Pirelli today reveals its first mountain bike tyre, the Scorpion MTB, following a launch event in Sicily that Stu Taylor checked out for us. You can read his first ride review here.
The Scorpion MTB is a tyre that Pirelli claims works equally well in wet and dry conditions, so you choose your tyre size, decide what terrain you’ll be riding, and then fit your tyres and ride. No swapping because it’s wet or dry… these probably seem like bold claims to the average British rider, but Pirelli thinks its ‘SmartGRIP’ technology spells the end of ‘what tyre for the weather’ conundrums.
SmartGRIP seems to be a mix of chemical and physical properties (Pirelli is a bit cagey on exactly what’s involved) which together provide grip in different weather conditions. Sticky tyres with better wear properties? We’re intrigued to see how these hold up to scrutiny.
With this new tyre Pirelli aims to make tyre choice simple. Instead of choosing from a variety of names, treads, compounds and widths, there are just four ‘Scorpions’ in the range, three front tyre options each for a specific terrain type, one for the rear in all terrain. Just pick your terrain, your size, and your protection requirements:
- Scorpion H – (Hard Terrain – red logo) Low profile tread for riding fast on hard pack, compact surfaces whether wet or dry.
- Scorpion M – (Mixed Terrain – yellow logo) Medium profile ideal for mixed surfaces, hard-pack to sand, pebbles and roots in wet or dry.
- Scorpion S – (Soft Terrain – light blue logo) Tall profile to cut into and grip on loose or soft surfaces in the wet or dry.
- Scorpion R – (Rear Specific – green logo) Medium profile and tread spacing offering durability over mixed terrains in the wet or dry
Read Stu’s review for full details of the range (and pictures of the actual tyres!), or for a more visual feast, with very little to do with actual tyres, gaze on…
As well as a launch in Sicily, Pirelli splashed out on a photoshoot in California to demonstrate the tyre’s ability to tackle a whole range of conditions. We don’t know who the photographer is, but they really went to town. There are only so many angles you can shoot a tyre from. And when the scenery keeps distracting you…well…there are nearly 300 action shots in the press pack.
Whoever the photographer is – Pirelli owns all the image rights – bravo to them. There are enough here to make a really good Pirelli calendar for a few years to come…
We ran an April Fool’s story last year on ‘RoostBoost’, a tyre hack to kick up more roost. It seems that Pirelli’s new tyres come with something similar built in – check out the regular pattern in this kicked up sand.
Looks like the rider was kept working from dawn til dusk. We’d be happy to take their place if they found it too arduous.
This tells us nothing about the tyres. Hey, it could be any tyre in the world on there. But who cares, because, light.
Having a drone does not make you a good photographer. It’s not often we see a drone shot that really makes us go ooh, but this one does.
Apparently these shots were all taken in California. We’d quite like to go. It looks amazing.
As you were. If you actually want to know about tyres, check out one of our many tyre reviews.
Comments (3)
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Have to say, these aren’t the images I was expecting after the words ‘Pirelli’ and ‘Calendar’
Or possibly the images you expected when you heard new tyre… Some pictures of the damn tyres for instance.
What’s stopping you from using the last shot as a cover?
Regarding the tyres – ooh look some more £50 tyres for me to choose from!