Changed job last year, the route to my new place of work would be half South Downs and half road, the South Downs but won’t be technical as it’s open tracks but can sometimes be muddy but mostly loose stones/grass, so looking for a tyre that’s going to be fast rolling on the road bits with a little bit of grip off road, something with a good centre tread and some side knobs … What’s out there, any suggestions? I thought something like maxxis crossmark, but don’t want expensive compounds or tubeless as I’m sure they’ll wear quick on the road.

why not tubeless? I was on board until that.

Burts are good 50:50s, particularly as a rear. Mebbe WTB Nine Line, or Maxxis Aspen/Ikon on the front.

Rockrazor or Minion SS I would think op?

I commute on a mix of forestry gravel and bitumen, sometimes with singletrack on the way home depending on the day i’ve had.

I ride tubeless no problems.

Seriously fast rolling option is the Schwalbe Thunder Burt (as above) – you’ll think you’re on a roady on the tar. Downside is they’re not the most puncture resistant.

Next best thing (and more durable) and probably more suitable if you’re looking for a bit more grip is an Ardent 2.25 on the rear and a Ground Control 2.3 up front.

Was going to suggest Schwalbe Hurricane Performance. Have used the 26er versions for exactly terrain you describe and it handled admirably except for mud.

Then moved to 29er and stuck with Nano 2.1 for a few years. Not so hardwearing as the Schwalbes but fastish on road and dealt with quite some mud offroad. Good allrounders. Intriguing and clever tread. Likewise Schwalbe Landcruisers if you want to go narrower with tougher compound.

Right now am happy year-round with 2.2 Race King Protection f+r for backroads and offroads. Suprisingly low r-r for the amount of grip offered. Am considering Hurricanes again next time for summer, only because they are faster on road and hardpack.

^^ Great pic there.👍

Marathon Cross could fit the bill, they’re good all rounders with a road bias. Wish they did a folding bead version to drop weight a bit from ~560g each iirc for 38mm wide.

Thunder Burt’s are wicked fast and surprisingly capable. I haven’t tried tubeless with them yet though. No punctures in probably 1500km using them.

Also, Thunder Burt’s are only £19 from MerlinCycles at the moment in 29×2.1 liteskin flavour.

I had a nasty tubeless experience with a rear Burt – pissed Stan’s sealant out of a tiny hole up the back of the seat tube all the way to work. Never could get it sealed again 🙁

Conti travel contact
75% road with knobs on the edge. Virtually puncture proof
https://www.conti-tyres.co.uk/commuting-touring/contact-travel

A fast rolling tyre is great but it’s usually at the cost of puncture protection. On a commute when you are usually running late the last thing you want is a puncture. Tubeless will help but a bit more protection would be higher on my list than the fastest rolling tyre. I’d look for a compromise

Rockrazor or Minion SS I would think op?

Minion SS is pretty slow rolling, as the side nobs sit on the ground.

Ardent race? Ikon?

Specialized fast trak (if you can get one in grid casing, the non grid is a bit flimsy)

Bontrager Xr3/xr2?

Thunder Burt’s are only £19 from MerlinCycles at the moment in 29×2.1 liteskin

Big fan of Burts but the liteskin version is too delicate, too weenie IMO. Go for the TLR version instead.

Rockrazor and Minion SS are both proper mtb tyres so will be heavy and slow(er) than a lighter XC-type tyre. I rate the Rockrazor but not so much the Minion SS. The last two I’ve seen were heavy and delicate..

I’ve used a set of Geax Saguaro 2.2 set up tubeless on my hardtail for everything from xc races, bridleway bimbles, commuting, local woods and trails and long country lane rides. Currently they are on my SS rigid and are seemingly indestructible. Fast rolling, hard wearing, great grip in most conditions while accepting they aren’t a mud tyre, and no problems setting them tubeless or them killing me to death in a Butler-esque white wee wee explosion.

Based on what you’re looking for I’d suggest they were well worth considering.

I got these in the summer : Good Year Peak, one of those surprisingly grippy tyres, but fast rolling on tarmac – like the old Maxxis Larsens and Small Block 8s (which would’ve been my choice in the past). I think they might be quite pricey though, I got em off ebay for a bargain price

Vittoria Gato 2? Xc mud tyres so fast rolling, won’t puncture and good off road?

Specialized Slaughter? Been very cheap on the specialized site. Bit like a minion ss/rock razor

There is a new Schwalbe Hurricane version not fully released yet in Uk but available in Europe.
New spec has DD Raceguard and 29×2.4 size.
It is wired though.

if you want fast rolling then you need something slim and run them at the top of the pressure range: So for commuting with the above criteria, a good quality tube (not something mega-light, just a standard butyl like continental or vredestein) is the better bet because it’s not messy to fix at the roadside if you need to, just chuck in a new tube and repair at home. Consider something like a wide road tyre that will handle the rim size you have, Conti Marathon+ in 40mm version?

also, rema tip-top size zero patches and good glue. 99% of my commute punctures (thankfully a rare occurrence) are glass and metal shards which puncture holes not big slashes.

I think poopscoop was taking the p@ss

A semi-slick on the back and something more knobbly on the front, tubeless at 30-35psi is fairly quick but can do proper gnarly riding if you drop the pressures.

I used Continental X-Kings for similar riding.

I ran them with tubes as the sidewalls don’t like flinty south downs, but i don’t think i ever got a puncture through the tread.

I’ve got 2.3×29 Spesh Fast Trak tyres on my rigid Pinnacle Ramin commuter, they seem to roll quickly on tarmac and give a decent amount of cushioning offroad. Rubbish in mud though.

no no no

You are doing this all wrong.

What you need is a new bike – a gravel bike.

new job = new bike

Conti X-King Protection. I commute on them and use inner tubes. Two punctures in 3 or 4 years max. Spot on.

Maxxis crossmarks. Commuted for 2 years with them set up tubeless. No punctures.

Almost solid centre line so with high pressure they are pretty fast on tarmac

Good enough side grip to get through waterlogged farmers fields.