TECH: SUMMER TYRES

Just got some fresh tyres through from Kenda which would have proved great on the weekend. Thanks to the great British weather, today they are renderred useless.

Still, they look nice and weigh in light. First up is a Karma 1.95 L3RPRO at 450grams. Then there is the Small Block 8 at 460grams. That tyre really won't see the bike for at least two weeks!

Full details, pics and real reviews to come as soon it dries out and it is sensible to mount these babies up!

TECH: TYRE TESTING 2

After the first instalment, tyre testing has continued. First an update on the Blue Groove. While this is the front tyre of choice on hard surfaces like rock and hardpack it performs poorly on anything loose, letting go spectacularly without warning. And with that, I present to you tyre testing part two.



The Kenda Nevegal Stick-E L3RPRO 1.95 is another condition-specific tyre. As always the Nevegal was used on a Stan's ZTR Olympic rim with yellow tape and Stan's sealant. It aired up fine using a track pump and sealed very well with many less leaks in the sidewall than the Blue Groove. You can ride these tyres from the box, rather than waiting a couple of days.

A central line of ramped knobs keeps rolling respectable, while the outer rows, supported by spider webs on the carcass, resemble a cutdown mud tyre. This design is optimum for riding in loose, dry conditions - if you can pick up the trail surface you are riding on, then this is the tyre for you.

Where the Blue Groove let go, the more substantial Nevegal hooked up in the turns. Roots were handled without problem thanks to that mellow central pattern and soft compound rubber.

The downsides? This tyre is 554g, 100g more than a Blue Groove. It won't enjoy mud - while able to go through the stuff with some drifting grip is uninspiring because of the central ramped tread. Cutting this line would improve things if you were racing on a track where a significant portion was muddy. My advice would be to run a far more aggressive tyre if you're in a mudbath though. Finally, for racing I'm not mounting this tread on the back anytime soon. It is heavy and slow rolling and generally you can get away with the back wheel getting wild.

Overall, this tyre excells on the front in anything dry and loose, especially loam and copes great with roots too. You'll see us with this tyre at the Midlands XC, Gorrick and Southern XC venues.

Once we're done reviewing the whole Kenda range we'll post a total tyre guide for UK racing. Still to come are tests on the Small Block 8, Karma and Short Tracker.

TECH: TOP TIPS FROM KENDA

Fresh from the factory - check out the blog of our tyre sponsor here and find out insider secrets about the whole Kenda range. Everything from ride characteristics through to tyre cutting is covered with alot more to come.

This year we are all using the Kenda range and getting to grips with a tyre to suit every condition. Soon there will be an update on the Blue Groove Stick-E L3RPRO 2.0, as reviewed earlier and a first look at the Nevegal Stick-E L3RPRO 1.95. Another consignment containing the Small Block 8 and Karma tyres is on the way so before the season is out I'll be sure to detail all of the strengths and weaknesses of each tyre, making your choice at the counter that bit easier.

If you need your tyre fix now, go to Kenda UK.

TECH: TYRE TESTING

This weekend was spent testing at Afan, riding hard and seeing if my new front tyre - the Kenda Blue Groove Stick-E L3RPRO 2.0 - was any good.

I'd earlier aired it up, tubeless with yellow tape, on my Stan's Olympic Rim and was excited to see what it could do so I tested the Blue Groove on some loamy singeltrack. It performed well, nothing spectacular but nothing scary either. A good start.

I had my reservations before the Afan weekender though. My main concerns were:

• How would a 445g tyre that had thin and porous sidewalls (it took a week to seal, but was easy to get seated with a track pump) hold air on some of the roughest and fastest singletrack around?
• Would the tyre burp and would the sidewalls hold out against rock scuffing?
• Due to the large gap between centre and outer knobs, would there be a significant fall off in traction when leaning the tyre into turns?

Some quite serious questions to be levelled then! Conditions at Afan were to be very favourable though and perfect for the recommended use of a Blue Groove. With only a few wet sections almost the entire trail network was dry and dusty. The rocky stretches were hardpack but there were also a good amount of sandy and loose over hardpack sections. Running at 20psi there was only one moment of panic as I launched a lazy two wheel drifter around a 20mph corner...everywhere else the tyre did great with no worries. There were alot of heavy hits and sidewall scrapers but no damage to the tyre or burping.

I think this could be the front tyre of choice for the race season - I have certainly been impressed despite its less than confidence inspring appearance and stats. The soft compund rubber does the business and there is no wear so far to the tyre after 8 hours of heavy abuse. It should be OK in light mud as well due to the widely spaced pattern and biger side knobs but I will report on that just as soon as I have to ride my bike through a swamp. For now though this tread is staying put.

Get yours from your local Kenda stockist.

TECH Get Your Groove On

Managed to air up my first Kenda tyre today ready for the new season. I have decided that the Blue Groove 2.0 is the choice for spring racing with a good directional tread. Weighing only 446g there is no point in risking a summer tread which will be compromised in the sand or loamy forest conditions you are likely to face at Gorrick events or the first National in Sherwood Forest. The only downside is a little compromised rolling.

Despite being a standard tyre, this example fitted well on a Stan's Olympic rim with just yellow tape. A dash of sealant inside and around the bead was all it needed to seat with a track pump. At first there were alot of sidewall leaks but a quick ride on the local woodland circuit and rubbing some mud onto the bead and sidewall helped the Stan's dry out.

Next I have to decide on a rear tyre...

TECH Team Kit

Thanks to our generous sponsors for 2009 we're currently getting our first wave of team kit. Coming soon are jerseys and shorts in a design like this...looks pretty cool.


But first to arrive ready for a winter of hard training were lights from Ay Up. The pics really don't do their size justice - they really are tiny compared to other systems and don't lack any punch. Just ask team rider Martyn Brookes who rode them to several King of the Night victories in 2008 and is sure to go for another few in 09.

Next to arrive was a large box from Moore Large who are providing Lake shoes and Kenda tyres along with some other stuff as the year progresses.


First up are the Lake MX330c mountain bike race shoes. These are full on pimp white, mega stiff and comfy thanks to the Boa system. No more velcro straps or heel slip as the Boa goes completely around the heel cup holding your foot in place. The only shame will be getting these covered in muck!


However, for those very occasions we also have the Lake MX140 boots. In a more suitable black, with a high cuff and Event waterproof and breathable fabric it looks like these are the shoe of choice for any 24 hour in the British summer.


Oh, and on the note of the British summer it is just as well Kenda fired through some tyres. Our first batch includes a pair of Nevegal 1.95, which despite a very deep and agressive tread pattern come in at 556g on my scale. The lighter Blue Groove 2.0 slices another 110g from that but forgoes the deep tread in favour of a lesser knob. The sides are still heavily loaded though and both treads are a good width.


Apparantly tyres for dry conditions are coming later (those guys at Kenda are very pessimistic!) We'll post our thoughts on how each tread rides, just as soon as we get them mounted up and rolling.