Hey all, I’m getting ready for little sugar next month in Bentonville. I’ll be riding a Supercaliber which still has it’s Valnord RSLs on it. So far I like the tires speed and traction wise, at least in East Tennessee terrain. I’m purposely riding fairly aggressive just to see what the tires can take, but in general I don’t flat often anyways. Having not ridden in Bentonville before I’m a little worried about flat risk based on what I’ve heard.
I’m looking for any recommendations on tires if not the Valnords. If I do switch it would be for something with more flat protection and/or adding an insert- which I’ve never done before.
Thanks
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I’m curious too! Was planning on kenda rush sct rear and racing ray super ground front both with tubolight inserts but I have no idea about the conditions there.
Joe
I’ve spent some time there riding. Tunnel Vision and the Back 40 (which makes up most of the race) are tight, twisty, punchy climbs, some long climbs, sorta long descents, loose over hard, baby heads, and course is probably 85-90% singletrack which can make eating/drinking hard. A lot of up and down. Passing will be tough. There are a lot of road crossings so those could be an area to get around people. I ran Racing Ray and Aspen. Was just glad I only sliced one tire while I was there for a week (Ralph).
I recommend running tires prioritizing sidewall protection. People will flat, blow up, and it’ll probably be hot. There’s a lot of info in the 2023 Little Sugar MTB thread.
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I’ve been thinking about going Rekon race vs plain old rekon. I read through the little sugar 2023 thread and definitely think my current tires are unwise.
I ride these trails (Back 40 and Tunnel Vision) several times a week, and 100% agree with DMC’s comments above … definitely suggest prioritizing sidewall protection. I like medium, XC type treads and they seem to do fine, but the trails here have unbelievably sharp rocks, so again, sidewall protection is important. (I’ve recently had good luck with Specialized GRID sidewalls) Also, if your tires have some mileage and the treads are getting worn, showing up to the race with fairly new tires might not be a bad idea.
I was running Maxxis Recon Races last year that had some mileage on them, and ended up with a cut right in the middle of the tread that just wouldn’t plug. After a failed tube install, I ended up riding the last 3 or so miles in on a rear flat.
It’s a great race and the trails are excellent. The race is probably 90-95% single track/on-trail.
Good luck out there!
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Long shot but seeing if anyone has a race entry they’d like to sell or transfer for the 2024 in a couple of weeks?