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Average Rating
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3.19/5
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# of Reviews
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42
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MSRP
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$ 55.00
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Weight
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Description:There are no tech support vans in the wilderness. No factory mechanics with Park™ stands waiting trailside, holding a cone wrench in one hand and delivering a thumbs up with the other. There is only the simple truth that you’re on your own. Unless you’re equipped with IRC Backcountry dual sport specific tires. High volume, big knobbed tires with small knobs creatively placed between to prevent flats. The ultimate tire for truly epic rides. Click on the image to the left for an enlarged photo showing tread detail and related product specifications.
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Submitted by
VooDooGuy
a Cross Country Rider
from Scottsdale, AZ
Date Reviewed: September 3, 2007 | | Favoriate Trail: | That a way | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Purchased At: | gift | | Strengths: | They have rubber on them- well almost everywhere. | | Weaknesses: | Chunks of rubber gone. Kevlar is exposed; now I understand why I've been bailing, been using it on the front; terrible on the corners, especially fast turns and baby head laden downhills. | | Similar Products Used: | what ever was stock on the VooDoo; IRC Piranha Pro on the rear (chunks missing) | | Bike Setup: | Bizango XT, | | Bottom Line: | Tires are dry and very unpredictable on the trail. I thought shortening my stem would help, and it did, but still poor around the turns. Don't even think of sand with these... Looking for something that can inch up my confidence by grabbing when they should and meeting the needs around the turns. Would not get them again regardless of how good the deal might be. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Dave
a Weekend Warrior
from Rolla, MO, USA
Date Reviewed: August 30, 2007 | | Favoriate Trail: | Chub | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$25.00 | | Purchased At: | Nashbar | | Strengths: | Cheap, wide, foldable. | | Weaknesses: | I've gotten many pinch flats with these, that is until I amped up my PSI quite a bit, problem solved. Worst of all is that they corner TERRIBLY! They are very sloppy on hard packed dirt, not good on catwalks either. | | Bike Setup: | Diamodback Apex coverted to SS, Kona Project 2 fork. | | Bottom Line: | Not the best tire i've ever used. I would probably not recomend. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
John
a Cross Country Rider
from Murfreesboro, TN
Date Reviewed: September 30, 2006 | | Favoriate Trail: | Snook's Nose (Black Mountain) | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Purchased At: | 30.00 | | Strengths: | Decent all-around rear tire, nothing catastrophically wrong with it. Fairly light for its size. | | Weaknesses: | It's only decent....nothing more. | | Similar Products Used: | IRC Mythos (not so good), IRC EL Gato (great traction, heavy), Fire XC (great so far!) | | Bike Setup: | 2003 Jamis Dakar Expert | | Bottom Line: | This is a decent all-around tire for an all-mountain setup. Tire compound is very hard and dry, so it doesn't grip as well as stickier tires. I would recommend getting an IRC Trailbear, it is supposedly a newer version of this tire, although slightly heavier. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jay
a Weekend Warrior
from Broomfield, Colorado, USA
Date Reviewed: August 7, 2006 | | Favoriate Trail: | Apex Park/Enchanted Forest | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$25.00 | | Purchased At: | Joe's Bike Shop | | Strengths: | None | | Weaknesses: | Grip, durability | | Similar Products Used: | Bontrager, Continental Vertical Pro, Michelin | | Bike Setup: | Trek Fuel 90 | | Bottom Line: | I couldn't run these tires below 50 psi or I would get a pinch flat, I'm 165 lbs!? I tried a variety of different air pressures and it just wouldn't grip the dry trail on uphill climbs. After the first ride, all of the knobs had huge chunks out of them where it tried to grip but the rubber just came off. Yesterday was my 7th ride on them and a knob ripped all the way off leaving a big hole. I'm glad I finally get to replace it. I think anything would be an upgrade, but I'm going back to the Continental Vertical Pro. It may cost an extra $20, but instead of lasting 3 weeks it will last over a year and won't spin out when I try to climb over obstacles. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Big Daddy
a Cross Country Rider
from Colorado Springs, CO, USA
Date Reviewed: November 3, 2004 | | Duration Product Used: | More than 3 years | | Price Paid: |
$15.00 | | Purchased At: | Performance? | | Strengths: | Cheap, light, dependable | | Weaknesses: | None | | Bike Setup: | 4" travel full suspension | | Bottom Line: | The bottom line is: This tire does everything well...but nothing exceptionally. Kind of the same way my bike climbs better than a downhill bike, and downhills better than a hard tail.
This has been a perfect tire for the kind of riding I do (3-6 hour epics in far from civilization on every kind of terrain) and it has never failed me in thousands of miles of use. Mud, snow, ice, dry, hardpack, loose, whatever. It works well on all of them. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Chad
a Weekend Warrior
from Overland Park, Kansas, US
Date Reviewed: June 14, 2004 | | Favoriate Trail: | Anything dry enough to ride. | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$24.00 | | Purchased At: | Price Point | | Strengths: | Cheap!!!! Works as an excellent back tire. Hooks up great on roots and rocky climbs and good braking traction on the way down. | | Weaknesses: | Brakes loose into turns without warning. Dangerous as a front tire on hard pack. | | Similar Products Used: | IRC Mythos | | Bike Setup: | Azonic DS1, Rock Shox Psylo, Raceface, XT, Hayes, and Sun Rynolite | | Bottom Line: | This is a great tire when used as a rear tire. The tread seems to wear well and sheds mud well. I'm sure it would wear quickly on pavement due to the large tread blocks. Have found them to run best around 35 psi. for hard pack and loose rocky situations. Does not inspire confidense to go hard into a turn. A Trail Bear would run better for a front tire than these. A fine rear tire for the price. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
iain
a Weekend Warrior
from melbourne, Australia
Date Reviewed: June 7, 2004 | | Favoriate Trail: | anything with hills and dirt | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$15.00 | | Purchased At: | bicycle recyclers | | Strengths: | I bought the 2.25 version of these and I like this tyre no matter what else anyone says about it it grips good on anything but wet rocks and its light, oh and cheap. | | Weaknesses: | I suppose the sidewalls could be a bit thicker and it could be a bit wider. | | Similar Products Used: | maxxis high roller( didnt like much), Tioga Factory DH (awesome!!!!), lots more | | Bike Setup: | Haro V0 it is mostly stock but im going to change al the parts to make it better | | Bottom Line: | the bottom line is that i like these tyres, they grip good in all dirt even when screamin down hills and they brake good so I say these tires are great!!! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Luc
a Cross Country Rider
from Austin, TX
Date Reviewed: May 16, 2004 | | Favoriate Trail: | Mt. Norris, Vermont | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Purchased At: | Came with bike | | Strengths: | Relatively lightweight. | | Weaknesses: | Everything. Slips on the smallest of rocks. | | Similar Products Used: | Panaracer XC Fire 2.1 | | Bike Setup: | 2003 Fisher Suger 2+ | | Bottom Line: | This tire is garbage. I'm just getting back into the sport after a few years off and I recently made a move from the soil, peat moss covered trails of beautiful vermont to the mostly limestone laden trails of central texas. I purchased my fisher with these tires stock and lost all confidence. These things slip on even tiny rocks no matter what the pressure is (although running them at 30psi is a must).
I switched them out with panaracer XC 2.1 Fire's and the bike is like a different bike.
Dump these if you have them. They might be suitable if you're doing a morning commute to work, but that is about it! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Randog
a Cross Country Rider
from Little Italian island
Date Reviewed: May 5, 2004 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$13.00 | | Purchased At: | Ebay | | Strengths: | Cheap! Picked two of them up with a set of wheels on Ebay. | | Weaknesses: | Knobs chew easily on blacktop to and from trailhead.
| | Similar Products Used: | WTB Velociraptors, Motoraptors | | Bike Setup: | XT, Race Face, WTB, RhinoLites | | Bottom Line: | Not a bad tire for the price. Picked them up as spares since I have no local shop. Put over 300 miles with tire on the rear and it has performed ok. Paired up with Velociraptor on front, it is reasonably predictable in the hardpack and sand in my area. Holds well on rock and climbs well with pressure around 36-38 psi. Doesn't seem like it will last much longer as the blacktop to the trailhead is consuming it, so new Motoraptors 2.4's are next. If you need a tire just to putt around on, they are a great choice. If you like to defy gravity on a regular basis and like speed, look elsewhere. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
dirtdober
a Cross Country Rider
from thomaston,tx
Date Reviewed: January 17, 2004 | | Favoriate Trail: | rocky hill(tx),three sisters(co) | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Purchased At: | discovery cycles(austin) | | Strengths: | they hold air | | Weaknesses: | wash out on every turn | | Similar Products Used: | irc mythos | | Bike Setup: | '03 sugar 3+ irc mythos,time atac, wtb laser v | | Bottom Line: | these tires are dangerous. the knobs are too small and too far apart to hook up on anything. they wash out on every sandy corner. i know all tires have their weakness but these made me scared to take any corner with speed. i began to think i had bought the wrong bike until i switched them out with my old mythos. i didn't go to the emergency room but i did walk with a limp for a few days. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Rob P.
a Weekend Warrior
from Greenland, NH, USA
Date Reviewed: September 8, 2003 | | Favoriate Trail: | Single track down Garison hill | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$15.00 | | Purchased At: | Performance | | Strengths: | Wide enough, rust sidewall, Grippy(as BAck tire) | | Weaknesses: | None as a backtire, i wouldnt reccomend it as a front.. wears fast | | Similar Products Used: | Mythos XC | | Bike Setup: | CHris king Hub, Mawri Titanium spokes, Mavic 3.1 Tubeless disc specific rim | | Bottom Line: | Kick ass BAck tire, not front. Grips aweosme, looks good, not strong or wide enough for downhill, to havey for XC, perfect for us folks who do a little of everything. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Chris
a Cross Country Rider
from S. Cal
Date Reviewed: September 3, 2003 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Purchased At: | come with bike | | Strengths: | Looks beefy | | Weaknesses: | very poor handling | | Similar Products Used: | IRC Methos XC, Wtb | | Bike Setup: | Sugar 3+ | | Bottom Line: | Totally agree with the previous review. the difference is: I DID go into the emergency room! Front tire "slip" over a babyhead rock and cost me a dislocated elbow.
I didn't feel confident at all since the first day, but I tried to adjust the handle bar and cockpit instead, now I relized how much the tire can affect your ride and safety.
really loose on single track, rocky section, and sand. Even the cheapest Mathos can do way better than that. Dangerous tire!!!
| | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jeb
a Cross Country Rider
from Montana
Date Reviewed: August 26, 2003 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Strengths: | Size, cushy ride. | | Weaknesses: | Creepy handling as front tire. | | Similar Products Used: | IRC Mythos, Panaracer Fire XC Pro | | Bike Setup: | stock Fisher 3+ | | Bottom Line: | These were OEM on my Sugar...and I never did get comfortable with them. It always seemed like I was one rock away from the emergency room. At first, I thought I just needed to get used to my new bike. I tweaked the pressure, to no avail...the front always seemed like it could wash out at any moment.
As a rear tire they seem okay...and actually on hardpack they might work out. Also, they seem to offer good rim protection. But I just had too many spooky moments with these tires in the switchbacks and loose stuff etc...
Replaced them with P-racer Fire XC's and my confidence is back. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Steve
a Cross Country Rider
from Dublin
Date Reviewed: August 11, 2003 | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Strengths: | Tires look nice and ride well on hard pack. | | Weaknesses: | These tires slip laterally on sand and moon rock surfaces, more than other tires I've used. I was warned about this by the sales person when I bought my Sugar, and he was right. | | Similar Products Used: | Velociraptors. Panaracer Fire XC Pro | | Bike Setup: | '03 Sugar 3+ Disk | | Bottom Line: | I'm very disappointed in the cornering of this tire on soft terrain. The edge knobs seem spaced too far apart and the tire seems to roll up on the smooth area, even with the minimum 40 lbs. suggested by the side wall markings. They might do better in muddy conditions, where I suspect they won't accumlate gunk. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
jon
a
from OK
Date Reviewed: August 11, 2003 | | Favoriate Trail: | Greenleaf SP | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Purchased At: | 15 | | Strengths: | Price... Grippy rubber (soft), Sheds light mud fairly well, hooks up ok. | | Weaknesses: | Wearing out very fast in my home terrain which is pretty rocky. Doesn't seem to be nearly as wide as most 2.25-2.3 tires. | | Similar Products Used: | Trail Riding/all cond tires: Spec. Enduro 2.2, IRC Trailbear 2.25 (good tire), Conti. Vertical Pro 2.3 (great tire), Conti. Survival pro 2.3 (great tire), Tioga Factory DH 2.1, Kenda Gnarly 2.1, WTB Mutano 2.4. | | Bike Setup: | Giant AC Air | | Bottom Line: | Im using this as a rear tire for the dry season, I have it paired up with an IRC Trail Bear 2.25 which is turning ut to be a very nice tire.
Seems to be a solid tire... Knobs are looking a little ragged after only about a months worth of use. The rubber is soft and hooks up pretty well. Could be better in loose rock (compared to conti survival pro). Should be a little wider (compared to Trail Bear 2.25 which is much beefier).
I probably will not be buying a 2nd one of these, there are far better tires out there but, for now, this one is working fine, especially for $15. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
kenstar23
a Cross Country Rider
from Mill Creek, WA USA
Date Reviewed: June 18, 2003 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Strengths: | Relatively inexpensive | | Weaknesses: | These things do not work well in wet conditions. Every time I hit a wet root or rock I became Ricochet Rabbit. Very disconcerting to say the least when going downhill on technical terrain with a little speed going. Not the best for NW Washington conditions! | | Similar Products Used: | WTB Velociraptor, WTB Motoraptor | | Bike Setup: | These came with my bike --- Sugar 2+ Disk. Probably OK for SoCal riding. | | Bottom Line: | I thought the handling of my bike was very sketchy in wet conditions, but it was these tires. I swapped to a Motoraptor on the front and a Vittorio Kudu on the back which should be an improvement. However, I haven't tried them on this bike under typical NW Washington conditions.
I had Velociraptors on my previous bike and they worked well in the wet.
I probably could have gotten by by just replacing the front tire, but now I've got two rear spares! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
SkAb
a
from Hell
Date Reviewed: April 24, 2003 | | Favoriate Trail: | National trail, pheonix | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$29.00 | | Purchased At: | bike shop | | Strengths: | Wide, cheap, flexible, strong, relativly light and good on hardpack. | | Weaknesses: | lateral knobbies dont got bite. | | Similar Products Used: | Michiline, wtb, geax | | Bike Setup: | 2002 tomax six shooter, stock. | | Bottom Line: | This tire is good for hardpack and climbing, but has a tendancy to slide out from under me in sharp turns. the outer knobs just dont grip. It does ok on the rear if your like me and like your rear end to slide a little around sharp turns. Also, it isnt that great in the really soft stuff. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Derek
a Downhiller
from Fresno
Date Reviewed: July 15, 2002 | | Favoriate Trail: | 007 | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Strengths: | -Light weight
-Decent braking
-decent cornering
-almost 2.25 | | Weaknesses: | -Narrow for 2.25
-Knobs squirm a bit
-weak sidewalls | | Similar Products Used: | IRC kujo, Nokian gazzi dual, tioga factory 66 | | Bike Setup: | Old Trek Carbon | | Bottom Line: | Above average tire. I have tried better but since it is light and will do everything I need it works. It is pretty small for a 2.25 which hurts pinch flat protection. If you want an inexpensive tire you don't have to worry about and don't want too much weight, these are great. If you really push it is corners it might not do the job though. Needs fairly high pressure to not flat if you ride aggressive. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Mike Peacock
a Racer
from Edinburgh
Date Reviewed: July 8, 2002 | | Favoriate Trail: | Glentress black | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$20.00 | | Strengths: | Grip in a straight line | | Weaknesses: | Heavy, no break away warning. | | Bottom Line: | If your gonna be riding a muddy and not to technical route then these tyres are fine. But, if you want to chuck your bike around and slide around corners, these tyres a'int the best.
The main problem is their weight, my bike felt like a tank when I popped them on. Plus, I was hanging it around a corner expecting the tyres to gradually slid, the next thing I was on my arse - no warning - these tyre break away very suddenly. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
bart
a Cross Country Rider
from gent
Date Reviewed: May 21, 2002 | | Favoriate Trail: | jura / france | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Strengths: | allows me to do a standing steep climb, whereas with my favorite semislicks i had to remain seated to keep the traction at the back tire. | | Weaknesses: | heavy, lot of rolling resistance (expectable offcourse). braking in my disk brakes (30 stops/brake from 30km/h; as magura states in manual) already shows some damage at the knobs. that was probably also expectable | | Similar Products Used: | none, normally only ride semislicks. these irc's came with the bike | | Bike Setup: | scott strike cfx-200 / stock | | Bottom Line: | i have never known anything else than semislicks, except from the geax blades i keep for mud conditions. if u want a tire where u want a standing climb on even the steapest of slopes, this one is for u. for me i can live with the fact that with a semislick i can do the same slopes, but have to remain seated. to get the whole picture, i'd rather have a semi that inspires a little bit less confidence on climbs and descents (keep your eyes open and u'll be ok), and from the moment it comes down to pedalling hard on +/- flat, i'll catch up with the knobbies in no time and kick their arse 3x. (mud is another story offcourse, one doesn't survive for 5 mins against a good knobby with a semi).
for the fact that a lot of ppl love seriously profiled tires i won't flame them, just they are not my sort of tire. i get discouraged riding on flat hardpack for the xtreme rolling resistance they give (purely mental). i checked with a HR monitor, and i just can't seem to get over 130 bpm;-) my legs aren't used to getting that much resistance on flat conditions. i thk that light weight ppl (<150lb) haven't got much advantage by using this tractor tire. get some semi's for dry and knobbies for wet. they are cheap so i will not flame them (don't expect lightweight/durability from a cheap tire. u can replace these 3 x times for the price of a more expensive model) | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Duncan McCallum
a Weekend Warrior
from Edinbugrh
Date Reviewed: May 21, 2002 | | Favoriate Trail: | red/black glen tress | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Purchased At: | alpine bike | | Strengths: | They look great and climb in the soft stuff very well, seem tough for rocky down hills as well, inspire confidence on drop offs | | Weaknesses: | scary and unpredictable understeer on tight down hill switch backs, a bit of a bummer for my local trails as a screw up on these trail hurts, seem to be slow to respond ,and wander alarmingly on tree line single track | | Similar Products Used: | Tioga, but just bought Panaracer xc pro in an effort to avoid hitting something at speed | | Bike Setup: | Suger 2+ | | Bottom Line: | They came with the bike, so initailly i thought the handleing was a bit off, but now i realise the wander on the fast single track is due to very soft side knobbles on the tread giving way under presure, which while travelling fast on semi steep track is a predictable but not a very comfortable experiance. However on downhill switch backs they are dire, they feel like your stirring porridge, sludgy and they wander, then break away from under you without warning.
I will keep them for winter riding as they do climb in crud well and the extra rubber will provide some insulation | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Chris
a Cross Country Rider
from Mountain View, CA, USA
Date Reviewed: April 9, 2002 | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Purchased At: | Came stock on Sugar 3+ | | Strengths: | Resistance to pinch flats seems to be good. MSRP is ver reasianable. Average wear life (at least to this point) | | Weaknesses: | Not the lightest tire in the world. | | Similar Products Used: | Panaracer Fire XC Pro, Hutchinson Python Gold, WTB Mutanoraptor, WTB Nanoraptor | | Bike Setup: | Stock except for WTB Mutanoraptor on front. | | Bottom Line: | After the first couple of rides, I gave up on using the backcountry as a front tire. However, it makes an awesome back tire! Really one of the best climbers I've ever used. I've kep it on the back of my ride, and hung on to the spare as a reaplcement for when this one is done. Does well climbing in a variety of conditions. The terrain in Northern California ranges from dry / sandy to muddy, loamy black soil, rocks, and roots. All within a few miles of each other. I replaced the front with a Mutanoraptor, which is just o.k. I think I'll have to put a Python or FireXC Pro back up front. 3 chilis becaus its a horrible front, but a rippin back. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Brian Buell
a Racer
from Ft. Worth, Tx.
Date Reviewed: December 17, 2001 | | Favoriate Trail: | Any Trail | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Purchased At: | Bike Shop Employee | | Strengths: | Very Very wide, can run at lower pressure with no fear of pinch flat for the extra width, awesome in all conditions. | | Weaknesses: | none that i have found so far | | Similar Products Used: | You name it... I've probably tried it | | Bike Setup: | Stock '02 Gary Fisher Sugar 3+ Disc | | Bottom Line: | These tires ROCK! I thought the wider tires would be really slow and bulky in everything, funny thing is even gaining 6 lbs going to a Sugar 3+ from a 23lb. Sugar 1, I have been able to eliminate 3 minutes off my average time on my normal trails, Thanks to these tires I have no fear of loosing traction when I really need it to stick. Mud, Sand, Hard Tight corner, Tight Singletrack, This tire is all over these conditions like "Stink on S#%@". Until I wear these tires way down I won't change them, even when i do I'll probably throw on the same ones. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
shawn gagne
a Downhiller
from can
Date Reviewed: December 3, 2001 | | Favoriate Trail: | what kin find (stairs in this scenario) | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Purchased At: | used given to me (marin quake 5,0) | | Strengths: | kick butt man seem sticky light nice feel all speeds didnt notice much noiz too busy ridin maybe (they were freefor me!)i freerode these xc light little babies not huge drops or racing but i wasnt nice to them and theyre retired for winter to be used again next season the sidewalls arent as weak as one might think i ran them with obscenely low amounts of air pressure like 30 at best NO PINCHY!!!! they are real good for cement type steff (benches stairs rocks ledges) but not constant on road riding
| | Weaknesses: | none that are major they probubly wear kinda fast dont know yet no complaint about the sidewalls but if i could get my words in the door of irc ID say make the sidewalls like tiogas fat66 you can see threads coming off mine oh i actually havea complaint these tires are not wide ive got the 2.25's and they dont seem that big | | Similar Products Used: | gazz jr tioga dh lots of pana's older tioga other irc lots althogh my riding style changed tremendoulsy last year | | Bike Setup: | 98SPECIALIZEDfsrPRO jr.t,xtdiscfront,onx317mavic syncros xlt rear rim
no rear disc(no fffffn mount!) xtr/xt the good stuff alivio crank for the steel rings lol | | Bottom Line: | i weigh less than 120 so that dont contribute to killin tires butwhat i did this summer .......
i was determined to climb staircases (only made it 9 stair this season) obvoisly involved some learning curve thats why i ran them so low because they actually act like tubeless or so I think theyd fold around the stair and grip like MAD they only they woudlnt do this was when the suspension was reacting ,if youve ever done this you could imagine, i remember the sound my rims would make when id hit too hard and the tire would collapse to rim made this cool BONG sound then ehcoed through the spokes neat like said these tires took it and took it like they were meant to I LOVE EM cant wait till summer again to go stair bombin
worth it for lots of people i guess they are real cheap if your not over 180pds they should tackle anything for ya as long as yer somewhat sensible im NOT saying this i good dh tire but........
freeride in abnormal conditions tials possibly,BACKWOODS riding lol(these should be on the bear/deluxe) wicked man pick em up!!!!! sorry irc you get only 4 chili cuz these tires will obviously wear out faster than im gonna be willin to toss them the sidewalls are scary thin but not weak AND.... the fact that thay arent tubelss already | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
James Howery
a Downhiller
from prescott, AZ
Date Reviewed: September 9, 2001 | | Favoriate Trail: | 12moh/Northstar | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$34.00 | | Purchased At: | bikesmith, Prescott, AZ | | Strengths: | fairly hard(compared to racing tires that were on my hardtail), big knobs, good sidwall(again, comparing to my racing tires) | | Weaknesses: | doesn't seem to grip very well, and it is not very big either. I am comparing with a set of 2.0 Hutchinson Mosquitos that were on the bike before, they are a minimalist tire with real thin sidewalls and small knobs, however maybe it was the tread compound or the fact that the hutchinson had more "surface area" in contact with th trail, because it seemed to climb much better and not break away nearly as much. The Backcountry is also just barely as big as the 2.0 hutchinson, which has smaller knobs. This means that it has a slightly smaller "volume" or casing-width than the hutchinson as well. Preformance in loose sand is ok, not better than the Hutch either(there are a few good places with sand around here).
| | Similar Products Used: | V-raptors, tioga psychos, tioga DH, ritchey zmax, bonty superx, hutch mosquitos, conti vert pros, irc kujos, kenda kolossal, specialized umma gumma, and others from way back when. | | Bike Setup: | Mongoose NX hardtail. | | Bottom Line: | Overall I am semi-dissapointed, I bought it because I needed something that would stand up to abuse and the rocks better than my racing tires. The tire will do this, but its handling charactoristics don't blow me away, and the traction is lacking for some reason. The width is not super impressive either.
Possibly a good tire, but nothing that will blow you away. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
madcat
a Cross Country Rider
from sitborice, Czech Republic
Date Reviewed: March 6, 2001 | | Favoriate Trail: | kloboucky les | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$17.00 | | Purchased At: | hobby sport, Brno | | Strengths: | low price, great look, perfect performance in sand, mud and other soft conditions....also quite lightweight | | Weaknesses: | wears pretty quickly, not as fat as 2,25" should be, it's a hell riding them od roads......huuuuuge rolling resistance and very noisy.....people are looking into the skies, searching for some aircraft flying by......no! that's me riding by!!! :o)
btw: who would ride tires like these on roads anyway??? | | Similar Products Used: | bontrager jones | | Bike Setup: | schwinn mesa gs, shimano stx, rst 261 | | Bottom Line: | very good for the money you spend, but there are many better tires, for more bucks, of course....
if you ride on wood trails with lots of technical stuff, get them
if you are a racer or xc rider, avoid them, they won't satisfy you! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Sketchy
a Weekend Warrior
from Seattle
Date Reviewed: February 11, 2001 | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$15.00 | | Purchased At: | online | | Strengths: | Cheap | | Weaknesses: | Cheap | | Similar Products Used: | Specialzed, Conti, WTB | | Bike Setup: | 98 GT STS-DS, Marz Drop-off, Magura Cants, Gripshift/XTR | | Bottom Line: | Wallet lite and in desparate need of tires? Buy these. They are the best $15 tires in the world. Expect performance, grip, wear? Pass these buy.
In the wet or when the trail is tacky, these perform acceptably. In the dry and loose, I give these things a one word review: TEFLON. At speed, turn hard-over and you'll discover all sorts of flora and fauna on the outside of the corner you just blew out of.
Folks, this is a bargain tire, not a performance tire. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Nick Sparks
a Weekend Warrior
from Gloucestershire, England
Date Reviewed: January 29, 2001 | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$40.00 | | Purchased At: | Noah's Ark, Chalford | | Strengths: | well spaced chunky tread on a wide body | | Similar Products Used: | Mythos, Velociraptor | | Bike Setup: | '99 Attack Trail - mostly stock | | Bottom Line: | A good all round tyre for the muddy tracks around here. Clears much better than the velociraptor I used to have, and seems to have more grip especialliy on climbs (I used to get problems spinning out when the Velociraptor got clogged). So far tried this on snow & ice (nothing works on ice!) as well as wet mud and loose conditions. Great on leaf covered tracks, where the spread out tread lumps seem to dig through and grip much better than other tyres. I was thinking about a pure mud tyre, but these looked better for more varied trails, and so far they've been great. I got the steels - the weight saving of kevlar would be more than balanced by an extra couple of pints the night before.
Ideal for UK winter with lots of mud and leaves on the trails, and fairly cheap for the UK - £25 a pair for steel. Don't know yet how they'll last, but no sign of wear after about 70 miles | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Luke Hyslop
a Racer
from New Zealand
Date Reviewed: January 25, 2001 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$25.00 | | Purchased At: | Local shop | | Strengths: | Extremely good in mud, soft clay and sand - anything it can dig itself into. Light for its size (2.25) | | Weaknesses: | A shocker on pavement or anything hard - not enough surface area. Seems to be wearing fairly fast. | | Similar Products Used: | Tioga Psychos, Panaracer fire XC 1.8, Verdistein S-LICKS. | | Bike Setup: | Got the 2.25 model on the front. | | Bottom Line: | Great for most terrain. Not ideal for hard surfaces. Is a good general purpose tyre. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Flip Z-Bird
a Weekend Warrior
from Tempe, Az.
Date Reviewed: January 25, 2001 | | Favoriate Trail: | What ever one I pick to ride. | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$25.00 | | Purchased At: | Local "Aventure" Bike shop | | Strengths: | This is a great front tire I got the 2.1 Kev. Backcountry tire it is light and sticks to the sand and rocky trails GREAT! Much better then my old Continental 2.3 Virtical Pro that I was riding? | | Weaknesses: | I did not find out about the IRC Backcountry before I paid $50 for the Conti's. | | Similar Products Used: | You name it? | | Bike Setup: | Two wheels on a F/S bike that really goes fast down the wild trails. Yee Ha! | | Bottom Line: | For riding in Arizonia the IRC Backcountry 2.1 Kev. in the front and a IRC Mythosxc 2,1 Kev. Rear tire is the best set up that I have found for do it all (out of bounds) riding. They hooked up so much better in the sand and rocks then my old tires ever did? Try them and you will give them the "5" little flamin' hot Chilies too! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
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