I know this question usually crops up just before a polaris, but as I have no experience of this area, any recommendations on tyre selection are gratefully received.

Thanks - IanB

I did the Alston event on Continental Twisters, a semi(ish) slick (but not as semi slick as the Conti Double Fighter) which were good but a little sketchy on some of the faster descents, had it been wet, I think I would have had problems.

I am looking for an alternative for the Dales and had thought of Continental Cross Country (1.5") as these seem to be well favoured amongst Polaris regulars. Unfortunately I have not been able to locate any for sale in this neck of the woods.

Funnily enough I had problems with valves pulling out of the tube on my front wheel last week (twice on the way to work), and thought it might be the tyre creeping on the rim. As the tyre was old and worn I decided to replace it and when I eventually got to work, I went into the local branch of Halfrauds (no time to get to a real bike shop) and the only thing resembling a decent tyre was a Continental Explorer, sort of one step up from the Twister in its chunkyness, this turned out to be only slightly better off road and the centre blocks are widely spaced so not the smoothest on the tarmac.

Funnily enough the tyre creep problem seems to be continuing, so suspecting the rim itself I dug around in the loft space above the garage this weekend for an old spare wheel which is shod with a real antique! A Michelin "Hot" circa 1992, a 1.7"(?) with large five sided tread blocks. I seem to recall that I did the Autumn '93 Polaris (also in the Yorkshire Dales) on a pair of these and they do seem to be a good compromise between on road speed/smoothness and off road grip and surprisingly this example has not suffered from the ravages of time (presumably through having been stored in the dark) I'll have to see if I still have the other one!

Sorry Ian that this is most probably no help at all but I think that the Conti Cross Country would still be my choice if I can find some.

X Country available from
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/

Pump them up good and hard though

Thanks for that!

I also did the Alston jobby,i used paner racer XC pro's i know big knobbies but seemed to roll alright, fast & stuck well.
But for this one i'm gonna experiment with a mix of XC pro on the back panaracer trailracker on the front,hope i've helped!

I used the Panaracer XC pros in 1.8, back and front, in Alston and will do the same for this one. I generally run them at 60psi which may seem a bit hard but they bite through the surface well and don't pinch puncture easily.It also makes them faster on the road sections

Most of the Dales events I've done have involved quite a few stony tracks. I don't like the Conti XC on rocks and they also have a habit of splitting / cutting quite easily (in my experience anyway). If I was riding this event I'd probably go for Panaracer Fire XC Pro 1.8 and / or Panaracer Trailblaster 1.8. XC Pro is a bit more knobbly so slightly better if it's wet and muddy.

I used the Conti explorer on the back and an escape on the front at Alston ,they were pretty good if you pump em up a bit plenty of grip and corner well at speed. A bit narrower that the 2.1 they say they are. Fast though.

Thanks for the info chaps. The consensus seems to be go for something for stoney ground and something fast. I have some Fire XC's in my tyre collection, so may give them a go. Hopefully we'll have some nice dry weather, as I don't really like them in wet conditions. FWIW, I used Nokian NBX at Alston, and they were great - they eat rocks for beakfast.

Tried out my vintage michelin riding to work yesterday, a bit too slippery in the mud methinks! So time to think again.

I have been advised that the Specialized Enduro Pro might fit the bill as a fairly fast tyre that will stand up to rocky tracks. Good news if this is the case as my local bike shop is a Specialized dealer.

Has anyone used these? What do you think of them?

Tony, Enduro Pro's are my other option for the dales. They are great in mud and on hardpack (not sure how they do both), and role well on tarmac. Be warned though that that aren't so hot for cornering on wet tarmac. The knobbles are quite spaced, but have good depth. Lightish at 450g each. I run them at 45-50psi (for my 65kg weight) and don't have any problems with pinch puctures.

Ian

Got a ride on a friends bike yesterday shod with Enduro Sports (i.e. the wire bead version) and guess what, I liked them a lot.

As a result I am now the owner of a pair of Enduro Pro's! Went out for a couple of hours this morning and I agree, they roll well on the road, grip well in the mud, I can't say I had any problem on the tarmac when it bucketed it down for the last 20 minutes and at 2.2" they have a nice big air chamber to ward of pinch punctures.

The only thing I would say is they seem very noisy on tarmac but then maybe I've been riding on semi slicks for too long?

I'm glad your Enduro Pros are OK, because the tyre I was describing was the Extreme Pro - a 1.7" mud/hardpack tyre with a tendency to wash out if cornered hard on wet tarmac...
Either way, I reckon you can't go far wrong with Specialized tyres, even if they do all have similar names :)

Ian,
Conti Explorer on the front Twister on the rear you know it makes sense. Its what I used last year for spring and autumn polaris as well as the SSMM and SITS solo 24hrs.
Saying that I'm trying the new conti vapour on the back this time.
See you in yorkshire, I've not been doing enough riding and JC's been doing to much training for the ssmm.

It's all going to be a bit academic boys as the ground will be frozen and covered with snow!
The hills are white again this morning.
Perhaps XC skis would be a better option.
You really are a sad lot discussing tyres but it makes interesting reading to a guy who is still using Specialized Ground Controls as originally fitted to my Custom Orange O. Those were the days.

Graham, if only you'd said about the snow earlier then I'd have got some of these:

http://www.nokian.com/bike/images/w240.jpg

:)

Come on Graham you're talking to the man who dug out a pair of circa 1992 Michelin Hots with a view to using them! Mind you, that IS why I had to go and get some new tyres

Of course if you want to create a retro class, I'm all ready...

I still have my veteran of the 1991 to 1993 Polaris' in the Garage:

Cannondale SM1000 with pepperoni forks (ouch), 21 speed XT with thumb-shifters of course, Ritchy Logic canti's, cut down Taperlite bars etc etc.

I can even rustle up a pair of Ground Controls, although they almost double the weight of the bike! Then again how about some Onza Porcupines?

Now where can I get my hands on some Axo Pony's, an Etto helmet or a Bula hat!!!

Eee by gum, they don't make bikes like they used to.

Apologies to anyone who got into mountain bikes post 1995 who most probably hasn't got a clue what we are on about.

OK see separate thread re retro-Polaris category

Not knowing the area at all.
Type of rock: Smooth limestone? Lose gritstone? Sharp slate?
Field boundries. Thorny hedges? Dry stone walls?
Long moorland crossings (track, bog)(ride, carry)? Long road sections?
These factors could influence my tyre choice (as well as personal preferences and riding style).
Any answers out there from the locals?
Thanks

From my limited experience of the Polaris I would say that the best kind of tyres are going to be something like 'Crossroads' which have a central hard ridge - if they are properly inflated, when on the road, you run on the central ridge and waste little energy in tyre deformation/noise. I reckon you spend at least 2/3 of your time on the road and time savings can be significant when compared with knobblies. Ever seen any cyclo-cross?

I went up for a short recce ride last weekend from Leyburn. Weather was foul, the wind more than anything was a bugger because the tops of the hills are flat and wide and there's little shelter. Did a bit of off-road but I tend to agree with Mr Dodd's comments about the majority of the riding being on-road at the Polaris. Being a knobbly tire fan that's what I always ride. I've some new Panaracer Fire XC Pro (2.1) F&R and they performed admirably.

Terrain: In the bottoms of the dales, nice and muddy but not gloopy, you can make reasonable progress through it. Up on the tops loose gritstone or grassy depending on the track. The grass was a problem last weekend as it tended to be muddy underneath leading to many wheelspinning problems. Gritstone not a problem at all.