Grits, Hero Dirt, and Fresh Rubber: 2017 Maxxis Appalachian Summit 27

The only thing better than waking up to the comfort of a home-style, southern breakfast, is being able to roll straight from a cabin to the trails. This past weekend, Maxxis Tires invited us to their neck of the woods for a weekend mountain bike retreat at their local getaway, Mulberry Gap. Once there, we tested out some of the latest tire sizes and offerings on a selection of Georgia’s finest singletrack.

- Photos and story by Dylan Stucki

With the bike industry is aimlessly attempting to make wheel and tire advances in all sorts of different directions, Maxxis has had their hands full trying to keep up with OEM and consumer demand. Their latest product release includes tubeless ready DH casing tires, more options in their WT (Wide Trail) category with some 2.6-inch offerings, a brand new tubeless BMX tire, as well as a few studded options for those icy winter days. With these new offerings, there are a lot of new exciting choices going into the season.

Tubeless Downhill Rubber

Possibly one of the most exciting new products from Maxxis is the new Tubeless Ready DH casing options. It’s no secret that many riders have been using their favorite Maxxis DH treads tubeless for some time now, so with demand increasing from World Cup athletes, Maxxis now offers their renowned Minion DHF, Minion DHR II, and Shorty treads ready for tubeless use. It is likely we’ll see this technology move on to other treads, including the High Roller II, in the near future.

The tire performed well in the variety of conditions on the Bear Creek trail, feeling similar in weight and ride quality as the 2.3 I am used to.

Aboard a Pivot Switchblade loaner, the first few shuttles were spent getting to know the terrain and getting my legs back after a day of travel. I chose the ride the 29-inch setup first as it was most similar to my everyday ride. After having a bit of time with the bike underneath me, I began to really push the 2.5 Minion DHF that was up front. The traction was on par with the 2.3 Minion DHF that is normally fitted to the front of my bike, but I did feel like the ride was a little bit harsh. After some tweaking to the air pressure in the tire, I was able to get the right balance between compliance and overall support. This was about 2.5psi less than I typically ride in my 2.3’s on a similar width rim. The tire performed well in the variety of conditions on the Bear Creek trail, feeling similar in weight and ride quality as the 2.3 I am used to.

The following day, I opted to switch over to the 27.5 plus wheels and tires to get a direct comparison between the two setups on the same bike. This time the bike featured a 3.0 High Roller II up front and a 2.8 Rekon with the latest re-enforced Silk Shield construction on the rear. My initial impression was that the plus setup seemed to drop the bottom bracket by a noticeable margin as I smashed the crank in scenarios I hadn’t the day before. The steering was noticeably more sluggish and didn’t have the same snap to it as the 29er setup. Once I grew more comfortable with the feel of the bike with the plus tires, I began to push them harder and harder. It seemed very hard to find the right tire pressure and the perfect balance - with too much air the tires felt bouncy like a basketball, and with not quite enough air, the casing would roll in high-force corners and g-outs. The traction was really impressive in looser climbing conditions, and I found I could just get comfortable and grind away.

Unfortunately, this test was relatively short, just over two days time. The plus tires did give me confidence once I found an ideal pressure and I would start to enjoy their advantages more. Plus is certainly not for all riders, so I am looking forward to trying out some 2.6 Wide Trail tires when they become available.

For more info, visit www.maxxis.com