Melanie,
At the Keystone seminar, you discussed issues of where to cut weight on the bike, and you said the tires would be one of the most important because of the rolling weight.
I'll be looking to get some new tires on my mtn bike soon, is there a brand I should look for? Perhaps a certain weight to be below? I'm not looking to spend a fortune, but I'd like to get something decent, and I'll probably stick with tubes.
Any suggestions?

Wheels are important because rolling weight is bad. However, when choosing tires, you need to consider where you will be riding them.

If you would like to continue using tubes, you will not be able to use that light a tire. A lighter tire will not protect you from pinch flatting, so if the course you are riding is fast and rocky, you might run into trouble.

I have been riding Maxxis tires for two years and love them. They have a lot of options. My favorite is the Larson. If you are going to have one tire for Xterra, that is a good one, as is the Mimo. I won Temecula on the Ranchero tires and rode the Ignitor in Richmond.

All of those tires are light. Once you get into Tubeless tires, the weight is a bit higher but they have a stronger sidewall. I will ride the Tubeless UST tires in Hawaii because the course is so rocky and full of thorns. Normally I ride regular tires with Stans because it is lighter.

For Hawaii I am going to ride Larson UST tires with Stans.

Good luck!

1) What tires are you racing at Tahoe?
2) Will the Rancheros; run tubeless with Stans, work in Hawaii?

I am running MiMOs front and rear tubeless with Stans for Tahoe as it stands right now. I am here rigorously testing the set up to make sure it is a good choice.

The Ranchero would work in Hawaii, Danelle rode that on the front last year and liked it. The only time I don't like that tire is in wet conditions because that strip up the middle can be a problem on slippery roots. I am not choosing that one because I want to run UST tires because they have stronger sidewalls and thus have a bit more safety on the rocks and in the thorns. Heavier but safer... similar to what I rode in Keystone when it is all on the line.

Thanks for the info. I used Pythons last year at Tahoe, so I will stick with that since they worked well for me. This year however I will run them tubeless. Since this is my first year qualifying for Hawaii, I am still not sure about what to race out there. A pro MTBiker and friend of ours, Jason Sager, suggested the Rancheros for Hawaii.....but I don't think he has ever been on the Xterra race course. Which UST would you suggest?

Thanks,
Christiane

..sorry, I was not loggd in yet.