tire has less "rolling resistance" which means less drag, which means less traction.

HTH