I think Race Kings / Dubnitals are probably the best tire for Leadville. I know another very good rider that road Thunderburts and switched to Race Kings as the TB’s were a bit sketchy.
I am also around 80kg and did LT100 last year on Dubnital Rapid Race with a 2.2 in rear and 2.4 in front. Ran pressure at 19 rear and 18 front with no inserts with no problems. Prior rear (2024) was on Race Kings but I did flat on Powerline descent outbound that wrecked my day. It was more bad luck than anything else. I hit a very nasty rock section in the wrong place. It is also the only flat I have had in the last five years that needed a tube and I wasn’t able to plug it quickly with a Dynaplug.
Also, I tried a lot of various tire pressures preriding Leadville and kept dropping the pressure until it felt good. It is so loose that a pound or two difference in psi can feel very different.
You and probably 50 other people had issues there if it’s the spot I’m thinking of. It’s usually pretty easy to find a decent/smooth-ish line down powerline, but there was a spot in 2024 that made me come to a full stop twice while pre-riding trying to figure out a reasonable line. And on race day, there were multiple people parked there dealing with wrecks/flats when I slowly picked my way by. In all the years I’d ridden that course, that was the only time I can recall encountering a tough spot like that.
Haha. There were 5 or 6 other riders with me that all flatted or destroyed wheels at the same time. I am sure we are thinking of the same spot. It is only 30 to 40 yards long but very nasty.
I was coming down Powerline and saw another MN guy I know running down with his bike over his shoulder and his wheel exploded. Wonder if this spot you guys are speaking of was the culprit there too.
Sounds like you were probably one of the guys I saw. I also remember it being a blind curve to the left coming into that spot, so basically zero time to assess before you are in it. I always try to pre-ride powerline 2-3 days prior to the race to get a last look. It can change dramatically by the day, particularly with the afternoon showers.
It is the same spot and I think his name was Jon from MN. We had raced together two weeks prior in the Stage race and were together most of the days. When I flatted I looked up and he was right there also stopped and saying he destroyed his wheel. Crazy story but I believe he was able to fix his wheel and all of a sudden showed up towards end of race next to me at the bottom of St. Kevin’s inbound. We were close to breaking 9 hours after a horrible day for both of us (I also flatted on Columbine) and we worked together to come in around 8:50.
Also, the spot comes up just after a blind corner at pretty high speeds and very easy to be in a bad spot. I think we all are talking about the same area.
Is that the section under the trees with the meandering ruts and river rock? Downhill it was nasty. I took it faster than a lot of people but still had control of my line.
When the ruts cross the road they can be pretty severe.
No experience with Trail casing but ran the Rapid Race 2.4 Dubs last year at Leadville (and other local races) and was very happy with them. Not doing Leadville this year but if I were, I’d run them again or Race Kings. On race day last year, I was pretty conservative descending (figured not worth the risk to save a small amnt of time).
I may be in the minority but not a fan of inserts. I tried a Vittoria Airliner in the rear of my hardtail but stopped using it due to the hassle when changing tires. I rarely flat despite some rocky local trails and when I do it’s almost never a result of rim strikes so just not worth it to me. From what I remember, there was a total of maybe 10 minutes down Powerline with any real risk of rim striking. Aside from that, it’s just negatives of a little extra weight and the hassle of dealing with if flat occurs. My perspective FWIW.
I know we’re on the Leadville thread but since you brought up the Burts and I know you’ve raced Unbound… I’ll be racing Unbound this year for the first time and wondering if they’d be a good option there. 2.1s are the largest I can run with decent clearance, and I know they are fast, but concerned about flatting. Last year, I raced one in the rear in a local race with success but a friend in the same race flatted on his.
A lot of tire talk. Currently running barzo/mezcal setup and considering that OR barzo/peyote or peyote/peyote for the rolling resistance.
Also, apart from post it notes and ‘hey siri, remind me to…’ how are you all going about the planning process for this event. Outside of the training itself, there is a lot of logistical legwork to do.
I ordered a wall calendar to help. Asking here and May reach out to ChatGPT/Gemini too for research.
Yes….it is under trees and after the meandering drainage ruts. I am fairly certain it is the spot I marked. As others said, the trail changes quickly and even a few days can make conditions very different. It is also very obvious as it is the nastiest part of Powerline in terms of rocks. I pre-rode a ton both years but it can be challenging on race day with so many riders. I was with a big group both years but in 2024 I had no choice but to hit the center…very nasty part. Last year I stayed more left and had a very smooth run.
To be honest, the fast way through it is what the guy did to my left in the Stage Race and jumped the whole nasty part. I caught it out of the corner of my eye and it was awesome to see. Otherwise, I think staying right or left is the best option.
It wasn’t Joel as I know who you are talking about. I looked it up and it was Jonathan K. I believe he is friends with that whole fast group from MN. Super nice guy.
I saw everyone in 2024 too with all the troubles. I thought it was further up the top in the 2:30 - 2:45 section here where I saw most people stopped. But, fast forward to 6:30 and there’s another short section too. (Recon run from 2024 - Taking it easy as I think it was my first time down that year, and ignore the section I was talking to myself )
I have zero experience with those tires, but the consensus seems to be that they are fragile. That would rule them out for Unbound for me. Not saying they couldn’t be a good tire, but they don’t test that much faster than a race king and the RK has decent durability.
I have a spreadsheet tracker from last time I rode LT100 with equipment I needed, and stuff I needed to do. I’ll update that, but that was more focused on the several weeks prior to the event.
The big item to organize now is accommodation. Plus I dropped my bike off yesterday at the LBS for my annual suspension service. I also will order tires plenty in advance to avoid impacts of any supply shortages.
Basically - get your lodging squared away now. Many places get rented literally a year out from the race.
Other than that logistics aren’t that bad and most occur much closer. Need tires, bike serviced and in good shape, bike bag if you’re flying, fueling / pace plans.
Stay in Copper. It’s at 9,700’/2956m, and a good middle point between Frisco & Leadville. Some decent trails at Copper in case you don’t want to drive to Leadville every day. I got a studio in Copper for crazy cheap, but if you partner up you can make a 2br affordable too.
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