Are some tires safer than others? I bought a Bell Road tire from Walmart. Since I haven't exactly had great luck with Walmart bicycle products, I looked up the reviews... not so great.

In their defense, they are 1.375, not 1.25, but still, the things couldn't stay on my bike... in a sharp, low-speed turn with minimal leaning from me, the bead just popped off!

Then there is the Continental Gatorskin tire with a much better set of review on amazon.  But, does it matter?

I know I'm being a little specific, but what I want to know is how do I minimize my chances of my tires trying to kill me?

I realize this may look like a shopping question, but I have to purchase tires that I use!

I'd appreciate any advice from guys who actually have enough experience to really comment on tires.
One of the reviews has something interesting to say


  These 27" and 26" tires are made to fit older 10 speed/english racer
  type bikes. You should remember that the 26"x1-3/8" size predates the
  MTB era by at least three decades, they came first. If you have an old
  Raleigh three speed or a 1970s Peugeot then these are the tires you
  need in the appropriate rim size. In general, if you have a Mountain
  bike or your bike is less then 20 years old, these are probably the
  wrong tires for you


According to Sheldon, mountain bikes use "decimal" sizes, such as 26x1.75 and some older road bikes from the 70s use "fractional" sizes like 26x1-3/4. 

Although it appears you bought 1.375 which is a decimal size, so it should fit modern bikes. However 1.375 = 1-3/8 which is the size the review is talking about. According to Sheldon, 26x1-3/8 would have a BSD of 597mm or 590mm while newer 26 inch bikes have a BSD of 559mm, making the old sized tired too big for modern rims.