hi guys,
i’m racing at llandegla forest next week i’d like to know what general conditions tyres i should take
1.racing ralph,vredstein black panther etc
2.nobbly nic ,rocket ron ,black panther mud etc
3.tiger claw ,furious fred ,brontrager dry x etc

I’m a very light rider looking to go as fst as possible i’m very technically good and i ride a carbon cannodale rush so i have travel ( i don’t rely on my tyres for all cushioning ).
I would also like to know general riding info if you have any?
thanks
Bruce

black ones

erm….I think last time I went round I did it with Fire XCs on.

Without wanting to sound rude……if you are that good technically – you should know what tyre suits you for a typical Welsh trail centre. It’s mostly well draning rock with a few muddy bits. And to be honest, it doesn’t make THAT much difference what tyres you have on.

Had I got round to it, I probably would have put some Speed Kings on before I went last, but couldn’t be arsed changing them.

If you are wanting to go really fast be aware that it gets pretty busy up there and you might get the odd group of people in your way every now and again….

i’m doing the welsh xc race on 29th so hopeflly the only people on course will be behind me 😆

ah…..I see.

When I race, I’m pleased if I’m not at the back so perhaps I’m not best qualified to advise…..! 🙂

any other thourghts?

You could ride around there with slick road tyres without any bother at all. A lightweight semi slick would be fastest around there on a mtb.

If you are racing, and you want to go as fast as possible, then, seriously, how much difference are your tyres going to make?

Seriously?

How much time are you going to save using one set of tyres over another?

Honestly?

And what will you do if it rains? OMG!

Just put some tyres on and get on with it; it’s mountain biking, not F1.

I rode there last November on a Ralph at the back & Fast Track on the front gave good grip,so perhaps a Nobby/Ralph combo would be well suited

tyre choice is critical it makes the difference beween winning and losing races,i’m going to just change them to a muddier tyres if it rains, but since my race wheels are tubs i can’t change them quickly so i’ll have to stick them 48hr before the event
thanks
Bruce

your race wheels are what? tubs eh?

Haha im with crikey on that one. 😆
Last time i went i used the ones that i always use.
Rubber and black they were, with knobbles on ’em.
Hope that helps.

tyre choice is critical it makes the difference beween winning and losing races

Cobblers!

If you know what you are doing, then you shouldn’t need to ask about tyre choice.

If you don’t know what you are doing, then tyres will make even less difference.

‘I lost because I had the wrong tyres on’

Yeh, sure you did mate….

**** me,you’re abusing someone because they ask what tyres to use ?
This place gets worse………..

All, the XC race course is usually a completely different route to the normal trails up there. I’ve only ever ridden on the remains of the race courses in years gone by and they were totally different from the man made trails that exist up there now. Think of them more as your classic forest race trails, than the jumps/berms etc that exist on the Blue/Red/Black courses as you have to remember there have been races going on up there for a lot longer than the trail centre has been open.

They have in the recent past also used newly built sections that they have not yet opened up to the public to connect up to track specifically built just for the race.

whoa crikey some-one is obiviously tetchy i was asking a simple question i wasn’t looking for direct abuse.
and yep they’re tub’s one day they’ll catch on for racing
thanks
for the abuse
bruce

**** me,you’re abusing someone because they ask what tyres to use ?
This place gets worse………..

Yes, because it’s the most inane question in the whole mountain biking world.

As above; if you know what you are doing, then you don’t need to ask, and if you don’t know what you’re doing it makes even less difference.

AAAAAAAAaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand, if you’re up for winning races, are you really going to get your race winning information from the net?

Really?

Give over!

😉

off topic but i bet i could kick your @ss in any race except track
anyway that’s not race winning info mation ,the things that will is the 300miles i’ve done this week on my bike (since monday)
but then again i bet the world look very easy to critisise up in your office block.
thanks 😆
bruce

Yes Bruce, you could.

I’ve not raced for about 7 years now, getting old. Before that I raced mountain bikes, cross bikes, and road bikes, here and in Belgium, Holland and Spain.

And, yes, 300 miles is what I used to do, every week, for 10 years or so.

But, I never had to ask what tyres to use, and I certainly never considered my tyres to be the key to winning or losing races…. 😉

I’d go with Pirellis. Anything to get my car away from that mundane place as quick as possible!

What tyres for willy waving?

go light! It’s like a bmx track so no need for big tyres. Obviously if its pissing it down look for something that will stick.

Fire XC should do the job nicely. I run that on the back of my hardtail bike and a cinder at the front.

Go folding obviously 🙂

good luck in the race!

Sounds like a fast rolling tyre is probably gonna be best.

would suggest ralphs, if it uses natural linking bits, maybe a nic on the front.

BUT, if your race wheels are tubs, surely you have the choice of 1 or 2 tubs that ritckey produce and thats it?

Russell96 – Member

All, the XC race course is usually a completely different route to the normal trails up there. I’ve only ever ridden on the remains of the race courses in years gone by and they were totally different from the man made trails that exist up there now. Think of them more as your classic forest race trails, than the jumps/berms etc that exist on the Blue/Red/Black courses as you have to remember there have been races going on up there for a lot longer than the trail centre has been open.

They have in the recent past also used newly built sections that they have not yet opened up to the public to connect up to track specifically built just for the race.

In all your shouting at each other I think you must have overlooked Russ’s post 😉

Assuming it’s not hosed down for a week solid before then a pair of Racing Ralph’s will be fine

What tyres for an all weather trail centre?

I reckon Mud tyres if its raining

Pieface – Member
What tyres for an all weather trail centre?

I reckon Mud tyres if its raining

when the race course uses as much/if not more natural stuff than trail centre

Ergo mud if its raining.

Anyway, if he’s got the legs for it it shouldn’t matter

i’ve got several(5) sets of tub’s ,sorry crikey if i offended you but i’ve riden in belgium and holland and everyone is now(maybe has changed since you rode their)checking course for what tires to ride ,what ratio’s to use ,any other special requirements for races.when i was over their last christmas to race cross’i saw bart wellens checking the course before every race .etc.
but thanks guy’s including crikey
thanks
Bruce

This has got to be a wind up but if it isn’t I’ll impart my tu’pence worth.

Semi-slicks.

The place is hardly technical, there is very little mud on the main trails to speak of that would clag up the minimal tread of a semi-slick and it gives you the best of both worlds, speed and a touch of grip.

I wonder if Steve Peat spends his time trawling SDH for advice from the school kids over there?

Bruce – semi-slicks or RR both ends.

thanking you all for the lulz this morning.

i have no good advice, but simply ask that you report back after the race to let us know what you thought of the course conditions and what tyres you chose.

oh and if you won.

I think crikey needs to pop his cherry…..

I don’t think his mum read him his book tonight…

Christ this place really does let anybody in these days 🙂
“The place is hardly technical”…..We used to ride the singletrack trails in Llandegla Forest a long time before it became a trail centre and it was a much better ride then than it is now, Having said that, the trials that the XC races were on, we didn’t even know existed until we saw the red arrows sprayed on the trees going off in to the thick of the woods and those trails were even better than the ones we were riding.
Good luck in the race Bikerbruce. Hopefully you’ll be riding the old courses that are still there hidden in the woods rather than the new trail centre tracks that get so much stick on here but so many turn up to ride at the weekend anyway.

Has Crikey gone to bed ?

Don’t listen to anyone who hasn’t raced there as they will all be waffling on about the built trails with no knowledge of the routes previous races were run.

The usual XC race route has quite a few sections that cut through the trees that are pretty rooty / natural peat based. Although they don’t make up a huge percentage of the track which is usually a load of fireroad they do require a little grip. I wouldn’t go for a semi slick however tempting it is for the fireroad/hardpack sections. As mentioned before something similar to a FireXC or Trailblaster works well overall having pretty good straight line speed but a bit of grip on the sides for the natural forest trails. They may however change the course completely and route it down built sections so take some semi’s and recce the course just in case.

Shock Horror,

STW lynch mob giving grief to someone asking a perfectly reasonable question.

For those of you that don’t actually read all the information presented the OP is riding a race at a place he has never been, NOT on the built trails that you riding gods spurn BUT in the same area of the country.

Not having local knowledge he was asking what tyres would suit the conditions.

Bruce, you’re just lucky these lot aren’t riding the race or you’d be eating their dust and coming in last.

Good luck with the race.

Beans.

And, yes, 300 miles is what I used to do, every week, for 10 years or so.

We used to do 500 miles a day, riding on round rocks for wheels. Even downhills were uphills in those days and energy drinks were all coal based. Young children used to be employed to crawl into mechs to clear out sticks and mud, sometimes we gave them pity and stopped riding while they were working.

The OPs question is fair enough, he’s obviously keen to make the right choice in an upcoming race and wants to reinforce his opinion. Posting on a forum costs nothing, it’s a bit of light natter to pass the time while not riding around 🙂