Thanks for sharing that, really interesting. Did you have a chance to measure the Peyote compared to the Aspen ?
What scared me a lot with the Peyotes is the sidewall durability. They scored quite low on sidewall puncture at the BRR test. And everyone knows how well tubeless sealant works on sidewalls…
Yeah they are definitely a true 2.4. 61 mm wide and 58 in height… Of course the 2.4 Aspen is huge I had it at 62 wide And 60 high
The 2.4 peyote Fits right in between the 2.4 Aspen and the 2.25 Aspen…
As far as the sidewalls I guess we will see! I’ve ridden them hard and around sharp rocks… Even bottomed out the rear rim, pretty hard once, but no issues so far knock on wood.
I was already planning on getting the Peyotes for this season and I think you’ve sealed it for me. Excited to try them out.
I just got into Leadville. Are the main recommendations still Racing Ralph/Ray or the Race Kings?
Race Kings, 100%, unless you feel like you need more volume based on your own bike handling skills and want a larger tire. In that case, I might run Ray/Ralph or Rick/Rick. Regardless, I am a fan of Inserts front and rear and a good (fresh) sealant like Stan’s Race.
But, Conti is supposed to be releasing a 2.4" version of the RK this spring. I would wait until after that is released to make your decision.
What inserts do you recommend? The CushCore are heavy so it looks like the Air-liner and Pepi’s Tire Noodles are the lightest. Again, I’m not sure if I should care that much about a few hundred grams as I’m closer to the 12 hour cutoff vs the 6 hour win!
Vittoria Air Liner XC, or Tubolight Evo SL. ~50g each.
Dang where did you see that??
It’s been mentioned a variety of times, pro racers been seen with prototypes 2.2 and 2.4, and it’s in a thread here somewhere that Conti employees have verified it when approached.
Not that it will be the “Race King”, or even the exact same compound (we don’t know) but they are supposed to be releasing a new 2.4" XC Race Tire, I think March announcement IIRC? Maybe? It’s probably in this thread somewhere above…
Let’s hope they don’t screw up a good thing.
Folks who use inserts, do you run them all the time or only when a course calls for them? Any general thoughts on performance and whether they’re worth it?
I’ve never gotten a flat on a MTB (guessing a combination of typical terrain + high volume / low pressure tires + having a lower bodyweight?) so haven’t really felt the need to use them, but curious about others’ experience.
I’ve gotten flats + rim strikes on my gravel bike so could see them making sense there.
I run an insert all the time in my rear tire. It’s a pain to swap the insert in / out, so I just leave it in all the time. I use the Vittoria Air Liner Light, so I’m not adding a lot of weight. I don’t know how much it impacts rolling resistance, but it’s worth it for the flat prevention.
I think it’s very dependent on the terrain you ride. During MTB season, I ride rocky terrain at least once per week where the inserts are very helpful. There’s other trails I ride that are packed dirt where the inserts aren’t needed.
Plus, depends on how aggressively / fast you are riding on the terrain.
If you’ve never had a flat on your MTB, that’s probably due to your local terrain being more tire friendly (plus maybe some luck). So you may not need an insert. But if you plan to ride rockier stuff, an insert is worthwhile.
Thanks, that’s helpful. This maybe sounds silly, but do you have a photo of the rocky terrain where you find them most helpful? I’m just curious to visualize the exact type of terrain you’re talking about, as I ride rocky stuff here and there, but it may not be your level of rocky.
Here’s the Nate Hills version making it look easy.
Here’s the more mortal version.
Even with an insert, I pinch flatted on this trail this past summer.
I’ve taken to running them all the time front and rear. I can’t notice any negative impact to ride quality, and I’ve had Leadville as my target event the past 2 years and now a third, and I’ve seen plenty of flats and cracked rims on those descents, and this allows me to run a lower pressure with more confidence. A lot of my local trails have a bunch of rocky parts too.
I ran Ray/Burt at Leadville this year.
Next time around (Stage Race when I’m 59) I’ll run Rick/Burt or. Rick/Rick.
Always run Vittoria Airliner Light XC in my Carbon wheels.
I’ve heard a few have mentioned running Ralph/Rick as a good combo for XCM. I’m going to try this once the weather improves in a few months.
Random observation - its really odd how much disdain there is for the ray/ralph on the MTBR race tire threads, and the appreciation for them (while wishing they were bigger) here.
On the other hand, not holding out hope they come out with a bigger one, and I’ve been loving riding these 2.6 Boosters. I cant provide an actual review on them yet, because I’ve only ridden them on frozen dirt roads, but my hopes are high, as I think the benefits of high volume will work really well for me being a larger, aggressive rider.
That said, I’m excited to see what Conti comes out with for bigger race kings, and the specialized captains (I like the ground control a fair bit for fun combined with decent speed, so hopeful).
In comparison to MTBR, the TrainerRoad forum is more likely to have serious racers and those dedicated to structured training. Additionally here, imperial data analysis and other unbiased information is valued over marketing and popularity.
MTBR tends to have more casual racers/riders and influenced by what’s popular and/or what the pro’s are doing. There is a lot of misinformation as well of “this is what I do and it’s awesome”, without any context, comparisons or analysis. Furthermore, on MTBR there is an absence of understanding that pro’s run what they’re sponsored by, not necessarily what is best particularly to amateurs. Pro’s have an unbelievable ability to handle their bike and typically have ridden the race course multiple times, where amateurs more often are riding blind.
A lot of people here drink the brr koolaid.
It’s not a lot of people, but rather a few people that nonstop talk and request about it. That being said, it’s the only empirical data that exists to compare tires. So although BRR is probably the least relevant for MTB rather than road and gravel, it’s not completely useless.