I’ve been running Mexcal 2.25s on my bike for the last year and have nothing but good things to say about them. They were easy to set up tubeless without a compressor and haven’t had a single puncture on the trail despite running low pressure (~19 psi @ 183lbs).
I switched to Vittoria on the road at about the same time (Corsa Controls Tubeless) and they’ve been amazing. They wear a bit quick but I’ve also been riding them on rough chipseal and dirt roads so that might be expected.
Can’t find a 2.3 ground control anywhere. Currently running a 2.1 fast trak in the rear, think a maxxis Forekaster 2.2 or 2.35 would be a good front wheel choice for the NE winter? Other option would be the ardent 2.4
I ran Barzo’s f/r on my Spark for a while and really liked them, I also agree on the tan walls.
Ran Forecaster 2.35/Ikon 2.2 combo at Austin Rattler over the weekend and put a 2" slash on the Ikon at mile 3, which was very disappointing. This is the second Ikon I’ve killed in a race. I feel like it must be at least partially due to me since many others have good luck with them but a friend and I were discussing that the 2.2 potentially has more exposed sidewalls? Especially mounted on a 25mm wheel (Enve 525)?
That really sucks about the tire slash. If not for that do you think that combo would have been good, or do you think something else would have been better for the Austin Rattler?
I was on my new bike ('21 Epic coming from a '19 Spark910) for the first time, so the pre-ride on Friday didn’t feel good, but after a few small tweaks to seat setback and stem height it performed well. I’m generally really bummed about my luck with the rear Ikon because I really like the way it performs. The forecaster was definitely a benefit in the front, that course was loose! I was able to patch the tire twice with gel wrappers + tubes (needed replacing after each lap 
) but when they were working, I loved the combo. Having to run a little more pressure in the rear for the tubes was too bad as I think tubeless pressures would have hooked up even better and saved so climbing energy. I was 5:51 including 30 minutes of stopped time screwing with tires/tubes/etc, I think 5:20 would have been within reach without the issues.
I think I remember passing you… sorry about the tire. I ran the exact tire combination on the same Enve wheels without issue but I only did 2 laps before pulling out due to cramping. My tires were brand new which might have helped. I thought the Ikon did a pretty good job in the traction dept with all the steep loose climbs but I may have just been lucky that I didn’t hit a rock the wrong way and slash a tire.
Curious - was it a noticeable event - meaning you hit a rock and knew right away it was a hard hit that was going to cause problems?
Mine were also brand new, I think it was just a fluke incident in this case - might have killed any tire. Definitely agree the combo was spot on for the course. Sorry to hear about the cramps, that seemed to be a pretty common issue for people on the day. Late season race with warm temps I suppose?
Wasn’t a big hit or a rock that I saw and was expecting, but there was no leaking or warning, when it went it was immediate and violent. I thought I had broken a wheel or something because how quickly I was on the rim and hearing the amount of banging and clanging from tire hitting everything 
Seems odd to get a 2” sidewall tear under what seems like reasonably benign circumstances. Faulty tire maybe?
It is definitely possible, I assumed I had almost missed a really sharp rock off to one side that took it out. Would feel much better if it were a faulty tire because I really like the Ikons.
The previous Ikon I killed at ORAMM was a finger sized hole in the tread area, but that was a rock on a fireroad descent that I really knew I hit and was amazed that the only thing it killed was a tire.
Found one shop with a specialized ground control 2.3 in stock. Excited to finally have some traction
Also worth checking out the Continental Cross King. Continental are well known for road tires, but don’t have the same brand as Maxxis in MTB - so fly beneath the radar screen.
I have a cross king as a rear tire on my Trek Fuel. For a while I had a Ground Control, but was too burly a tire for what I wanted.
And the Cross Kings are well priced also - under $50
I only use the Ground Control on the front of my XC bike. I prefer a faster rolling tire on the rear. The majority of your rolling resistance comes from the rear tire. The front tires helps the most with cornering.
I spent the entire season on Ralph’s front and rear. Good tire, slightly down on traction in real loose stuff (or in the wet). Will probably add a Racing Ray as a front tire for some/most of next season.
Being in the UK my summer tyres of Rekon race / Ikon aren’t really viable for the summer. Recently put Forekaster’s front and rear on my hardtail and was pleased with their performance for XC. They’re light, good rolling resistance and coped with the wet very well.
What did your Forekasters weigh?
Just over 700g. (2.2 and 2.35 size)
[Specialized Ground Control tyre review - BikeRadar]
Here’s a review of the Ground Control. Not the lightest but an excellent tire if you are struggling with grip cornering with the front wheel.
Chiming in here, I just put on a pair of the Maxxas Icons in 2.2 and i must say that I’m not that impressed. They have been a staple for so many but find them really sketchy when you lean them over and not that compliant. I have them set up with tubes and that could be part of it. They might soften up a bit but I’m running them in the 18-21psi range and they just feel sketchy and don’t really roll that fast and really not that light. Anybody else not a fan and what about the aspens and the recon races?
Others here have talked about Vittoria’s lineup and really love the Barzo’s. I’ve got 2 pairs and not flatted at all and they feel like an meatier tire than what they really are. They are not the lightest (they say 575gm for a 2.25 but always come out in the 600gm range) but i think they are tougher than most schwables RR and Ray rays.
If you’re comparing them to other tires you’ve set up tubeless that’s definitely it.
I’m running a set of Ikons 2.3 front and rear, EXO casing, tubeless - no inserts. I’ve been messing with lower PSI and really paying attention to pressure more than ever. I’m at 18.5 PSI front and 19 PSI rear - for me these are the best low rolling resistance tire that I’ve tried. They hook up relatively well in dry trail conditions and are predictable enough in other conditions. Last night I did a quick loop in a very popular trail area, it’s fall in the east coast US and tons of leaves down now. These trails don’t really suffer too much in that area since the traffic is high enough to kill any leaf troughs. The Ikons continued to impress me there. When I found a trail less traveled with tons of leaves down the Ikons suffered there as expected, although no tire allows us to see what’s hidden under leaves so there’s that.
I love the Ikons - for what they are: a mostly predictable and surprisingly capable race day tire.