[Closed] Help needed chosing a fast rolling tyre for the rear.

Maxxis ADvantage 2.1

conti x king 2.2, surprisingly versatile tyre, its what I will be running for races next year, unless I know its going to be an absolute mudfest.

is the x king quite fast rolling as i was thinking it might be the most agressive tread out of that list.
the advantage could be considered but it looks very simulat to the high roller 2.35 it would be replacing.

Mountain king 2 black chilli?

Yeah it is, I certainly can't tell the difference in rolling resistance between the xking and the race king, but the grip of the xking is noticeably better.

Mountain king 2 black chilli?

I find the MK2's do start to drag a bit more. XK rear MK2 front pretty much covers everything but the worst of conditions.

Larsen, fast and strong - works ok in mud, no grip whatsoever on wet grass.

I use minions front and rear. Yes they are a bit draggy, but I don't do events so I accept it. I tried switching to a faster rolling rear (Maxxis Ardent) and when cornering hard the rear end could completely let go very suddenly. It was dangerous, so I went back to the minion rear.
Personally, if I needed lower rolling resistance, I'd also drop the minion from the front and go for similar XC tyres front and rear. That way you get really low rolling resistance and its easier to guage the grip you have. I think most people tend to judge grip from the feel of the front.
I didn't like having a big difference between front and rear.

@ br
Thats intresting, the main thing putting me off a larsen was that I thought it was poor in the mud because of the close spaced tread.

I was impressed by the X-King 2.4 BC Protection, despite slicing mine open a few times. Rolls fast, incredibly predictable drifty cornering tendencies, and only comes up short on braking and driving ability when it's very loose/muddy. That was paired with a Rubber Queen 2.2 BC UST on the front (now have that on the rear too) so you'd want a 2.2 if you don't want it to be bigger than the Minion. The black chili XK feels about as soft as a 60a Maxxis and is good in the wet, the non BC one feels very hard and plasticky and is apparently hopeless in the wet according to one of my riding buddies. I'll probably swap back to it on the rear as the summer approaches.

I was about to slag Larsens, but then I realised they don't sell the terrible one any more, just the TT. Which is alright, though still no better than it looks in mud, far rather have an Advantage for an allrounder.

TBH one tyre for all jobs is a big ask, especially for xc enduro, sooner or later you're going to be riding in bottomless slop. I'd be inclined to just go Racing Ralph on both ends, at least if it's ever the "wrong" tyre there'll be tons of other people using them too. They're good, though, fast and grippy and not so racy as to cause normal people to spazz out, like some are.

And have something else to hand in case it goes manky. Or maybe do it the other way round, have some mud tyres for normal, and a pair of ralphs in case you ever have a freakish race where it's dry.

[b]A grippier front tyre is somthing i'm used of so its not a problem. If the back goes its usually savable, if the front goes its more likely not to be. I also ride the front alot on the tech stuff.

Maxxis Aspen. Used one on the back at 10@Kirroughtree a couple of years ago and left it on for the winter.

@ cheifgrooveguru
i would be getting black chili. i'm guessing the 2.2 would be the match for my minion though.
@northwind
the racing ralph sounds good. any idea on sizing to match the minion 2.35. should i go 2.1 or 2.25 . my schwable muddy marry is a massive 2.3!

Fafferty seemed to like the Minion/Larsen combo at a few of the rounds... The Larsen's what I'm looking at for the back or maybe an Ignitor for the dry, loamy enduro stages.

went for a bontrager xr3 2.2 2013. very impressed on the first ride with it. very good braking ang climbing grip. faster than the high roller it replace. ok cornering grip ,but a lot less than the high roller.

Crossmarks are a decent bet.

Crossmarks are very good in most non mud situations. If the Gravity Enduros are at trail centres I would definitely use a Crossmark.
I prefer grip over uphill speed so now use Hans Dampfs.

I run a racing Ralph all year round these days on the rear of both my bikes. I'm constantly astounded by what they will drive through, even in the depths of winter filth. I'd be more hesitant about one on the front though.

I've used most of the tyres on your list...

My favourite for grip was the XKing, proper grippy, you could really feel it in corners.

The faster rolling was the RaRa, but I preferred the Rocket Ron, proper fast tyre, felt faster for me than the RaRa on the rear. And it's good for mixed conditions too.

Fine for racing, but anywhere with rock or slate, it's game over as the carcass is fragile.

I hate Maxxis tyres because of how much of a PITA they are to tubeless compared to Conti, Schwalbe or Bonty.

I did both the Howies races this year and used Aspen 2.25 front and Crossmark 2.25 rear.

Did the job for me*, I'd prefer something slightly faster rolling and less grippy than I'd take for a just dicking about day on the trails because at when there's 10kms to go and a few 100m to climb I don't want it to be any more painful!

Pretty happy with that setup, I have raced long distance on 2.1 crossmark and 2.0 larsen TT. Definately quicker up but that bit sketchier down.

*from the perspective of someone who does OK, not right at the sharp end with really fast boys

Just changed a 2.25 crossmark to a 2.1 advantage. Ever so slightly slower rolling but lots more grip/control. Good in the mud and went tubeless without any issue...

I have maxxis Ardent, feel great, roll really well. Rubbish in anything vaguely muddy though.

X king BC Prot 2.2 - great as a 3 season tyre. Spins out a little in deep gloop, but clears well. Strong enough for the Alps last year run tubeless on my Heckler.

I'd say a pretty good Enduro tyre. If it does spin out on a muddy climb who cares, and plenty grippy enough for the downs.

You minght want to add Specialized Fast Trak to your list. Really fast with pleanty of grip and progressive break away

I haven't read the thread but I recommend the maxxis ignitor, it's quite low volume so I wouldn't recommend if you're running tubes and like low pressures/ride lots of rocks. I'm about 15stone and have used mine tubeless on my Covert, hardtail and now Blur, it pinched with a tube at AE but has been flawless tubeless, quite good in the mud too and fast on hardpack.

I haven't done an enduro for about 4 years, but I used 2.1 Kenda smallblock 8s front and back. You wouldn't want to use them in gloop, but suprisingly good on everything else. These may be a little old hat now though(?)

the kenda small block is the only other fast tyre i have ever tried but i did not like it. i found braking grip really bad. i did have the 2.35 though which felt too big.

Rubber Queen 2.2 - As they blow up to the size of a small village, perfect for the HT.

racing ralph is better in the mud than larsen tt ime.

both are sensitive to pressure.

i'd recomend a ralph. some people find them fragile so maybe a snakeskin one if it's rocky...

I generally always run tyre combinations with a bigger, grippy front and less agressive, fast rolling rear.

I ran a Maxxis High Roller 2.35 front / Larsen TT 2.35 rear for about 18 months I really liked the combination in most conditions. Although the Larsen offered little grip and control during a wet Alps trip.

I now run a Conti Rubber Queen UST 2.2 front and X-King Protection 2.2 rear, setup tubeless. Like others on here I really like the X-King. Surprisingly grippy, fast rolling, etc, etc.

As it's not a specific UST tyre I've found it to 'burp' a lot or at least need regular top ups. The side walls have also disintegrated and look like they're going to fall apart so I'm considering swapping both tyres out for something else...

Maxxis HR 2.35 LUST F&R
Maxxis Ardent 2.25 LUST F&R
Maxxis HR 2.35 LUST / Crossmark 2.25 LUST
WTB Bronson 2.3 AM TCS F&R
WTB Bronson 2.3 AM TCS / Wolverine 2.2 AM TCS

...although I've now experience with WTB tyres and don't know anybody that's run them.

I'd say a Crossmark rear. I use a 2.2 on the rear to match an Ardent 2.35 for faster enduro races (I'm talking "enduro" rather than "endurance" for clarity). This seemed to be a popular choice this season, both in the UK and Europe.

For wetter conditions, I just pop a Minion back on the rear.

🙂

Racing Ralph

Maxxis Ignitors