My normal tyre set up is maxxis ardent tubeless on front and maxxis high roller on the back, rims are ztr arch, welcome any advice

I’d run (and did) something stronger, Dual ply high rollers both ends say.

Reinflating a tyres at about 2500m with a mini pump after you pile into the rocks would be no fun at all.

At least the other way round… you want cornering grip on the front and less drag on the rear.

2 I’ve done was 2.5″ DP minion’s, best tyre for most things 🙂 The pedalling is less about tyre drag and more about legs

Never done it but everyone i’ve spoken to about it has run dual ply/DH casing tyres…think Maxxis Minion dual plys, High Roller dual plys, Schwalbe Super Gravity etc etc…

Wouldn’t run anything that wasn’t dual ply & tubeless there. Minion DHF for me, 2.5 either end for most stuff, 2.35 on the rear if I have to do a bit of pedalling. Climbs look pretty short and steep so i’d probably stick to 2.5’s either end.

There’s enough to contend with on that course at that altitude without worrying about tyres.

As a bare minimum dual ply, ideally tubeless on the rear.

My last mega got scuppered by a pinch flat 5 minutes into the quali. Had a great run (quiet) down the rest of it once I’d fixed it, but was comfortably outside of qualifying for any of the races.

5 posts all relevant to the OP and agreeing?

What is this place and what have you done with STW?! 😉

I used dual ply Maxxis & DH tubes but a pal did it on Schwalbe Supergravity carcass tyres run tubeless and got a decent result (with no flats all week).

dual ply, tubeless or dh tubes

whatever tyres you take out will take a beating over the week, but if you buy them there expect them to be very pricey in the lbs

though last year Conti had a trade stand and had some good deals on

Would suggest minions front/back, run them tubeless. Would suggest you would be fine with Exo’s, but dual ply’s will be stronger (with a weight penalty). I would also look at a Maxxis Shorty for the front if it rains.

If you are on medium sized wheels, Maxxis are hard to get hold of due to the distribution changing. Other option is Schwable with a Magic Mary Front and a Magic Mary/Hans Dampf on the back.

Dual ply tyres for sure. A puncture in qualification will ruin your chance of getting in the race.
No need for a mud tyre even if it rains. Last year it rain lots and all tyres just clogged up!

Pro-core, if we’re buying special things specially.

🙂

2.5 downhill version Maxxis Minion DHF might be a bit of a struggle to get seated tubeless on an Arch. I had big problems on my Crests so went for non-DH sidewalls. As the tyre deflates, because it’s so stiff, the sidewalls contract off the bead. Maybe do a split-tube ghetto tubeless to be sure.

i ran an exo last year, till it tore through practising the qualifier… dual ply all the way

either hr2 f+R or minion/hr2 for me

Magic Mary front, Hans Dampf rear. Both Super Gravity casing. Pacestar compound rear, Vertstar compound front. Both set up tubeless.

Magic Mary front, Hans Dampf rear. Both Super Gravity casing. Pacestar compound rear, Vertstar compound front.

^^ this

Experience a whole new level of crashing because you’re going so fast

Just to add a bit of context – it’s really rocky up on the mountain. More rocky than I expected and the rocks are sharp.

You’ll be absolutely ruined trying to race at altitude and with hundreds of other riders around you it’s not going to be easy to pick the best line so it’s good to be able to trust your tyres.

Don’t skimp on the body armour either!

I took 1.5 ply Butcher/Clutch SX and a set of dual ply last year (all tubed). The 1.5 ply lasted a day or so. Punctures on the rocks. Stuck dual ply Swampy front (2.5)+ Minion rear (2.35 or 2.5 cant remember) for remainder, all good.

In the past I ran an EXO Minion on the front & a dual ply on the rear.

Last year A Magic Mary Protection on the front & Super Gravity HD on the back.

Had one puncture in 4 years.