Joined
·
4,214 Posts
I had a chance to test the Maxxis Ardent last saturday. I must admit that I was really skeptical that this tire was going to work for me. It looked a little on the spindly side and the knobbage seems a bit sparse (like the hair on me head).
First things, first...I weighed one of the two samples that I received.
The one (of two) that I mounted up weighed in at 760 grams. The tire that I was testing prior to this was a 1000 gram WTB Stout. That tire has nice, meaty , gooey, soft knobs. But, the rolling resistance was killing me. And the weight was a bit excessive.
My "go to" tire on the rear, has been the Panaracer Rampage. It's got decent fairly aggressive knobs, especially on the sides and the weight is pretty respectable - about 710 grams. Decent rolling resistance + good overall sidewall burliness.
Anyway.. I mounted up the Ardent with a tube. With nothing to base it on..just a gut feeling...I felt that testing it tubeless might end up being disasterous. So, I played it safe and ran a normal duty 700cc tube, mounted on a tubeless Stan's Flow rim. I ran my normal 29/30 PSI. Normally, I run the Panaracer tubeless, "Stanitized".
The first thing I notice is how fast the Ardent rolls. Our favorite local ride starts with a long climb of 12 miles rocky, loose terrain. Anything from loose,chunky shale, rock garden stuff... to talcum powder and kitty litter on top of hardpack. There's a long 3.5 mile stretch of asphalt thrown in, that is brutally steep (21 degrees) in spots.
So, the low rolling resistance was immedietely appreciated. But, how would it stack up on the trialsy boulders and stunts that I like to play on? Not to mention, how was it going to behave once we started desending and got into the chunky rock gardens down below?
The thing that kept resonating with me, all day, was how fast this tire is. It accelerates quickly. When I felt like just sitting, recovering, and cruising along..the bike seemed to keep it's momentum. Where it really paid me dividends- was when I need to accelerate quickly, with a short run-in, to get up onto a boulder or stunt.
Despite the modest knob height all around, this tire had a decent grip to it. I suspect that it may not be the hot setup (for me) on some of the steeper, loose climbs once it begins to show some wear and loses it's sharp edges. It was borderline as it was, on the really steep, loose stuff.
Personally , I'd like to see a bit more height or meat (or both) on the center and side knobs. Perhaps a bit more width on the casing? 50/75 grams of additional rubber won't hurt this thing.
I don't know if I'll test it on the front or not..I probably should to give it a fair shake. But, with a full rigid bike I have to go with a high volume front tire or else my hands and arms take a beating. The WTB WeirWolf is the only tire that I've found that works for me(in that regard).
I felt less beatup and fatigued at the end of the day with this tire. Probably because I wasn't battling the high rolling resistance of that Stout all day long. I was quite surprised at how well it worked all around. Again..I'd like to see a bit more meat on it..but, overall Maxxis has a real solid offering with this rubber.
I have no idea how it works in wet or muddy conditions...we won't see rain for a long time.
I'll get a second ride on it, tomorrow.
https://s289.photobucket.com/flash/player.swf?file=https://vid289.photobucket.com/albums/ll228/Aquaholic2008/logrollclean.flv
First things, first...I weighed one of the two samples that I received.
The one (of two) that I mounted up weighed in at 760 grams. The tire that I was testing prior to this was a 1000 gram WTB Stout. That tire has nice, meaty , gooey, soft knobs. But, the rolling resistance was killing me. And the weight was a bit excessive.
My "go to" tire on the rear, has been the Panaracer Rampage. It's got decent fairly aggressive knobs, especially on the sides and the weight is pretty respectable - about 710 grams. Decent rolling resistance + good overall sidewall burliness.
Anyway.. I mounted up the Ardent with a tube. With nothing to base it on..just a gut feeling...I felt that testing it tubeless might end up being disasterous. So, I played it safe and ran a normal duty 700cc tube, mounted on a tubeless Stan's Flow rim. I ran my normal 29/30 PSI. Normally, I run the Panaracer tubeless, "Stanitized".
The first thing I notice is how fast the Ardent rolls. Our favorite local ride starts with a long climb of 12 miles rocky, loose terrain. Anything from loose,chunky shale, rock garden stuff... to talcum powder and kitty litter on top of hardpack. There's a long 3.5 mile stretch of asphalt thrown in, that is brutally steep (21 degrees) in spots.
So, the low rolling resistance was immedietely appreciated. But, how would it stack up on the trialsy boulders and stunts that I like to play on? Not to mention, how was it going to behave once we started desending and got into the chunky rock gardens down below?
The thing that kept resonating with me, all day, was how fast this tire is. It accelerates quickly. When I felt like just sitting, recovering, and cruising along..the bike seemed to keep it's momentum. Where it really paid me dividends- was when I need to accelerate quickly, with a short run-in, to get up onto a boulder or stunt.
Despite the modest knob height all around, this tire had a decent grip to it. I suspect that it may not be the hot setup (for me) on some of the steeper, loose climbs once it begins to show some wear and loses it's sharp edges. It was borderline as it was, on the really steep, loose stuff.
Personally , I'd like to see a bit more height or meat (or both) on the center and side knobs. Perhaps a bit more width on the casing? 50/75 grams of additional rubber won't hurt this thing.
I don't know if I'll test it on the front or not..I probably should to give it a fair shake. But, with a full rigid bike I have to go with a high volume front tire or else my hands and arms take a beating. The WTB WeirWolf is the only tire that I've found that works for me(in that regard).
I felt less beatup and fatigued at the end of the day with this tire. Probably because I wasn't battling the high rolling resistance of that Stout all day long. I was quite surprised at how well it worked all around. Again..I'd like to see a bit more meat on it..but, overall Maxxis has a real solid offering with this rubber.
I have no idea how it works in wet or muddy conditions...we won't see rain for a long time.
I'll get a second ride on it, tomorrow.
https://s289.photobucket.com/flash/player.swf?file=https://vid289.photobucket.com/albums/ll228/Aquaholic2008/logrollclean.flv
